Rating: 
Summary: An intrinsically fascinating story told moderately well
Review: As a long time (40 years) Florida resident, I was generally aware of Henry Flagler's role in sparking Florida's huge growth. His Florida East Coast Railroad from Jacksonville to Miami and then to Key West was the catalyst in changing Florida from a sub-tropical, thinly settled frontier to a fast-growing state. Standiford is generally clear and readable in describing the incredible determination of Flagler and the extraordinary skill and hard work of the engineers and laborers who brought his dream to fruition.
Yet I came away vaguely dissatisfied. The actual facts should have resulted in a couldn't-put-it-down narrative. It didn't. The photos were good, but more of them would have been a big plus. And, finally, Standiford made such an egregiously inaccurate statement about 1992's Hurricane Andrew that I inevitably came to question the other "facts" in his tale. Specifically, he said of Andrew on p.122: "Residents of Coral Gables... experienced heavy rains and wind gusts that felled tree limbs, the sort of weather most people associate with a strong summer thunderstorm. It was the sort of day to stow the lawn chairs in the garage and have a drink or two inside, feeling cozy while the rain spattered the windows." How can Standiford, a resident himself of Miami, not know that the National Hurricane Center, then located in the heart of Coral Gables (and about a half mile from where I lived) recorded winds as high as 167 mph - before the hurricane blew away its wind gauge? Coral Gables residents did not calmly sip drinks that night, they cowered in fear as huge banyans and other trees fell left and right and roof tiles - or roofs themselves - blew away. If he is that careless/inaccurate about an event in his own experience, can his account of events a century ago be trusted?
Rating: 
Summary: The Last Train to Paradise
Review: Driving home from work the other day, my radio was tuned to National Public Radio, and I heard someone reading from a section of book describing the 1935 hurricane. Reaching my driveway, I sat in my car listening the harried tale of the greatest storm to hit American shores. Curiousity peaked, I ordered the book to find out more. Let me say, the two chapters about the hurricane, alone, are worth the price of the book. Well writen and captivating. It's one of those books that's hard to put down. Les said in an interview, "To me, the question of whether a story is true or fictional has never been as important as the question of whether or not it's a good one." TLTTP is a "good one."
Rating:
Summary: A good book to read while in the Keys.
Review: I bought a copy of this book while camping in Big Pine Key and read it over the course of a day or two. The book made me look at the Keys in a different way and really added to my trip by giving me a sense of some of the history surrounding the region. No complaints here.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic read !!!
Review: I have to admit that I did not expect this book to be as good as it is. Being a "Keys" freak, I purchased this book to learn more about that old bridge I see when I drive down to Key West. WOW, I got a lot more from this book.
Well Done !!!!
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding book......a page-turner
Review: If you love history, Florida, the Keys, Flagler, or just a really good, interesting book, you'll love this effort by Les Standiford. He does an excellent job setting up the story and then delievering the oustanding events of the Overseas Railroad. It is definitely a page-turner and written like a novel of sorts.
Very informative and very entertaining at the same time. Pick it up today!
Rating:
Summary: A superficial look at Flagler and the Florida East Coast RR
Review: Last Train is a short book about a big project...one that essentially created the state of Florida as we know it today. The book focuses on the last leg of Flagler's railroad that crossed ocean and swamp to connect Key West with the mainland. The book seems more like an expanded magazine piece rather than a thorough treatment of this fascinating man and his amazing project. Yes, buy the book, but don't expect a Steven Ambrose-like treatment of the subject (considering my opinion of Ambrose's writing ability this is faint praise indeed).
Rating:
Summary: Go To Key West!
Review: Les Standiford has put together a spell-binding tale of the last of the privately financed infrastructure projects undertaken by the larger than life 19th century businessmen. Here Henry Flagler races against his own mortality to complete a railroad from Jacksonville to Key West, with the final run south from Miami requiring herculean engineering, management, and financial resources. Flager was a partner of John D. Rockefeller in an earlier venture known as Standard Oil who decided in his 70's to pursue a second career in railroading, land development, and luxury hotels in the then desolate country of South Florida and the Keys. Standiford weaves together Flagler, Rockefeller, their arch-rival trust-busting Teddy Roosevelt, WWI bonus armies, and big-game hunting author Ernest Hemingway. While Rockefeller also owned vacation homes in Florida, he and Flagler ultimately had a parting of the ways, with Rockefeller pointedly not attending Flagler's funeral. Flagler had been an early supporter of Roosevelt in his successful bid for the New York governorship after Roosevelt's success in the brief Spanish American war. Later Roosevelt brought antitrust action against Standard Oil and at least in Flagler's mind was behind government resistance to his plan to build a deep water harbor in Miami. Ironically, the US victory in the Spanish American War, together with confirmed plans to build the Panama Canal, were the motiviation for Flagler's railroad adventures, as Flagler projected, incorrectly as it turned out, that Miami and Key West would grow in stature as ports. The final thread introduces Hemingway into the mix. The author was already a well-known Key Wester when the hurricane of Labor Day 1935 ravaged the Keys. Although Hemingway's home and his beloved boat Pilar were not seriously damaged, Flagler's railroad was destroyed. A group of WWI bonus army veterans were working on road construction. Many were killed, despite a daring railroad rescue attempt. By 1935, Flager was long dead and the railroad was in bankruptcy. It was never rebuilt, although some bridges are still standing, for the exclusive use of fishermen and birds.
Rating:
Summary: Dramatic tone makes this most acceptable to leisure readers
Review: One man held an incredible vision: to build a railroad which crossed over a hundred miles of water. That man was Henry Flagler, and the railroad connected Key West to the Florida mainland. Last Train To Paradise provides an engrossing account of an impossible vision and how it was brought to life by one man's determination. A dramatic tone makes this most acceptable to leisure readers as well as fans of rail history.
Rating:
Summary: The man who "invented" modern Florida
Review: Ten years ago, when I visited Palm Beach, Florida, I noticed a lot of places named after someone called Flagler. At the time I had no idea who this person was, or why everything in the area seemed focused upon him, but after reading this book, I understand. It's pretty clear that, without Henry Flagler's vision, and money, Florida today might be an entirely different place. This man, almost singlehandedly, changed Florida from a hot, sleepy area into a mecca for tourists. His building of luxury hotels, the Florida East Coast Railway, and later the Key West Expansion, gave us our modern state. This story is extremely interesting, and I found it well-written. It tells something I did not know before, and that's always important to me when I read any non-fiction work. It's a tale of insight, struggle, ultimate success, and subsequent destruction by the forces of an all-powerful natural storm. Men such as Henry Flagler do not walk among us any longer, and perhaps we are all the poorer for that.
Rating:
Summary: One of the most facinating & exciting history narratives
Review: The author of this book had an idea that, in its way, is as good as the subject that the book covers. But it's a shame that the author didn't execute his idea nearly as well. It's an easy, if awkward, read. As another reviewer noted, the book feels like an overgrown magazine article -- and not a great article at that (you'd never see "Outside" magazine print this). In addition to what seems like superficial research -- reading a bunch of books and magazine articles rather than finding anything original -- the author makes all sorts of hyperbolic statements. For example, he says that the the mythic "frontier" ended when the railroad was completed and that it was the last audacious engineering project ever attempted. Huh? Ever heard of moon launches? In fact, the author does mention NASA later on, but to no apparent purpose. In short, this is a book that needs either a writer with a better dramatic ability to tell the human tale, or a far better technical ability to tell the engineering tale (where are the maps and diagrams?).
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