cover image Rails Across America: A History of Rairoads in North America

Rails Across America: A History of Rairoads in North America

. Smithmark Publishers, $24.98 (192pp) ISBN 978-0-8317-6482-1

Perhaps because of its relative brevity, this compendium by a team of recognized railroad authorities--Ron Ziel, Jim Dilts, John Hankey, et al--fails to do full justice to ``one of the great American adventures.'' There is only a terse nod toward the Asian and African Americans who laid the tracks, and a cursory glance at the Canadian rail system. In a chronological format, this handsomely illustrated work covers the history of railroads from the first steam trains of the 1820s to the high-tech marvels of the 1990s. The text may seem superficial to fervent rail buffs, but the 200 color photos, sketches, maps and reproductions of railroad memorabilia are eye-catching. Particularly poignant is a Depression-era scene of hoboes swarming over a line of boxcars. (Nov.)