Little-known fact: Ansel Adams' work was the subject of the first coffee-table book 50 years ago. But don't blame (or credit) the late, great photographer for the trend of hernia-inducing tomes heavier on pictures than text that are especially popular during the gift-giving season.
Former Sierra Club Executive Director David R. Brower is credited as the creator of the coffee-table book trend. He launched a series of them, starting with "This Is the American Earth," featuring Adams' photography, in 1960.
Five decades later, they would seem more popular than ever, based on the huge number weighing down bookstore tables and overflowing Web pages right about now. This year, as always, nature books are big, but there are also some interesting and varied atlas offerings.
Here's a sampling of 10 recently published titles in search of a coffee table to sit handsomely upon.
Nature
- "Dogs" (Abrams, $50): In his follow-up to "Equus," photographer Tim Flach gives sharp focus to man's best friend, from specimens on show at the Crufts and Westminster Kennel Club dog shows to humble shelter dogs. Flach has got an eye for detail -- the Chinese Shar-Pei's wrinkles, the Rhodesian ridgeback's ridge of hair on its back that runs in the opposite direction to the rest of his coat -- but he's especially gifted at capturing the soulful eyes of his subjects.
- "Great Migrations" (National Geographic, $35): This companion tome to a National Geographic Channel "Global Television Event" (as the overly promotional cover text terms it) is an eye-catcher on its own. Most species have the impulse to move vast distances, usually for survival but in some cases for reasons unknown to man. Author K.M. Kostyal keys on the internal and external forces behind these journeys, which sometimes sends two species into a choreographed collision. For instance: the poor, blubber-rich elephant seals that make their long way from the northern Pacific to Guadalupe Island off Mexico where the white shark, "a beautifully designed killing machine," hungrily awaits.
- "Wild Wonders of Europe" (Abrams, $50): For an eyeful of wildlife that Americans don't get to see every day, consider this compilation of work by 80 top European nature photographers who crossed 48 countries over a year's time, documenting where the wild things (animals, plants, landscapes) are. Enjoy a rare glimpse of the Caucasus' snow-covered glaciers, a blue-legged avocet chick on Holland's Texel Island, Poland's wild bison (just don't tell Ted Turner) and much more.
Atlases
- "National Geographic Atlas of the World" (National Geographic Books, $175): Here's a coffee-table book that's big and stout enough (19 inches by 13 inches, 10 pounds) to be a coffee table. Beyond the hundreds of maps of the Earth, the oceans and outer space, this ninth edition contains a world of updated information on our rapidly changing orb. There are 20 thematic "spreads," including new topics such as urbanization, biodiversity, health and wellness, and fuels and energy. Even the place-name index has grown by 16 pages (to 142) since the eighth edition, with 10,000 new entries.
- "Atlas of the Transatlantic Slave Trade" (Yale University Press, $50): A 336-page rendition of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database (www.slavevoyages.org), this atlas documents the alarming business between 1501 and 1867 that claimed an estimated 12.5 million Africans and involved almost every country with an Atlantic coastline. A serious study that nonetheless might wind up on some coffee tables, the book by Emory University history professor David Eltis and David Richardson of England's University of Hull records nearly 35,000 slave voyages in 189 maps and text. The publisher bills it as "the first comprehensive, up-to-date atlas on this 350-year history of kidnapping and coercion." Literary selections and paintings/illustrations are included to broaden readers' understanding of the human story behind the maps and charted statistics.
- "The World Atlas of Whisky" (Mitchell Beazley/Octopus Books, $34.99): Like the amber-hued spirits it documents in deep detail, whisky expert Dave Broom's tome is one to sip and savor. It includes 24 maps of key whisky-producing regions, tasting notes on 350 selections, 150 label reproductions and nine "flavor camps" (from "Fragrant & Floral" to "Smoky & Peaty") that list whiskies by palate preference, flavor and aroma. Cheers!
- "George Washington's America: A Biography Through His Maps" (Walker & Company, $67.50): Historian Barnet Schecter charts a different take on one of our most chronicled American statesmen in this biography inspired by the maps that Washington used throughout his life. Our first president purchased and drew maps (including a dozen done in his own hand that are reproduced here) that were central to his work as a surveyor, military leader, politician and even as a private citizen. "After the Revolution, these maps, combined with Washington's travels through the new nation, shaped his vision of America as 'a rising empire in the New World,'" Schecter writes.
Various
- "The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook" (Andrews McMeel Publishing, $35): In her back-flap author photo, Rachel Saunders is shown about to bite into what looks like an English muffin or cracker. It's hard to tell because it's so laden with delicious-looking jam. And that's the spirit that permeates this handsome coffee-table/cookbook. You'll find yourself wanting to plunge a spoon into the sumptuous photos of fruit and all the gooey goodness they produce. Founder of Blue Chair Fruit Company, a San Francisco Bay Area small-batch jam company, Saunders guides readers in how to produce jams, jellies, marmalade, preserves, conserves and even pie fillings. She has the gourmet taste buds you'd expect (strawberry jam with aged balsamic and black pepper, anyone?), but equally relishes making more basic offerings (pear preserves, raspberry jam) into something to celebrate, a spoonful at a time.
- "The Art of Classic Rock" (Collins Design, $50): In this world of instant downloads, the graphic design that's so defined the attitude of rock 'n' roll albums, and then CDs, would appear endangered. But New York theater director Rob Roth has thousands of reminders of when rock was young: a 35-year collection of tour posters, memorabilia, album artwork and all sorts of related merchandise. "When I first saw Rob's collection, I was absolutely stunned," Alice Cooper recalls in the foreword. "I mean, he had things of mine that I'd never seen." Cooper is the focus of his own chapter, as are the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, the Who, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, Elton John and Queen. The arena smoke that fills the room as you turn these pages is only in your imagination.
- "Simpsons World: The Ultimate Episode Guide: Seasons 1-20″ (Harper, $150): Recently renewed for an unheard-of 23rd season, Matt Groening's toon may be traveling on fumes these days, but at its worst, it's still funnier and more acute than most things on TV. And at its best ... well, that's where this massive undertaking comes in -- all 1,200 pages and 8.8 slip-covered pounds of it. It's a horn of plenty, including a comprehensive episode synopses for the first 20 seasons, 400-plus character profiles, every chalkboard phrase Bart has ever scrawled, quips from favorite characters, every "D'oh!" or "Mmm ..." Homer has ever uttered and a complete list of celebrity guest stars. The "Simpsons" fan on your list will be as happy as Homer quaffing a Duff Beer.
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