RVs: The Drive for Independence: The Illustrated Story of RV Travel and Camping in America

by Janet Groene

Book by Groene, Janet

232 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1997

Reviews

[Ellen Behrens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Janet Groene has a terrific reputation in RV circles, but this book, sadly, makes her come off as a bit of a shill -- not her intention, I'm sure.

Over the past several months I've purchased quite a few print and e-books on RVing, primarily focused on history and lifestyle. This one sounded like a wonderful contribution to the library of books about RVing in general, with some historical information included.

I discovered that, as with so many RVing books, it was funded by various RVing organizations (industry associations, primarily). This meant they all needed some stroking in the text, which they got.

Short sections about how RVing is fun for families, is a growing industry, and is a favorite lifestyle for those who love to travel reveal nothing insightful. Interspersed throughout the book are public relations pieces on various companies in the RV industry. Some of these are interesting because they include some history of the company, some insight into what drove the early founders of the company to make certain innovations, etc., but generally they read like public-relations hack jobs that try very hard to convince readers they are the best company selling RVs, making RVs, or providing parts for RVs.

On top of that, with the exception of a few historical photos, the images could be in any advertisement. The book's layout is nice -- a great coffee table book. But there's not much else to recommend it.

For some reason, I thought the book would be more about RVers: aren't they the ones who "drive for independence"?

I got about halfway through and closed the book. Perhaps someday I'll want to finish it. Right now there are too many other, better books about the RVing industry and RVers to spend valuable time reading.

[Tara · Rating 1 out of 5]

mostly dated advertising propaganda, staged boring pics, not very informative