From Publishers Weekly
Starred hotel reviews, restaurant price ranges and detailed directions have no place in Apple's latest travel guide (after Apple's Europe). Instead, readers get an appealing array of historical trivia and museum mentions relating to American cities. As a former New York Times correspondent (he's now an associate editor), Apple traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and Canada. After "playing Baedeker" for many years, he parlayed his knowledge of America's cities into a series of articles for the Times, which he updates here. Written in a conversational tone with an emphasis more on city character and less on the best shopping districts, this opinionated, nontraditional work is refreshing. Among Apple's revelations: San Francisco is "full of itself"; Tampa is home to the "world's largest collection of paintings and drawings by... Salvador Dalí"; and "people would rather die than honk" in Seattle. Apple's hotel and restaurant listings at the end of each city description are geared toward the high-end traveler (the Ritz-Carlton chain gets more than its fair share of mentions), which may limit the book's appeal. Still, Apple's thorough research into each city's economic and social history is impressive, as is his consistent highlighting of art collections and architecture. Maps not seen by PW. (Mar.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
"A wordsmith, trencherman, Trojan and gourmet of the first order. Johnny's fun-filled explorations of the United States broaden our grasp of geography." --Paul C. P. McIlhenny, President and CEO of the McIlhenny Company
"Johnny Apple is a virtuoso performer, in his range and appetite perhaps the most accomplished of his generation. He has written superbly of politics, art, music, architecture, food, drink, and now American cities. This book is Apple at the top of his form." --Ward Just
"Johnny Apple makes looking at architecture a feast--and every American city a luscious dish waiting to be sampled." --James Stewart Polshek
"Anyone who finds it necessary to visit a city for business and knows not a damn thing about the place will be very thankful for Apple's America. Johnny's enthusiasm, style, and gastronomic adventurousness will help any traveler to unfamiliar places, as well as edify any visitor to an American city who hasn't had the luck to go there with him and Betsey. Apple's America, once read, should be bound in leather and kept permanently in the luggage." --William Bolcom
Praise for Apple's Europe:
"[This book's] outstanding service is its advice on how to fill you stomach after filling your eye. . . . Apple sniffs out the best smoked salmon in Britain, the best steak in Scotland, the best grilled fish in Venice, the best Danish pastry in Copenhagen, the best pigeon pie in Marrakech." --Charles Michener, The Atlantic Monthly
Book Description
Unpretentious, sophisticated, and always appetizing advice from a celebrated authority
For more than thirty years, R. W. Apple Jr. has roamed the United States as an eyewitness to history. Here, in Apple's America, his robust enthusiasm for the food and culture of New England, the South and West, the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and his native Middle West carries him to forty great cities, where he proves to be our ideal guide--amused and amusing, knowledgeable, indefatigable, and endlessly curious.
From Boston to Honolulu, from Montreal to Las Vegas, Cincinnati to Seattle, Johnny Apple explores the landmarks, architecture, business, culture, and, of course, the food and beverages of his favorite urban communities. Capturing the tone and style of American city life to perfection, he shows us the hidden treasures, the best buildings, the famous landmarks, the historical aura, and the present-day realities that make each city so memorable. And in each he recommends several places to stay, numerous places to eat, and sites or activities you shouldn't miss. No traveler in the United States will want to do without his recommendations.
About the Author
R. W. Apple Jr. has been associated with The New York Times since 1963, serving most recently as chief correspondent and now as associate editor. The author of Apple's Europe, he lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife, Betsey.
Apple's America: The Discriminating Traveler's Guide to 40 Great Cities in the United States and Canada FROM THE PUBLISHER
For more than thirty years, R. W. Apple Jr. has roamed the United States as an eyewitness to history. Here, in Apple's America, his robust enthusiasm for the food and culture of New England, the South and West, the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and his native Middle West carries him to forty great cities, where he proves to be our ideal guide--amused and amusing, knowledgeable, indefatigable, and endlessly curious.
\From Boston to Honolulu, from Montreal to Las Vegas, Cincinnati to Seattle, Johnny Apple explores the landmarks, architecture, business, culture, and, of course, the food and beverages of his favorite urban communities. Capturing the tone and style of American city life to perfection, he shows us the hidden treasures, the best buildings, the famous landmarks, the historical aura, and the present-day realities that make each city so memorable. And in each he recommends several places to stay, numerous places to eat, and sites or activities you shouldn't miss. No traveler in the United States will want to do without his recommendations.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
Starred hotel reviews, restaurant price ranges and detailed directions have no place in Apple's latest travel guide (after Apple's Europe). Instead, readers get an appealing array of historical trivia and museum mentions relating to American cities. As a former New York Times correspondent (he's now an associate editor), Apple traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and Canada. After "playing Baedeker" for many years, he parlayed his knowledge of America's cities into a series of articles for the Times, which he updates here. Written in a conversational tone with an emphasis more on city character and less on the best shopping districts, this opinionated, nontraditional work is refreshing. Among Apple's revelations: San Francisco is "full of itself"; Tampa is home to the "world's largest collection of paintings and drawings by... Salvador Dal "; and "people would rather die than honk" in Seattle. Apple's hotel and restaurant listings at the end of each city description are geared toward the high-end traveler (the Ritz-Carlton chain gets more than its fair share of mentions), which may limit the book's appeal. Still, Apple's thorough research into each city's economic and social history is impressive, as is his consistent highlighting of art collections and architecture. Maps not seen by PW. (Mar.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Library Journal
Apple (associate editor, the New York Times; Apple's America) deftly distills the essence of 40 North American cities through their histories, with special emphasis on the arts and architecture. All the major cities are here-including Boston, Washington, DC, and Los Angeles-but there are some surprises as well. Despite lacking the prominence of larger urban centers, cities like Providence, Buffalo, and Milwaukee are represented, along with Canadian cities such as Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver; outside the continental United States, Honolulu gets a nod. It's these less recognized cities that give Apple's book its value for first-time travelers. Beyond the author's impression of each city, the hotels listed are aimed at the affluent; frequent Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton recommendations give a clue as to the rates one can expect. There's a wider range of recommended dining experiences, with several restaurants qualifying as unpretentious and inexpensive. Not a traditional guidebook-it generally lacks practical information on public transportation, admission fees, street addresses, and telephone numbers-this book is recommended for large travel collections.-Janet Ross, formerly with Sparks Branch Lib., NV Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
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