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2.0 out of 5 stars
It's not a Fodor's, April 13, 1999
My wife and I are thinking about vactaioning in Brazil. Suprisingly, there is a dearth of travel guides for this large and diverse counrty.I've travelled extensively and have come to rely on the gold covered Fodor guides. Fodor's guides are lively, well written, authorative, but most importantly compel you to read-on; making discovery of the country fun and engaging. Baedeker's is nothing of the sort. While Baedeker's has color photos, gloss pages and sold in a handy vinyl jacket; it's colorless and lifeless next to a Fodor's product. With its color and gloss print and its fascination with numerical figures, I felt like I was reading a World Book encyclopedia for a sixth grade homewoork assignment. The prose within is equally as dry, which was the deciding factor for returning it to amazon for a refund. City tours are reduced to sites (described in 8-12 word blurbs) that should be checked-off. There is not much detail about what you're seeing beyond the mandatory numerical figures. There are no winding city-walking tours. Likewise no driving tours. No fun, off the path places to stop for chow and a view. With Fodor's I've come to except long 3 page narratives, written in colorful narrative that lead me down narrow streets and allow me to stop for lunch in wonderful cafes. Also unlike Baedeker's, Fodor's gives you histories of the stuff you are seeing, some it gained though intimate contact of the author, who has obviously lived in country. Fodor's goes beyond "just the facts". In summary, Baedeker's Brazil is a fact-filled, do the job travel guide. But it lacks a human face that discerning travelers have come to expect from other brands of guide books. May I suggest the Lonely Planet guide for Brazil.
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