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The Most Beautiful Villages and Towns of California
by Joan Tapper
Thames and Hudson
ISBN 0-500-51368-2
Published September 2007 - Hardcover - 208 pages - $40.00

This is truly my kind of book.  My favorite kind of book in fact, and one I'm sure you'll love as well.  As you are probably aware, I love to travel, and Northern California is high on my list of places to visit, again.  Having read this book, the allure is even stronger and I can visualize taking my own memorable photographs.  California draws millions of visitors every year, but how do you decide exactly where to go and what to see to make the most of your trip?  Award-winning travel writer Joan Tapper and travel photographer Nik Wheeler present their spectacular book to help make your vacation destination choice a little easier.  Their book is divided into these regions: Northern California Coast (Eureka and Arcata, Ferndale, Mendocino, Point Reyes Station, and Sausalito); Wine Country; Northern California Mountains and Valleys (Sonoma, St. Helena, Sonora, Jamestown, and Truckee among others); Ghost Towns; Central and Southern California Coast (Carmel-by-the-Sea, Montecito, Monterey, and San Juan Capistrano among others); The Missions; Central and Southern California Mountains and Valleys (Joshua Tree, Ojai, and San Juan Bautista among others), and Places to Stay and Eat.  I've been to a few places in the book but never for enough time to actually see them.  In all these places you can go from the seashore to small towns, you can see Victorian Cottages (it always amazes me where these pop up), missions, vineyards, or the mountains.  The history of the places is also very interesting - Gold Rush or lumberjacks, sea ports or wine-making.  Some of my favorite photographs are on pages 23; 42, 63, 112, and 120/121.  Informative and beyond exciting!
Visit Joan Tapper's website or Nik Wheeler's website.
Conclusion - Exquisitely illustrated and worth its price tag.