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Boston

READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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We feature a handpicked selection of travel guides, maps, literature, books on art, nature and culture, all designed to help you get more out of your travels to Boston. Order an essential package, and we'll ship any additional items for free.

Item EXBOS04. Buy these 3 items as a set for $46 including shipping, 15% off the retail price.
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Common Ground, A Turbulent Decade in the Lives of Three American Families

by J. Anthony Lukas

• HISTORY
• 1986
• PAPER
• 688 PAGES

The Pulitzer Prize-winning study of racial tensions in Boston is told from the perspectives of three families. This impeccably researched history pays particular attention to the school integration and busing crisis of 1974. (BOS14, $19.95)

Eyewitness Guide Boston

by Eyewitness Guides

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2013
• PAPER
• 208 PAGES

An exceptionally informative, visually entrancing guide to Boston. (BOS10, $20.00)

Boston Map (Boston Unfolds)

by VanDam

• MAP

A cleverly folded map of Boston. (BOS09, $7.95)

 

Also Recommended

AIA Guide to Boston

by Michael Southworth | Susan Southworth

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2008
• PAPER
• 544 PAGES

This estimable guide sruveys more than 600 of Boston's noteworthy buildings and landmarks. (BOS07, $29.95)

Backroad Bicycling on Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket

by Susan Milton | Kevin Jeffrey | Nan Jeffrey

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2003
• PAPER
• 208 PAGES

Popular destinations for the casual cyclist, Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket offer a variety of trails and roads to explore. (USE260, $18.95)

Fodor's Boston's 25 Best

by Fodor's

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2008
• PAPER
• 128 PAGES

A shirt-pocket guide to Boston, this slim book includes an excellent map of the center of the city and essential information on its highlights. (USE04, $11.99)

Harvard A to Z

by John T. Bethell | Richard M. Hunt | Robert Shenton

• REFERENCE
• 2004
• HARD COVER
• 408 PAGES

An encylopedia of Harvardiana, from notable alumni to architectural gems, the historical and cultural significance of the university, and its centuries-old traditions and lore. (BOS26, $25.95)

Where Boston Cityguide

by Where Magazine

• GUIDEBOOK
• 2008
• HARD COVER
• 64 PAGES

A sturdy pocket guide to top city sights, helpfully keyed to overview maps and featuring a detailed downtown PopOut map. (BOS31, $9.95)

Away Offshore, Nantucket Island and Its People

by Diane Swartz | Nathaniel Philbrick

• HISTORY
• 2011
• PAPER
• 273 PAGES

A cultural history of Nantucket and, most notably, of its storied whaling industry. This book is informed and entertainingly written, with a strong slant toward telling the stories of individuals. (USE266, $16.00)

Founding Brothers, The Revolutionary Generation

by Joseph J. Ellis

• HISTORY
• 2002
• PAPER
• 304 PAGES

A riveting tale of Washington, Madison, Hamilton and especially of Jefferson and Adams. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, it's a fascinating glimpse into the early days of our country. (USE244, $15.00)

In the Heart of the Sea, The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex

by Nathaniel Philbrick

• HISTORY
• 2001
• PAPER
• 302 PAGES

The seafaring tale of fearsome whales, cannibalism and sturdy 19th-century Nantucketers; a history of the true life events that inspired Melville's "Moby Dick" -- and a fascinating history of 19th-century society in Nantucket. (OCE47, $16.00)

Revolutionaries, A New History of the Invention of America

by Jack Rakove

• HISTORY
• 2011
• PAPER
• 496 PAGES

Rakove offers new insights into the personalities of America's famous and little-known revolutionaries, focusing on the period from 1772 to 1792 and portraying these national heroes as ordinary men who rose to meet the challenges at hand. (USA442, $16.95)

The Americans, the Colonial Experience

by Daniel Boorstin

• HISTORY
• 1964
• PAPER
• 434 PAGES

Winner of the Bancroft Prize, this wide-ranging portrait of colonial America looks to the origins of the American character and its institutions. (USA05, $16.95)

The Big House, A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home

by George Howe Colt

• HISTORY
• 2004
• PAPER
• 336 PAGES

The author's personal tribute to the elaborately eccentric home where he spent most of his summers. This poignant memoir records 100 of history of the house, which was perched on a Cape Cod promontory overlooking Buzzards Bay. (USA476, $15.99)

The Gates Unbarred, A History of University Extension at Harvard, 1910-2009

by Michael Shinagel

• HISTORY
• 2010
• PAPER
• 248 PAGES

A history of University Extension at Harvard since its inception in 1910. (BOS44, $14.95)

The North End, A Brief History of Boston's Oldest Neighborhood

by Alex R. Goldfeld

• HISTORY
• 2009
• PAPER
• 190 PAGES

Resident and veteran tour guide, Goldfeld distils the essential history of the neighborhood, once home to Paul Revere, host to Sam Adams, site of the city's first African-American church and today a thriving Little Italy. (USE575, $19.99)

Why Read Moby-Dick?

by Nathaniel Philbrick

• HISTORY
• 2011
• HARD COVER
• 144 PAGES

Philbrook re-creates the world of Melville -- and the proud seaman's town of 19th-century Nantucket -- in this enthusiastic little book. (USE534, $25.00)

John Adams

by David McCullough

• BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
• 2002
• PAPER
• 751 PAGES

A Pulitzer Prize-winning best-selling biography of the second president. McCullough reveals him as a magnificent figure who helped shaped the nation. (USE201, $20.00)

Land's End, A Walk in Provincetown

by Michael Cunningham

• BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
• 2012
• PAPER
• 176 PAGES

A brief, loving portrait of Provincetown, the town at the very tip of Cape Cod, by the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Hours. (USE254, $12.00)

Paul Revere and the World He Lived In

by Esther Forbes

• BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
• 1999
• PAPER
• 528 PAGES

An engaging, Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of the much mythologized hero of the American Revolution first published in 1942. (BOS17, $30.95)

The Perfect Storm, A True Story of Men Against the Sea

by Sebastian Junger

• BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
• 2009
• PAPER
• 256 PAGES

A gripping, now-famous blow-by-blow account of a 1991 disaster at sea. Junger reconstructs the final hours of six men aboard a 72-foot swordfish boat in the North Atlantic, battling against a torrential storm. (OCE06, $15.95)

Ahab's Wife

by Sena Jeter Naslund

• LITERATURE
• 2005
• PAPER
• 704 PAGES

A first-rate example of historical fiction, this absorbing, lyrical and well-researched novel was inspired by Melville, Nantucket whaling and 19th-century America. (USE279, $15.95)

Blues

by John Hersey

• LITERATURE
• 1988
• PAPER
• 205 PAGES

In this classic novella, Hersey turns a tale of a young stranger and an experienced fisherman, out fishing on Cape Cod, into a marvelous meditation on fishing -- and the natural history of the region. (USE521, $15.00)

Little Women

by Louisa May Alcott

• LITERATURE
• 2008
• PAPER
• 777 PAGES
• FAMILY

Louisa May Alcott's classic tale of four high-spirited sisters growing up in Civil War-era Massachussetts. (USE210, $8.99)

Rise to Rebellion

by Jeff M. Shaara

• LITERATURE
• 2004
• PAPER
• 576 PAGES

Shaara, a storyteller of note, here turns from the Civil War to the signature moments of the American Revolution -- as seen through the eyes of key figures. (USE287, $15.95)

The Bostonians

by Henry James

• LITERATURE
• 2001
• PAPER
• 480 PAGES

Henry James' satirical novel of the battle of the sexes is well worth the read. In it, Basil, a Mississippi lawyer, and Olive, a Boston feminist, compete for the affections of the same woman. Originally published in 1886, it was one of the first American novels to deal with lesbianism. (BOS13, $20.00)

The Dante Club

by Matthew Pearl

• LITERATURE
• 2004
• PAPER
• 384 PAGES

Rarely has historical fiction, literary reference and murder mystery been fused so effortlessly. Pearl's novel, set in 1865 Boston, tells the gripping tale of a murderer drawing inspiration from Dante's "Divine Comedy." (BOS12, $15.00)

The Good City, Writers Explore 21st Century Boston

by Emily Hiestand | Ande Zellman

• ANTHOLOGY
• 2004
• PAPER
• 175 PAGES

This collection of contemporary writing on Boston includes contributions by Susan Orlean and Michael Patrick MacDonald. (BOS28, $14.00)

The Rise of Silas Lapham

by William Dean Howells

• LITERATURE
• 1983
• PAPER
• 368 PAGES

A classic novel of the Gilded Age, where wealth and the Boston aristocracy collide as entrepreneur Silas Lapham attempts to translate his riches into social status by marrying off his daughters. (BOS21, $16.00)

Against the Tide, The Fate of the New England Fisherman

by Richard Adams Carey

• NATURAL HISTORY
• 2000
• PAPER
• 381 PAGES

A discussion the crisis that faces the New England fishing industry from a journalist who spent a year among the fishermen of Cape Cod. (USE44, $21.95)

Death of a Hornet and Other Cape Cod Essays

by Robert Finch

• NATURAL HISTORY
• 2001
• PAPER
• 288 PAGES

A collection of serene essays on the nature, wildlife, and inhabitants of Cape Cod by a keen observer and year-round resident. (USE84, $16.95)

The Outermost House, A Year of Life on the Great Beach of Cape Cod

by Henry Beston

• NATURAL HISTORY
• 2003
• PAPER
• 218 PAGES

The chronicle of a year spent living alone in a remote Cape Cod beach house in 1925. These beloved essays, first published in 1928, capture the essence of the Cape, the sea, weather and animal life. (USE41, $15.99)

The Whale

by Philip Hoare

• NATURAL HISTORY
• 2011
• PAPER
• 256 PAGES

A deeply engaging meditation on all things whale. Philip Hoare saves his special love and attention for the sperm whale -- not only via a beautiful literary analysis of Moby Dick -- but also by indulging in a childhood fantasy and actually swimming with the whales in the Azores. (BST144, $15.99)

National Audubon Society Field Guide to New England

by Brian Cassie | Peter Alden

• FIELD GUIDE
• 1998
• FLEXI-BOUND
• 448 PAGES

A compact, easy-to-use overview of 1,000 of New England's trees, wildflowers, mammals, insects and other flora and fauna. It also provides an extensive overview of the area's geology, weather patterns and natural sites. (USE06, $19.95)

National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America

by Jon Dunn

• FIELD GUIDE
• 2011
• PAPER
• 576 PAGES

From Alaska to Baja California, Nova Scotia and Florida, this guide is the veteran's choice for birding anywhere in the United States. Tabbed for easy access, the color range maps in this sixth edition are outstanding. (FG09, $27.95)

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