Finding Your Way in Asheville Author:Cecil Bothwell; Betsy Ball Finding Asheville is a different kind of guide book. Instead of offering glossy photos and paid insertions from big bucks advertisers, it gives you the kind of information you'd get from a best friend who moved to Western North Carolina twenty years ago. "I've discovered the greatest place for a romantic dinner," she'd say. "Just around the ... more »corner from Pritchard Park. Here, let me draw you a map." It's a selective guide in that the authors share the places they've come to love while living, working, dining out, partying, biking, hiking, canoeing and raising children in the "Paris of the South." They don't waste your time on the so-so. Street-by-street, neighborhood-by-neighborhood maps help you locate yourself within a wonderfully walkable city. Guided walks steer you to the places you're after: architecture, crafts, shopping, parks, family fun or night life. You'll find a brief "field guide" written by an outdoor enthusiast/naturalist together with all the sources you'll need for specific pursuits: walking, wheeling, paddling or just kicking back. If you want to tune in to Asheville's astonishing music scene, the city's best-respected music critic will steer you to the places locals love. The book isn't loaded down with information you don't need after your arrival: the authors are travelers themselves and don't like to lug around information on lodging and long distance transportation after they've landed in the B&B they booked three months ago. As an added bonus, they've recruited other writers to fill you in on information you simply won't find in any other guide book: NASCAR's roots in Asheville; the clash of human rights heroes and ancient bigotry; the Spanish explorer who "vacationed" here in the 16th century; and questions (and answers) about poison ivy, chiggers and locally brewed beer.« less