Golden Guide
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Golden Guides, originally Golden Nature Guides, are a series of pocket-sized books that were created by Western Publishing and published under their "Golden Press" line (mostly used for children's books at the time) beginning in 1949. Intended for Grade to High-School level, the series began as field guides with such titles as Birds (1949), Flowers (1950), and Mammals (1955) and then expanded to a wider range of subjects that weren't strictly identification guides. Titles such as Geology, Photography and Heart taught about these subjects and were not identification oriented so much as educational. Edited at different times by Herbert Zim and Vera Webster, the books were written by experts in their field and illustrated with a simple straightforward style.
Herbert S. Zim would also later launch a related series called the Golden Field Guide.
The series, much reduced in number of titles, but updated, was relaunched in 2001 as "Golden Guides by St. Martin's Press".
School and community libraries began purchasing hardback versions of these little books and many people recall fondly their first introduction to insects or the seashore with these little guides. They have become quite collectable, and some of the rarer titles (such as Hallucinogenic Plants) can fetch high prices depending on the edition and condition.
[edit] List of Golden Guides
| Title | Author(s) | Date Published |
|---|---|---|
| Acadia National Park | Grant Sharpe | 1968 |
| American Antique Glass | Elizabeth Oliver | 1977 |
| Antiques | Ann Cole | 1967 |
| Architecture | Charles Rambert | 1969 |
| Bats Of The World | Gary Graham | 1994 |
| Bicycling | George Fichter & Keith Kingbay | 1972 |
| Bird Life | Stephen Kress | 1991 |
| Birds | Herbert Zim, & Ira Gabrielson | 1949 |
| Birds Of Europe | Bertel Bruun | 1967 |
| Botany | Taylor Alexander, R. Will Burnett, Zim | 1970 |
| Butterflies And Moths | Robert Mitchell, & Herbert Zim | 1964 |
| Cacti | Frank Venning | 1974 |
| Camping | Robert Smallman | 1965 |
| Casino Games | Bill Friedman | 1973 |
| Cats | George Fichter | 1973 |
| Dinosaurs | Eugene Gaffney | 1990 |
| Ecology | Taylor Alexander, & George Fichter | 1973 |
| Endangered Animals | George Fichter | 1995 |
| Everglades National Park | Herbert Zim | 1960 |
| Evolution | Frank T. Rhodes | 1974 |
| Exotic Plants | Julia Morton | 1971 |
| Exploring Space | Mark Chartrand | 1991 |
| Families Of Birds | Oliver Austin | 1971 |
| Fishes | Herbert Zim, & Hurst Shoemaker | 1955 |
| Fishing | George Fichter, & Phil Francis | 1965 |
| Flowers | Herbert Zim, & Alexander Martin | 1950 |
| Flying | Barry Schiff | 1971 |
| Fossils | Frank Rhodes, H. Zim & Paul Shaffer | 1962 |
| Gamebirds | Alexander Sprunt, & Zim | 1961 |
| Geology | Frank Rhodes | 1972 |
| Guns | Larry Koller | 1961 |
| Hallucinogenic Plants | Richard Schultes | 1976 |
| Heart | Sarah Riedman | 1974 |
| Herbs And Spices | Julia Morton | 1976 |
| Horses | Moira Duggan | 1972 |
| Indian Arts | Andrew Whiteford | 1970 |
| Insect Pests | George Fichter | 1966 |
| Insects | Herbert Zim, & Clarence Cottam | 1951 |
| Israel and The Holy Land | Rinna Samuel | 1967 |
| Italy | Paul Friedlander, & Joseph Brooks | 1955 |
| Kites | Wyatt Brummit | 1971 |
| Landforms | George Adams, & Jerome Wyckoff | 1971 |
| Light And Color | Clarence Rainwater | 1971 |
| Mammals | Zim & Hoffmeister | 1955 |
| Mexico | Herbert Zim | 1969 |
| Modern Painting | Michel Hoog | 1970 |
| Non-Flowering Plants | Floyd Shuttleworth, & Herbert Zim | 1967 |
| Oceanography | Gilbert Voss | 1972 |
| Orchids | Shuttleworth, Zim & Gordon Dillon | 1970 |
| Pacific Northwest | Herbert Zim, & Natt Dodge | 1959 |
| Painting - From Its Origins | Genevieve Monnier | 1969 |
| Painting, Gasser's Guide to | Henry Gasser | 1964 |
| Photography | Herbert Zim & R. Will Burnett | 1956 |
| Planets | Mark Chartrand | 1990 |
| Pond Life | George Reid | 1967 |
| Power Boats | Bill Wallace | 1961 |
| Reptiles and Amphibians | Herbert Zim & Hobart Smith | 1953 |
| Rocks And Minerals | Herbert Zim & Paul Shaffer | 1957 |
| Rocky Mountains | Herbert Zim | 1964 |
| Sailing | Bill Wallace | 1960 |
| Scuba Diving | Wheeler North | 1968 |
| Sculpture, An Introduction To | Guillaume Janneau & Simone Hoog | 1970 |
| Seashells Of The World | R. Tucker Abbott | 1962 |
| Seashores | Herbert Zim & Lester Ingle | 1955 |
| Ski | Bill Wallace & Bob Beattie | 1966 |
| Sky Observer's Guide | R. Newton & M. Mayall & Jerome Wyckoff | 1965 |
| Southeast, The American | Herbert Zim | 1960 |
| Southwest, The American | Natt Dodge & Zim | 1959 |
| Spiders & Their Kin | Herbert & Lorna Levi | 1968 |
| Sports Cars | Mortarini, Leopold & Waterfall | 1968 |
| Stars | Herbert Zim & Robert Baker | 1951 |
| Trees | Zim & A. Martin | 1952 |
| Tropical Fish | Bruce Halstead & Bonnie Landa | 1975 |
| Venomous Animals | Edmund Brodie, Jr. | 1989 |
| Washington D.C. | Robert Smallman | 1964 |
| Weather | Paul Lehr, R. Will Burnett & Zim | 1957 |
| Weeds | Alexander Martin | 1972 |
| Whales And Other Marine Mammals | George Fichter | 1990 |
| Wines | Henri Fluchère | 1973 |
| Yosemite | Douglass Hubbard | 1970 |
| Zoo Animals | Donald Hoffmeister | 1967 |
| Zoology | Burnett, Herbert Zim, & Harvey Fisher | 1958 |
[edit] External links
- All About Golden Guides - reference for collectors
- Golden Guide from St. Martin's Press - Current list of Golden Guides
