First up: Crave Vancouver: The Urban Girl’s Manifesto.

General Premise: Author Melody Biringer has compiled a resource of  unique, independent, female-run businesses that make Vancouver awesome. The book features over 100 destinations and is organized alphabetically by business name, with a category index at the end.

What I liked:

• Each featured business includes a small interview with the entrepreneur, so you get an inspiring and personal perspective
• I definitely tagged a few places to check out, including Kim Allan Silk and Heather Ross [in house].
• I learned a few things – like MO851 on Alberni St is the new name for Rugby North America, or that the kids store Chick Pea is in New Westminster now (I thought they just closed down!)
• The book covers many areas, including shopping, art, spas, salons, media, and services. It’s useful for tourists and locals.
• Beautiful images and well-produced book

Drawbacks:

• As with any book, information gets outdated. Stores in the book like Liquid are now closed. Ishara is no longer on 41st after moving to Gastown recently. I went to check out Five Corners Media but found a defunct site. Carrie & Danielle, authors of the amazing book Style Statement split as business partners and are no longer working together.
• Having the book organized alphabetically makes it a bit hard to find things. You can’t go to a “spa” section and do easy comparisons.
• Minimal food and restaurant listings

Crave Vancouver is a good companion book about Vancouver, but would not work as a stand-alone book as it lacks the travel essentials for the city. As a local, I think it’s a great reference to learn more about my favourite stores as well as giving me new places to explore.  At a $19.95 list price it’s a tad pricey, but if you see it on sale it’s worth a pick-up. Crave Vancouver is on-sale at several local Vancouver shops – go here for a listing.