Book review: “Greetings from Route 66”

The new book “Greetings from Route 66” (Voyageur Press, hardcover, 240 pages, $30) at first glance looks as though it might be a terrific addition to a roadie’s library. It was written by several authors who are Route 66 enthusiasts, and it’s packed with eye-pleasing pages.

However, I give it only a mixed review, at best. I’ll explain in due course.

First, the good parts. “Greetings from Route 66” certainly is one of the best-looking books I’ve read. The pages are loaded with vibrant, saturated color. Design manager Katie Sonmor, designer John Barnett of 4 Eyes Design and layout editor Mandy Kimlinger deserve a truckload of credit for creating such an attractive volume.

And these pretty pages aren’t just computer-generated, either. Photographer Kerrick James, who’s contributed beautiful images for other road-trip books, continues to shine here. “Greetings” also brims with images of Route 66 memorabilia, including postcards, maps, menus, windshield stickers, matchbooks, motel guest cards, gas station pin-up calendars, ashtrays, and even 10-cent tickets for the long-gone Whoopee Auto Coaster in McCook, Ill. Plus, the book dishes up servings of recipes of dishes you might find in your favorite Route 66 diner.

Second, the text was written by bona fide Route 66 fans. Jim Hinckley, who’s working on “Ghost Towns of Route 66” and a Route 66 encyclopedia, wrote the introduction to each chapter by state and several other features. “Legendary Route 66” author Michael Karl Witzel wrote “Voices from the Mother Road” sidebars about key Route 66 landmarks and individuals. Kathy Weiser, who runs her Legends of America site, wrote most of the book’s travelogue. Russell Olsen added a few of his “Route 66: Lost and Found” stories. Author Lee Klancher wrote personal musings from traveling Route 66.

But with so many authors, occasionally the narratives bump into each other. That turns out to be especially true with Ed Galloway’s Totem Pole Park in Foyil, Okla., and the Blue Whale in nearby Catoosa. Judicious editing or coordination between writers would have prevented this annoyance.

Also, while reading Klancher’s text, I found that “Greetings” could have used more first-person stories. The book becomes so laden with history, the human element of the Route 66 experience tends to get swept away. By my count, Klancher contributed four stories. I wish he’d written more to add variety.

But errors wind up being the most troubling problem in “Greetings from Route 66”:

• One excerpt about Berwyn, Ill., says: “… [A]t the Cermak Plaza Shopping Center parking lot, there is a tall piece of artwork called the ‘the Spindle,’ a forty-foot spike with nine cars skewered on top of it.” But the Spindle was torn down in May 2008 and not replaced.
• The book says old Pig-Hip restaurant in Broadwell, Ill., “has become a Route 66 museum.” However, the Pig-Hip museum was destroyed by fire in March 2007 and not rebuilt.
• Donut Drive-In is described as being “just across the street from Ted Drewes” Frozen Custard in St. Louis. Donut Drive-In actually is more than a quarter-mile east of Ted Drewes (map here).
• The book instructs: “Be sure to check out the Spraker Service Station at 240 South Wilson” in Vinita, Okla. But the Spraker Service Station was razed in November 2006.
• Here’s this entry about a calamity in Stroud, Okla: “Unfortunately, the Rock Cafe caught fire in May 2008, and though plans are being made to repair the building, they are not complete as of this writing.” Actually, the historic restaurant was fully rebuilt barely a year after the fire and became fully operational by June 2009.
• Beverly’s Pancake Corner, which still serves Chicken in the Rough, is described as being at 2115 Northwest Expressway in Oklahoma City. However, in 2007 the restaurant moved to 3315 Northwest Expressway — more than a mile and a half away.
• The entry about El Vado Motel in Albuquerque describes it as being considered “the purest surviving Route 66 motel in the city. Owner Sam Kassam has turned down some handsome offers for the motel’s neon Indian.” This passage  implies it’s still operating as a motel. It is not. El Vado was sold in late 2005, was shuttered a few weeks later, and remains closed until the city, which seized the property, figures out what to do with it. Also, Kassam died in December 2005, shortly after selling his motel.
• The namesake giant twin arrows at Twin Arrows, Ariz., are described as “beaten and worn.” However, the arrows were repainted and repaired in August 2009, and look better than they have in years.
• An entry about the Old Trails Highway in near Oro Grande, Calif., says to “look for the old Potapov Station and Auto Court.” Alas, the complex was torn down in September 2007.

These errors were discovered during a leisurely read. It’s not as if I did an exhaustive search. It’s disconcerting to think what other mistakes may lurk.

Nearly all of the errors listed above fall under Weiser’s byline. In an e-mail, she told me that Voyageur Press asked to use about 30,000 words of material from her Legends of America website for the book.

Unfortunately, some of my pages were out-of-date. Most of these were written in 2005. To be fair to the publishing company, they did send me an edited copy of what they were going to use, but, I didn’t catch the errors you pointed out. For this, I’m embarrassed that I didn’t get my pages updated. […] The publisher, no doubt, assumed that my information was up to date. […] Does kind of take the wind out of my sails.

Weiser also said her deadline to submit the material for the book was spring of this year. So the errors couldn’t be attributed to time restrictions, either.

Voyageur Press publisher Michael Dregni in an e-mail said he was “dismayed” by the errors and pledged to make corrections in future editions. Dregni did not say whether Voyageur had used a fact-checker to look at the manuscript before it was published.

I asked Dregni again in a follow-up e-mail whether a fact-checker had been used by the publisher. No reply had been received as of late Tuesday.

I don’t relish being critical of woefully out-of-date books that are otherwise praiseworthy about the Mother Road, such as my review of “Riding America’s Backroads” book a few months ago. I also don’t relish being critical of the work of fellow roadies, such as my review of the error-filled “Road Trip USA Route 66” book last year.

But it is important to be as accurate as possible about modern-day Route 66 business and attractions. Readers may decide to take a road trip, and it’s crucial that such a book be as up-to-date as possible so such travelers aren’t disappointed.

In a sense, we roadies are members of the Route 66 hospitality industry. It’s important that we provide correct information about this wonderful road. Its future survival may depend on it.