Fully revised and expanded New stories-more details -Nearly 30 feet of strip maps -350 towns and attractions -More highway memorabilia -Mini-tours-rentals-discounts -Chicago-L.A. mileage table

It was the way out. Invented on the cusp of the depression, Route 66 was the road out of the mines, off the farm, away from troubled Main Street. It was the road to opportunity. Between 1926 and 1956, many people from the southern and plains states trekked west to California on Route 66, the Mother Road. Some never reached California. Instead, they settled along the road, building restaurants, tourist attractions, gas stations, and motels. The architecture of each structure reflected regional building traditions and the difficulties of the times. The designs of buildings and signs served as invitations for passing travelers to stop, fill their tanks, have a bite, and stay the night. Along Route 66 describes the architectural styles found along the highway from Chicago, Illinois, to Santa Monica, California, and pairs photos with stories of the buildings and of the people who built them, lived in them, and made a living from them. With striking black-and-white images and unforgettable oral histories of this rapidly disappearing architecture, Quinta Scott has docomented the culture of America’s most famous road.

Tells the story of the legendary road, Route 66, begun in the early 1920s that covered 2400 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles.

As a child growing up in Malaysia, Shing Yin Khor had two very different ideas of what “America” meant. The first looked a lot like Hollywood, full of beautiful people and sunlight and freeways. The second looked more like The Grapes of Wrath - a nightmare landscape filled with impoverished people, broken-down cars, barren landscapes, and broken dreams. Those contrasting ideas have stuck with Shing ever since, even now that she lives and works in LA. The American Dream? A Journey on Route 66 is Shing’s attempt to find what she can of both of these Americas on a solo journey (small adventure-dog included) across the entire expanse of that iconic road, beginning in Santa Monica and ending up Chicago. And what begins as a road trip ends up as something more like a pilgrimage in search of an American landscape that seems forever shifting, forever out of place.

Winner of the J. B. Jackson Prize for the Best Book in Cultural Geography!

Here We Are . . . on Route 66 explores America’s fabled “Mother Road,” following Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica and offering an expert look back at vanished attractions—and sites still drawing thousands each year.

"A look at 500 of Route 66's most significant past and present sites in seven categories, illustrated with hundreds of photographs and specially commissioned maps"--

Follow much-loved Scottish comedian Billy Connolly across Route 66 on this unforgettable journey, filled with music, modern history and hilarious stories. Billy Connolly first dreamed of taking a trip on the legendary Route 66 when he heard Chuck Berry belting out one of the greatest rock 'n' roll records of all time - and now he's finally had the chance to do it. Travelling every one of its 2,278 miles on his custom-make motorbike, Billy's journey takes him past many of the best-known icons in the US: the Gateway Arch in St Louis, Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon, and the funky neon-lit gas stations and diners that once lined the route. Billy also has the chance to get to know the people who call it home, from Mervin the Amish carpenter, to fellow banjo enthusiast and obsessive instrument collector Rob, to Angel, one of the many people determined to keep the spirit of the Mother Road alive. Funny, touching and inspiring in equal measure, the tales he gathers on the way tell the story of modern America. With his unrivalled instinct for a good story, and the gregariousness that has made him a comedy legend, Billy Connolly is the ultimate guide to the ultimate road trip.

The ‘Mother Road’ or the ‘Will Rogers Highway’ has been open since 1926. Its heyday was the WWII and post-war era and many roadside structures sprang up to cater for the "tin-can tourists" making the journey from East to West. Gas stations, motels, and diners all had to compete for business and what better way to attract attention than with a wacky feature such as a wigwam motel, an iceberg cafe, or a whale-themed diner.Route 66 Then and Now revisits some of these bizarre (and not-so-bizarre) structures to see what’s left before time takes its toll. Some, such as the Magnolia Service Station in Kansas, have been preserved on the National Historic Register; others, such as the Aztec Motel in Albuquerque, are still doing a thriving business; while others have simpy vanished from the landscape.Starting in Chicago, Route 66 Then and Now takes in the motels, cafes, gas stations, roadside attractions and key towns and sites along the route. From the Blue Whale in Catoosa, past Angel Delgadillo’s store in Seligman, Arizona, to the end point in Santa Monica, Route 66 historian Joe Sonderman takes readers on the 2,500-mile trip, illustrated by his fabulous postcard collection.Includes: Illinois: Chicago, Joliet, Dwight, Pontiac, Logan County. Missouri: St. Louis, Lebanon, Springfield, Joplin. Kansas: Galena, Baxter Springs. Oklahoma: Catoosa, Tulsa, Sayre. Texas:Shamrock, Amarillo, Glenrio. New Mexico: Santo Domingo, Gravel Hill, Albuquerque. Arizona: Holbrook, Winslow, Two Guns, Flagstaff, Seligman, Kingman. California: Needles, Amboy, Barstow, Cajon Pass, San Bernadino, Pasadena, Santa Monica.

Through the stories of one of Canada's most enthusiastic travellers explore the famous American highway that inspired the likes of Al Capone, Salvador Dali, Mickey Mantle, and the countless fans of this iconic American landmark.