Booklist Review for Bodie: The Town That Belongs to Ghosts

Bodie, the California ghost town that was born and died because of the American gold rush, stars in this thorough visual and informational installment in the Abandoned! Towns without People series. The Wild West setting is appealing enough, but the dramatic rise and fall of Bodie, particularly the incendiary loss of the majority of its buildings—thanks to a petulant Depression-era schoolboy—makes for an engaging story. The spare but substantive text in accessible language is well matched by the many photos of Bodie’s past and present, as well as sketches and historical drawings, and the layout, heavy with graphics and sidebars that make for easy browsing, is a real draw. A side-by-side “Then and Now” spread helps visualize the passage of time, and comprehensive back matter provides resources for additional research.