TRAVELERS' TALES SAN FRANCISCO (TRAVELERS' TALES GUIDES)

Habegger, Larry & James O'Reilly & Sean O'Reilly.includes.;.codrescu, andrei; BEEK, STEVE VAN;LEVIN, SUSANNA; GILLIAM, HAROLD; STIENSTRA, TOM; PIERCE, L. KINGSTON OTHERS

ISBN 10: 1885211082 / ISBN 13: 9781885211088

Published by Travelers' Tales Inc 1997,APRIL, 1997

About this Item

VERY GOOD CONDITION,CLEAN, SOLID, BRIGHT; cover art shows foggy moring bicycle ride thru trees-park.on black paper covers.Many short essays, articles biographies about the local scene.in various moments past.the hills remain.; 470PG pages; Travel essays describe San Francisco, the culture, sites, activities, and the darker side of the city. In these true stories you will explore the North Beach of the Beat era and beyond with Herbert Gold, discover true romance on a cable car with Michele Anna Jordan, uncover the real Mission district with John Krich, marvel at the city's wild light with Andrei Codrescu, gumshoe through Sam Spade's San Francisco with Don Freeman, and learn what it means to be a "quintessential San Franciscan" with the late Herb Caen.

Seller Inventory # 130201

Bibliographic Details

• Title: TRAVELERS' TALES SAN FRANCISCO (TRAVELERS' TALES GUIDES)
• Publisher: Travelers' Tales Inc 1997,APRIL
• Publication Date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1885211082
• ISBN 13: 9781885211088
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition: first edition,2p; Second Printing.
• Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

Travel essays describe San Francisco, the culture, sites, activities, and the darker side of the city

Reviews

What better way to prep for a journey than by reading interesting stories about one's destination? As glimpsed here through the eyes of beatniks, hippies, surfers, "lavender cowboys" and talented writers from all walks, San Francisco comes to vivid, complex life. One short story takes the reader surfing in monstrous waves at Ocean Beach; another, through an incredible history of SF's gay culture linked with a tour de force tale of AIDS and devotion. The diverse memoirs range from a dim sum disaster in Chinatown to the hot tub scene in Elgy Gillespie's wonderfully funny debut ("But letting boldness be my friend, I dropped the towel and plunged right in, with one smooth movement and an almighty splash, only to find that nobody was noticing anyway"). A far cry from a traditional guidebook, the tales also delve into the city's nitty-gritty, with accounts of pit-bull fighting, earthquakes, bad trips in the '60s and the dangers and thrills of a glory hole. Carefully chosen Herb Caen bits, news clips and historical details (the bullfights that once took place outside Mission Dolores Chapel, for example) mesh with the fiction pieces and poems to weave a rich fabric of place and time. For either San Francisco first-timers or third-generation natives, this compilation opens many windows on the city and offers great escapist reading. Maps and graphics not seen by PW.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The "Travelers' Tales" series changes its focus from foreign countries to the City by the Bay. San Francisco fits well in the series, which gathers diverse articles to give readers an idea of the flavor of a region rather than offering a "go here, see this" guidebook. The appeal is as much for those who already know the city as for those who plan to visit. This book has wonderful articles about surfing at Ocean Beach, rollerblading at night from Golden Gate Park to downtown, the Presidio, and North Beach. Happily missing are the usual lurid "Only in SF" gossipy pieces, which caricature San Francisco as a mischievous theme park. Prominently featured in the short sidebars is Herb Caen, a longtime columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle and well known and trusted as a commentator on the scene. Recommended for travel collections with other "Travelers' Tales" books, and especially for California collections.?Mary Ann Parker. Dept. of Water Resources Law Lib. Sacramento, Cal.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.