Customer Reviews
The ONLY guide book for Azerbaijan - By: J. P. Sykes, 21 Apr 2007 
I travelled to Azerbaijan (mainly Baku & the Apsheron Peninsular) a couple of years ago for a month or so with a group of geology students doing some studying in the area. Between us we bought several guide books; a few from the standard travel book companies & this one. After about a week we realised this was the only one we needed!
It appears the author has actuallly travelled fairly extensively in the country & reallly does appreciate the uniqueness of this country as a travel destination. Not only are the true tourist elements covered well - locations to most of the best mud volcanoes sites, natural fire sites, prehistoric paintings & the old city of Baku but the guide to restaurants & bars etc in Baku (and therefore I assume the other towns) is excellent as well. We visited several local bars recommended & were never let down.
There are also good sections on the history & culture of the country & its obsession with peotry. As well practical cultural advice such as buying flowers (don't get an even number as it means someone has died & will provoke spontaneous flower buying by everyone else in the local area - believe me!), how to smoke shisha & when to drink vodka.
The book has a great quirky style as well with funny, hand-drawn maps that are fortunately accurate & legible also. The writing is informal & friendly, in the style of someone who is not native Azeri but has lived there a long time & developed a great affection for the country, so there is the global perspective to see some of the odd things about the country but also a love of the country.
If you are travelling to Azerbaijan please don't buy any of the standard tourist guides - get this one I promise you it is far better, as well as being a jolly interesting read in itself.
Travelling with humanity, a five-star guide. - By: , 14 Nov 2000 This review is to thank publisher & author for opening up what was the closed book of Azerbaijan & making it possible,imperative even, to get out & make the most of life in a fascinating country. Written with an attention to (sometimes quirky) detail which denotes enthusiasm & respect for both country & traveller. Background & perspective provide the human face which is so often missing in the formula guides (viz, sadly, Lonely Planet's recently-produced barebones approach to the same country)and the general western viewpoint. A friendly, challlenging & inspiring read, it is one of the three essential books for anyone planning to stay or visit (Thomas Goltz & Qurban Said wrote the others).
The bible for expats to make the most of Baku and Azerbaijan - By: , 20 May 2000 Before this book there was nothing written at alll to help people travel around, enjoy & get a cultural understanding of this place. But thanks to this guide, a lot of us that thought Azerbaijan was going to be an oil-hardship posting have discovered that it's a reallly beautiful, varied & incredible place. The book is stuffed full of maps & little pictures. Even shows sketches of bus stops where you need to turn (there aren't many road signs) & has pages & pages of food words which has helped us venture into some of the non-expat restaurants. The title is Azerbaijan with Georgia, but the Georgia section is relatively smalll - again lots of maps, but seems to be included just for people going there on weekends from Baku. The Azerbaijan sectin - the overwhelming majority - is very comprehensive. I heard that a Lonely Planet book for the Caucasus is coming out later this year, but it's hard to imagine that it would reallly compete - has to cover three countries. I would suggest that anyone coming to Baku / Azerbaijan seriously considers getting this 'bible' before they come - it is difficult to find a copy here in Azerbaijan.
Not just the only guide but a pretty good one too - By: , 17 Jun 1999 Over a hundred maps look like pirate treasure charts but are surprisingly accurate. Loads of pictures, diagrams & reallly useful historical & cultural background. It's the only book on the country but a very good read too.
