GUIDES     OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES    GALLERY    TOWNS

FODORS: LISTINGS. A standard listings-of-everything look-up reference book to help tourists fill their precious time with the best of everything for the right price.

THE STANDARD. This is the read-from-front-to-back book about the Berkshires you find in Berkshires' book stores. Published in the Berkshires, it's the insider's guide to everything that makes the Berkshires interesting and a delight to visit, including reviews of lodgings and restaurants.

OPINIONATED REVIEWS of the best places to stay and to eat, from four-star restaurants to diners. Also, must-see performing arts festivals and the outstanding museums scattered throughout the Berkshires (also Pioneer Valley). The Mohawk Trail and numerous scenic drives to orchards and antiques shops, wineries and waterfalls etc. 15 maps. 100 black & white photographs,

OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES

HIKES. This completely updated fourth edition of 50 Hikes in Mass. takes you to the state's most stunning locations (not only in the Berkshires, note). All levels. Geologists Brian White and John Brady add fresh depth with observations on the geology, plant, and animal lore included with each hike.

OUTDOORS, VARIOUS. From short, one-hour excursions to day-long adventures. More than 40 hiking, biking, and paddling trips; trip time and difficulty rating; detailed in-text maps; sidebars on natural history; trip highlights chart; safety and gear tips

BIRDING. Every site featured in this book has been chosen either for diversity and volume of bird life, or for its unique and rare birds. All sites are easily accessible and open to the public year-round. Includes trail maps, site directions, illustrations (by the author), information on bird identification and birding techniques, as well as a unique Quick Locator Reference for finding the best sites for any bird.

SPECTACULOR OUTDOORS. "A fine reminder that you needn't travel far to find the wild.-- Bill McKibben" is all Amazon tells us, but from the cover and that's it's published by a Berkshires' publisher, we think it's worth a look.

GALLERY

HISTORY IN PICTURES. "The Berkshires: Coach Inns to Cottages" is a photographic record of Berkshire dwelling places from the rough simplicity of stagecoach inns to the glittering luxury of Gilded Age cottages, when the Berkshires played host to some of the most fascinating characters in American literature, politics, business, and the arts.

PHOTO-GALLERY. A collection of color photographs capturing the serenity and the drama of the Berkshires. Accompanied by commentary by the author about the culture and history of the Berkshires. The cover shows a dramatic sky loom,ing over a pastoral farming meadow.

BERKSHIRE "COTTAGES." "Superb look into the lives and lifestyles of the gilded aged super rich as well as an excellent portrayal of the architecture of the summer cottages of the Berkshires" (Amazon review). Treasure trove of details about the fabled mansions in the heyday of the Berkshires.

FAMOUS' HOMES Over 300 archival photographs and floor plans of 35 fabulous resort estates. Chronicles a distinctive social and literary colony and now vanished way of life. "Not a dry tome extolling Gilded Age architecture and all its excesses. It is chatty, friendly, even gossipy - and it is fun to read." --The Berkshire Eagle

TOWNS

STOCKBRIDGE/GT.BARR. The 228 vintage photos included in this volume date back as far as the 1860s, but the collection also includes many superb photographs from the last fifty years by internationally acclaimed photographers like Lucien Aigner, Clemens Kalischer, and Bill Tague, to name just a few. The rural and cultural charm of the area is revealed in these marvelous artistic views. The author lives in the Berkshires.

PITTSFIELD. Pittsfield! Yes, Pittsfield. The adopted home of such literary luminaries as Oliver Wendell Holmes and Herman Melville. The common at the center of town was the site of the first agricultural fair ever held in the United States. Nearly two hundred vintage images dating from 1760 to 1950 from The Berkshire County Historical Society.

NORTH ADAMS. The city’s history goes back to the 1700s, with a military encounter during the French and Indian War that set the tone for future challenges. Through vintage postcards, this 128-page book provides a journey through North Adams' first golden era from its incorporation as a city in 1895 to the 1940s. Won't include Mass MOCA.