saw this book come through at my library, and I thought "What a great topic for a book!" And it is a great topic.
It's too bad it was, in my opinion, really mishandled,
The book has quite a bit of breadth"states" are covered, but no depth, Each "state" gets two pages, one of which is a fullpage map, The facing page contains more pictures which are often only tangentially related to the topic lots of tepid, uncreative jokes and a little information.
The maps range from interesting to outandout bad one clearly has handdrawn marker on it one has Wyoming on the western border of Kansaswhich is the reason I downgraded the book from two.
I think there were maybe four historical facts that I learned from apage book, but the history was, in places, just as bad as the maps quote: "George Washington was the most popular and powerful man in the world.
" WILDLY FALSE. WILDLY.
I don't know who this book is aimed at, It doesn't give enough background information to teach much to American history novices it would have helped a little if the order of the "states" were chronological instead of alphabetical, and it's too superficial to teach anything to people who already have solid American history background.
In short, this is
a book with the pace and tone of an Uncle John's Bathroom Reader, but without the depth or intelligence.
This was fun to read, We all learned the fifty states in school but this book talks about proposed states that didn't manage yet to achieve statehood.
This is not something that happened only in the past, In, the north and northeastern counties of Colorado wanted to secede from the rest of the state, Even now, a petition is circulating within California as there is once again talk about splitting into three states this time.
It has only been tried a few other times Jefferson to the North, South California or Colorado to the south.
Each chapter only lastspages a description of the state and short history why it wanted to be it's own state and why it failed with the other page being a beautiful map of the proposed state.
Some cities like Boston, New York City, Washington or Potomac wanted independence usually due to taxation disputes, Then there is how to split the Dakotas East and West North and South Dakota and Pembina What about the Lost Dakota
And there are the ones not connected to the North American continent like Albania Cuba Guyana, Greenland.
A completely fun read and great bunch of trivia, I love nonfiction books about random topics, and I also love maps, Lost States incorporates both things! Basically, Trinklein looks at a BUNCH of territories that almost became states, or wished they could become states, or would be really cool if they could become states, etc.
He covers everything from random ways to divide the Northwest Territory, to the possibility of some of our current states splitting California, Maine, and Texas have all considered it in recent years, to current US territories, to western states that didn't quite make the cut.
While the book is really enjoyable and also full of color pictures and maps, making it fun to read it's also very brief.
Each potential state only gets one oversize page, and one page of pictures/maps, so you don't get a lot of details about anything.
There is also plenty of Trinklein's snarky humor to go around, but luckily I enjoyed that part, too,
All in all, Lost States wasn't necessarily the most educational nonfiction read I've come across recently, but it was quick and engaging, and gave me a lot of random trivia to pull out during those awkward conversational silences that come up from time to time.
Great idea that is poorly executed, Molly, the editors should never have allowed the errors to get into print, Still it has a lot of pretty maps and the idea of how otherwise this country could have been divided is fine for musing.
Suggestion: Make your library acquire it and save the expense since it is unlikely to be something you want on your shelf.
I almost really loved this one, It covers many, but not all, failed states, Each one gets a one page profile, plus a full page map created by the author, usually by superimposing the proposed state on an existing map.
It was interesting, for the most part, though occassionally repetitive, Many of them were simply failed proposals to divide territories, so not much to say, Some of them can't be taken even remotely seriously, Who really thinks that the European country of Albania has ever seriously been in contention to be a U, S. state Who really thinks that, if Quebec were ever to leave Canada, that Newfoundland or Alberta might decide to become Americna while they're at it Take those out, and there are still some really interesting stories in here.
But the tone is often bizarre, I just want to read about failed states, not lame jokes, This is one book where the subject matter overcame the author's tone to make what is still a pretty good book.
Best classified as a coffee table book, but it so interested me once I opened it to a random page that I started to read it front to back.
I recommend that you do the same, Numerous historical and geographical ancecdotes and a map lover's delight, Read it thoroughly and keep it out where you refresh yourself frequently, An amusing read and good fun for fans of “what if” scenarios and alternate history, Though I really have to ding the author for referring to Confederate President Jefferson Davis and somehow adding a picture of not just the wrong Jefferson Davis, but an obscure one.
Granted any but THE JD is obscure, This is a wonderful book about the US states that "never quite made it!" Fascinating and full of unknown history! Ever heard of the state of Lincoln Probably not it doesn't exist.
But, if you've ever driven through northern Idaho, you've passed through what many natives wanted to be Lincoln, U, S. A. Did you know that if President Buchanan had had his way in, the Mexican states of Sonora, Chihuahua, and Baja California would be part of the United States Find these and many other interesting tidbits of Americana in Lost States: True Stories of Texlahoma, Transylvania, and Other States That Never Made It.
Packed with humorous tales of inventive place names such as Hazard, X, and Yazoo, this fun book will provide a wealth of information about our country's history.
The book showcases the sense of determination and humor that forged our fifty states into a nation, Although, reallywouldn't “Rough and Ready” make a fun fiftyfirst state A great idea for a fun book, utterly botched by a massive bigot.
This author HATES conservatives, George W Bush, and especially members of the Church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints, Every other entry contains a snide dig and a completely irrelevant aside into how X new state would have prevented X conservative/religious outcomeyears later.
He sees everything through the prism of his politics, Want a state with casinos in it Too bad, those damned 'Mormons' say no, Want to split Ohio in half Doing so would have prevented the 'quagmire' of the Iraq war, Speaking of which, did you know we could have just bought Iraq instead of liberated it It's true, per the author.
Let's talk about that for no reason,
So you're not really reading about new/alternate States when you read this book, You're reading about people the author hates, which sometimes talks about new/alternate states,
Say you agree with his toxic opinions, thoughis it a worthwhile book I argue no, because all his infect I've aside, there are very details given about each state, and what is discussed is secondary to airing his political/antiLDS gripe.
So you don't really learn anything here,
An embarrassing and now highly dated misfire,.stars.
This book was an enjoyable read, it just needed a bit more editing as there are a few errors in it.
A new edition would be great including some of the more likely current secessionist/state realignment efforts, Cascadia etc.
My first goodreads first reads win! This is my kind of nonfiction book easy to read with lots of pictures or in this case mostly maps.
A mix of humor and interesting information,
The cover unfolds to a fullsized map which would be nifty to hang up if I had a library or study.
A nice looking book.
Trinklein who lived in Idaho foryears, keeps mentioning Mormons, I've noticed this inLost States there may even be more that I missed, Having an LDS background myself, I can not recall a temple being built in Iowa under the direction of Joseph Smith as Trinklein claims.
The only temples completed before moving to Utah, were in Kirtland, Ohio and Nauvoo, Illinois, If Trinklein is referring to one of these, he should clarify that the temple was not in Iowa, FYI here is what he wrote about this in HALFBREED TRACTS:
"Probably the most famous buyer was a guy named Joseph Smith, who gathered his Mormon followers on a HalfBreed Tract he purchased in southeast Iowa.
The LatterDay Saints then built a temple and settled in for the long haul, It's entirely possible the Mormons might have grown their sphere of influence and eventually tried to form their own state, based on their religious practices.
I'm not speculating about this that's exactly what they did, But they didn't get around to it until after they had migrated westward to Salt Lake, "
Favorite Quotes:
INTRODUCTION:
"Fifty States, It's such a nice, round number, It might even seem preordained that America would gobble up the perfect amount of territory to create fifty justright states.
Sorry, It wasn't nearly that tidy, "
"I've always felt a sense of wonder gazing at old maps, imagining the stories behind each squiggly line.
Maps are a record of individuals trying to make a difference in how the world works, "
ABOUT THE MAPS:
"All maps have a purpose, perhaps even an agenda, Mine are no exception. "
BOSTON
"If every New England squabble led to the creation of a new state, the U, S. flag would have a thousand, "
FORGOTTONIA loved reading about this one
"So as long as America keeps drinking sixtyfour ounce fountain drinks, Forgottonia's people will survive.
In fact, about the only thing that could hurt Forgottonia would be medical reports suggesting highfructose corn syrup isn't healthy.
Oh. "
FRANKLIN named after Ben Franklin
"The lesson here is that if you're going to name a state after a living historical figure, you should probably ask the person first.
It's worth noting that Congress had a unofficial policy against naming new states after people dead or alive, It's a guideline they held for more than a century, with only one exception: Washington, "
GREENLAND Prime Real Estate, Even George W. Bush Was Interested.
"It's true that Greenland is mostly ice, but that could change quickly as global warming kicks in, "
GUYANA
"Many have argued that the best way to preserve its rain forests is to offer the protection of U.
S. law. Admittedly, this is not a terribly compelling reason to annex another country, but America has invaded places for flimsier reasons.
"
"I predict that if oil turns up in Guyana, relations with the United States might warm up considerably.
"
HOWLAND
"Those landing strips remain the island's strange irony, The United States made great effort to build them, the Japanese were intent on bombing them, and Amelia Earhart likely died trying to find them.
Yet there is no record of any plane ever landing on Howland Island, "
ICELAND
"What if America had offered to buy, rather than invade, Iraq I know the idea sounds silly, until you run the numbers.
Given the best estimates of the cost of the war, the United States could have offered each Iraqi citizen about,if they would agree to become an American.
A family of five would get a cool half million dollars, Those numbers are the actual dollar costs, per Iraqi, of the war, "
SOUTH CALIFORNIA Actually They Wanted To Call It Colorado
"Pico's proposal suggested calling the new state 'Colorado', which, by the way, ranks among the mostcoveted state names ever.
After southern California's rebranding attempt failed, the Arizona territory laid its plans to rename itself 'Colorado, ' But the rectangular state to the north beat them to the prize, "
.