Customer Reviews

The Adirondack Atlas: A Geographic Portrait of the Adirondack Park

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Because a good picture can be worth a thousand words, or quite possibly ten thousand, as demonstrated by the detailed, high quality graphics packing every page of Jenkins' book, his "Adirondack Atlas" (which is ever so much more than an "atlas") truly can be said to contain volumes of fascinating, up-to-date, accurate and pertinent information on our incomparable six-million acre "forever wild" forest park. Indeed, this one model reference book captures in its 267 pages an amount of information equivalent to that found in a small library of the best available books on Adirondack history, politics, geography, geology, ecology and natural history, and then adds considerable information and highly readable interpretation that can be found in no other published work. It is a miracle of a book, the work of a stunning and accomplished intellect.

The United States warrants a series of environmental atlases that provide the geographical, historical, cultural, and ecological information necessary to understand, appreciate, and conserve our natural hertitage. Unfortuantely, we lack these for almost every region. However, in this simply outstanding volume on the Adirondacks Jerry Jenkins has set the standard for any and all future work. An unrivaled natural historian with an unusual quantitative and technical ability, Jerry has produced a volume that will inspire, inform, and motivate everyone into deeper understanding, contemplation, and action. Bill McKibben's foreword suggests that this will become a "most-thumbed book on one's shelf": mine is well on its way.

Great graphics, tremendous research, a treasure trove for "data miners" from all spectrums of science - ecology, climatology, sociology, forestry, geology, etc. Once you read this book you will understand the Adirondacks far better than most life-long residents of the region.

This amazing atlas contains a very detailed geographic portrayal of the largest protected are in the lower 48 states; the Adirondack Park. Author Jerry Jenkins magnificently covers every possible aspect of this landscape, from the changing environment, development and pollution to history both old and current. It is two hundred and seventy five (275) pages containing literally hundreds and hundreds of maps, graphs, pie charts and detailed narrative that is absolutely the most all-encompassing review of the Adirondack Park.

Here are the chapters:
About the Adirondacks/Environments/The Adirondack park/Animals & Plants War, Settlement & History/Forest Change/Vital Statistics/Employers, Jobs & Income/Death, Injury& Disease/Schools & Colleges/Town Budgets & Local Taxes/Vital Services/Business & Industry/Media & Culture/Outdoor Recreation/Changing Towns/Pollution & Wastes/Seven Questions About Change.

With extensive Sources, Notes, Reference maps and a huge Index, this is truly one of the best analyses of the Adirondack Park available. Get it and look up your favorite area of this park. It is full of authenticated surprises.

Jerry Jenkins and Andy Keal do a great job covering the entire spectrum of the Adirondack Park, which I find helpful when doing research for my books, "New York State's Mountain Heritage: Adirondack Attic" volumes 1-3. Their compilation of material is astounding and historic in itself, a marvel of Adirondack publishing. It tires me to think of the countless hours of research that went into writing this book. This is a must-read for those who love New York State's Adirondack Mountains.

The title says it all. This is a great Atlas. Contains everything you would possibly ever want to know about the Daks.

This volume provides the researcher and casual browser with just about anything one might want to know about the Adirondacks. There is, however, no mention of the existence of rattlesnakes in the Adirondacks. Eastern Timber Rattlesnakes ARE in the Adirondacks, most notably in the Tongue Mountain area of northwest Lake George. They apparently also venture out onto the islands of the "narrows" of the lake. Spotted at the Glen Island ranger station a galvanized garbage can emblazoned "Caution, live rattlesnakes".

Very informative book - a wealth of current knowledge. A pleasure to pick up in spare moments to read a bit and expand my knowledge of this great park. Have shared with friends already.