The Rockies by Rail

"When I hear the song ‘America the Beautiful,' now I'll see this," says one passenger. Indeed, the spacious skies and purple mountains' majesty are pretty impressive as seen from the American Orient Express, the rolling hotel of updated luxury Streamliner cars from the ‘40s and ‘50s profiled in The Rockies by Rail. Despite its name, the "Orient" train travels west from Denver to Salt Lake City and then north to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Viewers will enjoy the dazzling scenery enroute along with an enjoyable discussion of what they're seeing--such as the story of how the Moffat Tunnel, which passes through the Continental Divide, changed railroading in the west; the fact that the Colorado River and the train run side by side for 230 miles ("the longest shared path in North America"); and several other tidbits about the geology, history, flora and fauna of the region. With great music, good historical background, interesting interviews and aerial and on-train photography, this is just the thing for a public library's armchair travel collection. (Too bad the gourmet food doesn't come with the tape!) Recommended. (R. Reagan)