Compass American Guides: Arizona, 5th Edition

The Fodor Compass America Guide on Arizona was excellent. The book was uniquely organized with the first three chapters devoted to the dramatic Arizona landscape of deserts, mountains, and canyons. There are two chapters on the history of Arizona, honoring the early people who inhabited the area as well as recogizing the Hispanic missionaries, priests, and settlers. Because vast parts of Arizona belong to the Navajos, Apaches , Yavapais, Hopis, and smaller tribes, the book includes plenty of information about the native American people in this state. The book then covers the two large inhabited areas, Phoenix and Tucson. I found the book to be full of useful tips and practical information. The maps were very good, showing the deserts, the grand canyon, the Spanish Colonial settlements, the Native American reservations, and the larger cities. Also included was a section on the desert plants. The sections on the Grand Canyon were very helpful. We decided to hike to the bottom of the Canyon on the Bright Angel trail. We spent the night at the Phantom Ranch (which had hot showers). The following morning we hiked back up the Kaibab trail. This was an amazing experience. The book was very helpful as we explored Frank Lloyd Wright's home and architectural school/business in Scottsdale. This compound of buildings hugging the desert floor is worth a visit. Hold onto the steering wheel of your car on the twisting roads in the copper mining towns like Bisbee and Tombstone. I bought superb copper ore specimens - beautiful greens and blues. The Mexican atmosphere of Nogales, a border town, is nice. Nogales means "walnut" in Spanish but unfortunately the old walnut groves have long been chopped down. A special city is my opinion is the the wonderful multi-ethnic college town of Tucson. You might be surprised at the dramatic differences between Phoenix and Tuscon. It is hard not to fall in love with Tuscon with its mixture of cultures and peoples in a relaxed atmosphere. Whereas in Phoenix you see sprinklers trying to water struggling lawns, in Tucson the inhabitants are more likely to have desert gardens which waste far less water. I found the Fodor guide to be excellent and would strongly recommend it.

I really like the way this book is organized. There are sections such as "Desserts" and "Canyons". When I went to Arizona the last time, I wanted to visit desserts, and I wanted to hike some Canyons, so I could simply read these sections and learn pretty much everything I wanted to know, rather than piece this information together as other travel books make you do (since they are usually organized by area). The organization also allows you to skip information such as "Art" and "History". Of course in the end I ended up being interested in these sections after all, so I read them in the care while I was there. And once again, I could focus on these sections rather than finding this information organized by area.Long story short: I really like reading about an area by topic of interest, rather than by location. It makes travel planning much easier. Of course, your need may be different (you may be in a certain town and want to figure out what to do for instance...). In that case, this book still is useful (it DOES have short sections on individual locations), but there are other books I use for that type of research.Overall, I can highly recommend this book. In fact, I will order some of the other books from this series for different states.

Compass Guides are the best series I have ever read. They are literate and beautifully illustrated, laid out well and very logical to use. Of the Compass Guides I've read, Cheek's Arizona is the best (followed closely by his Santa Fe Guide).He writes with wit and style. He's not afraid to share his opinion, but never takes for granted that his is the only viewpoint. He also adds a human element that few other guides offer. Frequently you'll find sidebar articles that introduce you to a person whose story particularly illustrates the idea or place in question.I lived in Arizona for 4 1/2 years. This is the guide that I used to learn the state. I would recommend it to anyone. When my wife and I married in Sedona, Arizona we sent copies of this book to our relatives to acquaint them with the wonderful place they'd be visiting. All who read it were delighted. You'll be, too.

This book is incredible. It gives all kinds of details ranging from local interest and lore to general information about the state. It reads like a novel and yet is very informative. Even if you have no intention of ever visiting Arizona, this is still a wonderful book to read and the photographs are breath-taking.