A couple weeks ago, I was contacted by the Turner Publishing Company about my interest in recieving a copy of a book coming out soon called, Historic Photos of Saint Louis. The copy was free, they asked my to review the book if I wanted, but was under no obligation. So I told them I’d be happy too, and two day later I received my copy.
I’m a fan of Saint Louis history, and its architecture in particular. I’ve purchased a couple of photo books about Saint Louis for this very reason.
So after taking some time to look through the book, and then taking some time to try and catch up on my life, here is what I like about Historic Photos of St. Louis.
1) Broad selection of photographic types. In addition to photos of historic buildings, they included photos of major events (worlds fair) and not so major events (building openings, people on the street).
2) Good captions. This is a photo book and the photography takes center stage, but the captions included with the photographs strike just the right balance of information, giving addresses, and telling you a bit about whats going on.
3) Good binding. Its a solid book, 10×10 with a nice dust jacket.
4) They divided the photos into 4 major historical periods.
All in all, I found myself enjoying it more than I expected. I work downtown and have photographed a lot of the architecture around the city myself. I particularly enjoyed seeing photos of buildings that still stand, and what the intersections looked like back then. So go pick up the book. I would recommend it.