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Oasis of Stone: Visions of Baja California Sur
Binding: Hardcover
Author: Bruce Berger
Manufacturer: Sunbelt Publications
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Average Rating: 5.0
Total Customer Reviews: 3
List Price: $49.95
Our Price: $36.46
Sales Rank: 694815
Product Description
Gorgeous full-color photography by award-winning photographer Miguel Ćngel de la Cueva, and evocative text by Bruce Berger (Almost an Island, There Was a River), bring the southern half of Baja California to life. Beginning with its unique geology, and moving on to the coastal, desert, and mountain ecosystems of Mexico's little-known peninsula, this lushly decorated coffee-table book highlights the geology that created this "oasis of stone" and the flora and fauna that are make their homes here. Ending with a short photo-essay on "The Newcomers" (mankind) from cave painters to the enduring rancheros, the book packs a pro-environmental punch by following the many pages of glorious natural beauty with some succinct words and images of what man's enduring legacy might be, should we continue unchecked.
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Users Product Reviews: |
Product Review Summary: Magic in the desert This oversized table top book is simply amazing. The photographs are otherworldly yet these are the visions of Baja Califonia where desert stone meets the sand and shore. Photographer Miguel Angel de La Cueva presents pictures of Baja California that are mind blowing land and sea visons that look unreal. The photogrpahs reveal glimpses of habitats and micro-habitats that look as though they are from some alien planet. The views from above ,revealing the terrain as it meets the sea looks like molecular observations, it is as though you were looking at blood running through veins in a body;in many ways it is one and the same. The photographs of the various cacti are magnificent, the sun illuminating the spines, making the cacti look like angels with halos or at times their thorny presentation looking like a medussa of devil horns highlighted by the sun. The shots taken at night are superb revealing the austerity and serenity of the desert. The colorful flowering plants of the desert are a sight to behold whether you are a Baja traveler or an arm chair adventurer. The Sierra de La Laguna exhibits some of the most colorful depictions of the desert that defy our sterotypical thoughts regading what a desert looks like. Nature is presented in all it's beauty. Seeing a tree growing like the wild fig, on the side of a cliff, with it's roots extending the length of city blocks is a sight that goes against our normal perceptions of tree growth; the natural beauty of the landscape is impressive. The section on the creatures of the desert is interesting but the photographs of the land and sea far exceeeds those about the animals that hunt and survive. The text is lyrical and expressive of the beauty of the desert that is Baja California. This book is recommended for all Baja enthusiasts, community libraries or high schools. Unfortunately there were only 5,000 copies printed in the first printing so get yours now while you still can.
Product Review Summary: An essential acquisition by California libraries Enhanced with 160 superbly presented full color photographs by acclaimed photographer Miguel Angel de la Cueva which accompany an informative, almost lyrical text by Bruce Berger, "Oasis Of Stone: Visions Of Baja California Sur" presents a beautifully showcased survey of southern Baja California complete with its unique geology, as well as its coastal, desert and mountain ecosystems. Of special note is the succinct photo-essay on 'The Newcomers" providing a perspective on the contributions and impacts of humans that range on the positive side from cave painters to rancheros, the negative as illustrated by rivers poisoned by pollution and junked car heaps. An essential acquisition by California libraries, "Oasis Of Stone" will also have dramatic appeal for non-specialist general readers with an interest in nature and the environment, as well as armchair travelers seeking to explore the wonders and beauty of the relatively unknown and heretofore underappreciated Baja peninsula
Product Review Summary: Natural history books can be fun to read! For those who doubt it--check out "Oasis of Stone"...Every glossy page fairly bursts with color and the photos have that amazing depth that only very talented photographers can capture; where it looks as if you could step right inside and walk across a sun-washed valley or into the warm turquoise waters of the Sea. The text as well is both beautiful and deep--one of my favorite non-fiction writers, Bruce Berger, who dazzled all Baja book lovers with "Almost An Island" does it again, taking us deeper into the natural world of this unique peninsula and its inhabitants.
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