In Search of Ancient Oregon: A Geological and Natural History | 
|  | | | Title: | In Search of Ancient Oregon: A Geological and Natural History | | Author: | Ellen Morris Bishop | | Publisher: | Timber Press, Incorporated | | Type: | Book / Paperback | | Publication Date: | 15 August, 2006 | | ISBN / ISBN-13: | 0881927899 / 9780881927894 | | List Price: | $29.95 | | You Save: | $10.18 | | Amazon Price: | $19.77 | |
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| Editorial Review / Publisher's Information:
Product Description
Geology is an extremely visual subject, and In Search of Ancient Oregon is a beautifully photographed, expertly written account of Oregon's fascinating geological story. Written by a passionate and professional geologist who has spent countless hours in the field exploring and photographing the state, In Search of Ancient Oregon is a book for all those interested in Oregon's landscapes and environments. It presents fine-art-quality color photographs of well-known features such as Mount Hood, Crater Lake, Smith Rock, Steens Mountain, the Columbia River Gorge, and Cannon Beach, and scenic, not so well known places such as Jordan Craters, Leslie Gulch, Abert Rim, Hells Canyon, Elkhorn Mountains, and Three Fingered Jack. Each of the more than 220 stunning photographs is accompanied by readable text, presenting the story of how Oregon's diverse landscapes evolved --- and what we may expect in the future. Until now, no book has presented this dynamic story in a way that everyone interested in Oregon's natural history can easily understand. The combination of extraordinary photographs and the author's lucid explanations make this book both unique and essential for those curious about our own contemporary landscape.
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Customer Reviews:
• Wonderful, Beautiful Book 03 October, 2007
This book is beautifully illustrated and well written, making it easy to grasp the geological concepts. I feel like I found a treasure. I have lived in Oregon all of my life. Now I am looking at the view of the mountains and river valleys--as well as that pile of "pretty" rocks in my yard-- with new eyes...
- Reviewed by customer ID: A3RYWRIHN8PELF
• Remarkable Book For Specific Examples And Photos 22 May, 2006
In describing the events and processes in Oregon's geological history the author repeatedly references and explains familiar landscape features. (E.g. Alameda Ridge is a gravel bar left by the Lake Missoula Floods entering the Portland Basin. Mt. Scott, Rocky Butte and Powell Butte are all remnants of Pleistocene volcanoes. ) This makes the geology lesson both clearer and more interesting. Likewise, descriptions of flora and fauna further illustrate extant conditions during our state's evolution. With its many excellent photos, the book could easily succeed as a 'coffee table book.'
- Reviewed by customer ID: A1PEANVWGP2RL3
• Great Gift - Surprisingly Interesting! 12 January, 2007
I gave this book to my husband, at his request. He's an engineer, so I figured that this would be a book that interested similar minds. :) It turns out to be really facinating - our extended family and friends have enjoyed sharing it, and the photos are beautiful and interesting for all ages. My only wish is that it still was easy to find in hardback, as I think that would be nice.
The book is written "story-style," which makes the information a lot more palatable to those who don't have a geology background. The historical and environmental perspectives are woven together with very thoughtful writing. There is a lot of data in this book, but I don't think it reads like a textbook, which is nice.
Overall, this is a great book. It makes a wonderful gift for just about anyone who appreciates the environment or anyone who has an interest in understanding the land formations they see or live on.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A20SMDYVI3M16Y
• Fatally Flawed 28 November, 2007
This book reminds me of an good meal at a restaurant ruined by the waiter forgetting your drinks. So much of it is excellent: the text is quite thorough and fairly well-written (if at times a little overwrought), the geological processes are well-explained, and of course the photographs are magnificent. What ruins the meal for me is the complete lack of a useful map. There is a map of Oregon at the back of the book, but it fails to include many of the locations mentioned, and the scale is so small and the notations so tiny that it is often impossible to locate the places that are labeled. I found myself flipping back and forth between map and text to figure out what the devil the author was talking about, but each place name required several minutes of searching to identify. After a while, I just threw my hands up in defeat.
The book should have provided small-scale maps on the same page as the text. This would have made it much easier to figure what the author was discussing. Alternatively, the author should have abandoned her detailed geographical descriptions and fallen back on much looser descriptions.
Here's an example of the kind of text that drove me crazy:
"The first Columbia River basalts to reach western Oregon were the extensive flows of Grande Ronde Basalt. Some followed the ancestral Columbia's broad valley. Others may have flooded through low places in the Cascades. Today, Grande Ronde flows are exposed along the Clackamas River, and at least four can be counted at Silver Falls State Park... Some of the lava covered portions of the Willamette Valley and what would one day become Portland. Today, about eight flows of Grande Ronde Basalt have been mapped in the West Hills..."
Wouldn't it have been much better to simply show a map presenting all this information rather than foist this avalanche of place names upon the poor reader?
Another failure was the absence of any geological map. I realize that full-bore geological maps are impossibly complex to present in a book, and very intimidating to the reader, but there's no reason why the author could not have included simplified geological maps to illustrate her points.
There are also no aerial photographs. Let's face it, some geological formations are best understood from the air, but the author seems determined to insure that nothing competes with her beautiful photography.
Lastly, there's the absence of diagrams. I'm sure that many readers would have appreciated a line drawing showing how a graben is formed, or how subduction works. But not one single diagram graces this book. There are some concepts that are best presented in a diagram, and no amount of colorful prose from the author can substitute for such diagrams.
It appears that the author may have wanted to present a nice coffee-table book that was informed with some serious geology; if that were the case, then she should have kept the geological explanations at a much simpler level. I myself enjoyed the detailed treatment, but the lack of any supporting material rendered the reading far more difficult than it should have been.
I recommend "Roadside Geology of Oregon" or "Geology of Oregon" by Orr and Orr, in preference to this book.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A36U0SVO1LH7ZE
• A Gem For Anyone Interested In Geology 13 December, 2007
A casual glance at the cover with accolades only from Oregon sources (at least in my edition) might give the impression that this is one of those local market books of dubious quality. This is far from the case. The text is clear and informative with good depth and appropriate caveats on how speculative or contentious a conclusion may be that treat the reader with respect.
The photographs are world class and far more than what you get in a the Roadside Geology series or most other books of this type.
For non-Oregonians not familiar with the state geography, more maps would have been helpful but not really an issue unless you are actually driving state roads trying to find these formations in which case a map and the Roadside book make a fine accompaniment.
As an illustration of the the in-depth geology of a region, this is an excellent book for anyone of any region interested in geology. For those interested in Oregon geology, compared to the Oregon Roadside Geology book, you will find the pictures much more informative and the text more thorough especially in its treatment of alternate theories (The Roadside authors seem to have an agenda, especially in regard to the origin of the Oregon flood basalts.)
- Reviewed by customer ID: AFWE7DV1NARWE
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