Customer Reviews

Canyons of the Colorado

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As prior reviews state, the text is well-selected from Powell's journal, and the photographs are superb. But how can the author publish the journal of an explorer without a map keyed to the dates of journal entries? The photographs are superb, but again, not keyed to a map, or even associated with the text. The identifying data for each photo is listed in the front of the book, but is not given on, or near the photograph. A potentially superb book, but, because of these defects and faults, one that is maddening to read.

This book's photographs are gorgeous--though there's not enough of them--of snow covered mesas, sacred datura, Bryce Canyon (which isn't really on the Colorado at all), streambeds, waterfalls, canyon walls, cactus, clouds, and shadows.
The introduction is by conservationist David Brower, and is a little pretentious, but most of the text is straight from explorer John Wesley Powell's own account of his trips in the late-1800s, and the photos do a great job of making that text seem especially readable.
There are A TON of books about the Colorado River and the Colorado Plateau...and this...this is another one of them. It's a good one though, and worth considering--whether you're obsessed with reading every single book on the subject, or whether you'd just like one nice one to leave out on your coffee table.