Rough Los Angeles (Rough Guide to Los Angeles & Southern California)
Rough Los Angeles (Rough Guide to Los Angeles & Southern California)
Overview
INTRODUCTIONA maddening collection of freeways and beaches, fast-food joints and theme parks, seedy suburbs and high-gloss neighborhoods, Los Angeles is California’s biggest and most stimulating city – and an unconventional one by any standard. Indeed, LA’s character is so shifting and elusive – understandable only dimly, and in flashes, according to F. Scott Fitzgerald – that the city might be freely dismissed by many outsiders if it weren’t so central to the world’s mass culture. Its multiple personalities and lack of any unifying design make it seem at first neither approachable, nor perhaps even enjoyable; but once the free-spirited chaos of the place takes hold, you’ll be hard-pressed to resist.
Made up of scores of distinct municipalities, LA is a model for modern city development, having traded urban centralization for suburban sprawl and high-rise corporate towers for strip malls. It gets more than ample opportunity to show off its wares because of its stature as international entertainment center, which paints a picture of a sunny and glamorous place like no other. It is certainly unique, an unpredictable and addictive assault on the senses where mud-wrestling venues and porn cinemas stand next door to chic boutiques and trendy restaurants, the whole of it under constant threat of the next earthquake, flood, or natural disaster.
Despite this uniqueness, LA has much in common with other major US cities. With the largest combined port in the country (and biggest in the world outside of China), LA is a center for transpacific trade and a dominant financial hub in its own right. Predictably, the media industry is a chief concern of the local economy; defense-related businesses, on the other hand, have met their demise in recent years and will probably never regain the prominence they had throughout the Cold War. Meanwhile, LA’s social gaps are quite broad, and there’s no end in sight for the nasty racial divisions broadcast to the world during the 1992 riots. Not a simple matter of black versus white, LA’s unparalleled diversity sometimes gets in its way: there are more languages spoken here than in any other US city, and residents – especially white suburbanites – tend to cordon themselves off from one another.
This also means of course there are plenty of thriving ethnic enclaves, from Hispanic East LA to Little Tokyo. But most visitors tend to overlook these neighborhoods, except when looking for a specialty cuisine, and concentrate their time in a few notable areas, namely Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica – certainly a good start, especially if you’ve come for the typically Los Angeles thrills of stargazing and shopping. Such an itinerary, however, misses out on a number of the city’s less glitzy charms. LA has an underrated mix of modern and historic architecture, from the grand civic scale of City Hall in Downtown to the rustic Craftsman-style homes peppered around Pasadena. The city’s museums are increasingly world-class as well, especially with the opening of the Getty Center art museum in the mid-1990s; there’s also the terrific LA County Museum of Art among plenty of uniquely LA art collections scattered about the basin. Beaches, of course, should! be a part of any trip to LA, and you’ll find plenty of them around, most popularly in Venice, though good options abound in Malibu and along the Orange County Coast, too. Regardless of where you choose to be, you’ll never be far from good food, fashion, and nightlife – fitting for an entertainment capital.
Whatever you may have heard about the city’s more apocalyptic side – and to be sure, there’s much wrong, with a large homeless population, underclass neighborhoods growing more destitute, and a municipal government enmeshed in constant scandal – it’s more likely you’ll only face the typical pitfalls of traffic and smog. The latter, while still virulent, has slowly improved in recent years, with LA having ceded the ranking as most-polluted place in America to Houston, Texas. The former can be avoided to an extent, as many neighborhoods are surprisingly compact and can be seen on foot, but you’ll still likely need a car to jump around from place to place, or see any semblance of the city sprawl. Driving on LA’s much-ballyhooed freeways can be a challenge, but as long as you don’t try to emulate some of the crazier local motorists, you should have few problems.
Description
A maddening collection of freeways and beaches, fast-food joints and theme parks, seedy suburbs and high-gloss neighborhoods, Los Angeles is California’s biggest and most stimulating city – and an unconventional one by any standard. Indeed, LA’s character is so shifting and elusive – understandable only dimly, and in flashes, according to F. Scott Fitzgerald – that the city might be freely dismissed by many outsiders if it weren’t so central to the world’s mass culture. Its multiple personalities and lack of any unifying design make it seem at first neither approachable, nor perhaps even enjoyable; but once the free-spirited chaos of the place takes hold, you’ll be hard-pressed to resist.
Made up of scores of distinct municipalities, LA is a model for modern city development, having traded urban centralization for suburban sprawl and high-rise corporate towers for strip malls. It gets more than ample opportunity to show off its wares because of its stature as international entertainment center, which paints a picture of a sunny and glamorous place like no other. It is certainly unique, an unpredictable and addictive assault on the senses where mud-wrestling venues and porn cinemas stand next door to chic boutiques and trendy restaurants, the whole of it under constant threat of the next earthquake, flood, or natural disaster.
Despite this uniqueness, LA has much in common with other major US cities. With the largest combined port in the country (and biggest in the world outside of China), LA is a center for transpacific trade and a dominant financial hub in its own right. Predictably, the media industry is a chief concern of the local economy; defense-related businesses, on the other hand, have met their demise in recent years and will probably never regain the prominence they had throughout the Cold War. Meanwhile, LA’s social gaps are quite broad, and there’s no end in sight for the nasty racial divisions broadcast to the world during the 1992 riots. Not a simple matter of black versus white, LA’s unparalleled diversity sometimes gets in its way: there are more languages spoken here than in any other US city, and residents – especially white suburbanites – tend to cordon themselves off from one another.
This also means of course there are plenty of thriving ethnic enclaves, from Hispanic East LA to Little Tokyo. But most visitors tend to overlook these neighborhoods, except when looking for a specialty cuisine, and concentrate their time in a few notable areas, namely Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica – certainly a good start, especially if you’ve come for the typically Los Angeles thrills of stargazing and shopping. Such an itinerary, however, misses out on a number of the city’s less glitzy charms. LA has an underrated mix of modern and historic architecture, from the grand civic scale of City Hall in Downtown to the rustic Craftsman-style homes peppered around Pasadena. The city’s museums are increasingly world-class as well, especially with the opening of the Getty Center art museum in the mid-1990s; there’s also the terrific LA County Museum of Art among plenty of uniquely LA art collections scattered about the basin. Beaches, of course, should! be a part of any trip to LA, and you’ll find plenty of them around, most popularly in Venice, though good options abound in Malibu and along the Orange County Coast, too. Regardless of where you choose to be, you’ll never be far from good food, fashion, and nightlife – fitting for an entertainment capital.
Whatever you may have heard about the city’s more apocalyptic side – and to be sure, there’s much wrong, with a large homeless population, underclass neighborhoods growing more destitute, and a municipal government enmeshed in constant scandal – it’s more likely you’ll only face the typical pitfalls of traffic and smog. The latter, while still virulent, has slowly improved in recent years, with LA having ceded the ranking as most-polluted place in America to Houston, Texas. The former can be avoided to an extent, as many neighborhoods are surprisingly compact and can be seen on foot, but you’ll still likely need a car to jump around from place to place, or see any semblance of the city sprawl. Driving on LA’s much-ballyhooed freeways can be a challenge, but as long as you don’t try to emulate some of the crazier local motorists, you should have few problems.
Condition Guidelines
Books - New and Used
The following guidelines apply to books:
- New: A brand-new copy with cover and original protective wrapping intact. Books with markings of any kind on the cover or pages, books marked as "Bargain" or "Remainder," or with any other labels attached, may not be listed as New condition.
- Used - Good: All pages and cover are intact (including the dust cover, if applicable). Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May include "From the library of" labels. Shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Item may be missing bundled media.
- Used - Acceptable: All pages and the cover are intact, but shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Pages may include limited notes, highlighting, or minor water damage but the text is readable. Item may but the dust cover may be missing. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting, but the text cannot be obscured or unreadable.
Note: Some electronic material access codes are valid only for one user. For this reason, used books, including books listed in the Used – Like New condition, may not come with functional electronic material access codes.
Shipping & Delivery
Shipping Fees
- Stevens Books offers FREE SHIPPING everywhere in the United States for ALL non-book orders, and $3.99 for each book.
- Packages are shipped from Monday to Friday.
- No additional fees and charges.
Delivery Times
The usual time for processing an order is 24 hours (1 business day), but may vary depending on the availability of products ordered. This period excludes delivery times, which depend on your geographic location.
Estimated delivery times:
- Standard Shipping: 5-8 business days
- Expedited Shipping: 3-5 business days
Shipping method varies depending on what is being shipped.
Tracking
All orders are shipped with a tracking number. Once your order has left our warehouse, a confirmation e-mail with a tracking number will be sent to you. You will be able to track your package at all times.
Damaged Parcel
If your package has been delivered in a PO Box, please note that we are not responsible for any damage that may result (consequences of extreme temperatures, theft, etc.).
If you have any questions regarding shipping or want to know about the status of an order, please contact us or email to support@stevensbooks.com.
Returns & Refunds
You may return most items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund.
To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it. It must also be in the original packaging.
Several types of goods are exempt from being returned. Perishable goods such as food, flowers, newspapers or magazines cannot be returned. We also do not accept products that are intimate or sanitary goods, hazardous materials, or flammable liquids or gases.
Additional non-returnable items:
- Gift cards
- Downloadable software products
- Some health and personal care items
To complete your return, we require a tracking number, which shows the items which you already returned to us.
There are certain situations where only partial refunds are granted (if applicable)
- Book with obvious signs of use
- CD, DVD, VHS tape, software, video game, cassette tape, or vinyl record that has been opened
- Any item not in its original condition, is damaged or missing parts for reasons not due to our error
- Any item that is returned more than 30 days after delivery
Items returned to us as a result of our error will receive a full refund,some returns may be subject to a restocking fee of 7% of the total item price, please contact a customer care team member to see if your return is subject. Returns that arrived on time and were as described are subject to a restocking fee.
Items returned to us that were not the result of our error, including items returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address, will be refunded the original item price less our standard restocking fees.
If the item is returned to us for any of the following reasons, a 15% restocking fee will be applied to your refund total and you will be asked to pay for return shipping:
- Item(s) no longer needed or wanted.
- Item(s) returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address.
- Item(s) returned to us that were not a result of our error.
You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).
If you need to return an item, please Contact Us with your order number and details about the product you would like to return. We will respond quickly with instructions for how to return items from your order.
Shipping Cost
We'll pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.). In other cases, you will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund.
Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your exchanged product to reach you, may vary.
If you are shipping an item over $75, you should consider using a trackable shipping service or purchasing shipping insurance. We don’t guarantee that we will receive your returned item.
Overview
INTRODUCTIONA maddening collection of freeways and beaches, fast-food joints and theme parks, seedy suburbs and high-gloss neighborhoods, Los Angeles is California’s biggest and most stimulating city – and an unconventional one by any standard. Indeed, LA’s character is so shifting and elusive – understandable only dimly, and in flashes, according to F. Scott Fitzgerald – that the city might be freely dismissed by many outsiders if it weren’t so central to the world’s mass culture. Its multiple personalities and lack of any unifying design make it seem at first neither approachable, nor perhaps even enjoyable; but once the free-spirited chaos of the place takes hold, you’ll be hard-pressed to resist.
Made up of scores of distinct municipalities, LA is a model for modern city development, having traded urban centralization for suburban sprawl and high-rise corporate towers for strip malls. It gets more than ample opportunity to show off its wares because of its stature as international entertainment center, which paints a picture of a sunny and glamorous place like no other. It is certainly unique, an unpredictable and addictive assault on the senses where mud-wrestling venues and porn cinemas stand next door to chic boutiques and trendy restaurants, the whole of it under constant threat of the next earthquake, flood, or natural disaster.
Despite this uniqueness, LA has much in common with other major US cities. With the largest combined port in the country (and biggest in the world outside of China), LA is a center for transpacific trade and a dominant financial hub in its own right. Predictably, the media industry is a chief concern of the local economy; defense-related businesses, on the other hand, have met their demise in recent years and will probably never regain the prominence they had throughout the Cold War. Meanwhile, LA’s social gaps are quite broad, and there’s no end in sight for the nasty racial divisions broadcast to the world during the 1992 riots. Not a simple matter of black versus white, LA’s unparalleled diversity sometimes gets in its way: there are more languages spoken here than in any other US city, and residents – especially white suburbanites – tend to cordon themselves off from one another.
This also means of course there are plenty of thriving ethnic enclaves, from Hispanic East LA to Little Tokyo. But most visitors tend to overlook these neighborhoods, except when looking for a specialty cuisine, and concentrate their time in a few notable areas, namely Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica – certainly a good start, especially if you’ve come for the typically Los Angeles thrills of stargazing and shopping. Such an itinerary, however, misses out on a number of the city’s less glitzy charms. LA has an underrated mix of modern and historic architecture, from the grand civic scale of City Hall in Downtown to the rustic Craftsman-style homes peppered around Pasadena. The city’s museums are increasingly world-class as well, especially with the opening of the Getty Center art museum in the mid-1990s; there’s also the terrific LA County Museum of Art among plenty of uniquely LA art collections scattered about the basin. Beaches, of course, should! be a part of any trip to LA, and you’ll find plenty of them around, most popularly in Venice, though good options abound in Malibu and along the Orange County Coast, too. Regardless of where you choose to be, you’ll never be far from good food, fashion, and nightlife – fitting for an entertainment capital.
Whatever you may have heard about the city’s more apocalyptic side – and to be sure, there’s much wrong, with a large homeless population, underclass neighborhoods growing more destitute, and a municipal government enmeshed in constant scandal – it’s more likely you’ll only face the typical pitfalls of traffic and smog. The latter, while still virulent, has slowly improved in recent years, with LA having ceded the ranking as most-polluted place in America to Houston, Texas. The former can be avoided to an extent, as many neighborhoods are surprisingly compact and can be seen on foot, but you’ll still likely need a car to jump around from place to place, or see any semblance of the city sprawl. Driving on LA’s much-ballyhooed freeways can be a challenge, but as long as you don’t try to emulate some of the crazier local motorists, you should have few problems.
Description
A maddening collection of freeways and beaches, fast-food joints and theme parks, seedy suburbs and high-gloss neighborhoods, Los Angeles is California’s biggest and most stimulating city – and an unconventional one by any standard. Indeed, LA’s character is so shifting and elusive – understandable only dimly, and in flashes, according to F. Scott Fitzgerald – that the city might be freely dismissed by many outsiders if it weren’t so central to the world’s mass culture. Its multiple personalities and lack of any unifying design make it seem at first neither approachable, nor perhaps even enjoyable; but once the free-spirited chaos of the place takes hold, you’ll be hard-pressed to resist.
Made up of scores of distinct municipalities, LA is a model for modern city development, having traded urban centralization for suburban sprawl and high-rise corporate towers for strip malls. It gets more than ample opportunity to show off its wares because of its stature as international entertainment center, which paints a picture of a sunny and glamorous place like no other. It is certainly unique, an unpredictable and addictive assault on the senses where mud-wrestling venues and porn cinemas stand next door to chic boutiques and trendy restaurants, the whole of it under constant threat of the next earthquake, flood, or natural disaster.
Despite this uniqueness, LA has much in common with other major US cities. With the largest combined port in the country (and biggest in the world outside of China), LA is a center for transpacific trade and a dominant financial hub in its own right. Predictably, the media industry is a chief concern of the local economy; defense-related businesses, on the other hand, have met their demise in recent years and will probably never regain the prominence they had throughout the Cold War. Meanwhile, LA’s social gaps are quite broad, and there’s no end in sight for the nasty racial divisions broadcast to the world during the 1992 riots. Not a simple matter of black versus white, LA’s unparalleled diversity sometimes gets in its way: there are more languages spoken here than in any other US city, and residents – especially white suburbanites – tend to cordon themselves off from one another.
This also means of course there are plenty of thriving ethnic enclaves, from Hispanic East LA to Little Tokyo. But most visitors tend to overlook these neighborhoods, except when looking for a specialty cuisine, and concentrate their time in a few notable areas, namely Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica – certainly a good start, especially if you’ve come for the typically Los Angeles thrills of stargazing and shopping. Such an itinerary, however, misses out on a number of the city’s less glitzy charms. LA has an underrated mix of modern and historic architecture, from the grand civic scale of City Hall in Downtown to the rustic Craftsman-style homes peppered around Pasadena. The city’s museums are increasingly world-class as well, especially with the opening of the Getty Center art museum in the mid-1990s; there’s also the terrific LA County Museum of Art among plenty of uniquely LA art collections scattered about the basin. Beaches, of course, should! be a part of any trip to LA, and you’ll find plenty of them around, most popularly in Venice, though good options abound in Malibu and along the Orange County Coast, too. Regardless of where you choose to be, you’ll never be far from good food, fashion, and nightlife – fitting for an entertainment capital.
Whatever you may have heard about the city’s more apocalyptic side – and to be sure, there’s much wrong, with a large homeless population, underclass neighborhoods growing more destitute, and a municipal government enmeshed in constant scandal – it’s more likely you’ll only face the typical pitfalls of traffic and smog. The latter, while still virulent, has slowly improved in recent years, with LA having ceded the ranking as most-polluted place in America to Houston, Texas. The former can be avoided to an extent, as many neighborhoods are surprisingly compact and can be seen on foot, but you’ll still likely need a car to jump around from place to place, or see any semblance of the city sprawl. Driving on LA’s much-ballyhooed freeways can be a challenge, but as long as you don’t try to emulate some of the crazier local motorists, you should have few problems.
Condition Guidelines
Books - New and Used
The following guidelines apply to books:
- New: A brand-new copy with cover and original protective wrapping intact. Books with markings of any kind on the cover or pages, books marked as "Bargain" or "Remainder," or with any other labels attached, may not be listed as New condition.
- Used - Good: All pages and cover are intact (including the dust cover, if applicable). Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May include "From the library of" labels. Shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Item may be missing bundled media.
- Used - Acceptable: All pages and the cover are intact, but shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Pages may include limited notes, highlighting, or minor water damage but the text is readable. Item may but the dust cover may be missing. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting, but the text cannot be obscured or unreadable.
Note: Some electronic material access codes are valid only for one user. For this reason, used books, including books listed in the Used – Like New condition, may not come with functional electronic material access codes.
Shipping & Delivery
Shipping Fees
- Stevens Books offers FREE SHIPPING everywhere in the United States for ALL non-book orders, and $3.99 for each book.
- Packages are shipped from Monday to Friday.
- No additional fees and charges.
Delivery Times
The usual time for processing an order is 24 hours (1 business day), but may vary depending on the availability of products ordered. This period excludes delivery times, which depend on your geographic location.
Estimated delivery times:
- Standard Shipping: 5-8 business days
- Expedited Shipping: 3-5 business days
Shipping method varies depending on what is being shipped.
Tracking
All orders are shipped with a tracking number. Once your order has left our warehouse, a confirmation e-mail with a tracking number will be sent to you. You will be able to track your package at all times.
Damaged Parcel
If your package has been delivered in a PO Box, please note that we are not responsible for any damage that may result (consequences of extreme temperatures, theft, etc.).
If you have any questions regarding shipping or want to know about the status of an order, please contact us or email to support@stevensbooks.com.
Returns & Refunds
You may return most items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund.
To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it. It must also be in the original packaging.
Several types of goods are exempt from being returned. Perishable goods such as food, flowers, newspapers or magazines cannot be returned. We also do not accept products that are intimate or sanitary goods, hazardous materials, or flammable liquids or gases.
Additional non-returnable items:
- Gift cards
- Downloadable software products
- Some health and personal care items
To complete your return, we require a tracking number, which shows the items which you already returned to us.
There are certain situations where only partial refunds are granted (if applicable)
- Book with obvious signs of use
- CD, DVD, VHS tape, software, video game, cassette tape, or vinyl record that has been opened
- Any item not in its original condition, is damaged or missing parts for reasons not due to our error
- Any item that is returned more than 30 days after delivery
Items returned to us as a result of our error will receive a full refund,some returns may be subject to a restocking fee of 7% of the total item price, please contact a customer care team member to see if your return is subject. Returns that arrived on time and were as described are subject to a restocking fee.
Items returned to us that were not the result of our error, including items returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address, will be refunded the original item price less our standard restocking fees.
If the item is returned to us for any of the following reasons, a 15% restocking fee will be applied to your refund total and you will be asked to pay for return shipping:
- Item(s) no longer needed or wanted.
- Item(s) returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address.
- Item(s) returned to us that were not a result of our error.
You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).
If you need to return an item, please Contact Us with your order number and details about the product you would like to return. We will respond quickly with instructions for how to return items from your order.
Shipping Cost
We'll pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.). In other cases, you will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund.
Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your exchanged product to reach you, may vary.
If you are shipping an item over $75, you should consider using a trackable shipping service or purchasing shipping insurance. We don’t guarantee that we will receive your returned item.
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