Member Reviews
This would be an eye appeal for any living room coffee table. The book boasts 60 historic ghost towns along Route 66 as if coasting down this highway alone didn’t have its own appeal. I browsed through the pages taking in some scenic looking pictures and tidbits about the different towns and what they offered. Collectors will love the Route 66 memorabilia through out the pages.
What did I like? Gorgeous pictures with a haunting feeling since most of these places are abandoned and falling down. It’s really sad that more can’t be saved. I kind of wonder who owns all that land these ghost towns are sitting on. This was a unique book and I’m sure anyone who has driven the Route will love a look at the flip side of the attractions of Route 66.
Would I recommend or buy? I would love a copy, it would make for an interesting conversation piece for sure. People who love to seek ghost towns will love all the pictures and fun tidbits. Gas stations seem to be the biggest theme of the book. So for sure ...take a ride through the pages. You won’t regret it!
I received a copy to read and voluntarily left a review.
A charming book that looks at, in pictures and words, "ghost towns" along this iconc highway. You'll see vintage pictures and postcards along with color and black-and-white pictures.
I enjoyed learning the histories of the towns and how they were linked, more often than not, to their detriment, to the state of U.S. Route 66. I would have benefited from a standard definition of "ghost town."
A great history lesson with some glorious, rich colour photos throughout. As someone who has only travelled a very small amount of the historical Route 66, this had me longing for another road trip across the United States. The author provides some fantastic information about the smallest of small towns along the journey, and there is a ton of reflection to be had here in considering the impact of industrial and online growth on these tiny places. There is a ton of nostalgia in the photographs, as well as a deep melancholy when viewing the beaten and broken down buildings that have succumbed to 'progress'. Really enjoyed this, and would be very interested to read other such books on varied American roads.
My bucket list includes a trip down Route 66. I want to see all the historic sites, the kitschy sites, the abandoned sites. Ghost Towns of Route 66 takes readers on a beautiful, bittersweet journey of once thriving towns on this famous road.
I love this book. The photos are breathtaking! This is a wonderful guide for folks planning a trip down Route 66 or a wonderful (but a little sad) book of memories for those who have already taken that trip.
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I drive the California - New Mexico stretch of Route 66 frequently and I'm always happy to see a new book celebrating the highway. This is a fine and interesting, though not definitive, addition to the shelf. Lots of Route 66 books are basically scrapbooks of ephemera - like postcards, old diner menus, and what have you. That's fine. Some are travel journals that tell you way more about the author and his head space than about the Route.
This book is a nice combination of history, remembrance, factoids, and photos. The emphasis on lost sites is especially entertaining because it's the "vanished" part of Route 66 that most grabs my attention. This book has loads of evocative photos of abandoned places and eerie landscapes, and, at least in the southwest, that is possibly the most impressive and memorable lesson to be drawn from a Route 66 drive.
While the book isn't a travel guide in the conventional Fodor's or Frommer's sense it is organized to highlight notable sites as you drive from east to west. It also incorporates excerpts from the famous 1946 Rittenhouse guide, which gives a nice sense of history to the guidebook feel. The level, or depth, of commentary about particular sites varies considerably, and of course there are plenty of locations that don't even get a mention. That said, we do get a fairly evenly spaced out trip along the Route. Our author is congenial, and both informative and engagingly amiable. The tone is just right, and the reader is free to imagine the highway without too much interference from the author.
So, another trip to visit "Mom, (the Mother Road), and a nice bit of historical preservation. This impressed me as an excellent find.
(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
A fun coffee table book about some towns on Route 66. I enjoy history and Route 66 has always fascinated me. Looking at the ghost towns is both interesting and sad.