The Rockhounding Encyclopedia: The Gem Hunter’s Guide to Identifying and Collecting Over 100 Unique Gemstones, Minerals, Fossils & Geodes | Featuring America’s Top 500 Rockhounding Sites

I found this book entertaining and informative. It provides a nice balance of information on how to identify various rocks, their characteristics, and where they are commonly found. Photos of rocks are included, along with a little history of how some rocks are used in industry.For people like me who are only slightly versed in the study of geology, it was interesting to read about how the rocks were formed. In Chapter 9 there was an explanation of how this can be relevant when out in the field looking for interesting rocks. By having an understanding of how they are formed, you can take a step back, evaluate the surroundings, and identify possible locations for the various types of rocks.Chapter 11 includes information on a state-by-state basis on what type of rocks can be found. GPS location information is also included. The last chapter in the book includes a helpful discussion on tools and safety items that you should have with you when rockhounding.The author commented that 'Rockhounding is more than a hobby - it's a journey of the heart and mind', and 'Rockinhounding is the thrill of the hunt and the adventure'! I agree :-)

If you are just getting into collecting fossils and minerals this book is for you. I enjoy all the information this book displays for a casual audience. Having the book going into the history of rock hounding was very interesting and something I never knew about. I enjoyed the last section discussing the location where you can rock the hound. It is really hard to find up-to-date information online and if you're not in a rock-hounding group you might know where to start. There are only 3 things that are bad about this book this is due to my studying geology. I wish the minerals were organized by composition, I wish there was more of a large scientific section, and lastly, I wish there was more in the fossil section. I highly recommend this book for people who casually enjoy geology or have a rock collection.

The Rock Hounding encyclopedia is a great book for both beginners and those who have been rock hounding for years. It has a good intro with background on what rockhounding is and background knowledge on different rock formations and how they form. Additionally it has an extensive collection of images, descriptions and more of rocks and minerals to help with identification and general knowledge expansion. Finally if you live in or are planning to visit the US this is the book for you! This book provides hundreds of fantastic rock hounding sites across the United States to explore. No matter where you live or are visiting this book will help you find the perfect rock hounding site for you!

Some great information in this book I think it would be a lot of help out in the field while looking for new rocks.

I am a professed rockhound, but even if you are not one, recommend this book as it is very informative. The descriptions, pictures and where each type of rock can be found was explained and included interesting information to know. The author also tells some interesting facts about the low and high quality to look for if you are interested or just looking to purchase a finished stone for jewelry etc. I especially liked the state-by-state listing of what can be found and where they are, even listing the specific longitudinal directions for each spot. This is a well written, easy to understand and read book. I will be using it as a resource for my next rock hunting adventure.

This book is a great resource for those just getting into the hobby! There is a wealth of descriptions and pictures for all sorts of minerals and gems, as well as a handy guide of locations that might be worth a visit. I enjoyed having a ton of this information in one place, and there was clearly a lot of effort taken to put this together. All in all, I would have enjoyed more specimen examples for each stone as there can be a huge variety of different patterns for each, and would also have appreciated more information for each of the locations, as many sites are private. Regardless, this is a great one stop shop and would be really useful to have in the field.

This book shows you rocks, and some info about them. So that’s cool. However, when I flipped to the back to the “Best Rockhounding Sites in the US” section and saw that it listed Lambert’s Cafe in Sikeston Missouri as a place to find fossils and shark teeth, I suddenly lost confidence in the text on these pages. They throw rolls at you while you sit in oversized church pews. There’s a 50 cent claw machine where you can get those mini rubber duckies but no fossils or shark teeth that I’ve ever seen

Love the comprehensive information on rock identification. Bought one for our grandson and one for us on the recommendation of an experienced rock founder! Reasonably priced with nice photos!