# Golden Guide

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Series of pocket-sized books

Golden Guide Early Golden Guides, published from 1949 to 1955. Edited by Herbert Zim, Vera Webster Original title Golden Nature Guides Illustrator James Gordon Irving Country United States Language English Publisher Western Publishing Golden Press St. Martin's Press (2001–present) Published 1949–2002 Media type Pocket book No. of books 84 Followed by Golden Field Guide Website Official website

The **Golden Guides**, originally **Golden Nature Guides**, were a series of 160-page, pocket-sized books created by [Western Publishing](/source/Western_Publishing) and published under their "Golden Press" line (primarily a children's book imprint) from 1949. Edited by [Herbert S. Zim](/source/Herbert_S._Zim) and Vera Webster, the books were written by experts in their field and featuring realistic color illustrations.

Intended for primary and secondary school level readers, the first books were [field guides](/source/Field_guide) illustrated by [James Gordon Irving](/source/James_Gordon_Irving), with such titles as *Birds* (1949), *Insects* (1951), and *Mammals* (1955). The series later expanded beyond identification guides to cover a wider range of subjects, such as *Geology* (1972), *Scuba Diving* (1968)*,* and *Indian Arts* (1970).

In 1966, Zim launched a related series, the [Golden Field Guides](/source/Golden_Field_Guide), aimed at high school or college-age readers.

An updated series was relaunched in 2001 as "Golden Guides by [St. Martin's Press](/source/St._Martin's_Press)", illustrated largely with photographs but retaining some of the original 1950s illustrations.[1]

## List of Golden Guides

Title Author(s) Date Published Acadia National Park Grant Sharpe 1968 American Antique Glass Elizabeth Oliver 1977 Antiques Ann Cole 1967 Architecture Charles Rambert 1969 Bats of the World Gary Graham 1994 Bicycling George Fichter & Keith Kingbay 1972 Bird Life Stephen Kress 1991 Birds Herbert Zim & Ira Gabrielson 1949 Birds of Europe Bertel Bruun 1967 Botany Taylor Alexander, R. Will Burnett, Zim 1970 Butterflies and Moths Robert Mitchell & Herbert Zim 1962 Cacti Frank Venning 1974 Camping Robert Smallman 1965 Casino Games Bill Friedman 1973 Cats George Fichter 1973 Dinosaurs Eugene Gaffney 1990 Ecology Taylor Alexander & George Fichter 1973 Endangered Animals George Fichter 1995 Everglades National Park Herbert Zim 1960 Evolution Frank T. Rhodes 1974 Exotic Plants Julia Morton 1971 Exploring Space Mark Chartrand 1991 Families of Birds Oliver Austin 1971 Fishes Herbert Zim & Hurst Shoemaker 1955 Fishing George Fichter & Phil Francis 1965 Flowers Herbert Zim & Alexander Martin 1950 Flying Barry Schiff 1971 Fossils Frank Rhodes, H. Zim & Paul Shaffer 1962 Gamebirds Alexander Sprunt & Herbert Zim 1961 Geology Frank Rhodes 1972 Guns Larry Koller 1961 Hallucinogenic Plants Richard Schultes 1976 Heart Sarah Riedman 1974 Herbs and Spices Julia Morton 1976 Horses Moira Duggan 1972 Indian Arts Andrew Whiteford 1970 Insect Pests George Fichter 1966 Insects Herbert Zim & Clarence Cottam 1951 Israel and the Holy Land Rinna Samuel 1967 Italy Paul Friedlander & Joseph Brooks 1955 Kites Wyatt Brummit 1971 Landforms George Adams & Jerome Wyckoff 1971 Light and Color Clarence Rainwater 1971 Mammals Herbert Zim & Donald Hoffmeister 1955 Mexico Herbert Zim 1969 Modern Painting Michel Hoog 1970 Non-Flowering Plants Floyd Shuttleworth & Herbert Zim 1967 Oceanography Gilbert Voss 1972 Orchids Shuttleworth, Zim & Gordon Dillon 1970 Pacific Northwest Herbert Zim & Natt Dodge 1959 Painting - From Its Origins Genevieve Monnier 1969 Painting, Gasser's Guide to Henry Gasser 1964 Photography Herbert Zim & R. Will Burnett 1956 Planets Mark Chartrand 1990 Pond Life George Reid 1967 Power Boats Bill Wallace 1961 Reptiles and Amphibians Herbert Zim & Hobart Smith 1953 Rocks and Minerals Herbert Zim & Paul Shaffer 1957 Rocky Mountains Herbert Zim 1964 Sailing Bill Wallace 1960 Scuba Diving Wheeler North 1968 Sculpture, An Introduction to Guillaume Janneau & Simone Hoog 1970 Seashells of the World R. Tucker Abbott 1962 Seashores Herbert Zim & Lester Ingle 1955 Ski Bill Wallace & Bob Beattie 1966 Sky Observer's Guide R. Newton, M. Mayall & Jerome Wyckoff 1965 Snakes Sarah Whittley 2002 Southeast, The American Herbert Zim 1960 Southwest, The American Natt Dodge & Herbert Zim 1959 Spiders & Their Kin Herbert Levi & Lorna Levi 1968 Sports Cars Mortarini, Leopold & Waterfall 1968 Stars Herbert Zim & Robert Baker 1951 Trees Herbert Zim & A. Martin 1952 Tropical Fish Bruce Halstead & Bonnie Landa 1975 Venomous Animals Edmund Brodie, Jr. 1989 Washington D.C. Robert Smallman 1964 Weather Paul Lehr, R. Will Burnett & Herbert Zim 1957 Weeds Alexander Martin 1972 Whales and Other Marine Mammals George Fichter 1990 Wines Henri Fluchère 1973 Yosemite Douglass Hubbard 1970 Zoo Animals Donald Hoffmeister 1967 Zoology Will Burnett, Herbert Zim, & Harvey Fisher 1958

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Fandrich, Leslie (Fall 2012). ["The Golden Nature of James Gordon Irving"](https://web.archive.org/web/20190821070352/https://www.uppercasemagazine.com/issue15). *Uppercase* (15): 46–50. Archived from [the original](http://uppercasemagazine.com/issue15) on 2019-08-21. Retrieved 2016-01-04.

## External links

- [Golden Guide from St. Martin's Press](http://us.macmillan.com/series/AGoldenGuidefromStMartinsPress) - Current list of Golden Guides

- List of the [original Golden Guide titles with links to cover images](http://www.vintagepbks.com/gg-list.html)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Golden Guide](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Guide) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Guide?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.