Over The Counter #297

What books caught my eye this week as they passed over the library counter and under my scanner? I am fascinated with old forgotten things and places that are uncovered and unearthed after many years. So this week it's trips and things lost then found.....

First up is Barn Find: Road Trip by Tom Cotter, photography by Michael Alan Ross.

From the publisher, Motorbooks:

"Great collector cars are still out there--just waiting to be found!

Sadly, there is very little reality in reality TV. That wouldn't be so bad except for the fact that these shows are the only TV shows for the barn-find collector car aficionado.

Barn Find Road Trip is the antidote to all the manufactured collector "reality" shows. It's a real-world, barn-find banzai run in which auto archaeologist Tom Cotter, his car collector pal Brian Barr, and photographer Michael Alan Ross embarked on a 14-day collector-car-seeking adventure with no predetermined destinations. It's barn-find freestyle! Roaming the Southeast, they documented their day-to-day car search in photos and through stories and interviews. This trip is absolutely real and the same kind of junket any gearhead with the skills, knowledge, and time can undertake.

Sadly, there is very little reality in reality TV. That wouldn't be so bad except for the fact that these shows are the only TV shows for the barn-find collector car aficionado.

Barn Find Road Trip is the antidote to all the manufactured collector "reality" shows. It's a real-world, barn-find banzai run in which auto archaeologist Tom Cotter, his car collector pal Brian Barr, and photographer Michael Alan Ross embarked on a 14-day collector-car-seeking adventure with no predetermined destinations. It's barn-find freestyle! Roaming the Southeast, they documented their day-to-day car search in photos and through stories and interviews. This trip is absolutely real and the same kind of junket any gearhead with the skills, knowledge, and time can undertake.

Cotter and company hit the road in Cotter's 1939 Ford Woody, the kind of car that opened doors and started the conversations that revealed where interesting cars were squirreled away. The result? The discovery of over 1,000 collector cars and some of the most amazing barn-find stories Cotter has yet unearthed, all accompanied by Ross' evocative photography. If you love stories of automotive adventure, this is the book for you!" (DH loved this one!)

Next up is Franklin's Lost Ship: The Historic Discovery of HMS Erebus by John Geiger and Alanna Mitchell.

From the publisher, Harper Collins:

"The greatest mystery in all of exploration is the fate of the 1845–1848 British Arctic Expedition commanded by Sir John Franklin. All 129 crewmen died, and the two ships seemingly vanished without a trace. The expedition's destruction was a mass disaster spread over two years. With the vessels beset and abandoned, the crew confronted a horrific ordeal. They suffered from lead poisoning, were stricken with scurvy and, ultimately, resorted to cannibalism in their final days. The mysterious fate of the ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, has captured the public's imagination for seventeen decades.

Now, one of Franklin's lost ships has been found. During the summer of 2014, the Victoria Strait Expedition, the largest effort to find the ships since the 1850s, was led by Parks Canada in partnership with the Arctic Research Foundation, The Royal Canadian Geographical Society, and other public and private partners. The expedition used world-leading technology in underwater exploration and succeeded in a major find—the discovery of Erebus. News of the discovery made headlines around the world.

In this fully illustrated account, readers will learn about the exciting expedition, challenging search and the ship's discovery. Featuring the first images of the Erebus, this stunning book weaves together a story of historical mystery and modern adventure."

(Over the Counter is a regular feature at A Bookworm's World. I've sadly come the realization that I cannot physically read every book that catches my interest as it crosses over my counter at the library. But... I can mention them and maybe one of them will catch your eye as well. See if your local library has them on their shelves!)