500 places for food & wine lovers
Frommer’s guides are always interesting and well-researched, and 500 places for food & wine lovers is no exception.
This guide allows the traveller to not just access a bunch of restaurant reviews and find vineyard tours, but to make food and wine the centre of an adventurous experience.
Find a gourmet specialty shop on every continent—such as the four-storey Peck Market in Milan or a Dutch cheese museum.
If you want white truffles, smoked eel or Chicago’s best hotdog, it’s all in here. This guide is elegant, but never snobby, as the broadest range of palates will be fully entertained by its contents.
I would have been happier if the index were expanded. I went to look up “cheese” to see where I could travel for the next six months, but the index is not set up that way.
There are actually two indexes—one by region, which is great; and the alphabetical index.
I get the sense that 500 places for food & wine lovers is more geared toward those who have decided which region to visit and will allow them an in-depth epicurean journey. Who plans their trip by cheese, anyway?
If you do want to plan by holiday time, check out the Calendar of Food Fairs & Festivals appendix. From ice wine festivals in January to corn festivals in August, this nice addition will draw you to regional delights at the height of their season.
The most amazing thing about this guide is how vast it is. It covers the entire world, and everything from markets and cooking schools to cookbooks and cookbook stores, to signature dishes, desserts, wine, spirits, coffee and tea.
500 places for food & wine lovers is wonderfully researched, vividly written and an absolute adventure.
Camping Washington
Staying in Washington by RV and tent
If you have ever unknowingly parked on private property, or reluctantly made do with a campsite that had no showers or picnic tables, this convenient guidebook will make your next trip more enjoyable.
Camping Washington by Ron C. Judd gives an at-a-glance overview of more than 500 campgrounds in the state of Washington. The book is organized by region, so you don’t have to flip too far if you are exploring the Cascade region, for example.
Each campground listing gives a star rating, tells how many RV and tent sites are available, with what kind of hook-ups, gives a phone number for reservations and a detailed description. Not only are you given practical information, but interesting history and details on plants and animals in the area.
Most pages have a black and white photo, and the book includes a colour photo section in the beginning.
The index is helpful if you come across a place and want to read up on it before you check in—or if you are visiting an attraction and want to find a place to camp nearby.
There is also an index that lists by rating, so that if you want to enjoy the best of camping every day—or you want to stick to a budget, the information you need is at a glance.
Now you can focus on the fun activities, natural wonders and attractions in one of America’s most wild and beautiful states.
The Owl and the Woodpecker
Into the lives of birds
The Owl and the Woodpecker, written and photographed by Paul Bannick and published by The Mountaineers Books, gives a vivid glimpse into the lives of North American owls and woodpeckers.
The photography depicts birds, such as northern pygmy owls preening one another after mating, a northern hawk-owl feeding a vole to his fledgling and a hairy woodpecker excavating a nesting cavity in an aspen tree. Bannick’s masterful photography offers intimate insight into the lives of these birds.
The main body of this book is organized by region, which is helpful for travelling birders. Another interesting aspect is the inclusion of birds that have symbiotic relationships with woodpeckers and owls, such as western bluebirds that nest in cavities excavated by woodpeckers.
One appendix to The Owl and the Woodpecker is a concise field guide that describes each bird, describes its habitat and distribution—and offers information on nesting and other interesting facts.
My favourite appendix to this book is a CD of bird calls and drumming by Martyn Stewart that can be loaded onto your iPod. This serves as a great mobile resource for birders who differentiate between visually similar species by studying habits and listening to calls.
The index includes each species of bird, as well as regions and tree species. Including the tree species is a great way to help naturalists and birders orient by habitat.
While this book is a coffee table book and not a field guide, it is an excellent educational resource and source of enjoyment for birders. Anyone who has been challenged to imagine bird calls from the descriptions offered in Audubon’s guides will be thrilled by the fine recordings on the CD.
I highly recommended this book.
Living in the Shadow of Fisher Peak
The life and times of Jack Fisher
This engaging historical novel was written by local publisher and author Keith Powell. It tells a story of the riveting adventures had by Jack Fisher, the prospector for whom Fisher Peak was named.
In his quest for gold, 16-year-old Fisher (originally from Philadelphia) set off across the Midwest to improve his quality of life and find wealth in California. His tireless drive to emerge from a life of poverty led him eventually to Wild Horse Creek in Kootenay country, attesting to the motivation and courage of this young man. Readers will empathize with the ups and downs endured throughout Fisher’s extensive trek, where his triumphant success later took a tragic turn for the worse.
In reading a novel such as this, one gets a sense of the hardships endured in the 1800s by those who were struck with “gold fever,” and refused to give up on their dreams. It is a truly inspiring read, and it's clear that there was significant historical research put into its creation. The tale is woven in an entertaining manner, one which any reader can relate to and enjoy.
Vancouver & Whistler day by day
Organize your time so you can get the most out of your visit
This guidebook packs a lot of information and visuals into a purse-sized package.
For those who want to make every second count, the first section offers 13 Favourite Moments—suggestions for brief experiences, such as walking the Stanley Park seawall or viewing kites at Vanier Park.
The majority of the guidebook is presented in The Best sections, such as The Best Shopping and The Best Day Trips and Excursions. These sections cover all of the basics—food and lodging—and fun stuff, like entertainment options and neighbourhood walks.
Every single page has vivid full-colour photos. Numerous sidebars give helpful and interesting background information, such as a profile of Haida artist, Bill Reid.
Whistler gets its own section, which features winter and summer activities, nightlife and shopping, as well as such basic information as food and lodging.
Vancouver & Whistler Day by Day also has great map resources. The front cover folds out into two maps—a 1:1,000,000 scale map of the Lower Mainland, and a 1:12,500 scale street map of Central Vancouver. In addition, the back cover has a plastic pouch inside with a more detailed map—this one includes Whistler.
Like many Frommer’s guides, this one is subjective and includes a lot of personality and opinion. Luckily, the author, Matt Hannafin, seems like a relatable sort, whose recommendations and mild criticisms are justified by stated reasoning. This guidebook feels trustworthy, and is a well-organized, enjoyable resource.
Day Trips From Edmonton
Galat’s guidebook enriches the experience of those travelling around Edmonton.
Many of Alberta’s natural wonders, cultural treasures, historical sites and recreational spots are within a two-hour drive of downtown Edmonton. Day Trips From Edmonton by Joan Marie Galat, provides a comprehensive guide of year-round places to visit and things to do outside city limits.
The book encompasses both secluded natural areas and hot spots bustling with activity. It lists some of the best places for birding and one-of-a-kind attractions—such as the Alberta Honey Producers Co-op, Viking Petroglyphs and Klondike Ferry Crossing.
The layout, maps, photographs and index make it easy to plan a day the whole family can enjoy. You might start at a rural farmer’s market, explore a pioneer museum, visit a splash park and finish the day with a picnic at a corn maze, botanic garden or provincial park.
Visit www.joangalat.com for additional information.
The Red Berry Review
Themes from the mountainous west
The Red Berry Press responds to the growth of creative writing in the Rocky Mountain region. It was conceived in Fernie, B.C., in 2008 by publisher Randal Macnair, editor and writer Keith Liggett and writer Nicolas Milligan.
"Red Berry Press was formed . . . to provide a creative outlet for the written word and to connect with readers in a tactile, intellectual and emotional form," said Macnair.
The first release of the press is the Red Berry Review, a multi-genre literary journal coloured by the aesthetic and themes of the mountainous west.
From the sumptuous cover created by Crowsnest Pass artist Nichole Yanota, to the collection of poetry, prose and fiction contained within—the Red Berry Review is both a beautifully crafted object and a carefully selected compilation of some of the finest writing from this region.
To read the Red Berry Review is to be immersed in sensation and feeling—the smell of pipe tobacco on a wet wool sweater, the jangle of a charm bracelet, the taste of Fernie's best doughnuts—and the considered weighing of beauty against practicality. The collection contains some big non-fiction names like Wake of the Jomon author John Turk, and Sid Marty, writer of the Governor General Award-shortlisted The Black Grizzly of Whiskey Creek. The work of the emerging contributors is just as exciting. Reading the Red Berry Review gave me the sense that I was discovering the freshest voices from the Rocky Mountains.
The Red Berry Review will be released twice a year.
For more information, go to www.redberrypress.ca.
Napoleon’s Everyday Gourmet Grilling
A change of pace: Napoleon’s Everyday Gourmet Grilling provides fresh and exciting recipes
When I first perused Ted Reader’s culinary guide, Napoleon’s Everyday Gourmet Grilling (Napoleon Gourmet Grills), I was first impressed with the quality of the book in general. The photos are vivid and enticing, encouraging even the most novice cook to experiment with new ideas. The recipes themselves are easy to follow and the ingredients are, for the most part, readily available.
Perhaps the book’s most exciting element was the freshness of the flavour combinations it presented. Reader is unafraid to try the unusual, and it is a testament to his skill as a chef that he can create both classic and unprecedented dishes with equal flair.
Upon testing some of the recipes, I was impressed to see that they turned out exactly as pictured with no need for modifications or adjustments. There were also helpful suggestions that enriched the service and planning of the meals further. I would enthusiastically recommend this book; it is suitable for cooks of all ability levels, and will please any palate.
To check out one of the irresistible recipes in this book, visit our RV Cuisine section.
To order this book online, visit www.chapters.indigo.ca.
