Washington Books

Weird Washington: Your Travel Guide to Washington's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets (Weird)

Jefferson Davis, Al Eufrasio

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Subjects -> History -> Americas -> United States -> State & Local -> Washington
Subjects -> Reference -> Fun Facts -> Curiosities & Wonders
Subjects -> Travel -> United States -> Regions -> West -> Pacific

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

I Knew We Were Weird! 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I got hooked on these "Weird" books the moment they started coming out. They were just unbelieveably fascinating, fun, and educational. I had always hoped that my wonderful state, Washington, would get the 'weird' treatment, since the state doesn't always get that much attention. My hopes came true and this book was released. I snatched it up as quickly as I could. What do the pages hold for the weird and wonderful that is in Washington?.

Like all of the other books, it is broken up into chapters, each with it's own identity. You have "Fabled People And Places", "Local Heroes And Villains", "Bizarre Beasts", "Ancient Mysteries", "Unexplained Phenomena", "Personalized Properties", "Roadside Oddities", "Roads Less Taveled", "Haunted Places", "Cemetery Safari", and lastly, "Washington Lost And Found".

I have lived in this state my entire life. I knew of a few things, but not a whole lot. So, imagine my surprise and fascination when I read up on all these interesting things in my state. For instance, you will hear about the exorcisms that took place at the Monaghan Music Hall building at Gonzaga University in Spokane; The mysterious Indian princess at Pike Place Market in Seattle; Soap People of Crescent Lake; Maury Island Ufo incident; Bigfoot; Ghosts of Thornewood Castle; Bobo The Gorilla, and much, much more. Most of these I have never read or heard about in my entire life here. Reading this book was such a learning experience, and it is sure to intrigue fellow Washingtonians who may not know of this history either. Then again, it's great for anyone, locals or not. There are a few things here I am familiar with : Sylvester The Mummy in Seattle; The Troll Bridge, also in Seattle, and a few others. However, there are some things I would of liked here but are not included. How about the giant red Radio Flyer in downtown Spokane?. The supposed haunting of the Fox Theater and Davenport Hotel?. Weird Washington 2, anyone?.

The book is well written and the pictures are great, as they always are in the "Weird" books. Authors Jeff Davis and Al Eufrasio obviously love their state, and they did an incredible job of capturing the weird and wonderful here. It took a lifelong Washington resident like me on an amazing road trip of which I have never been on, and learned a lot of great things along the way. Some I knew, and some I became shockingly aware of. It's a wonderful and worthy addition to the "Weird" canon of books, and I recommend it to everyone, Washingtonian or not.

Real Life at the White House: 200 Years of Daily Life at America's Most Famous Residence

Claire Whitcomb

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Celebrate the 200th anniversary of the White House with this richly illustrated new book on America's, if not the world's, most famous residence. Abigail Adams dried her wash in the unfinished East Room. Benjamin Harrison left the lights burning all night because he feared being shocked by the newly installed electric switches. LBJ waged an obsessive battle with the water pressure in the shower, demanding showerheads on all sides. His successor, Richard Nixon, promptly had them removed. The White House has not always been the ideal home, and as each president moved in, he transformed the house in small and large ways to fit his family's needs.

Real Life at the White House celebrates two centuries of domestic life in this historic abode. In forty-two chapters - one for each administration - this stylish sourcebook takes us on an intimate tour of the daily life of each president and his family, bringing into view everything from china patterns to built-in closets (a luxury added during the Truman renovation), from plumbing to telephones (Coolidge refused to use the phone for business) from architectural structure to state dinners and family meals.

Filled with hundreds of anecdotes, photographs, and presidential quotes from Washington(who never lived there but oversaw the first plans) to Clinton, this thoroughly engaging book captures the texture of presidential life while documenting the very human history of a house.

The Egg and I

Betty Macdonald

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Subjects -> Entertainment -> Humor -> Cats, Dogs & Animals

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 68 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Crack this "Egg"--politically correct tight-asses be damned... 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

The Egg and I is a funny, well-written, and entertaining memoir by a very intelligent, perceptive, and candid woman. "Ma and Pa Kettle" are names which still float around the pop culture ether, and this is the book that introduced them to the world...and the reason why I initially decided to read it.

MacDonald is a very talented writer, with an uncommon gift for description and evocation, but not a genius. The book is a bit choppy, anachronistic, and abrupt in places, and the segues between vignettes could have been handled more organically. And while she has a definite facility with words, some of her sentences are oddly and conspicuously dissonant.

Technically, however, you'll have no trouble digesting this morsel. But you MAY have some difficulty with MacDonald's strong and uncensored opinions, which she gives freely and does not shy away from.

WAIT! Doesn't the zeitgeist CHAMPION strong, articulate, self-assured female authors with their own points of view?

Evidently not, when what they say goes against the grain of modern "enlightened" values. Not when they are politically incorrect. MacDonald, for example, does not care for Indians. FOR SHAME! My God, how DARE she write that she does not like Indians! She mustn't say THAT...even if that is exactly what she thinks, and she thinks that based on the fact that she was CONSTANTLY exposed to them, and saw first-hand their habits, culture, and way of life.

I appreciate her honesty, myself. If tight-asses today have a problem with her, and will, consequently, not read her book, their loss. There's always a bagatelle by Kate Chopin (or Dave Eggers) available for those people.

I would not hesitate for a SECOND to recommend this book, and think it would be great for young girls to read, as they could perhaps identify strongly with MacDonald herself, whereas I just enjoyed the quality of the writing, the depiction of the Kettles, and the one huge laugh that occurs about midway through the book. (You'll know it when you come across it.)

Editorial Review:

When Betty MacDonald married a marine and moved to a small chicken farm on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, she was largely unprepared for the rigors of life in the wild. With no running water, no electricity, a house in need of constant repair, and days that ran from four in the morning to nine at night, the MacDonalds had barely a moment to put their feet up and relax. And then came the children. Yet through every trial and pitfall—through chaos and catastrophe—this indomitable family somehow, mercifully, never lost its sense of humor.

A beloved literary treasure for more than half a century, Betty MacDonald's The Egg and I is a heartwarming and uproarious account of adventure and survival on an American frontier.

The Thirtymile Fire: A Chronicle of Bravery and Betrayal

John N. Maclean

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Well worth your time and $$ 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

John Maclean is an excellent writer and it shows once again in this book. It's obvious he's done his research on the Thirtymile Fire. As a wildland FF who studies fatal fires and near miss incidents, I devoured the information on this fire and the lives lost from the day it happened. I waited several years to get more than just news articles and investigation reports. Thankfully John Maclean stepped up to the plate. This read has been fascinating and educational. Most importantly, this is not just a book about a fire or mistakes made at a fire. This book is about four "kids" who lost their lives while living out their dream.

Editorial Review:

“Pitilessly compelling, the sort of saga devoured in one horrified sitting.”—National Geographic Adventure

The Thirtymile Fire in the North Cascade Range near the Canadian border of Washington began as a simple mop-up operation; in a few hours, a series of catastrophic errors led to the entrapment and deaths of four members of the fire crew—two teenage girls and two young men. Each had brought order and meaning to their lives by joining the firefighting world. Then the very flames they pursued turned on them, extinguishing their lives. 

Weaving together the astonishing stories told by the fire’s witnesses and, later, the victims’ family members and the response to the official reports, John N. Maclean creates a riveting account of the deadly Thirtymile Fire and the controversy and recriminations that raged in its aftermath.

The White Cascade: The Great Northern Railway Disaster and America's Deadliest Avalanche

Gary Krist

Amazon Price: $17.16 List Price: $26.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Henry Holt and Co. Amazon Marketplace: 71 new & used starting at $0.49

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Subjects -> History -> Historical Study -> Social History

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 26 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

The never-before-told story of one of the worst rail disasters in U.S. history in which two trains full of people, trapped high in the Cascade Mountains, are hit by a devastating avalanche
In February 1910, a monstrous blizzard centered on Washington State hit the Northwest, breaking records. The world stopped—but nowhere was the danger more terrifying than near a tiny town called Wellington, perched high in the Cascade Mountains, where a desperate situation evolved minute by minute: two trainloads of cold, hungry passengers and their crews found themselves marooned without escape, their railcars gradually being buried in the rising drifts. For days, an army of the Great Northern Railroad’s most dedicated men—led by the line’s legendarily courageous superintendent, James O’Neill—worked round-the-clock to rescue the trains. But the storm was unrelenting, and to the passenger’s great anxiety, the railcars—their only shelter—were parked precariously on the edge of a steep ravine. As the days passed, food and coal supplies dwindled. Panic and rage set in as snow accumulated deeper and deeper on the cliffs overhanging the trains. Finally, just when escape seemed possible, the unthinkable occurred: the earth shifted and a colossal avalanche tumbled from the high pinnacles, sweeping the trains and their sleeping passengers over the steep slope and down the mountainside.
Centered on the astonishing spectacle of our nation’s deadliest avalanche, The White Cascade is the masterfully told story of a supremely dramatic and never-before-documented American tragedy. An adventure saga filled with colorful and engaging history, this is epic narrative storytelling at its finest.

Catch!: A Fishmonger's Guide to Greatness

Cyndi Crother

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Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Biography & History -> Company Profiles
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Business Life -> General
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Business Life -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Most inspiriational book I have read lately! 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

If this book does not inspire you to come alive and get going with your life, nothing will. And it is not some philosoper's old boring stuff; it is real life from ordinary fish mongers. It is down-to-earth information that is easily read, easily undetstood, and easy to apply to your own life. I plan to reread this little book several times a year to remind me what any person can easily do to become "great."

The whole idea of the Pike Place Fish Market is inspirational. If you have ever been to the market in Seattle, you will be quite inspired and maybe even a happier person right away because if it. The people who work there are inspirational. They are succeeding personally and as part of a team. They are very happy to be working where they are. They have a formula for success that is really working, and working for ordinary people. This is why they sell tons of fish on the Internet. This is why they perform training programs all over the country. This is why they sell so many books and videos and T-shirts.

If you do not check into this source of inspiriation you are losing out. I'm so glad I know about Fish!

Editorial Review:

With the publication of the mega-seller Fish!, the Pike Place Fish Market became famous both for its fascinating work culture and as a striking model for personal and business success. Catch! continues where Fish! left off, taking readers behind the scenes at the market for more life lessons. Written by the fishmongers themselves, the book offers some profound insights into creating powerful life experiences, with examples of how those insights look in action, in the fishmongers' lives. Catch! covers a wide range of concerns - the difference between "being" and "doing," dovetailing the crew's and management's financial and humanitarian goals, sharing the power of language and personal thoughts and opinions, coaching and acknowledgment, and facing - and overcoming - breakdowns. The principles and stories from mongers like Jeremy, who overcame a brain tumor, show readers how to go from the ordinary to the extraordinary in all areas of their lives.

On American Soil: How Justice Became a Casualty of World War II (V Ethel Willis White Endowed Book Series)

Jack Hamann

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Subjects -> History -> Americas -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

During the night of August 14, 1944, an Italian prisoner of war was lynched on the Fort Lawton army base in Seattle--a murder that shocked the nation and the international community. It was a time of deep segregation in the army, and the War Department was quick to charge three African American soldiers with first-degree murder, although there was no evidence linking them to the crime. Forty other black soldiers faced lesser charges over the incident, launching one of the largest and longest army trials of World War II. In this harrowing story of race, privilege, and power, Jack Hamann explores the most overlooked civil rights event in American history. On American Soil raises important questions about how justice is carried out when a country is at war, offering vital lessons on the tensions between national security and individual rights. "Not only riveting, On American Soil is also essential reading for anyone concerned about the delicate balance between national security and individual rights. Jack Hamann proves that a true tale well told can be as gripping as fiction."--James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers and Flyboys "Rarely has a book inspired legislation in the U.S. Congress, but that is exactly what happened with Jack Hamann's On American Soil. I had barely finished reading it before I instructed my staff to introduce legislation directing the Secretary of the Army to re-open the cases of the African American soldiers, find the truth, and correct any injustice found. This is an important book, and I hope many more people have the opportunity to read it." -Congressman Jim McDermott "A welcome piece of military history, adroitly balancing racism and legal questions in one story." -Kirkus Reviews "Jack Hamann has crafted an impressive debut book that is painstakingly researched and documented but also manages to be an enthralling read." -Seattle Post-Intelligencer "This book reads like an outstanding piece of literary fiction, but it is investigative reporting of the highest order. Hamann uncovered a web of lies in a book that holds lessons for today on the tensions between natonal security and individual rights." - Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. "A surprisingly relevant work about prejudice, scapegoats, and cover-ups in a time of war." - Daily Nebraskan "The storyline that Hamann uncovers is compelling enough. But it is the crime's historical context - wartime racial dynamics, colossal Army incompetence, international political implicatins, and the (humane) treatment of POWs, for example - that makes this book so relevant now." - Booklist "This book reads like an outstanding piece of literary fiction, but it is investigative reporting of the highest order. Hamann uncovered a web of lies in a book that holds lessons for today on the tensions between national security and individual rights." - Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc.

Vanishing Seattle (Images of America)

Clark Humphrey

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Seattle & some famous landmarks that are no more 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I own several of these IMAGES OF AMERICA books and I'm never disappointed.

This particular (picture) book is about Seattle in the past, and shows photos of some past landmarks that helped to create Seattle.

As the book's title stated, this book is about the "Vanishing Seattle", because all the landmarks are no more.

If you grew-up in Seattle, as I did, you will love to look through this book and reflect on some of the famous landmarks that were so wonderful to visit, but that are now extinct.

Editorial Review:

Though Seattle is still a young city, growing and changing, much of its short past is already lost-but not forgotten. Generations of Seattleites have fond memories of restaurants, local television shows, stores, and other landmarks that evoke a less sophisticated, more informal city. This new book explores Seattle at a time when timber and fish were more lucrative than airplanes and computers, when the city was a place of kitschy architecture and homespun humor and was full of boundless hope for a brighter future. These rare and vintage images hearken back to the marvels of the 1962 World's Fair, shopping trips to Frederick & Nelson and I. Magnin, dinners at Rosellini's, dancing at the Trianon Ballroom, traveling on the ferry Kalakala, rooting for baseball's Rainiers, and local personalities including Stan Boreson, J. P. Patches, and Wunda Wunda.

Breaking Blue

Timothy Egan

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Fantastic Read 5 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

One of my best recent reads. Part crime story, part historical and cultural biography, and part present-day human drama. All parts are addressed evenly. Great for anyone interested in the sometimes strange land of Eastern Washington and Spokane's Wild West past.

WOW! 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Mr. Egan has become my favorite non-fiction writer. I've reread The Good Rain several times, and read The Worst Hard Time as soon as it became available in paper back. I live in the Pacific Northwest and have come to appreciate the history that surrounds me. Mr. Egan's hero, Sheriff Bamonte, faced Herculean obstacles, and Mr. Egan presented it beautifully in Breaking Blue. After I finished reading Breaking Blue, I quickly mailed the book to my son who graduated from Gonzaga in 2005 and recommended that he read it since the story takes place in the Spokane area. The Spokane River which runs through downtown Spokane has a new meaning for me now!

Editorial Review:

An investigation into the oldest open murder case in the United States follows Pend Oreille County sheriff Tony Bamonte as he attempts to discover who shot Pend Oreille County's town marshal fifty-four years earlier. 25,000 first printing. Tour.

Nisei Daughter

Monica Itoi Sone

Amazon Price: $10.17 List Price: $14.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: University of Washington Press Amazon Marketplace: 109 new & used starting at $0.06

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Subjects -> Biographies & Memoirs -> Ethnic & National -> Japanese
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Subjects -> Biographies & Memoirs -> Historical -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 9 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Entertaining, but disappointing 3 out of 5 stars.
10 of 11 people found this review helpful.

Part of Nisei Daughter's charm is the way Sone is able to weave entertaining anecdotes throughout her tale, a story which is essentially about what being Japanese American in the time around wartime America meant to her. Specifically, her position as a Nisei daughter -- child of first generation Japanese Americans -- is the focus of this tale.

The disappointing thing about this book is how obviously self-censored the book is. Sone very briefly reveals deeply felt rage and resentment at intervals during the book, only to shake them off and quickly change to a more light-hearted topic. Granted, there is an ironic tone to many of her comments and situations, and again granted, she is writing for a post-war audience that probably would not be receptive to outspoken criticism of the Internment, but still Sone seems to sugar coat the experience just a bit too much for my tastes. By the end, with the patriotic speeches that make it sound like the Internment was as much the fault of the Japanese Americans as it was the government, I was getting a little tired of Sone's carefree and apologetic tone, especially after the highly charged preface. In the book, Sone all but thanks the government for interning her and her family and giving them this character-building experience.

If you are truly interested in the internment and the impact it had on the Japanese Americans, try a book like Joy Kogawa's "Obasan." It's written about the Japanese Canadian experience, which was even more extreme than the Japanese American one. Kogawa also experienced internment first hand, but "Obasan" is written far enough after the fact that Kogawa is able to give the story more perspective and is able to put a more honest face on what really happened.

Nisei Daughter is not a bad book by any means ... but it did not live up to my expectations either. Sone's self-conscious editing makes the story seem much more like a novel than the autobiography that it supposedly is. I kept wishing she would drop the mask she was wearing and let the reader see what she was really thinking!