Arizona

If you had to choose just one affordably-priced book to be representative of Arizona's natural beauty, in all its variety and splendor, this would be it.

First, there are the photographs: more than 65 of them, by the most respected professionals in the field. Arizona Highways contributors from around the state supplied full-color images that vividly display the harmony of color and form, rich textures and vast spaces of Arizona's deserts, mountains, plateaus, grasslands and riparian niches. The immense, sculpted layers of the Grand Canyon, cool pools of water in the midst of searing desert, green "sky island" mountains thrusting upward from basin floors and monumental rock formations - all contribute to the sometimes subtle and sometimes overwhelming beauty of Arizona.

Then there's the descriptive text. Journalist and veteran outdoorsman Sam Negri draws from a deep well of experience to characterize the landscape, relating it to the state's history and folklore. In six chapters, he explores the deep forests and sculpted plateaus of the Arizona Strip, the color and texture of Indian Country, the vast ribbon of trees and water that make up the mountains, the unexpected exotic appeal of Western Arizona, the diversity of life and forms of the Southwestern Desert and the Southeastern Desert's land of contrast.

First published in 1996 and now available in its third printing, the book's impressive cover and the quality of its design assure that it will remain a literary ambassador welcomed by those wanting to stay in touch with this interesting corner of the world.