Sally Collings

California by Sally Collings is a beautiful small format book that could easily serve several purposes.

As I mentioned when I wrote about a different book in the Visual Explorer Guide series I think these would make wonderful end table books. They take up less room than a coffee table book and are far more likely to be picked up and flipped through by guests. The size also allows for more, and more varied, books to be displayed without taking up all table top space.

This also makes for a fun companion if you're going to be taking in the sights in California. This isn't really a tour guide since those usually include some kind of directions on getting places, this is a nice reminder when you're in a part of the state about some of the sights you might want to take in.

My other thought about why this is such a handy book will probably date me. When we used to travel when I was a kid, and some of my travels when I was a young adult, we bought postcards. Some we sent back to friends, but we often would buy a book of postcards to keep as souvenirs. Granted, in those days pictures were taken with an eye toward how many were left on a roll and now we can take far more pictures, but the fact remains that we can only get the ideal angle or the perfect time of day so often. So this book replaces, for me, that book of postcards. In fact, I have photographs I took of some of the same places in this book and none are the same angle or lighting.

I went to high school in "the valley" and later lived in Davis and Sacramento, so these pictures didn't show me too many things I haven't seen. But they did offer attractive images that brought back many memories. So whether you have spent time in California or are just thinking about visiting, this book offers a visual feast for you.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.… (meer)