Mississippi Off the Beaten Path: A Guide to Unique Places [Paperback]

Marlo Carter Kirkpatrick (Author)

Book Description

Series: Off the Beaten Path Series | Publication Date: May 1, 1999

For travelers looking to avoid crowd, this guide will help them discover the unique "must-see" attractions of the Hospitality State. Go beyond the usual tourist attractions to discover such hidden treasures as Tupelo National Battlefield, Winterville Indian Mounds State Park and Museum, or the International Checker Hall of Fame. Whatever you do when you get to Mississippi, get off the interstate-and take this book with you!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The book...tells the reader, with quite some detail, how to locate places that would otherwise go unnoticed."
--Simpson County News

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

Whatever you do when you travel, get off the interstate. Who needs more bland rest stops and fast food? Get into the heart of things with Globe Pequot's Off the Beaten Path series. Devoted to travelers with a taste for the unique, this easy-to-use guide will help you discover the hidden places in Mississippi that most tourists miss - unsung, unspoiled, and out-of-the-way finds that liven up a week's vacation, a day trip, or an afternoon. (5 1/2 X 8 1/2, 240 pages, maps, illustrations)

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 225 pages
• Publisher: Globe Pequot; 2nd edition (May 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762704071
• ISBN-13: 978-0762704071
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,588,078 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The stamp of approval - from a native, April 14, 2005

By 

Nicole Bradshaw "Nicole Bradshaw" (Jackson, MS USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mississippi Off the Beaten Path, 4th: A Guide to Unique Places (Paperback)

When you live in Mississippi, you are immensely flattered when you discover that someone has written an entire guide about your state. Although I have never understood why, the travel industry seems to have ignored the wealth of things to do here.

This book is great because it's extremely detailed and also provides the history (or what I like to call the "back story") on alot of the sights and attractions in the state.

The book divides the state into sections, giving meaty attention to each part of Mississippi. At the end of each section, Kirkpatrick provides a list with contact information for each attraction, hotel, and retail outlet discussed in the section. Bits of state trivia are also interspersed throughout the book in little shaded boxes. This helps to liven up the reading, and is fun and educational, to boot.

Living in central Mississippi, I can definitely vouch for the veracity of that section. Kirkpatrick hits all of the highlights (and some of the lowlights!).

If you're interested in visiting the REAL Mississippi, not just the casinos and the antebellum homes (though Kirkpatrick certainly covers those, too), buy this book.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great State, Confusing Guide, April 27, 2005

By 

Stanford Gibson (Davis, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mississippi Off the Beaten Path, 5th (Off the Beaten Path Series) (Paperback)

I have found Mississippi to be a beautiful state with warm people, fun food, rich history and lots to offer. If you have time to read entire chapters of this book before your visit to Mississippi it will certainly provide helpful information. The book provides back stories and insider tips. However, this guide is not well organized or efficient to use. There is no easy summary of must sees - or quick ways to find a particular destination. Also, it can be difficult to find sites highlighted in the book if you are not familiar with local roads - you almost need to plan ahead of time and prepare mapquest maps. While the authors did tip me off to some very worthwhile diversions that augmented my visit (e.g. the Natchez trail is fantastic) and gave me back-story on some of the towns which I appreciated, it was often more work to get at this information than I would have hoped for from a travel guide.

4.0 out of 5 stars Detailed, specific, funny - a very helpful guide, April 6, 2010

By 

Donna Ancypa Holmes (Oberlin, OH USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mississippi Off the Beaten Path, 5th (Off the Beaten Path Series) (Paperback)

This book lives up to its name; after just one evening of reading, I had learned more about secret, quirky Mississippi destinations than I thought there was to know. The book is helpfully divided into regions to give the reader a starting point, and there's a lot of detailed specific information about destinations and lodging within each section. Because the book is written in a narrative style there's a little hunting around to find specific towns within each region, but that's my only quibble, and I think any paper guide might have to make tradeoffs in organization. I liked this book a lot and was ready to change my vacation itinerary because of it. Good for daytrippers and vacationers alike - undiscovered destinations await.