9781838860516“New York is one of the world’s megacities, with almost 20 million people living in the wider metropolitan area. America’s most populous city has been described as the cultural, financial and media capital of the world. It is also a universally recognizable city, home of the Manhattan skyline, Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge and the headquarters of the United Nations. New York provides a pictorial exploration of the city’s five boroughs: Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island. The book introduces the reader to some classic architecture, such as the art deco Chrysler Building and Empire State Building; quirky neighborhoods, such as Greenwich Village, Chinatown, and Hell’s Kitchen; iconic landmarks, such as the Statue of Liberty and One World Trade Center; and great cultural centres, such as Broadway, the home of North American theatre; Times Square, the ‘Crossroads of the World’; and Madison Square Garden, an indoor sports and events arena. Presented in a pocket-sized landscape format and with captions explaining the story behind each photo, New York is a stunning collection of images that vividly brings to life the world’s greatest city.”

This book is packed full of photographs and short explanations about the sights and sounds of New York City, exactly as the above synopsis says. I’ve never been, but have wanted to visit for years, especially as I have an good friend who’s been several times and always raves about it.

One thing I didn’t realise is how many parks the city has as Central Park is normally the only one mentioned in books or films. I recognised a few of the famous landmarks in the photographs and discovered a few new places too. I also didn’t realise how busy Pennsylvania Station is, apparently 650,000 people go through it every day! Imagine that!!

Highly recommended!

VisualExplorerGuide-California-jkt2_thumb“America’s most populous state is often seen as a west coast paradise by those who live there – and those who desire to live there. Anchored around the urban centres of Los Angeles in the south and San Francisco in the north, California is a place of idyllic beaches, cutting-edge architecture, spectacular national parks and Hollywood dazzle. In the pages of California, find out about the Big Sur, the precipitous, beautiful windy drive along Route 1 in the central coast; Yosemite National Park, home to the imposing Half Dome and El Capitan mountains, and offering stunning views from Glacier Point; San Jose and Silicon Valley, centre of the world’s tech industry; Santa Monica Beach, a mecca for sun seekers; Rodeo Drive, the home of luxury goods stores in Beverley Hills; and Death Valley in the Mojave Desert, one of the hottest, driest places on Earth. Presented in a handy, pocket-sized landscape format and with captions explaining the story behind each photo, California is a stunning collection of images that brings to life the vitality of this iconic west coast American state.”

This is another fab travel book from Amber Books, this time all about California, another place I’ve never visited, but would like to.

There are some beautiful photos in this book revealing so many parts of Californian that I didn’t know about. For instance did you know that they are the biggest producer of lettuce in the world and their citrus products are worth over $3 billion to the US economy!! 

Some of my favourite photos are of the Battery Point Light House in North California, the Queen Anne Houses in Humboldt, Glass Beach, and the Forever Marilyn sculpture in Palm Springs.

Definitely recommended if your heading to California or you’re a keen armchair traveller!

Thanks to Amber Books and NetGalley for my digital copies