North American Locomotives

While a lot of good research went into this book, the problem is that to give the locomotive history of no fewer than 90 railroads in about 270 pages just can't be done with any degree of depth; it would probably take closer to 1000 pages to really cover the topic.The included railroads include both present-day roads and their predecessors, "fallen flags", major commuter railroads and even a tourist railroad, the Napa Valley Wine Train. (I wish Florida's TriRail commuter line could have been included; a relatively small operation but with some brightly painted locos.) Railroads are listed under their proper names, so if you're looking for the Nickel Plate Road, the pretty good index will direct you to the New York, Chicago & St. Louis.Over half of the railroads get only 2 pages of coverage. Typically there are three photos in each two-page spread, and one of the photos will be accompanied by a small specification table for the locomotive type. I rather wish that the author could have included a fleet list for each railroad, at least including those types that the road bought in any decent quantity. But I recognize that that would have made a pretty big book even larger. The coverage decisions are at times puzzling: why does the Long Island Rail Road, which has been in business for 180 years, only get two pages, while the Penn Central, which lasted all of 8 years, get six?Having said that, the book is a great introduction. If will help if you have some knowledge of present-day diesel locomotive designations, because at times the author tosses them around hot and heavy. But even considering the brevity of some of the coverage, this book is entertaining enough to belong on any railfan's bookshelf.A small caveat: the first copy I received from Amazon had several pages in the index and copyright page printed too faintly; the replacement copy was only slightly better but I elected to keep it. Fortunately none of the other pages in the book suffered from this malady, but you might want to wait awhile before ordering the book.

Good price, but the book has water damage

Not a bad book, but not as comprehensive as I'd hoped. Obviously it would be impossible to cover every model of every loco of every road in North America in one tome, but for the price of both the hard and soft cover editions, one would expect a bit more. Fancy a write-up on the D&RGW with barely a passing mention of tunnel motors! The photography is very nice, and it's a good addition to your library if you're looking to expand the number of books you have in your library, or are interested in having more pictures of locomotives. I purchased two copies, one as a gift for a friend and one for myself. From the publisher's description, I considered it to be a worthwhile purchase. After arrival, I realized that for the price I paid, I should have ordered one, perused it, and then sent it on to my friend.

Liked the size of the book and the photos (color & black/white).

Really liked the book Has alot of information on trains. My father worked on the railroad and I am trying to keep a little history in the family.

Bought for 80th Birthday gift for train fan. Pictures are wonderful and there is so much info about trains across America. We live in a city of about 70,000 in Wisconsin and there were pictures and History about our trains. He was impressed! Great book and a great price. Happy with our purchase!

I purchased this book as a Christmas gift for a 13-year old boy who loves trains. He was thrilled with it. The book is loaded with beautiful pictures of the trains as well as being extremely informative. He loves the book, and because he does, so do I. It would make a great addition to any library even for someone not necessarily enthralled with trains. A great find!

Good book for pictures of old locomotives

Quality heavy book from Brian Soloman-the best railway photographer in America- done railway company by company. As expected, all pre 1960s photos are in B&W.

Bought as a Christmas present for my train enthusiast son and is one of his favorite books as he also is into Americana.

Brian Solomon hat hier ein tolles Nachschlagewerk der US-Bahngesellschaften geschaffen.Alles wichtigen Lokomotivbaureihen werden vorgestellt und die umfangreichen Bilder runden das Buch als ideales Album sowohl für Profis, als auch für Eisenbahnfreunde, die sich nur einen Überblick über amerikanische Eisenbahnen verschaffen wollen, ab.Was das Preis-Leistsungs-Verhältnis angeht, müsste man eigentlich sechs von fünf Sternen geben.Großartig!

This is a very great book that show almost every railroad (fallen flag and current career) and very useful to make research and to have a look of history.

Un regalo para un fan de los trenes. Le gustó bastante