What a volume of heartbreaking beauty! Some of the places highlighted here are in remote, rural areas, others stand in the middle of cities, a few even underground, but they all have in common that they were once important but have now been forgotten. The book is full of pictures that evoke the awe, or horror, these places once held. But there is beauty in the desolation. Some of these places have been taken over by nature. The photographs are accompanied by brief but complete descriptions of the places, their past importance, and the historical context in which they thrived and were abandoned. These texts are informative and well written. The book is also sad when you think how a lot of people put so much effort into something that is now sitting empty. Hopefully Elborough’s effort to bring these places to his readers will briefly make them relevant again.
I chose to read to this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/# Quarto Publishing Group – White Lion!

This was a rather intriguing book. The pictures are beautiful even though the subject matter is often not in the best condition. The subjects of forgotten or abandoned places that still exist is an interesting one from a historical standpoint of what they were used for, how did they come to the state they are in now and what might their future look like.

An interesting look at a random selection of abandoned locations around the world and some of the history behind them, including details of their heydays and subsequent abandonment and decline.
With so many buildings around the world to choose from, I'm not sure what the author's selection criteria were, but there is definitely an abundance of UK locations, notably including a Scottish seminary, ye olde abandoned Camelot fun park and the Crystal Palace subway. There are also some more historically important locations such as the Crimea submarine base at Balaklava and the island of Monstserrat's vast volcanic exclusion zone.
It's a mixed bag, but I did find myself adding a handful of spots to my "to be visited" list!
I wish there had been more photos of the locations in the book and less maps - personally I didn't feel the maps they included really added much, and they took up a lot of space, whereas the photos were a lot more engaging and informative.

I received an arc of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. What I could see was really gorgeous. I think abandoned/forgotten places are really hauntingly beautiful, and these places were no exception. The book provides beautiful photos, helpful maps, and 2-3 pages of information about each location.

Unfortunately, I wasn't really able to read the text very well due to the font size and formatting of this ARC. That's disappointing, because based on what I *could* see, this book was really lovely.
#NetGalley

I really enjoyed this book! You can tell that it was well researched and I loved getting all the background history of each abandoned place. The photographs were beautiful, and I liked having the maps to refer to. This is definitely a good read for people who are into history or people who are found of urban tourism or exploration.

Atlas of Forgotten Places by Travis Elbourough is a book that takes us on a journey around the world to discover all kinds of abandoned or forgotten places.

While I don't usually find this kind of book interesting, I found myself very much absorbed in this one.
The selected places were engaging, the pictures breathtaking, and the maps representative.

The one setback for me, though minor, was the sometimes difficult vocabulary, which I imagine could be a problem for some.

A great book altogether, especially for geography and travel enthusiasts.

I received a free digital copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Atlas of Forgotten Places is a quality coffee table book focused on uninhabited locations throughout the world. These places became uninhabited in a variety of ways. The pictures were absolutely stunning and the summary of each location was 1-3 pages long, giving enough detail for you to learn something new, but short enough to pick up and learn about a couple of locations during a few minutes of downtime. I found the stories of Plymouth in Montserrat, Dollersheim in Austria, and Akampene Island in Uganda to be thoroughly interesting and each was a new location I wasn't previously familiar with. Highly recommended, especially for the history buff.

Books just don't get more fascinating, enthralling and beguiling than this...not only does Travis Eldborough include the history, geography, purpose(s) and those who lived/worked in forty abandoned places all over the world but the photography is nothing short of magnificent. I pored over the maps as well. As an adventurous international traveler, nothing intrigues me more than exploring abandoned places, wondering what they were like in their heyday with people going about their daily business.

The author begins by defining "abandoned" and "forgotten", thought provoking indeed. He also writes that some of these sites are not worth mourning (some built for nefarious reasons) but ALL are worth remembering. Some are eyesores, others enchanting, all worth reading and knowing about. Some were abandoned hundreds of years ago, others more recently.

Amongst others, included here are the wooden orphanage in Turkey which signified thousands of abandoned children, the Pyramiden mining town in Norway, the Rubjerg Knude Lighthouse in Denmark (connections to Canute), the former Soviet military barracks in Germany, the ancient town of Al-Ula in Saudi Arabia (incredible that it still stands!), grand Hachijo Royal Hotel in Japan with its stunning setting and the hideous Camelot Theme Park in the UK, Volterra Psychiatric Hospital in Italy with its own aqueduct kept people within its walls before asylums became outdated. The wall carvings are particularly moving. So is the poignant description of Punishment Island.

Amongst my favourites is Sammezzano Castle in Italy with its riveting Latin motto, lovely exterior, rich interior and majestic forest, just begging to be explored. It reminds me of various places my husband and I explore regularly in Croatia, Written history may be scant but buildings speaks volumes! We have yet to explore Kupari, Croatia, which is described in this book, loaded with history.

Whether you are a traveler or not, you will most certainly learn a lot from the gorgeous Atlas of Forgotten Places. Ideal for those who are besotted with maps! All you need is a thirsty mind.

My sincere thank you to Quarto Publishing Group and NetGalley for the privilege of ogling and reading this wondrous book!

I love books that explore abandoned places. There’s something hauntingly beautiful about seeing nature reclaiming these areas. I always feel a tinge of sadness as well, being witness to once majestic places falling into disrepair.

This book’s abandoned places are divided into five sections: vacant properties, unsettled situations, dilapidated destinations, journeys ended and obsolete institutions. The locations, covering most continents (a notable exception is Australia), are varied. They include an orphanage, a nuclear power plant, a lighthouse, palaces, hotels, castles, a theme park, a train graveyard and a submarine base.

The history of the locations are accompanied by maps and photographs. Because I love abandoned places so much, I wanted more photos, particularly those that showed the interiors.

I knew about a number of these places already but some were new to me. The one I’m most likely to remember years from now is Akampene Island, Uganda. Women in traditional Bakiga society who became pregnant out of wedlock were exiled there as punishment. The island only had “two trees that bore no edible fruit and offered nothing in the way of shelter”. Most girls had not been taught to swim and to be marooned there meant almost certain death, unless they somehow managed to escape or were rescued.

My favourite photos were of Camelot Theme Park‘s Knightmare rollercoaster in Chorley, Lancashire, the City Hall Subway Station in New York and the Gary City Methodist Church in Indiana.

“Here then is a compendium of the misplaced and the neglected. Ruins, ancient and modern, beautiful, ugly and appalling, and in varying states of appreciation and restoration, or lack thereof. The ungotten and the forgotten no one remembers. Abandonment is not a cause to give up all hope but the opposite, if anything, encouraging us all to think longer and harder about the world to come and what might be worth salvaging from the wreckage.”

Thank you so much to NetGalley and White Lion Publishing, an imprint of Quarto Publishing Group, for the opportunity to read this book.

" Explore the places that time forgot. Abandoned, mysterious, sleeping monuments around the world have been relegated to the margins of history, pushed off the map and out of sight. "

Forgotten places is a beautiful book that tells so many stories through its words, maps and pictures. My favourite was the Crystal Palace Subway in London, but there are a total of 40 fantastic destinations to admire and bemoan.

Elborough writes beautifully and thoughtfully. I loved, in his introduction, the explanation of the term "quarantine" (and drawing parallels between 40 days on Poveglia and Jesus' 40 days in the Judean desert). Similarly, I loved the exhortation to look back on the past and, in turn, "think longer and harder about the world to come and what might be worth salvaging from the wreckage" (eARC introduction).

The book proves educational and insightful, as well; did you know, for example, that Chernobyl is not the only abandoned nuclear power plant? (Enter Zarnowiec, in Poland.) Granted, different reasons gave cause for abandonment at this site, but the end result was the same. And then there's the downright beautiful, like Sammezzano Castle in Tuscany--ohhh, I'd love to visit that! (Same goes for Kennecott, Alaska, one location that at least geographically seems more reachable for me here in the US. Surprisingly, a lot of US locations are included--just goes to show my knowledge is by no means comprehensive!)

I found it interesting that a number of places now abandoned had some kind of Soviet connection. Not sure if that was intentional during the author's selection process, or just luck of the draw!

Each location features sizable maps; helpful on the one hand, but on the other, I almost wish the maps were smaller, with more photographs included. Some locations had 3+ photos; others had 1, and I often found myself wanting to see more of the actual facility/grounds in lieu of a map (or at least more photographic equity?)..

Brighton's West Pier was a surprising addition; I've been reading a fair bit of Jane Austen over the last year or so--in fact, just today finished listening to a production of _Mansfield Park_--and Brighton often merits at least a passing mention there. The "skeletal shell" is sobering!

A fascinating and thought-provoking read. 4/5 stars.

I received an eARC of the book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This is an excellent coffee-table type book. It's beautifully illustrated and includes a generous amount of photos. The maps are beautifully done, and the locations chosen are unique.

This isn't something that you can really sit down and read in one sitting, it's more of a once in a while browse through book.

One of my favorite things to do when I have downtime, is to explore forgotten, abandoned and off the beaten path destinations. Certainly during the ravages of COVID I've experienced plenty of downtime and more than enough limitations on travel. This book allows one to see places that still exist, are no longer accessible, or have been lost through time and/or the ignorance of politics and conflict. The photos and diagrams added an essential boost to the narrative. I now have added to my wish list of destinations and will use the Atlas of Forgotten Places as a spring board while I dream and explore online.

“Atlas of Forgotten Places: Journey to Abandoned Destinations from Around the Globe” by Travis Elborough once again takes us on a journey to forgotten places around this world; this is my second title in the Unexpected Atlases series, following “Atlas of Improbable Places: A Journey to the World's Most Unusual Corners” which I read (and reviewed) earlier this year.

This book features 40 sites from all over the globe, divided into five sections: Vacant Properties, Unsettled Situations, Dilapidated Destinations, Journeys Ended, and Obsolete Institutions. For the most part, these are all manmade buildings that were useful and busy for a time, but now their time has moved on. Why? Everything from changing political conditions (such as the USSR’s submarine base) to changing social conditions (the Italian mental asylum) to changing tastes (Santa Claus town in Arizona) to natural disasters (the volcano on Montserrat). Some of them are ancient ruins, but some of them also are relatively young (late 20th century).

The text accompanying the photos was both interesting and diverting, not only did you learn about the forgotten structure but often Mr. Elborough included interesting facts and trivia about the time and/or location in general. A bit of a distraction, but always interesting. And the photography was spectacular as usual, the images captured the feel and desolation of the locations. My only complaint about this book is similar to the previous entry in this series: we want more pictures! Each location only has two or three pictures, when ten or fifteen would be much more interesting – we only get a brief glimpse of the abandoned destination before we move on to the next item. More pictures please!

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Quarto Publishing Group – White Lion, White Lion Publishing via NetGalley. Thank you!

"Atlas of Forgotten Places" by Travis Elborough thoroughly documents 40 abandoned locations throughout the world. Although about half of these are in Europe, forgotten places in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and the Arctic Circle are included. Featured locations include ghost towns, castles, hospitals, hotels, light houses, islands, airports, nuclear power plants, malls, churches, and prisons. The descriptions are both encyclopedic and thought provoking as they include history and broad cultural. background. The accompanying pictures are impressive, stunning, and certainly catch the eye. The maps are accurate and useful. Given an opportunity, it would certainly be interesting to explore these out of the way locales.

I would like to thank the author and publisher for kindly providing a temporary electronic copy of this book to review.

Travelling by coach, or even flying coach, has become much less common as an activity in the 2020s, what with one thing and another. Any more of that sort of thing and the likes of Heathrow will get to look sullen, unlikeable and jaded – I mean, who'd ever have thought a transport hub could have the neglected and unwanted feel? But never mind those – we're concerned here with the destinations, and the more condemned-looking, run-down and from-a-time-long-gone the better. Places like Sans-Souci, and, er, Plymouth.

This is one of those instances where I know full well youtube has multiple channels devoted to the stuff, but I still have to rate most highly this and all the other books in this series I've seen. Finding the romance in the decrepit, this gives us just four or six pages to tell us all it can about its sites, letting us see in one three-subject swoop the life and death of, in order, villages associated with Hitler's childhood, the British seaside pier, and Santa Claus, no less. Sometimes the maps are a little too prominent, when some further example of the exemplary photography might have been chosen instead, but these postcards from the past are once again top notch entertainment, and ideal for dipping into while confined.

I will have to say that my digital preview really needed the virtual red ink on some wonky sentence construction, and I will have to say it's not THE Sans-Souci or Plymouth you may expect. But I also have to say I do like these books a lot. Four and a half stars.

A really enjoyable book with beautiful photographs and excellent maps depicting fascinating but little-known locations around the world. Perfect for the armchair traveler

Atlas of Forgotten Places explores 40 sites around the world that time and we humans forgot.

Abandoned castles, ancient ruins, hospitals, orphanages, military bases, subway stations and even entire towns are beautifully archived by Travis Elborough and his team. Through original maps, stunning colour photography and detailed accounts, the Atlas takes readers on a time and space journey to rediscover eerie, haunting and disappearing locations.

My only critique would be the writing style which was at times very lengthy. A few sentences could go over six lines, making the reading experience less natural and easier to be distracted. Atlas of Forgotten Places is nonetheless a great reminder of the many vestiges that marked our society and history, bringing back to life 40 sites that were once filled with life and purpose.

The latest instalment in the Unexpected Atlasas series. I've enjoyed these books so far, in particular, the Atlas of Vanishing Places so I was looking forward to reading this.

The book follows a similar format to the others, a place is presented with information, a map and some photos. In this instance, the focus is on places around the world that have been abandoned and forgotten. There is a good mix of both modern and ancient, e..g forgotten subway stations, ghost towns and ancient ruins.

This book is one of those quintessential 'coffee table books that are fun to dip in and out of or to show to guests. It perfectly achieves what it sets out to do through its engaging design and attractive pictures. The information is detailed enough to pique one's interest without getting bogged down in detail.

These are beautiful books, even in electronic copy - this Atlas of Forgotten Places, and the Atlas of Improbable Places; I'm sure they're even more lovely in paper. That's definitely a key thing to note. The photography of each place is generally very good, and evocative of whatever idea is being presented; and the maps are also intriguing. They show where the place is in context - near other towns or within a country or whatever is relevant - and also shows the layout of the particular area. Because with this Atlas in particular, I think, many of the places featured aren't just individual buildings (although there are plenty of those); they're also entire towns, or bits of towns. And the maps show what still exists, what's crumbling, what's changed over time. They're really well produced.

Chapters includes Vacant Properties, Unsettled Situations (abandoned towns, largely), Dilapidated Destinations (tourist spots and hotels), Journeys Ended (airports etc), and Obsolete Institutions. Sometimes the categorising is a bit of a stretch, but I'm happy enough to go along with it. It closes with Alcatraz, which I thought both amusing and fitting; there's a town called Santa Claus, a lighthouse, several hotels, and a Bangkok mall, as well.

I have two quibbles. One is an admittedly minor irritant: the book needed slightly better editing (ashes are interred, not interned, surely). The other is that sometimes most of the entry for a location is a digression - about Napoleon, when the entry is about something on Corsica, or about why an indigenous group where bowler hats when it's about a railway in Bolivia, or how both cardigans and balaclavas were named for military things (a man and a place) associated with the Crimean War, when it's a submarine base in Balaklava. If you're going to feature a place, surely you should spend your two-ish pages talking just about that place? Expanding more on what it was like and what led to its being forgotten? It made me wonder whether Elborough was padding for the sake of making each entry about equal, and pointless words really, really annoy me.

I should also note that the list of places mentioned in the blurb on Goodreads is wrong - three of the places mentioned there do not actually feature in the book that I read (I doublechecked the index and everything). So if you want to read about the abandoned Peter's Ice Cream Factory, it's not in this book.

Those quibbles aside, though, I have no trouble recommending this for the armchair traveller, or the lover of quirky facts.