Hillinger's California

Library Journal

The 58 counties of California are a patchwork reflecting a remarkable state. Each county has a special identity that makes it different from the others. Los Angeles Times columnist and worldwide traveler Hillinger visited all 58 counties to find out what makes them special, and he has produced a book that will be an asset to every California library. There's little of the stereotypical image of California hereno stories of movie stars, sensational trials, or tourist hyperbole. Instead, readers learn about the man who flew an airplane long before the Wright Brothers did, a church's stained glass windows that celebrate preachers murdered or accidentally killed, and the museum that has the largest collection of mummies on the West Coast. Hillinger has the skills of a Paul Harvey, Charles Kuralt, or Charles Osgood in being able to spin stories that grab one from the first sentence. Essential for all California libraries.Joseph L. Carlson, Vandenberg Air Force Base Lib., Cal.