A Short History of San Francisco

I curled up with this book shortly after I moved to San Fran (1993) and found it impossible to put down. Tom Cole ably illumines the life and times of America's oddest city. His research is exhaustive - we are early in the book given a lesson on the geologic origins of the Bay itself; which turns out to be as engrossing and ironic a tale as any from the Barbary Coast!! This is also one of the few works about San Francisco that gives the plight of Ohlone natives the attention and consideration it sorely merits. It is a mark of Cole's considerable talent that he can tell one story with such sensitivity and, just pages later, transport us quite heart-poundingly into the throes of 'one of the most rip-roaring events in human history: the California gold rush.' If you like history, or travel, or California, or San Francisco, or plain ol' good reading, 'A Short History of San Francisco' delivers exponentially more than its $12.95 pricetag's worth. Super-recommended!!