Books about Monuments from Amazon.com

A sweeping history of America as seen through its gravestones, graveyards, and burial practices, stunningly illustrated with eighty black-and-white photographs

Cemeteries and burial grounds, as illuminated by an acclaimed cultural historian, are unique windows onto our religious, ethnic, and deeply human history as Americans.

The dedicated mother-son team of Marilyn and Reid Yalom visited hundreds of cemeteries to create The American Resting Place, following a coast-to-coast trajectory that mirrors the vast historical pattern of American migration.

Yalom's incisive, often poignant exploration of gravestone inscriptions reveal changing ideas about death and personal identity, and demonstrate how class and gender play out in stone. Rich particulars include the story of one seventeenth-century Bostonian who amassed a thousand pairs of gloves in his funeral-going lifetime, the unique burial rites and funerary symbols found in today's Native American cultures, and a "lost" Czech community brought uncannily to life in Chicago's Bohemian National Columbarium.

From fascinating past to startling future--DVDs embedded in tombstones, "green" burials, and "the new aesthetic of death"--The American Resting Place is the definitive history of the American cemetery..
Price: $19.68 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A hilarious tribute to state birds!

Welcome to the United Tweets Pageant! This colorful parade of state birds competing to be Top Tweet will have readers of all ages laughing aloud. From Alabama’s Yellowhammer to Wyoming’s Western Meadowlark, each bird is a winner—and each bird loves to show off the state it calls home. Hudson Talbott has created an inspired introduction to states and their birds. His vibrant, detailed illustrations infuse the birds’ interactions with energy and humor, making this a great way to spark kids’ interest in United States history, geography, and, of course, wildlife!.
Price: $8.40 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Certain symbols abound in modern Western culture that are instantly recognizable: the cross signifies Christianity, the six-pointed Star of David is revered by Jews, the golden arches frequently means it's time for lunch. Other symbols, however, require a bit of decoding-particularly those found in cemeteries. < BR> Cemeteries are virtual encyclopedias of symbolism. Engravings on tombstones, mausoleums and memorials tell us just about everything there is to know about a person- date of birth and death as well as religion, ethnicity, occupation, community interests, and much more. In the fascinating new book Stories in Stone: The Complete Guide to Cemetery Symbolism by noted author Douglas Keister, the secrets of cemetery symbolism are finally revealed. For instance, did you know that it is quite rare to see a sunflower on a tombstone? Did you know that the human foot symbolizes humility and service since it consistently touches the earth? Or the humble sheaf of wheat-while it is often used to denote someone who has lived a long and fruitful life, do you know other meanings it might carry? < BR> Stories in Stone provides history along with images of a wide variety of common and not-so-common cemetery symbols, and offers an in-depth examination of stone relics and the personal and intimate details they display-flora and fauna, religious icons, society symbols, and final impressions of how the deceased wished to be remembered. Douglas Keister has created a practical field guide that is compact and portable, perfect for those interested in family histories and genealogical research, and is the only book of its kind that unlocks the language of symbols in a comprehensive and easy-to-understand manner. < BR> Douglas Keister has photographed fourteen award-winning, critically acclaimed books (including Red Tile Style: America's Spanish Revival Architecture, The Bungalow: America's Arts & Crafts Home, and Storybook Style: America's Whimsical Homes of the Twenties) earning him the title "America's most noted photographer of historic architecture." He also writes and illustrates magazine articles and contributes photographs and essays to other books, calendars, posters, and greeting cards. Doug lives in Chico, California, and travels frequently to photograph and lecture on historic architecture and photography.< BR>.
Price: $15.40 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Think of the quirky buildings you pass every day but whose quiet beauty you take for granted—the moviehouses, juke joints, soda fountains, barbershops, roadside diners, and storefront churches. You don’t miss them until they’re gone. As suburban sprawl and strip malls conquer the country, these vestiges of a lost way of life are falling under the wrecking ball. Here the photographer Michael Eastman has made the ultimate road trip, crisscrossing the nation dozens of times, to capture these buildings on film before they vanish. These dreamy images call us to question what we choose to let go in the wake of contemporary life, with a cool melancholy that evokes the work of Edward Hopper, Jack Kerouac, and William Eggleston. There is a wry sense of humor here as well. The book delights in the idiosyncracies of America’s vernacular styles, ranging from Depression Deco to New England clapboard in random juxtapositions that accrue over time in a town’s landscape. Countless visual puns arise among the book’s many detailed images of signs and statuettes. Vanishing America catalogues great everyday American architecture and design. But it also offers a provocative portrait of the silent emptiness that has descended upon vanishing small communities everywhere..
Price: $23.99 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Tourists, nature lovers, and even armchair travelers will discover hours of pleasurable reading in this huge compendium of world-famous sites. They’ll also find a wealth of ideas for their next vacation trip. It’s a guide to the most spectacular natural sites—and sights— around the world, from the magnificent Angel Falls in the Venezuelan rain forest to the fiery volcanic Mediterranean island of Stromboli, off the coast of Sicily. Other natural wonders include Glacier Bay, and Mendenhall Glacier in Alaska; Death Valley and Yosemite Park, California; the Rhine Valley in Germany; Mount Blanc in France; Mount Olympus in Greece; Mount Fuji in Japan; Easter Island; and for divers, spectacular places like the Mariana Trench in the Pacific. Here is a virtual circumnavigation of the globe, with each natural wonder, chosen for its grandeur and sheer beauty. Each location is profiled with a color photo, a description of its origin and present-day features, a thumbnail-size locator map, and a succinct table of statistics. For instance, this volume describes—

Ayers Rock, the 500-mile-circumference sandstone elevation that rises out of the flat central Australian Outback and is believed to be a holy place by AustraliaÂ’s Aborigines

Bryce Canyon, Utah, a rugged, dramatic national park located just a few hoursÂ’ drive from Salt Lake City

Iguazu Falls, an extensive series of 275 waterfalls on the Brazil-Argentina border, described by one naturalist as an ocean pouring into an abyss
Here are breathtaking locations on every continent—sites so spectacular that once seen they are never forgotten. Hundreds of full-color photos..
Price: $10.35 [Notify me when price goes down.]

The text of the Pledge of Allegiance is illustrated with stunning photographs of American landscapes, monuments, and flags. The meaning of the pledge, its history, and information about the flag are included. .
Price: $0.65 [Notify me when price goes down.]

For many years Richard Hoagland alone hypothesized that sentient beings spent time on Mars millions of years ago assembling behemoth structures whose ruins are still seen today. Here Hoagland redefines the solar system as a different place than NASA has presented. The book includes a new preface covering the Mars Global Surveyor photos and reactions of NASA..
Price: $18.32 [Notify me when price goes down.]

[series copy]
The Monuments Past and Present series explores the ancient regions of Rome, Greece, and Pompeii with an eye toward contrasting what they were with what they are today. Important monuments and districts are presented with overlays that clearly depict how these notable ancient sites look today and how they may have appeared when first built. These titles are excellent resources for travelers, students, and anyone else interested in the fascinating histories of these ancient regions.
Beginning with the Colosseum, the symbol of "The Eternal City," this volume explores twenty-four significant ancient landmarks such as the Roman Forum, Circus Maximus, the Pantheon, and the Appain Way..
Price: $17.14 [Notify me when price goes down.]