good description of the area, people and traditions
352847
I really enjoyed the description of the area and all the traditions that the Provencal people have. that is why I've read the book.  however I'm not into cooking so the recipes were not of interest.
3316899
Learned a lot about the history of families in the area. Would like to have heard more on the history of the town and events there.
2025936
The book gives good descriptions and maps of a large number of walks throughout Pantagonia.  I was particularly interested in southern Pantagonia and was able to develop a better appreciation of the area and how "classic" walks there are related to each other.  The color choices for the maps don't make too much sense (the land is light blue and the lakes are tan).  Helpful equipment and other practical information.  Overall, a worthwhile guide to help you get oriented and better understand what the treks require.
127618
Getting ready for a trip to Morocco and this gives good descriptions about buildings and people - a lot of information it will be handy to know that would be boring reading about without the "foreigner buys and renovates house" story line.  The part about "we go away for months and come back to find work not done as we expected" is a little tedious and naive, but the book gives nice insight into Morocco.  Of course, I have no basis for judging accuracy.
1822811
This guide gives a great comprehensive write up of each of the regions.  What to see, the history, and discussion of culture.  It does not, however, provide as much info on good tour companies to use, or places to stay.  I still enjoyed reading it, but it should be a secondary read --not a primary guide.
3591001
This book is part of a series introducing youngsters to celebrations, festivals and holidays in other countries. It does a fine job of showing Germans celebrating events, some dating back 600 years or more. Many are filled with fun, a few have political meaning and one, the National Day of Mourning which began in February after World War One, before being moved following WW2 to November, is a day of mourning and remembrance.
 The author shares interesting facts about each one including dates, locations, special features and collections between any that provided impetus or influence to ones celebrated in our country. In addition to being a good introduction and cultural springboard, this book would be a good one for families planning a trip to Germany in terms of planning it.
3473172
A great overview of the region and the culture, leading to the awesome recipes, which bring back childhood memories.

I just had to go ahead and try the Synieh recipe, and it was just great.
It is not instead of a visit to Nazareth, but it comes close to that
2240640
The author's description of the terrain was very descriptive of the area. I have recently been in the area; I was somewhat able to relate & visualize what the author has mentioned in the book. The book is an excellent read for people, that are planning to travel to  the Sacred Valley, Cusco, Machu Picchu....& other ruins in the area.
1830021
I enjoyed the book very much.  I liked the history of the culture of the people and the pace of the theme.
3083363
This had some interesting sections about what it's like to live in a small town in Alaska. There were parts I enjoyed and parts I had to slog through. Remember, the author, Heather Lende, a stay-at-home mother, gives you insight into her small town of Haines, through the obituaries she writes--which usually means you learn about people and the impact on the town after their deaths. Since I am familiar with Alaska, readers should be warned that not all of Alaska is as remote where funerals are community affairs. And Haines does not have the front row seat on some beautiful landscapes filled with wild life that exist in other parts of the United States. This is a good read for a long ride by plane or car.
2053027
I ordered this book after seeing a copy in a nearby antique shop. I was interested because it is about the area in which my family originates. It was also interesting that the shop owner's sister did the illustrations in the book. The book was not for sale in the shop, but I looked on Amazon, and was happy to find the book right away.
The book itself is written from interviews with mostly elderly residents from the area, and interspersed with historical references regarding the origins of the customs. On some levels it is a little simplistic, but still interesting if for nothing else, for nostalgic reasons. The illustrations remind me of primitive artwork, which fits the style of the book. I would not call this a definitive work on the subject of Christmas customs in the mountains of Virginia, but it is still interesting to hear the accounts of the people interviewed.
I was happy to find this book so easily on Amazon, and was pleased with the service provided by the carrier.
1874325
I have enjoyed a number of the 'American Rivers' series of books, and this one is of particular interest since we have ancestors from that area. I gave a nice feeling of connection to the area. And as with other books in the series it is kind of mellow read describing the history and geography of the area written in a by-gone era in a perspective that is hard to achieve nowadays.
7860
This is a fine ethnographic study of the Raramuri people, their history and world views.  If you plan to travel to the Copper Canyon area, where you will have a chance to interact with the Raramuri, this is a great way to gain an understanding of the people and their culture.  I found it easy to read and more interesting than many scholarly works.  It includes all of the  details important in a good anthropological study.
2617041
I grew up in this town and this book provides a lot of background as to what many of the buildings, etc. We're originally used for. It is more scrapbook than a detailed history of the town but it is a very informative read with many photos.
1252633
This area is not as well known as popular destinations to the north and south.  So this is a good introduction, specialized to the region.  I liked that it included a lot of details about so many little towns and tourist sites.

I was staying in the area for several weeks and found this knowledge useful.  But also, after several weeks I saw that there were plenty of useful details which must be out of date since they were just plain wrong.  Nothing that would ruin your visit, but considering my copy is dated 2009 I didn't think there was much excuse to leave out useful resources like ATMs, currency exchange, internet access which have been there for years.  I might have easily gone right past them to ones that were much farther out of my way. I should mention that none of these are common here yet.

Also, the guide to Tikal is well out of date, which is unfortunate since this is the most popular site in the whole area.

But I still recommend it to someone who is spending significant time in the area as I was.  For others, I might consider a more comprehensive and up to date book even if it is not specific to this place.
1735492
My wife and I like to visit a country for one month at a time. Prior to these trips, I read a book about the history of the country. I have done this many times.

Typically, history books can be very boring and difficult to read and complete. This is an exception. It is not a typical chronological history book, but is a collection of articles about Ecuador and it's history. Articles discuss natives, Incas and the Spanish, Haciendas, agriculture, politics, the Galapagos, women's rights, religion, etc. The articles are written by Ecuadorians, are relatively short and to the point. One nice feature is that if one article is not of interest to you you can skip it and go on to the next without losing continuity.

This is not a book for strict historians. However, if you want to learn a lot about Ecuador, past and present, this is a very good book and will hold your interest.
4636471
The story, the family relationships,  the geography.