Across a Hundred Mountains, A Novel  •  Reyna Grande LITERATURE •  2006 •  HARD COVER  • 208 PAGES (MEX161, $23.00)
Adventures of the Shark Lady: Eugenie Clark Around the World  •  Ann McGovern BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1998 •  PAPER  • 72 PAGES The continuing, illustrated adventures of the pioneering biologist for kids ages 7 and up. (FSH08, $4.50)
Almost an Island, Travels in Baja California  •  Bruce Berger TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  1998 •  PAPER  • 240 PAGES A poet and longtime aficionado of Baja California with an irrepressible sense of humor, Bruce Berger combines anecdote, history and research to bring the deserts, towns and personalities of Lower California to life. Her chronicle of thirty years of exploration and change in Baja California, recounting natural and human history, the madness of a total eclipse, bedlam in a nunnery, the animals that surround a salt company, a governor who celebrates Earth Day by serving endangered species, and the search for a musical Mata Hari. (BJA15, $17.95)
Ancient Maya, New Perspectives  •  Heather McKillop HISTORY •  2006 •  PAPER  • 460 PAGES (MYA46, $22.95)
The Art of Photographing Nature  •  Art Wolfe  •  Martha Hill NATURAL HISTORY •  1993 •  PAPER  • 184 PAGES An elegant how-to book, featuring over 250 photographs by renowned nature photographer Art Wolfe and insightful commentary by Martha Hill, a former photo editor at Audubon magazine. For people who want to go beyond the mechanics of picture taking, it explains many of the more subtle aspects of nature photography. (PHT02, $30.00)
Backcountry Pilot, Flying Adventures with Ike Russell  •  Thomas Bowen ANTHOLOGY •  2002 •  HARD COVER  • 206 PAGES An anthology of anecdotes from the air, recounting dangerous flights and unbelievable adventures with Ike Russell, a bush pilot legendary among research scientists of the 60s and 70s. A fearless chauffeur, Ike would fly scientists to inaccessible corners of the globe (mostly in the desert regions of Mexico, but also East Africa, Madagascar and Tierra del Fuego), often under extreme circumstances. Among the writers featured are Bernard Fontana, Richard Felger and Paul S. Martin. (DES07, $29.95)
Baja and the Mexican Riviera  •  Coastal Cruise USA MAP A very good topographical map of the area, this six-foot-long coastal guide folds into a handy booklet. It's attractive, useful -- and includes descriptions of the major points of interest along the 800-mile-long coast. Unless you are planning a road trip, we recommend it. Among its features is a detailed map of the Los Cabos area. (BJA04, $15.95)
Between Pacific Tides  •  Edward F. Ricketts  •  Jack Calvin  •  Joel W. Hedgpeth  •  David W. Phillips  •  John Steinbeck FIELD GUIDE •  1992 •  PAPER  • 652 PAGES A handbook to the rocky shores and tide pools of the Pacific Coast of the United States, first published in 1939 and now in its fifth edition. After 50 years this standard reference still reflects Ed Ricketts' considerable personality and enthusiasm for tidepooling and marine biology. Each intertidal zone is discussed in depth, augmented by black-and-white photographs and diagrams. Much revised, this edition includes the original forward by John Steinbeck and a tribute to Ed Ricketts. (FG34, $31.95)
A Concise History of Mexico  •  Brian Hamnett HISTORY •  2006 •  PAPER  • 368 PAGES (MEX162, $24.99)
Crafts of Mexico  •  Margarita de Orellana  •  Albert Ruy Sanchez ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 360 PAGES An abundantly illustrated guide to Mexico's crafts, including textiles, jewelry, ceramics, furniture and more. With 400 color photographs and illustrations. (MEX144, $45.00)
Desert Solitaire  •  Edward Abbey NATURAL HISTORY •  1990 •  PAPER  • 289 PAGES • FAVORITE A beloved classic, read aloud at campfires throughout the Southwest. It's one of the great works on the value of the desert, eloquent and laugh-out-loud funny. Although Abbey writes specifically about the Colorado Plateau and his experiences as a ranger at Arches National Park outside Moab Utah, his message is universal. Originally published in 1990. (DES02, $14.95)
Desert Survivor, An Adventurer's Guide to Exploring the Great American Desert  •  John Annerino GUIDEBOOK •  2001 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES A well informed, practical guide and handbook for hikers, backpackers and anyone else who would like to explore the parks and wilderness areas of the Chihuauan, Mojave, Sonoroan and Great Basin deserts of the American Southwest. With maps, drawings, photos, and guidelines for safe travel. Annerino is a popular author, photographer -- and desert rat -- who lives in Tucson. With an excellent overview of the natural and cultural history of the Great American Desert. (USW372, $15.95)
Discovering the Desert, Legacy of the Carnegie Desert Botanical Laboratory  •  William McGinnies BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1982 •  PAPER  • 276 PAGES A history of Sonoran desert research, this book is an engaging survey of the geography, ecology and climate of desert life in the American Southwest -- and especially of the pioneering work conducted at the Carnegie Desert Botanical Laboratory. With maps, diagrams and black-and-white photos. (USW103, $11.95)
Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals  •  William Perrin NATURAL HISTORY •  2001 •  HARD COVER A collection of scholary review articles by leading experts, the 283 articles (varying from two columns to several pages) covers anatomy and physiology, behavior and life history, ecology and population biology, evolution and systematics, human effects and interactions, organisms and faunas, and research methodology. The alphabetically arranged entries are cross-referenced and contain color and b&w illustrations. Suitable for high school and college students, researchers, and the general public. Edited by Perrin (Southwest Fisheries Science Center, NOAA), Bernd Wnrsig (Texas A&M U.) and J.G.M. Thewissen (Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine). (NAT149, $180.00)
Field Guide to Mexican Birds  •  Roger Tory Peterson  •  Edward Chalif FIELD GUIDE •  1973 •  PAPER  • 298 PAGES This easy-to-carry field guide covers 1,000 birds that have been reported in Mexico, Belize and El Salvador but only illustrates those species not already included in one of the Peterson North American bird guides, which you may also want to carry. The guide also covers northwest Costa Rica. (FG12, $22.00)
Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Adjacent Areas, Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador  •  Ernest Preston Edwards FIELD GUIDE •  1998 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE This classic guide, in a third edition, illustrates all the regularly-occurring birds of Mexico and neighboring areas. It gives details of distribution, abundance, habitat and identification features for 850 species. (MEX47, $22.95)
A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians  •  Robert Stebbins FIELD GUIDE •  2003 •  PAPER  • 533 PAGES This field guide covers reptiles and amphibians found from Northern Mexico to Alberta. With the variety of chuckwallas, whiptails and other localized lizards and snakes in Baja California, it is an indispensable guide to that region. Baja endemics are featured on four of the book's 56 plates. P.S. It's true that Santa Catalina Island has a rattleless rattlesnake -- although it's retiring and hard to see. With color photographs, newly revised range maps and very good descriptive information. (FG08, $22.00)
Fishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific  •  Gerald Allen  •  D.R. Robertson FIELD GUIDE •  1994 •  HARD COVER  • 332 PAGES An oversize survey of Pacific fishes from the Gulf of California to Ecuador, including the Revillagigedos Islands, Cliperton, Cocos Island and Galapagos. With 15 color plates, hundreds of color photographs and descriptions of each species. The focus is on reef and inshore fishes. (FG50, $85.00)
Frommer's Los Cabos & Baja  •  Emily Hughey Quinn GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES A practical guide in the popular series, featuring must-have information on hotels, dining, shopping and attractions. (BJA61, $17.99)
The GrandeFst of Lives, Eye to Eye With Whales  •  Douglas H. Chadwick NATURAL HISTORY •  2008 •  PAPER  • 288 PAGES A group portrait of the humpback, northern bottlenose, blue whale, minke whale, and orca by a wildlife biologist and enthusiast. Charwick (The Fate of the Elephant) opens this appreciative book with his own eye-to-eye encounter with a humpback off the coast of Maui. He includes accounts of his many travels in the company of whale researchers. (OCE100, $14.95)
A Guide to Marine Invertebrates, Alaska to Baja California  •  Daniel W. Gotshall FIELD GUIDE •  2005 •  PAPER This second, revised edition of Gotshall's invaluable field guide features full color photographs and brief descriptive information on 285 species of Pacific inshore and subtidal marine invertebrates. Species information has been updated for this new edition, which also includes 35 additional species. (BJA40, $29.95)
Guide to Marine Mammals & Turtles of the U.S. Atlantic & Gulf of Mexico  •  Kate Wynne  •  Malia Schwartz  •  Garth Mix FIELD GUIDE •  1999 •  PAPER  • 115 PAGES • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE A sturdy, wire-bound (and waterproof) field guide to the all the whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals, manatee and sea turtles of the Gulf coast and Atlantic, 33 species in all. With full-color illustrations of each species, color photographs, range maps and key information for identification. Winner of National Outdoor Book Award in 2000, this exceedingly useful book follows the field-friendly format of Wynne's Guide to Marine Mammals of Alaska. This book satisfies the requirement by MMS and NOAA for ships and crews operating in the Gulf of Mexico. (FG42, $25.00)
Hidden Baja, Including Tijuana, Ensenada, Mulege, La Paz, and Los Cabos  •  Richard Harris TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2007 •  PAPER  • 278 PAGES Offers off-the-beaten-path recommendations for authentic restaurants and local villages, as well as outdoor activities, beaches and accommodation from resorts to secluded inn. (BJA59, $15.95)
John Shaw's Nature Photography Field Guide  •  John Shaw REFERENCE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 160 PAGES An updated edition of Shaw's guide to taking better photographs of plants, animals and landscapes. The book offers solid advice on equipment, and basic techniques, highly recommended as the best reference for the wildlife photographer. This revised edition includes the complete range of newer films, and more attention to autofocus and autoexposure. Apart from any attention to equipment and technique, he cautions that to be a better photographer, you need to become a better naturalist. Like many nature photographers, Shaw uses a Nikon and Fujia Velvia film -- and has a Web site: johnshaw.com. (PHT01, $24.95)
The Lawless Roads  •  Graham Greene  •  David Rieff TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 240 PAGES A riveting account of Graham's journeys through Tabasco and Chiapas in the 1930s, including his time in San Cristobal de Las Casas and Palenque. Greene was in Mexico investigating the impact of the anti-Church policies of President Calles. He draws on the same expenses for his masterpiece The Power and the Glory. (MEX164, $14.00)
Marine Mammals of the Eastern North Pacific  •  Sea Grant Alaska  •  Pieter Folkens FIELD GUIDE •  2000 •  PLASTIC CARD  • 8 PAGES A convenient, 8-panel waterproof card illustrating 50 species of whales, dolphins, sea otters and pinnipeds found in the North Pacific from Alaska and the west coast of North America to Hawaii. It's handsomely illustrated, and includes full-color panels with typical behaviors, whalewatching guidelines and identification tips. Co-sponsored by the Alaska Whale Foundation and the University of Alaska Sea Grant Program, It's an excellent, weatherproof identification guide. (ALA143, $8.95)
Moon Handbook Baja  •  Joe Cummings GUIDEBOOK •  2004 •  PAPER  • 360 PAGES Packed with maps, charts and photographs, desert rat Cummings combines practical advice with solid basic information on the natural history of Baja California in this comprehensive guide. (BJA09, $19.95)
Moon Handbook Cabo  •  Joe Cummings GUIDEBOOK •  2004 •  PAPER  • 352 PAGES An informative guide in the popular series. (MEX143, $16.95)
National Geographic Photography Field Guide: Travel  •  Bob Caputo FIELD GUIDE •  2005 •  PAPER  • 160 PAGES A concise, practical guide to taking better travel photos covering equipment, digital photography and technique. With suggestions and how-to. (PHT23, $21.95)
National Geographic: The Ultimate Field Guide to Photography  •  Bob Martin FIELD GUIDE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES A comprehensive guide to film and digital photography, drawing on the practical knowledge of dozens of professional photographers. (PHT22, $24.95)
National Parks of Northern Mexico  •  Richard D. Fisher NATURAL HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 129 PAGES Veteran travel guide and photographer Richard Fisher has put together a stunning selection of color photographs for this slim, oversize paperback -- along with descriptions of the natural features, some history, and a few legends. Including Copper Canyon, the Sea of Cortez, and Baja. (MEX15, $16.95)
A Natural History of the Sonoran Desert  •  Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum NATURAL HISTORY •  1999 •  PAPER  • 650 PAGES Written with the general reader in mind, the many contributors to this book cover the ecology, flora and fauna of the Sonora in dozens of short articles. Written by the staff of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, it's an encyclopedic, overview of the region and its biodiversity. The book includes 35 color illustrations, 25 black and white photographs, and 450 line drawings useful for identification. (BJA26, $31.95)
A New Island Biogeography of the Sea of Cortes  •  Ted Case  •  Martin Cody NATURAL HISTORY •  2002 •  HARD COVER  • 669 PAGES A standard collection of review articles, geared for an academic audience, with chapters on the geologic and oceanographic setting, plants, mammals, fishes, birds, reptiles, insects, and conservation in the Gulf of California. (BJA51, $105.75)
No Way Home, The Decline of the World's Great Animal Migrations  •  David Wilcove NATURAL HISTORY •  2007 •  HARD COVER  • 245 PAGES A conservation biologist at Princeton, Wilcove argues powerfully that we must protect the habitats and byways of the grand migratory assemblages on the ground, in the air and on the water, including not just Africa's wildebeest but also the American bison, songbirds, monarch butterflies, the grey whale, sea turtles, and salmon. (CON41, $24.95)
Northern Mexico Map  •  ITMB 2006 •  MAP A colorful traveler's map of Sonora and Mexico's Copper Canyon, at a scale of 1:1,350,000. (MEX112, $10.95)
Pimsleur Quick & Simple Spanish  •  Pimsleur Language Method LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2005 •  AUDIO CD Four audio CDs with eight 30-minute lessons in basic Spanish, covering elementary vocabulary and phrases used in travel and everyday situations. The Pimsleur method emphasizes the use of listening skills without reading materials (so there isn't a book to follow along). It's advertised as "Totally audio: hear it, learn it, speak it." (SPN257, $19.95)
Reef Fish Identification, Baja to Panama  •  Paul Humann  •  Ned Deloach FIELD GUIDE •  2005 •  FLEXI-BOUND  • 364 PAGES A comprehensive field guide to reef fishes from the Gulf of California to the Pacific coast of Panama, featuring 500 color photographs and concise text by the intrepid diving team of Humann and Deloach. The book is dedicated to Baja Legend Alex Kerstitch (Reef Fishes of the Sea of Cortez) and includes several of his drawings and photographs. (BJA39, $39.95)
Rough Guide Baja California  •  Jason Clampet GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  GLOBE  • 320 PAGES This practical guide in the excellent British series includes a good historical and cultural overview. (BJA58, $18.99)
Saving the Gray Whale: People, Politics, and Conservation in Baja California  •  Serge Dedina NATURAL HISTORY •  2000 •  PAPER  • 200 PAGES A scholarly, well-researched analysis of conservation challenges for the gray whale and its breeding lagoons along the Pacific coast of Baja California. With chapters on the natural history of the gray whale, Scammons and the whale hunters, symbolic importance of the whale in Mexico, history of conservation efforts and the struggle over the future of San Ignacio lagoon. (BJA36, $18.95)
Sea of Cortez Marine Invertebrates  •  Alex Kerstich  •  Hans Bertsch FIELD GUIDE •  2007 •  PAPER  • 124 PAGES A comprehensive field guide to the sponges, molluscs, echinoderms,worms, crabs, shrimps and other intertebrates of the Gulf of Mexico and adjoining Pacific coast from Mexico to Peru, featuring additonal photographs by Hans Bertsch. (BJA56, $24.95)
Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest  •  Matthew Restall HISTORY •  2004 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES In this provocative book, Restall tackles Columbus, Cortes, Pizarro and the misconceptions surrounding them. The conquisadores most certainly did not conquer the Americas with a handful of men, nor were they received as gods. (SAM52, $16.95)
Sightings, The Gray Whales' Journey  •  Brenda Peterson  •  Linda Hogan NATURAL HISTORY •  2003 •  PAPER  • 336 PAGES Fiction writers both, the authors of this intriguing collaboration alternate passages on the gray whale, its nature, conservation history and prospects. Peterson provides an overview of the natural history of the celebrated gray whale, while Linda Hogan, a poet and member of the Chicksaw nation, tackles more philosophical issues. The two women consider, among other things, conservation and environmental issues, the pleasure of encounters with friendly gray whales, and the Makah tribe's interest in resuming traditional hunting of the whale. (BST74, $14.00)
Smithsonian Handbook: Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises  •  Mark Carwardine FIELD GUIDE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES In the trademark, graphic Eyewitness style, this sturdy guidebook colorfully describes the world's cetaceans with numerous illustrations, range maps, fluke drawings and a few paragraphs on each species. (FG02, $20.00)
Sonoran Desert Spring  •  John Alcock NATURAL HISTORY •  1994 •  PAPER  • 134 PAGES Alcock, a professor of insect behavior at the University of Arizona, writes of the plants and animals and ecology in this lyrical meditation on the Sonoran desert. The book is organized as a series of essays on key plants and animals over the four-month period from February to May. (BJA20, $17.95)
Sonoran Desert Summer  •  John Alcock NATURAL HISTORY •  1994 •  PAPER  • 187 PAGES Alcock evokes the plants, animals, ecology and terrain of the Sonoran desert in this extended natural history essay. A professor of insect behavior, he writes not only of the familiar saguaro cactus and showy bird-life of the region but also wood-boring beetles and other less obvious topics. (BJA21, $17.95)
Sonoran Desert Wildlfowers, A Field Guide to the Common Wildflowers of the Sonoran Desert  •  Richard Spellenburg FIELD GUIDE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 272 PAGES A compact, authoritative guide to the wildflowers of the Sonoran, featuring 300 color photographs. (SWU182, $24.95)
A Trout in the Sea of Cortez, A Novel  •  John Salter LITERATURE •  2006 •  HARD COVER  • 287 PAGES (BJA57, $24.00)
Walking  •  Henry David Thoreau REFERENCE •  1994 •  PAPER  • 92 PAGES You may want to carry this small volume in your daypack for inspiration. In it, Thoreau offers his meditations on the spiritual benefits of this most civilized form of travel. (WLK04, $9.95)
Whales and Dolphins in Question: The Smithsonian Answer Book  •  James Mead  •  Flip Nicklin  •  Joy Gold NATURAL HISTORY •  2002 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES A clever idea, well-executed. James Mead, the Smithsonian's curator of marine mammals, answers common, unusual and salient questions about whales and dolphins, as asked by the curious public via phone calls and letters to the Institution. With much excellent color photography by Flip Nicklin. (OCE78, $24.95)