As America stands to the rest of the world, so stands California to America - a bright shining promise of endless possibility. This exquisite celebration of ;California The Beautiful; is both a portrait of the diverse natural beauty of the Golden State and through the incredible voices of its writers, a testament to the ever-renewing spirit that it has come to embody. Aldous Huxley, British author turned Hollywood resident, described the California dream as ;This great crystal of light, whose base is as large as Europe and whose height for all practical purposes, is infinite. Among the other authors offering praise are Maya Angelou, Mary Austin, Ray Bradbury, Joan Didion, Gretel Ehrlich, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, M.F.K. Fisher, Robertson Jeffers, Jack Kerouac, Clarence King, Jack London, Henry Miller, John Muir, William Saroyan, April Smith, John Steinbeck, Robert Louis Stevenson, Mark Twain, Nathanael West, and Walt Whitman. Land of innovation and opportunity, California is both dream and reality. California The Beautiful is a gift for all who have felt the lure of this dual promise and who have marveled at the unrivaled beauty of this quintessentially American land.
Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review
(14 customer reviews)
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Inspired Photography, October 22, 2004
T. Harward (Boston, MA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: California the Beautiful (Hardcover)
The other review for this little book is flat out wrong, so I'll give mine. The photographs are why you want this. Galen Rowell is in my opinion one of the best nature photographers of the last century, and he knew California. He also knew how to show very clearly the feel of the state; you don't just get the visual image in his photos, you get a different emotion from each one. Every picture is amazing in its own way. The text isn't as stunning, but fits well, and the layout and typography are fitting to the photographs. I highly reccomend this for any coffee table or for any lover of California or photography or things of beauty.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Awesome photography, August 2, 2005
Trudi E. Varton "nature lover" (Redding, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: California the Beautiful (Hardcover)
This compact size coffee table book with outstanding photography by Galen Rowell makes a great souvenir for visitors to beautiful California. The diversity of this great state is depicted in all its spectacular beauty from the desert to the majestic mountain peaks; from minute wildflowers to the towering redwoods. Prose and verse from famous & not-so-famous Californians & visitors add pleasant reading which accompany the lovely images.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Beautiful little book, September 12, 2007
JK "Jan" (Santa Cruz, CA USA) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: California the Beautiful (Hardcover)
I purchased a number of these books as "thank you" gifts for various friends we are going to visit in Europe. I was so excited about finding a picture book on California, I didn't read the description thoroughly -- note that the books are only about 7"x7". Even so, their small size makes them perfect to carry in a suitcase. The pictures are quite nice and, even though the coloring is enhanced a bit, they truly show how beautiful California can be. My ONLY complaint with these books is that the price is printed on the back of the dust jacket! This means that if you're giving them as a gift, there's no way to cover up how much you paid (or could have paid) for the book. (I guess I can come up with a cute stick-on label ... )
(14 customer reviews) 
Inspired Photography, October 22, 2004 
Awesome photography, August 2, 2005