Oxford (OH) (Images of America)

I have a lot of these local history pamphlets. All the others I have are amazing, rich, filled with local history. This one was so disappointing. It only focuses on the college. Yes, this is a college town full over, but damn there is a lot to the history here that is completely missing. Not a word about natives, hueston woods, genocide etc. Nada.

The engaging photos in this book are irresistible thanks to Elliott's strong narrative voice; she will lure browsers to their nearest armchairs and turn them into time machines. Elliott will entice, by the merest suggestion in a caption, even the least romantic peruser of this book into a thousand daydreams. Some will awake and go on with their lives, but others will be more securely hooked; they will be prompted to find out more about something only glimpsed, to visit a library, to visit Oxford, to read a novel, or write one. This book is as much a gift to the creative spirit as to the history buff. Those interested in Victoriana and particularly in recreating rooms with some authenticity will find the college interiors circa 1900 themselves worth the price of the book. Among these rare perspectives are the dorm room with its curtained, pillowed alcove and its rocking chairs and the reading room with its tablecloths each anchored by an attractive potted plant. The book concludes with a tantalizing look at ten "notable residents of Oxford" among whom are the infamous Moon sisters, journalist Whitelaw Reid and composer Edgar Stillman Kelley. This is the sort of book you will want to share with friends; for that reason, serious collectors will want to buy two.