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Reviewer's Choice
The Ex-Offender's Re-Entry Assistance Directory
Ronald L. Krannich, Ph.D.
Impact Publications
9104 Manassas Drive, Suite N, Manassas Park, VA 20111
www.impactpublications.com
9781570233678 $29.95 pbk / $18.99 Kindle amazon.com
The Ex-Offender's Re-Entry Assistance Directory is a reference and resource created especially
for American ex-offenders and who have served their prison sentences and seek to successfully
return to society as law-abiding citizens. Ex-offenders often find themselves unprepared to deal
with the challenges of finding housing, navigating a job market that is quick to reject them, social
barriers, and more. The Ex-Offender's Re-Entry Assistance Directory includes information about
39 gateway websites covering housing and employment opportunities, 1,000+ re-entry assistance
programs in each state, 50 free downloadable re-entry handbooks and curricula, a 5-page, 13-
category, 95-item checklist for re-entry preparation, and much more. Partly directory, and partly
an empathetic source of guidance and encouragement, The Ex-Offender's Re-Entry Assistance
Directory is worthy of the highest recommendation for public library collections and the
bookshelves of ex-offenders as well as professionals who work with them.
Prenuptial Agreements, fifth edition
Katherine E. Stoner, et al.
Nolo Press
950 Parker Street, Berkeley, CA 94710
www.nolo.com
9781413323023, $34.99, PB, 400pp, www.amazon.com
Approximately 50% of all marriages in the United States end in divorce. Marriage is one of the
few personal contracts in which the state you live in dictates the terms of a divorce -- unless a
couple create their own customized premarital agreement. Combining Nolo's legal expertise and
plain-English writing, this newly updated and expanded fifth edition of "Prenuptial Agreements:
How to Write a Fair & Lasting Contract" makes a potentially touchy subject easy to deal with
while explaining how to create a valid contract. Thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and
presentation, "Prenuptial Agreements" is an easy-to-use guide that covers: Whether a prenup is
right for your relationship; How to decide what a prenup should include; How to deal with
special situations, such as one spouse's debts, business ownership, or kids from a previous
marriage; How to assemble a draft agreement; How to turn your draft into a contract; and even
offers tips on negotiating and communicating. This current edition of "Prenuptial Agreements"
reflects current state laws, plus worksheets and clauses for preparing an agreement that suits the
unique needs of anyone contemplating getting married and desirous of the protection that a
prenuptial agreement can provide. Simply stated, "Prenuptial Agreements" should be a part of
every community library collection. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Prenuptial
Agreements" is also available in a Kindle format ($19.24).
Food Anatomy
Julia Rothman
Storey Publishing
210 Mass MoCA Way, North Adams, MA 01247
www.storey.com
9781612123394, $16.95, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
The third book in award-winning food journalist Julia Rothman's best-selling Anatomy series,
"Food Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of Our Edible World" starts with an illustrated
history of food and ends with a global tour of street eats. Along the way, Rothman serves up a an
informative and witty primer on short order egg lingo and offers a mouth-watering menu of how
people around the planet serve fried potatoes -- and what we dip them in. In the pages of "Food
Anatomy" Wharton also lends her editorial expertise to a light-hearted exploration of everything
food that is replete with little-known facts and delightful drawings. An inherently fascinating,
impressively informed and informative compendium of profusely illustrated information, "Food
Anatomy" is highly recommended for community library collections. It should be noted for
personal reading lists that "Food Anatomy" is also available in a Kindle format ($15.95).
Uncle John's Presents Top 10 of Everything 2017
Paul Terry
Portable Press
PO Box 1117, Ashland, OR 97520
www.portablepress.com
c/o Printer's Row Publishing Group
www.printersrowpublishinggroup.com
9781626868465 $19.99 amazon.com
Packed with full-color photography and jaw-dropping facts on every page, Uncle John's Presents
Top 10 of Everything 2017 lives up to its title with record-breaking top-ten lists in almost every
category imaginable, from the ten highest-selling video game titles, to the ten longest long jumps
performed by exceptional athletes, to the ten deadliest natural disasters within the past several
hundred years. Readers of all ages will find Uncle John's Presents Top 10 of Everything 2017
amazing and educational! Highly recommended.
Life From Scratch
Sasha Martin
National Geographic Press
101 West 104th Street, Suite 8, New York, NY 10025
www.nationalgeographic.com
9781426213748, $25.00, HC, 336pp, www.amazon.com
"Life From Scratch: A Memoir of Food, Family, and Forgiveness" is the story of how, over the
course of 195 weeks, food writer and blogger Sasha Martin set out to cook (and eat) a meal from
every country in the world. As cooking unlocked the memories of her own rough-and-tumble
childhood and the loss and heartbreak that came with it, Martin became more determined than
ever to find peace and elevate her life through the prism of food and world cultures. From the
tiny, makeshift kitchen of her eccentric, creative mother, to a string of foster homes, to the house
from which she launched her own cooking adventure, Martin's heartfelt and brutally honest
memoir reveals the power of cooking to bond, to empower, and to heal. Ultimately it is a
celebration of the simple truth that happiness is created from within. Witty, warm, and poignant,
compelling, candid, deeply personal, and a simply riveting read from cover to cover, "Life From
Scratch" is very highly recommended, especially for community library Contemporary American
Biography collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Life From Scratch" is
also available in a paperback edition (9781426216534, $15.95) and in a Kindle format ($9.99).
Librarians should be aware that "Life From Scratch" is available as a complete and unabridged
audio book (Blackstone Audio: 9781483085388, $34.95, CD / 9781483085371, $29.95,
MP3).
The LEGO Animation Book
David pagano & David Pickett
No Starch Press
245 - 8th Street, San Francisco, CO 94103-3910
www.nostarch.com
9781593277413, $19.95, PB, 216pp, www.amazon.com
LEGO is a line of plastic construction toys that are manufactured by The Lego Group and
consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks accompanying an array of gears, figurines called
minifigures, and various other parts. LEGO pieces can be assembled and connected in many
ways, to construct objects; vehicles, buildings, and working robots. Anything constructed can
then be taken apart again, and the pieces used to make other objects. "The LEGO Animation
Book: Make Your Own LEGO Movies!" is a complete course of do-it-yourself instruction on
how to bring LEGO models to life with stop-motion animation. By following the throughly 'user
friendly' step-by-step instructions to make a LEGO based animation, and then exploring the
entire film making process, from storyboards to post-production, "The LEGO Animation Book"
shows how to: Create special effects like explosions and flying minifigures; Convey action and
emotion with your minifigure actors; Design sets for animation--make three buildings look like
an entire city; Light, frame, and capture consistent photos; Add detail and scope to your films by
building in different scales; Build camera dollies and rigs out of LEGO bricks; Choose cameras,
software, and other essential animation tools, and more! "The LEGO Animaton Book" is
enthusiastically recommended for dedicated LEGO fans from ages 8 to 88 and will prove to be
an enduringly popular addition to personal and community library collections. It should be noted
that "The LEGO Animation Book" is also available in a Kindle format ($14.02).
Collaborative Leadership
Peter M. Dewitt
Corwin Press, Inc.
2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320-2218
www.corwinpress.com
9781506337111, $28.00, www.amazon.com
Collaborative Leadership: Six Influences That Matter Most offers a different concept of and
approach to leadership challenges based on a combination of brain science, psychology, and
applied business, and offers a key to understanding both the process of leadership and how it
applies under different situations. The focus on collaborative processes translates to an approach
that gathers the stories of students, teachers, parents and researchers alike who contribute their
experiences to a process that encourages conversation and engagement. The result may be
especially recommended to education readers but moves well beyond the classroom community
to reach into the efforts of any who want a different vision of leadership's opportunities.
The Christmas Shelf
Christmas from the Heart
Made in Arizona
Heart Dance Records
$13.99 CD / $9.49 MP3 amazon.com
Christmas from the Heart is a compilation of classic Christmas songs performed by a variety of
musicians in the state of Arizona, as part of a "Made in Arizona" project. Instrumental
accompaniment ranges from Spanish guitar to finger-style guitar, piano, ambient, Native
American flute, and more. A joyful expression of the season, perfect for stirring holiday spirit at
Christmas parties, Christmas from the Heart is highly recommended. The tracks are "Joy to the
World", "Angels We Have Heard On High", "The Gift", "Away in a Manger", "Light to the
World", "First Lights", "Jingle Bells", "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen", "Ave Maria",
"Greensleeves", "Silent Night", "The Huron Carol, and "O Come O Come Emmanuel". It's worth
noting that 10% of the proceeds from Christmas from the Heart will go to Music As Therapy
(www.music-as-therapy.com).
The Fiction Shelf
Gunpowder Percy
Grace Tillany
Bagwyn Books
c/o Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies
P.O. Box 874402, Tempe, AZ 85287-4402
www.bagwynbooks.com
9780866988155, $14.95, PB, 294pp, www.amazon.com
With "Gunpowder Percy", author Grace Tiffany spins a deftly crafted novel from out of a
nation-shaking historical event -- the English Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Her early-modern
protagonist is Sir Thomas Percy, a man who is irresistibly drawn to London's Globe theater and
the wildly popular new history plays. Inspired by the king-hating warrior Hotspur in
Shakespeare's Henry IV, Percy joins a group of disaffected Catholics that includes the mysterious
traveler Guido Fawkes and the rebel aristocrat Robin Catesby. The terrorist plot on which they
embark is colored by nostalgia and fantasy. It's a quest not just to destroy a Protestant king, but to
return the nation to a mythic medieval past. With an impressive adherence to historical detail,
"Gunpowder Percy" is a consistently compelling read from beginning to end and showcases
author Grace Tillany as an extraordinarily gifted storyteller of the first order. While very highly
recommended, especially for community library Historical Fiction collections, it should be noted
for personal reading lists that "Gunpowder Percy" is also available in a Kindle format
($5.99).
Minyan: Ten Interwoven Stories
John J. Clayton
Paragon House
3600 Labore Road, Suite 1, St. Paul, MN 55110-4144
www.paragonhouse.com
9781557789204 $17.95 pbk / $9.95 Kindle amazon.com
Award-winning author John J. Clayton presents Minyan: Ten Interwoven Stories, a highly
recommended short fiction anthology of ten interlinked stories about a minyan (a quorum of ten
Jewish adults who meet to pray). A mother fears for her son, who shoplifted in Harvard Square
and faced the consequences in juvenile court; a man who struggled with mental illness in the past
feels the whispers of insanity returning to haunt him; a young rabbi grapples with undeniable
evidence that his best friend (and the executive director of the synagogue) is a thief and a
sociopath; and much more. Minyan: Ten Interwoven Stories is as much about the universal
human condition as it is about the lives of Jewish people, and thoroughly captivating from cover
to cover. It should be noted for personal reading lists that Minyan: Ten Interwoven Stories is also
available in a Kindle edition ($9.95).
Charting the Darkness
A.C. Geisel
Cape Breton University Press
P.O. Box 5300, Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, B1P 6L2
www.cbupress.ca
9781772060362 $19.95 pbk / $9.99 amazon.com
Charting the Darkness is a novel about the long, hard journey to recovery. Nick Sullivan was a
fighter pilot during the Vietnam War; his years in a horrific Viet Cong prison camp haunt him
long after the war's end, driving him to self-medicate with alcohol. The death of an uncle from
his estranged family leads Sullivan to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, where he works to refurbish a
worn-out sailboat. The process of restoring the boat strikes an epiphany within, in this thoughtful
work about gradually discovering renewal and hope. Charting the Darkness is highly
recommended for both personal and public library collections.
The Trail Breakers
Logan Winters
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444827910, $20.99, Large Print PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
The Broken W ranch has used the same drive route for years: consequentially, every local rustler
knows where the herd will pass, making it easy pickings. Ranch owner Glen Wycherly has an old
map showing a potential alternative course through the Poconos - however, the map is
incomplete. With a contract to deliver five hundred steers to Fort Davis, Wycherly dispatches
former railroad man Ray Hardin to survey the new terrain and report back on its suitability. But
Hardin and his companion Wally Chambers will find they are riding along a trail. What they
encounter is a lethal conspiracy within the Wycherly family and a riveting final confrontation
upon returning to the Broken W ranch at the end of the cattle drive. Logan Winters is a master of
the western novel genre and with "The Trail Breakers" has written yet another riveting read that
is unreservedly recommended for all western fiction buffs.
Shotgun Charade
Ethan Flagg
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444826449, $17.00 (Amazon), PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
When cowhand Laramie Juke helps out a new friend whose family is being harassed by the
unscrupulous Mayor of Jacinto by the name of Highspade Jack Daley he has his own score to
settle with the villain who was cheated him at poker. Attempting to get rid of the Cavendish clan,
who have discovered a rich gold seam (the source of which hides beneath his own land) Daley
hired the notorious Shotgun Murphy. But through a fluke of circumstance Juke slew Murphy and
he arrives in Jacinto, he is mistaken for the gunman because he had claimed the infamous
assassins trademark shotgun for his own. "Shotgun Charace" is a consistently compelling read by
Ethan Flagg who is a master of the western action/adventure genre. This large print edition of
"Shotgun Charade" is very highly recommended for both personal reading lists and community
library collections.
The Hunt For Iron Eyes
Rory Black
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444827866, $20.99, Large Print PB, 184pp, www.amazon.com
The infamous bounty hunter Iron Eyes is death personified. In "The Hunt For Iron Eyes" he is
pursuing ruthless outlaws Joe Hyams and Buster Jones. But the pair get the drop on him, and
leave him for dead in the dust. Meanwhile, another man is on the bounty hunter's trail -
gunfighter Wolfe, sworn to take his revenge on the man who left him missing one arm.
Kidnaping Squirrel Sally, the woman besotted with Iron Eyes, Wolfe sets off across the prairie --
intending to use her as bait to draw out his enemy. Author Rory Black is a master of the
action/adventure western genre and "The Hunt For Iron Eyes" is his seventeenth novel depicting
the hazardous adventures of the bounty hunter called Iron Eyes. Another extraordinary read from
cover to cover, this large print edition of "The Hunt For Iron Eyes" is especially recommended
for the personal reading lists of western buffs and is certain to be a popular addition to
community library Western Fiction collections.
The Natural Way of Things
Charlotte Wood
Europa Editions
214 West 29th Street, Suite 1003, New York, N.Y. 10001
www.europaeditions.com
9781609453626, $17.00, PB, 208pp, www.amazon.com
Drugged, dressed in old-fashioned rags, and badly in need of a cigarette, Yolanda wakes up in a
barren room. Verla, a young woman who seems vaguely familiar, sits nearby. Down a hallway
echoing loudly with the voices of mysterious men, in a stark compound deep in the Australian
outback, other captive women are just coming to. Starved, sedated, the girls can't be sure of
anything -- except the painful episodes in their pasts that link them. In "The Natural Way of
Things" author Charlotte Wood depicts a world where a woman's sexuality has become a weapon
turned against her. The characters, each of whom are marked by their own public scandal, are
silenced and shackled by a cruel system of corporate control and misogyny. In a Kafkaesque drag
of days marked only by the increasing strangeness of their predicament, the fraught, surreal, and
fierce reality of inhabiting a female body becomes frighteningly vivid. But it's in the very bind of
this senseless system that Yolanda and Verla discover their ability to forge a bond powerful
enough to bring it down. Drawing strength from the animal instincts they're forced to rely on, the
girls go from hunted to hunters, along the way becoming unforgettable and boldly original
literary heroines that readers will both relate to and root for. Exceptionally well written and a
consistently compelling read from cover to cover, "The Natural Way of Things" is especially
recommended for community and academic library Literary Fiction collections. It should be
noted for personal reading lists that "The Natural Way of Things" is also available in a Kindle
format ($9.99).
Shelter in Place
Alexander Maksik
Europa Editions
214 West 29th Street, Suite 1003, New York, N.Y. 10001
www.europaeditions.com
9781609453640, $18.00, PB, 400pp, www.amazon.com
Set in the Pacific Northwest in the jittery, jacked-up early 1990s, "Shelter in Place", by
Alexander Maksik is a deftly crafted novel that deals with the hereditary nature of mental illness,
the fleeting intensity of youth, the obligations of family, and the dramatic consequences of love.
Joseph March, a twenty-one-year-old working class kid from Seattle, is on top of the world. He
has just graduated college and his future beckons, unencumbered, limitless, magnificent. Joe's
life implodes when he starts to suffer the symptoms of bipolar disorder, and, not long after, his
mother kills a man she's never met with a hammer. Joe moves to White Pine, Washington, where
his mother is serving time and his father has set up house. He is followed by Tess Wolff, a
fiercely independent woman with whom he has fallen in love. The lives of Joe, Tess, and Joe's
father fall into the slow rhythm of daily prison visits followed by beer and pizza at a local bar.
Meanwhile, Anne-Marie March, Joe's mother, is gradually becoming a local heroine - many see
her crime as a furious, exasperated act of righteous rebellion. Tess, too, has fallen under her spell.
Spurred on by Anne-Marie's example, Tess enlists Joe in a secret, violent plan that will forever
change their lives. A consistently compelling read by an impressively talented writer, Alexander
Maksik's "Shelter in Place" is highly recommended, especially for community and academic
library Contemporary Literary Fiction collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted
that "Shelter in Place" is also available in a Kindle edition ($9.99). Libraries should be aware that
"Shelter in Place" also has a complete and unabridged audio book MP3 CD edition (Blackstone
Audio, 9781504749725, $29.95).
Winter Sky
Chris Stewart
Shadow Mountain Publishing
P.O. Box 30178, Salt Lake City, Utah 84130-0178
www.shadowmountain.com
9781629722290, $16.99, HC, 192pp, www.amazon.com
In a bombed-out Polish village during World War II a young resistance fighter finds that he is
suddenly alone and trapped between two opposing armies. He is one of Poland's "Devil's Rebels"
fighting desperately to save his homeland, but an injury has erased his memory and his only
possession is a torn photograph of a couple he assumes are his parents. The woman appears to be
holding the hand of a young child whose image has been ripped off. Could the child be him? A
simply riveting novel by an extraordinarily gifted author, "Winter Sky" by Christ Stewart is
enthusiastically recommended and certain to be an enduringly popular addition to community
library General Fiction collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Winter
Sky" is also available in a Kindle format ($10.99). Librarians should especially note that "Winter
Sky" also has a complete and unabridged CD audio book edition from Shadow Mountain
Publishing (9781629722979, $29.99).
Yellow Dog
Miriam Korner
Red Deer Press
c/o Fitzhenry & Whiteside Limited
195 Allstate Parkway, Markham, Ontario, Canada, L3R 4T8
www.reddeerpress.com
9780889955462, $12.95, PB, 264pp, www.amazon.com
Jeremy lives in a small community where winters are long and stray dogs roam the streets. When
peer pressure leads Jeremy into a bad prank, he is immediately struck with guilt - and that's when
Jeremy's life changes forever. Trying to make amends Jeremy befriends Yellow Dog, and in the
process meets a curious old man who introduces him to the adventures of dog sledding. Soon
Jeremy is forming his own old-time dog team with Yellow Dog at lead and in the process
discovers more about himself (and the old man) than he ever thought possible. With a true
natural born storyteller's skill, novelist Miriam Korner is able to deftly craft an impressively
engaging and entertaining read that will make "Yellow Dog" an enduringly popular addition to
personal reading lists and community library General Fiction collections.
A Lady Unrivaled
Roseanna M. White
Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
9780764213526, $14.99, PB, 416pp, www.amazon.com
Lady Ella Myerston can always find a reason to smile -- even if it's just in hope that tomorrow
will be better than today. All her life everyone has tried to protect her from the realities of the
world, but Ella knows very well the danger that has haunted her brother and their friend, and she
won't wait for it to strike again. She intends to take action -- and if that happens to involve an
adventurous trip to the Cotswolds, then so much the better. With "A Lady Unrivaled",
accomplished novelist Roseanna M. White has written still another wonderfully entertaining
Edwardian romance novel for her legions of appreciative readers. While "A Lady Unrivaled" is
very highly recommended, especially for community library Romance Fiction collections, it
should be noted for personal reading lists that "A Lady Unrivaled" is also available in a Kindle
format ($7.86).
Away Running
David Wright & Luc Bouchard, authors
Orca Book Publishers
PO Box 468, Custer, WA 98240-0468
www.orcabook.com
9781459810464, $14.95, PB, 312pp, www.amazon.com
Matt, a white quarterback from Montreal, Quebec, flies to France (without his parents'
permission) to play football and escape family pressure. Freeman, a black football player from
San Antonio, Texas, is in Paris on a school trip when he hears about a team playing American
football in a rough, low-income suburb called Villeneuve-La-Grande. Matt and Free join the
Diables Rouges and make friends with the other players, who come from many different ethnic
groups. Racial tension erupts into riots in Villeneuve when some of their Muslim teammates get
in trouble with the police, and Matt and Free have to decide whether to get involved and face the
very real risk of arrest and violence. The deftly written collaboration by novelists David Wright
and Luc Bouchard, "Away Running" is a finely crafted story that is a consistently compelling
read from cover to cover. While very highly recommended, especially for community library
General Fiction collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Away Running" is
also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).
This Road We Traveled
Jane Kirkpatrick
Revell
c/o Baker Publishing Group
6030 East Fulton, Ada, MI 49301
www.bakerbooks.com
9780800722333, $14.99, PB, 352pp, www.amazon.com
When Tabitha Brown's son makes the fateful decision to leave Missouri and strike out for
Oregon, she refuses to be left behind. Despite her son's concerns, Tabitha hires her own wagon to
join the party. Along with her reluctant daughter and her ever-hopeful granddaughter, the intrepid
Tabitha has her misgivings. But family ties are stronger than fear. The trials they face along the
way will severely test Tabitha's faith, courage, and ability to hope. With her family's survival on
the line, she must make the ultimate sacrifice, plunging deeper into the wilderness to seek aid.
What she couldn't know was how this frightening journey would impact how she understood her
own life--and the greater part she had to play in history. With "This Road We Traveled", novelist
Jane Kirkpatrick again reveal a true storyteller's knack for creating an inherently compelling
work of fiction that is based on actual events. While very highly recommended for community
library General Fiction collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "This Road
We Traveled" is also available in a Kindle format ($7.86).
Exile on Bridge Street
Eamon Loingsigh
Three Rooms Press
www.threeroomspress.com
9781941110423, $15.95, PB, 356pp, www.amazon.com
In "Exile on Bridge Street", author Eamon Loingsigh presents the story of teenage Irish
immigrant Liam Garrity and his struggle to adulthood in pre-Prohibition Brooklyn. Back home,
Ireland's fight for its own independence erupts with the 1916 Easter Rising. The fate of Garrity's
father, an Irish rebel, is unknown, which leaves his mother and two sisters vulnerable on the
family farm as British troops swarm, seeking reprisals. Garrity must organize their departure to
New York immediately. In Brooklyn, Garrity is adopted by Dinny Meehan, leader of a
longshoremen gang based in an "Irishtown" saloon under the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges.
Meehan vows to help Garrity and his family. But just as Ireland struggles for independence,
Garrity faces great obstacles in his own coming of age on the violent Brooklyn waterfront. World
War I, the Spanish Influenza, the temperance movement, the rise of Italian organized crime,
police, unions and shipping and dock companies all target the Brooklyn Irish gang and threaten
Garrity's chances at bringing his family to New York. When "Wild Bill" Lovett, one of the gang's
dockbosses vies to take over, both Meehan and Garrity face a fight for survival in New York
City's brawling streets mirroring Ireland's own fledgling independence movement. An
impressively crafted novel and a compelling read from beginning to end, "Exile on Bridge Street"
is very highly recommended, especially for community library General Fiction collections. It
should be noted for personal reading lists that "Exile on Bridge Street" is also available in a
Kindle format ($8.69).
Stony River
Tricia Dower
Leapfrog Press
P.O. Box 505, Fredonia, NY 14063
www.leapfrogpress.com
9781935248866, $15.95, PB, 320pp, www.amazon.com
It wasn't all poodle skirts and rock 'n' roll in Stony River during the 1950s; it was a perilous time
to come of age. "Stony River" by Tricia Dower is about absent mothers, controlling fathers,
teenage longing and small-town pretense abound, with the threat of violence all around: crazy
fathers, dirty boys, strange men in strange cars, one dead girl, one never seen, and another gone
missing. A consistently compelling and unfailingly entertaining read from cover to cover, "Stony
River" is very highly recommended, especially for community library General Fiction
collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Stony River" is also available in a
Kindle format ($10.99).
The Mystery/Suspense Shelf
Sherlock Holmes and the Nine-Dragon Sigil
Tim Symonds
MX Publishing
www.mxpublishing.com
9781787050358, $16.95, PB, 364pp, www.amazon.com
It's the year 1906. Rumors abound that a deadly plot is hatching - not in the fog-ridden
back-alleys of London's Limehouse district or the sinister Devon moors of the Hound of the
Baskervilles but in faraway Peking, China. Sherlock Holmes's task is to discover whether or not
such a plot exists -- and if so, to foil it. But are the assassins targeting the young and progressive
Ch'ing Emperor or his imperious aunt, the fearsome Empress Dowager Cixi? The murder of
either could spark a civil war. The fate of China and the interests of Britain's vast Empire in the
Orient could be at stake. Holmes and faithful companion John Watson take up the mission with
their customary confidence until they find they are no longer in the familiar landscapes of
Edwardian England. Instead, they tumble into the Alice In Wonderland world of the Forbidden
City. Author Tim Symonds does full justice to the iconic detective Sherlock Holmes originally
created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in this consistently compelling and deftly crafted Sherlock
Holmes novel. Certain to be an highly prized addition to the growing canon of the great
detective's adventures, "Sherlock Holmes and the Nine-Dragon Sigil" is unreservedly
recommended to the attention of the legions of Sherlock Holmes fans and will prove to be an
enduringly popular addition to community library collections. It should be noted for personal
reading lists that "Sherlock Holmes and the Nine-Dragon Sigil" is also available in a Kindle
format ($8.99).
The Blue Baron Mystery
Jerry Labriola
Strong Books
PO Box 1194, Middlebury, CT 06762
www.jerrylabriola.com/otherBooks.htm
9781928782803, $24.95, HC, 304pp
An expert forensic scientist with an earned reputation for discretion among overt and covert
traders in international artifacts, Dr. Paul D'Amean's career and life are on the line in "The Blue
Baron Mystery", a truly compelling read by author Jerry Labriola who is a seasoned master of the
genre. Hired by 'Gens de Ferite', an ancient French organization dedicated to tracking down the
murderer of six people and to locate the stolen Blue Baron diamond, Paul finds himself traveling
in perilous jeopardy following a serious of hazardous incidents that occurs as he finds himself in
France, Holland, The Hauge, Belgium, Angola, Sierra Leone, Bosnia, Buenos Aires and
Gibraltar. A deftly crafted and riveting read from cover to cover, "The Blue Baron Mystery" is
enthusiastically recommended for the personal reading lists of dedicated suspense thriller buffs
and would prove to be an enduringly popular addition to community library collections. It should
be noted that a complete list of Jerry Labriola eleven previous novels is available at
www.jerrylabriola.com/otherBooks.htm
A Death In Vienna
Daniel Silva
Signet
c/o Penguin Group USA
375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014-3658
www.penguin.com
9780451213181, $9.99, 448pp, www.amazon.com
Art restorer and sometime spy Gabriel Allon is sent to Vienna to discover the truth behind a
bombing that killed an old friend, but while there he encounters something that turns his world
upside down. It is a face -- a face that feels hauntingly familiar, a face that chills him to the bone.
"A Death In Vienna" is another riveting read from author Daniel Silva who is an undisputed
master of the suspense thriller genre. Deftly crafted characters embedded in a consistently
compelling story of unexpected plot twists and turns, "A Death In Vienna" is very highly
recommended for both personal reading lists and community library collections. It should be
noted that "A Death In Vienna" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).
Death of a Toy Soldier
Barbara Early
Crooked Lane Books
2 Park Avenue, 10th floor, New York, NY 10016
www.crookedlanebooks.com
9781629538389, $25.99, HC, 304pp, www.amazon.com
Liz McCall grew up in a playful winter wonderland but it was never her dream to manage her
father's vintage toyshop. However, after he sank his entire police pension into the business,
someone needed to help him turn his dreams into reality -- and keep him from sneaking off to
patrol the not-so-mean streets of East Aurora, NY. The mood goes from nice to naughty when a
nervous man, who was trying to have his antique toys appraised, is found in the shop with a lawn
dart through his chest. Suddenly, Liz's business plan is plunged into deep freeze, while she and
her father find themselves toying with a cold-blooded killer who's playing for keeps. Now, it
looks like Christmas might be cancelled for the neighborhood kids if Liz can't wrap up the case.
All the more impressive considering that "Death of a Toy Soldier" is author Barbara Early's debut
as a novelist, this is a mystery's lover's delight and a solidly entertaining read from cover to cover
that launches her 'Vintage Toyshop Mystery' series. While very highly recommended for
community library Mystery/Suspense collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists
of dedicated mystery buffs that "Death of a Toy Soldier" is also available in a Kindle edition
($9.59).
Tales of an Unlikely Sleuth
J. R. Canfield
Biographical Publishing Company
95 Sycamore Drive, Prospect, CT 06712-1493
www.biopub.us
9780997602807, $14.00, PB, 412pp, www.amazon.com
Hamilton Smith is a Bon Vivant, man-about-town, and amateur detective who slips in and out of
retirement whilst encountering the sinister motivations of several unlikely homicide suspects.
"Tales of an Unlikely Sleuth" is comprised of four deftly crafted and sequential Hamilton Smith
mysteries in settings ranging from New England to the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains.
Exceptionally well written, consistently compelling, and a thoroughly entertaining read from
cover to cover, "Tales of an Unlikely Sleuth" is an especially recommended addition to the
personal reading lists of all mystery buffs and will prove to be an enduringly popular addition to
community library Mystery/Suspense collections.
Goliath
Shawn Corridan & Gary Waid
Oceanview Publishing
595 Bay Isles Road, 120-G, Longboat Key, FL 34228
www.oceanviewpub.com
9781608092154, $26.95, HC, 320pp, www.amazon.com
In the Bering Sea, Bennkah, the largest oil tanker ever built, newly commissioned in
Vladivostock, Russia, is on a secret mission. On this maiden voyage, Captain Borodin is at the
helm. He is the only one aboard aware of the mission. Soon an engineer discovers a defect --
seemingly minor, but one with disastrous potential. Despite his attempts to correct the problem, a
fire erupts, contained at first, then rapidly spreads out of control, consuming the behemoth ship.
A Mayday call alerts Sonny Wade some two hundred miles from the burning ship. This could be
the lifeline that Sonny and his rag-tag crew need to save their failing salvage business. But Dan
Sharp, Sonny's nemesis and former employer (the owner of the largest salvage business in
northern Alaska) also hears the call. A brutal race is on to claim the burning ship before it sinks
or runs aground, contaminating the entire north Pacific Rim -- and not only with oil. A deftly
written and riveting read from beginning to end, "Goliath" is an exceptionally entertaining thriller
that is very highly recommended for community library General Fiction collections. For personal
reading lists it should be noted that "Goliath" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).
Where Roses Never Die
Gunnar Staalesen
Orenda Books
c/o Trafalgar Square Publishing
388 Howe Hill Road, North Pomfret, VT 05053
www.trafalgarbooks.com
9781910633090, $14.95, PB, 285pp, www.amazon.com
Mette is a three-year-old girl who in September 1977 suddenly disappears without trace from the
sandpit outside her home. Her tiny, close middle-class community in the tranquil suburb of
Nordas is devastated, but their enquiries and the police produce nothing. Curtains twitch,
suspicions are raised, but Mette is never found. Almost 25 years later, as the expiration date for
the statute of limitations draws near, Mette's mother approaches PI Varg Veum, in a last,
desperate attempt to find out what happened to her daughter. As Veum starts to dig, he uncovers
an intricate web of secrets, lies and shocking events that have been methodically concealed.
When another brutal incident takes place, a pattern begins to emerge. Chilling, shocking and full
of extraordinary twists and turns by a master of the crime thriller genre, Gunnar Staalesen's
"Where Roses Never Die" is a consistently compelling read from first page to last. While very
highly recommended for community library collections, it should be noted for personal reading
lists that "Where Roses never Die" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.89).
Fractured
Catherine McKenzie
Lake Union Publishing
9781477817940, $24.95, HC, 349pp, www.amazon.com
Julie Prentice and her family move across the country to the idyllic Mount Adams district of
Cincinnati, hoping to evade the stalker who's been terrorizing them ever since the publication of
her bestselling novel, The Murder Game. Since Julie doesn't know anyone in her new town,
when she meets her neighbor John Dunbar, their instant connection brings measured hope for a
new beginning. But she never imagines that a simple, benign conversation with him could set her
life spinning so far off course. After a series of misunderstandings, Julie and her family become
the target of increasingly unsettling harassment. Has Julie's stalker found her, or are her
neighbors out to get her, too? As tension in the neighborhood rises, new friends turn into
enemies, and the results are deadly. A deftly crafted and consistently compelling read from
beginning to end, "Fractured" showcases author Catherine McKenzie's impressive and
undeniable flair as a novelist and is very highly recommended, especially for community library
General Fiction collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Fractured" is also
available in a paperback edition (9781503937826, $14.95) and in a Kindle format ($4.99).
The Christian Studies Shelf
Praying for Your Pastor
Eddie Byun
InterVarsity Press
PO Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 605151426
www.ivpress.com
9780830844661, $15.00, PB, 160pp, www.amazon.com
Being the pastor of a Christian community is hard work. Pastors must face demands and
pressures on every side, ranging from the challenges of a church ministry to the realities of
spiritual warfare. But members of a Christian congregation can make a difference in behalf of
their pastor. Their Christian prayers can provide a lifeline for their pastor's spiritual health and
ministry effectiveness. In "Praying for Your Pastor: How Your Prayer Support Is Their Life
Support", Eddie Byun ( lead pastor of Crossway Mission Church in Seoul, South Korea. He is
also professor of practical theology at Torch Trinity Graduate University) offers a handy,
practical guide to praying for pastors. He shares stories of how congregational intercession
changes things, with specific guidelines for prayers for protection, rest, anointing, integrity and
more. God calls us to pray for our leaders. When we do, their ministry is strengthened, the
kingdom is advanced and lives and communities are transformed. While very highly
recommended to the attention of all members of the Christian community regardless of their
denominational affiliation, it should be noted that "Praying for Your Pastor" is also available in a
Kindle format ($8.88).
Men Who Love Fierce Women
Leroy Wagner & Kimberly Wagner
Moody Publishers
820 N. LaSalle Blvd., Chicago, IL 60610
www.moodypublishers.com
9780802414656, $14.99, PB, 240pp, www.amazon.com
It is commonly observed that some men are married to strong-willed women. That can give rise
to such questions as: What if I'm laid-back and my wife is... not?; How can I lead when I feel
emasculated?; I'm not sure I love my wife anymore. What happened? "Men Who Love Fierce
Women: The Power of Servant Leadership in Your Marriage" was written to respond to just such
issues and is based on Leroy Wagner's personal experiences with failures and frustrations as a
husband, and the ultimate realizations that saved his own marriage, along with the requirements
God places on every husband, whether they are laid-back or not in their relationship with their
wives. With their insights combined, Kim and LeRoy Wagner equip men to rise up, handle
conflict, love their wife, and lead their marriage, regardless of who has the stronger personality.
Very highly recommended, "Men Who Love Fierce Women" includes reflection questions at the
end of every chapter, plus an appendix for addressing conflict. It should be noted that "Men Who
Love Fierce Women" is also available in a Kindle edition ($8.37) and as an unabridged CD audio
book ($19.98).
Total Family Makeover
Melissa Spoelstra
Abingdon Press
2222 Rosa L. Parks Blvd., PO Box 280988, Nashville, TN 37228-0988
www.abingdonpress.com
9781501820656, $16.99, PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
As parents, God calls us as parents to be key disciple-makers in our children's lives, but if we're
honest, some days it's a battle just to get them dressed and ready for school on time. How can you
mold their hearts when sometimes you can't even find their shoes? In "Total Family Makeover: 8
Practical Steps to Making Disciples at Home" popular women's conference speaker, Bible
teacher, and writer Melissa Spoelstra gives parents a way to building family discipleship. She
focuses on eight key habits of growth: Spending Time in Prayer; Reading God's Word; Growing
Through a Mentoring Relationship; Finding Community in the Church; Serving Others; Taking
Time to Rest; Giving Back to God; Sharing Your Faith. Disciples are made, not born. Whether
children are babes in arms or teenagers getting ready to leave the nest, making disciples at home
starts with the parents. With the help of "Total Family Makeover" Christian parents can provide
their family members with a practical approach to helping children learn what it means to be a
follower of Jesus. Inspired and inspiring, "Total Family Makeover" is very highly recommended
to all members of the Christian community and also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).
Prosecuting Jesus
Mark Osler
Westminster John Knox Press
100 Witherspoon Street, Louisville, KY 40202-1396
www.wjkbooks.com
9780664261856, $17.00, PB, 208pp, www.amazon.com
Christians have been arguing about the answer to the question 'Who is Jesus?' as long as there
have been Christians, and it seems unlikely that theyre going to agree on an answer anytime soon.
Mark Osler, always a bit uncomfortable in church, was never able to find a Jesus that seemed real
to him until he put Jesus on trial. Drawing on his training as a federal prosecutor and professor of
law, Osler and a group of friends staged the trial of Jesus for their church, as though it were
happening in the modern American criminal justice system. The event was so powerful that
before long Osler received invitations to take it on the road. Each time he served as Christ's
prosecutor, the story of Jesus opened up to him a bit more. "Prosecuting Jesus" follows Osler in
this extraordinary journey of discovering himself by discovering Jesus. Juxtaposing things we
rarely put together, like the passion of Christ and our ideas about capital punishment, Osler
explores an active engagement between Jesus and our contemporary law and culture. Unique and
effective, inherently fascinating and ultimately inspiring, "Prosecuting Jesus" is a consistently
compelling read and highly recommended for church, seminary, and community library Christian
Studies collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Prosecuting Jesus" is also
available in a Kindle format ($9.99).
Beyond Stewardship
John Zehring & Kate Jagger
Judson Press
PO Box 851, Valley Forge, PA 19482-0851
www.judsonpress.com
9780817017668, $15.99, PB, 160pp, www.amazon.com
John Zehring has served United Church of Christ congregations for twenty years as Senior Pastor
in Massachusetts (Andover), Rhode Island (Kingston), and Maine (Augusta). Co-author Kate
Jagger chaired the Annual Giving Committee at South Church in Andover which brought the
Annual Giving effort to new heights and field-tested this approach over a multi-year period.
Together they have collaborated to present "Beyond Stewardship: A Church Guide to Generous
Giving Campaign". A complete instruction guide under one cover, "Beyond Stewardship" applies
the best principles of fund raising to the annual giving campaign in local congregations. By
emphasizing the individual givers and the act of giving as integral to the givers' spiritual life,
"Beyond Stewardship" goes beyond typical stewardship models to celebrate the generosity
already demonstrated by church members and to invite further giving based on that generous
past. Using a collaborative paradigm that engages leadership across the church, this volume
offers four interlocking strategies for a successful annual giving campaign: personal visits,
concentric circles of commitment, public witness, and direct mail. Enhanced with the inclusion
of a practical appendix of tools and resources list, "Beyond Stewardship" is thoroughly 'user
friendly' in organization and presentation, making it very highly recommended for anyone, clergy
or laity, who is charged with the responsibility of assisting their church with respect to its
finances.
Great Catholic Parishes
William E. Simon, Jr.
Ave Maria Press
PO Box 428, Notre Dame, IN 46556
www.avemariapress.com
9781594714177, $17.95, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
In 2012 William E. Simon Jr. founded Parish Catalyst, an organization devoted to researching
and supporting the health and development of Catholic parishes. In the pages of "Great Catholic
Parishes: How Four Essential Practices Make Them Thrive" Simon offers insights and the
success stories of 244 vibrant parishes to show just what makes them great. All of the parishes
studied shared four foundational practices that led to a profound sense of belonging within their
parish communities and a deepening commitment to discipleship: Share leadership by using
clergy and lay staff with the best talents and skills to direct the community; Foster spiritual
maturity and plan for discipleship by offering a variety of formation programs and ministry
opportunities to reach parishioners at differing points in their lives; Excel on Sundays by
dedicating significant time, energy, and money to liturgical celebrations that parishioners and
visitors find welcoming; Intentionally evangelize by challenging insiders to look outward and
providing service programs, social events, global mission opportunities, and pastoral care at key
sacramental moments that focus on inviting outsiders to deeper relationship with Christ and the
Church. Each chapter closes with either crucial takeaways or a summary of practical challenges
that will help pastors and leaders focus on growth and excellence. "Great Catholic Parishes" is
very highly recommended reading for both clergy and parishioners alike. It should be noted that
"Great Catholic Parishes" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.15).
Ignatius of Loyola: Legend and Reality
Pierre Emonet, S.J. author
Jerry Ryan, translator
Thomas M. McCogg, S.J., editor
Saint Joseph's University Press
5600 City Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19131
www.sjupress.com
9781945402005, $40.00, HC, 160pp, www.amazon.com
The original French edition of "Ignatius of Loyola: Legend and Reality", by Pierre Emonet, S.J.,
was published in 2013 by Editions Lessius in Belgium. It has since been translated into Spanish
and German. Now the Saint Joseph's University Press offers an English translation of this seminal
work by Jerry Ryan. Given all the biographies of Ignatius Loyola already in print, why another
one? Unlike many biographies, "Ignatius of Loyola: Legend and Reality" is succinct without
being superficial. Here the reader will encounter Ignatius, the man and the legend, in a true and
accurate biographical simplicity. Here the reader is presented the traits and characteristics of
Ignatius of Loyoal ( October 23, 1491 - July 31, 1556) who is one of the most influential Roman
Catholics to have attracted, annoyed, alarmed and amused generations over the last 500 years.
Enhanced with fifteen full color images, "Ignatius of Loyola: Legend and Reality" is unreservedly
recommended for personal, community, seminary, and academic library collections in general,
and Ignatius of Loyola" supplemental studies reading lists in particular.
Favor with Kings
Caleb Anderson
David C. Cook
c/o Cook Communications
4050 Lee Vance View, Colorado Springs, CO 80918
www.cookministries.com
9781434710413, $16.99, PB, 288pp, www.amazon.com
"Favor with Kings: God's Purpose, Your Passion, and the Process of Doing Great Things" by
Caleb Anderson (who leads Mariners Church in Huntington Beach, one of the fastest-growing
churches in Southern California) is a remarkably unique and inspiring look at the ancient Hebrew
story of Nehemiah. Anderson takes the story to places it has never been before so that his readers
can go to places they have never gone to before. "Favor with Kings" deals with a diversity of
issues including: identifying a purpose or dream; developing a passion or conviction; creating a
plan of action; empowering people to play their role; persevere through inevitable adversity.
"Favor with Kings" is especially recommended to the attention of anyone one within the
Christian community who has ever had a dream; ever felt stuck or restless; ever experienced the
discouragement of feeling like they are behind or not good enough or disqualified; ever started
but lack the courage or conviction to stay the course. Very highly recommended and a potentially
life-changing read, it should be noted that "Favor with Kings" is also available in a Kindle format
($9.99).
Bernard of Clairvaux: Miscellaneous Sermons
Daniel Griggs, translator
Cistercian Publications
c/o The Liturgical Press
2950 Saint John's Road, PO Box 7500, Collegeville, MN 56321-7500
www.litpress.org
9780879074685, $39.95, PB, 512pp, www.amazon.com
Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 - 20 August 1153) was a French abbot and the primary reformer of
the Cistercian order of the Roman Catholic Church. He joined the fifteen-year-old monastery of
Citeaux in 1113. In 1115 he became the founding abbot of Clairvaux Abbey, whence his name,
Bernard of Clairvaux. Saint Bernard was a gifted and prolific writer of theological treatises,
Scriptural commentaries, letters, and many sermons. Ably translated into English by Daniel
Griggs, "Bernard of Clairvaux: Miscellaneous Sermons " is a compilation of his sermons that
unlike his lack the specific point of departure that characterizes his other recorded sermons. That
is, whereas the sermons on the Song of Songs are a verse-by-verse commentary on that biblical
book and his Sermons for the Year follow the liturgical calendar, this collection of sermons deals
with his various pastoral concerns. Since Scripture is always Bernard's point of departure and
inspiration, the sermons often read like a Scripture study, but what comes through equally is the
voice of an understanding spiritual father who is a masterful student of Scripture, biblical
language, and the needs of his monks. "Bernard of Clairvaux: Miscellaneous Sermons" is an
exceptional and highly recommended addition to personal, church, community, college, and
university library Christian Studies collections in general, and Cistercian History supplemental
studies reading lists in particular. It should be noted that "Bernard of Clairvaux: Miscellaneous
Sermons" is also available in a Kindle format ($31.99).
The Islamic Studies Shelf
Islam: What Non-Muslims Should Know
John Kaltner
Fortress Press
P.O. Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440-1209
http://fortresspress.com
9780800635831, $11.99, PB, 80pp, www.amazon.com
In the pages of "Islam: What Non-Muslims Should Know", John Kaltner (Professor of Religion
at Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee) presents Islam as first and foremost a religion of
orthopraxis, that is, a set of prescribed practices that Muslims refer to as the five pillars of Islam.
Showing the deep humanism of Islam and its most cherished commitments, Professor Kaltner
presents Islam through assertions that counter frequent and common misconceptions of the faith.
Give today's unfortunate political climate, "Islam: What Non-Muslims Should Know" is an
urgently needed and timely volume that can effectively counteract the distortions of what Islam,
one of the three great Abrahamic faiths, truly is and what it truly stands for. Informed and
informative, thoroughly 'reader friendly' from cover to cover, "Islam: What Non-Muslims Should
Know" is urgently and unreservedly recommended for community library Islamic Studies
collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Islam: What Non-Muslims Should
Know" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.59).
Restoring The Balance
John Andrew Morrow
Cambridge Scholars Publishing
http://www.cambridgescholars.com
9781443890144, $81.95, HC, 235pp, www.amazon.com
"Restoring the Balance: Using the Qur'an and the Sunnah to Guide a Return to the Prophet's
Islam" by independent scholar John Andrew Morrow is a penetrating reflection upon the reality
of Islam in the modern world. Addressing a myriad of pressing issues that impact Muslims in the
East, West, North, and South, it tackles topics that are both difficult and troubling, threading its
way through a mine-field of religious, cultural, and ideological issues with courage, balance,
caution, and concern. In a world of extremes, which pits religious fundamentalists against radical
reformists, "Restoring The Balance" calls upon Muslims to maintain the middle ground, using
the Qur'an and the Sunnah to guide to a return of the Prophet's Islam. Impressively well written,
organized and presented, "Restoring The Balance" is additionally enhanced with the include of
four appendices: The Covenants Initiative; The Genocide Initiative; Edict against ISIS; What
Should Muslims Say to Donald Trump? An invaluable and much needed contribution to our
national dialogue and our near term future under a Trump administration, "Restoring The
Balance" is a critically important and unreservedly recommended addition to community and
academic library collections in general, and Islamic Studies supplemental reading lists in
particular.
The Poetry Shelf
The West Coast of Heaven: Poems
Jack Moser
Fithian Press
c/o Daniel & Daniel Publishers
PO Box 2790, McKinleyville, CA 95519
www.danielpublishing.com
9781564745880, $14.00, PB, 108pp, www.amazon.com
A compendium showcasing the poetry of Jack Moser, "The West Coast of Heaven". Toward the
end of this seventh published collection of his poetry Moser announces without embarrassment
that he is bipolar. This will not surprise readers familiar with his previous work, with its open
and honest passion that can be pegged as alternately manic or depressive, revealing the poet to be
alternately gloriously happy with the world, with God, and with humankind and also angry and
discouraged with the same. Jack Moser is a man and a poet who loves Ireland, his family, his
patients, and all the rest of life, especially Shekhinah, the female aspect of God's Holy Spirit. But
this same man and this same poet has fierce, angry feelings about the brutality of war, the
economics of greed, and humanity's historical and persistent cruelty. A collection of candid and
deftly crafted verse, "The West Coast of Heaven" is highly recommended, especially for
community and academic library Contemporary Poetry collections.
Blue Hallelujahs
Cynthia Manick
Black Lawrence Press
http://www.blacklawrence.com
9781625579454, $15.95, PB, 65pp, www.amazon.com
Cynthia Manick is a Pushcart Prize nominated poet with a MFA in Creative Writing from the
New School; she has received fellowships from Cave Canem, the Callaloo Creative Writing
Workshop, Fine Arts Work Center, the Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts & Sciences,
Hedgebrook, Poets House, and the Vermont Studio Center. "Blue Hallelujahs" is the latest
compendium of her work and showcases her unique gifts as a wordsmith of the first order. A
master of the free verse format, Marrick's poetry is deeply personal while being at the same time,
impressively universal in accessability. A consistently compelling read from cover to cover,
"Blue Hallelujahs" is very highly recommended for personal reading lists as well as community
and academic library Contemporary American Poetry collections.
Blaris Moor
Medbh McGuckian
Wake Forest University Press
PO Box 7333, Winston-Salem, NC 27109
www.wfu.edu/wfupress
9781930630789, $13.95, PB, 112pp, www.amazon.com
Elegant, intuitive, reflective, memorable, the poetry of Medbh McGuckian comprising the pages
of "Blaris Moor" with its historical overtones and subject matter is very highly recommended
for personal, community, and academic library Contemporary Poetry collections. 'An Early
Apocalypse': I see the skeleton of the year / poised in the cool moonplay, / trying to catch at the
blemished / calendar of the next. // Embraced most of the day / by the low and slender rainbow, /
the world-jewel sweeps on / with its morning, noon and night. // The nowhereness of the
fifth-month grass / stayed for a moment only, / before the earthless mountain light / anointed
without mountains.
Garden Time
W. S. Merwin
Copper Canyon Press
PO Box 271, Port Townsend, WA 98368
www.coppercanyonpress.org
9781556594991, $24.00, HC, 96pp, www.amazon.com
W. S. Merwin (born September 30, 1927) is an American poet, credited with over fifty books of
poetry, translation and prose. Merwin has served as Poet Laureate of the United States and has
received every major literary accolade, including two Pulitzer prizes. Published by Copper
Canyon Press, "Garden Time" is his latest collection of free verse prose poetry and is
unreservedly recommended for the personal reading lists of poetry enthusiasts, as well as
community, college, and university library Contemporary American Poetry collections. 'Early
One Morning': Here is Memory walking in the dark / there are no pictures of her as she is / the
coming day was never seen before / the stars have gone into another life / the dreams have left
with no sound of farewell / insects wake flying up with their feed wet / trying to take the night
along with them / Memory alone is awake with me / knowing that this may be the only time
The Military Shelf
Combat Mission Kandahar
T. Robert Fowler
The Dundurn Group
3 Church Street, Suite 500, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5E 1M2
www.dundurn.com
9781459735163, $21.99, PB, 272pp, www.amazon.com
What was it like to serve in the combat mission in Afghanistan? Journalists' reports from 2006 to
2011 could only give brief glimpses of the reality on the ground for Canadian soldiers. In
"Combat Mission Kandahar: The Canadian Experience in Afghanistan" military author T. Robert
Fowler reveals the full story of what happened to seven soldiers, ranking from corporal to
captain, who were deployed during Operation ATHENA, Phase 2. The operation became known
as "the combat mission" as Canadian battle groups engaged in a deadly multi-year war of
counter-insurgency in Kandahar province. Each of the seven soldier's experiences covered in
"Combat Mission Kandahar" highlights a facet of one of Canada's longest, most complicated, and
challenging operations. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "Combat Mission
Kandahar: The Canadian Experience in Afghanistan" is an extraordinary and highly
recommended addition to community and academic library Canadian Military History
collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Combat Mission Kandahar: The
Canadian Experience in Afghanistan" is also available in a Kindle format ($8.79).
Hornet 33
Ed Denny
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
9781476666099, $29.95, PB, 296pp, www.amazon.com
Combat helicopter pilots in the Vietnam War flew each mission facing the possibility of
imminent death. Begun as a series of attempted letters to the Department of Veterans Affairs,
"Hornet 33: Memoir of a Combat Helicopter Pilot in Vietnam" is compelling memoir of Ed
Denny who was an aircraft commander in the 116th Assault Helicopter Company nicknamed
"The Hornets". Denny relates his experience of the war in frank and candid detail. From
supporting the 25th Infantry Division's invasion of Cambodia, to flying the lead aircraft in the
101st Airmobile Division's pivotal Operation Lam Son 719 invasion of Laos to cut the Ho Chi
Minh Trail at LZ Hope, Denny vividly recounts the traumatic events of his service from March
1970 to March 1971. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "Hornet 33" is an
invaluable and highly recommended addition to the growing library of Viet Name War literature.
It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Hornet 33" is also available in a Kindle format
($3.03).
The Beer/Wine Shelf
PAIRED: Champagne & Sparkling Wines
Fran Flynn & David Stevens-Castro
Paired Media
c/o Latino Cellar
http://www.paired-media.com
9780994348500, $38.00, HC, 150pp, www.amazon.com
Food and wine pairing can be easy! All you need are taste buds, a sense of adventure, and a copy
of the Writer's Digest Press award winning "PAIRED: Champagne & Sparkling Wines" by the
husband-and-wife team wine expert David Stevens-Castro and food photographer Fran Flynn.
Beautifully and profusely illustrated in full color, this thoroughly 'user friendly' culinary recipe
compendium showcases sparkling wines of all styles with tantalizing home-cooked recipes for all
courses of a complete meal -- and not just with finger food occasions. "PAIRED: Champagne &
Sparkling Wines" offers seven chapters each of which showcase a particular style of sparkling
wine, present a visual synopsis of the country of origin, supply complimentary cheese ideas, and
several recipes that will pair with the topical variety. Common misconceptions about wine are
dispelled, a broad range of dishes suitable for sharing and entertaining are presented, and
suggestions on how you can introduce your friends to the wonderful world of food and wine are
also provided. With "PAIRED: Champagne & Sparkling Wines" even the most novice of kitchen
cooks can turn any meal into an elegant and truly memorable dining experience. "PAIRED:
Champagne & Sparkling Wines" is very highly recommended and certain to be an enduringly
popular addition to personal, family, professional, and community library cookbook
collections.
The Gaming Shelf
How to Crush No-Limit Hold'em
Dusty Schmidt & Paul Christopher Hoppe
Cardoza Publishing
808 South Main Street, Las Vegas, NV 89108-6404
http://cardozabooks.com
9781580423342, $24.95, PB, 208pp, www.amazon.com
Dusty Schmidt's resume is legendary: He has won more than $5 million in cash games, and had
the world's highest win rate in both $5/$10 and $10/$20 no-limit hold'em for two years running.
His resume includes 12 million poker hands and 12,000 hours of playing poker. In the pages of
"How to Crush No-Limit Hold'em" Dusty Schmidt, draws upon his years of experience and
expertise as an Internet cash game player and renowned poker strategy teacher to show players
how to crush today's toughest no-limit hold'em cash games. "How to Crush No-Limit Hold'em"
explains how to maneuver in inexact situations where players don't know opponents' ranges and
strategies, and where pot odds and stack sizes aren't necessarily known quantities. Mistakes, and
good plays are dissected allowing aspiring poker players learn how to think and play in real
games where multiple situations apply so that players can cut through the noise and focus on the
facts that matter most. The critical concepts that spell the difference between winning and losing,
and the critical thinking needed to win in today's tough games is the focus of this informed and
informative instructional guide to making serious money in cash games. Bluffing, inducing
multi-street bluffs, exploiting capped and uncapped ranges, post-flop squeezes, turning scare
cards into profit, and over-betting are just a few powerful concepts discussed and dissected
through real-play examples. Thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and presentation, "How to
Crush No-Limit Hold'em" should be considered a 'must read' for any poker player sitting down to
a game of No-Limit Texas Hold'em.
The Biography Shelf
Heroes Without Glory
Jack Schaefer
University of New Mexico Press
MSC05 3185, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM 87131-0001
9780826357663 $24.95 pbk / $9.99 Kindle www.unmpress.com
Heroes Without Glory: Some Good Men of the Old West lives up to its title as a collection of
biographical essays about little-known yet noble-hearted doctors, explorers, and cowboys of the
Old West - men who achieved great things without resorting to violence or gun battles. Profiled
men include shoemaker James Capen Adams, postman John A. Thompson, Shoshone warrior
and statesman Wash-a-kie, peace officer Elfego Baca, and many more. An inspirational
anthology packed cover to cover with real-life courage, Heroes Without Glory is highly
recommended for both public library collections and personal reading lists.
Tesla for Beginners
Robert I. Sutherland-Cohen
For Beginners LLC
155 Main Street, Suite 211, Danbury, CT 06810
www.forbeginnersbooks.com
9781939994486 $15.95 pbk / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
Part of the "For Beginners" series well-known for its engaging illustrations and reader-friendly
text, Tesla for Beginners teaches readers of all ages about Nikola Tesla (1856-1943), a Serbian-
American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, physicist, and futurist. Though not
as well-known as his contemporary Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla was a genius who created
nearly 300 patents for household an industrial inventions, including his design of the modern
alternating current. Black-and-white illustrations on virtually every page make Tesla for
Beginners easy on the eyes and thoroughly accessible to readers of all backgrounds. Tesla for
Beginners is highly recommended for personal, school, and public library collections.
50 Percent of Mountaineering Is Uphill
Susanna Pfisterer
NeWest Press
#201, 8540-109 Street, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 1E6
www.newestpress.com
9781926455600, $24.95, PB, 310pp, www.amazon.com
Written by his daughter Susanna, "Fifty Percent of Mountaineering Is Uphill" is the personal
story of the late Jasper's Willi Pfisterer, who was and remains a legend in the field of
mountaineering and safety in the Rocky Mountains. For more than thirty years, Willi was an
integral part of Jasper's alpine landscape, guiding climbers up to the highest peaks, and rescuing
them from perilous situations. Originally from Austria, Willi was a mountain man who came to
Canada in the 1950s to assail the Rockies, and stayed to become an integral part of mountain
safety in Western Canada and the Yukon. His daughter, Susanna Pfisterer, has shaped his stories
and lectures as an engaging and educational adventure story that features over 100 archival
photographs, including avalanches in the National Parks, highlights from climbing 1600 peaks
and participating in over 700 rescues, and guiding adventures with Prime Ministers.
Accompanied by the humorous wisdom of the "Sidehillgouger", readers will traverse an
historical and spectacular terrain. Impressively informative, deftly written, organized and
presented, "50 Percent of Mountaineering Is Uphill" is a truly extraordinary account of an
extraordinary life and very highly recommended for community library biography shelves and
academic library mountaineering history collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists
that "50 Percent of Mountaineering Is Uphill" is also available in a Kindle format ($14.99).
Die Young with Me
Rob Rufs
Touchstone Books
c/o Simon & Schuster
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
www.simonandschuster.com
9781501142611, $25.00, HC, 400pp, www.amazon.com
Punk's not dead in rural West Virginia. In fact, it blares constantly from the basement of identical
twins Rob and Nat Rufus. When the brothers start their own band, their lives begin to change:
they meet friends, they attract girls, and they finally get invited to join a national tour and get out
of their rat box little town. But their plans are cut short when Rob is diagnosed with a rare form
of cancer that has already progressed to Stage Four. Not only are his dreams of punk rock
stardom completely shredded, there is a very real threat that this is one battle that can't be won.
While Rob suffers through nightmarish treatments and debilitating surgery, Nat continues on
their band's road to success alone. But as Rob's life diverges from his brother's, he learns to find
strength within himself and through his music. "Die Young With Me" is a raw, candid honest
account of a brave teen's fight with cancer and the many ways music helped him cope through his
recovery. This extraordinary memoir is very highly recommended, especially for community
library Contemporary American Biography collections. For personal reading lists it should be
noted that "Die Young with Me" is also available in a paperback edition (9781501142628,
$14.99) and in a Kindle format ($12.99).
Smell the Raindrops
B. A. Austin
Crescendo Press
www.baaustin.com
9780989504737, $22.00, HC, 200pp, www.amazon.com
"Smell the Raindrops: One young woman's journey through life, love and recovery" is the very
personal memoir of B. A. Austin told in a series of succinct vignettes that result in an inherently
fascinating and candid account of her life experiences, the events and the people that comprised
formed and comprised her world. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "Smell
the Raindrops" is an extraordinary and consistently engaging read from first page to last and very
highly recommended for community library American Biography collections. It should be noted
for personal reading lists that "Smell the Raindrops" is also available in a Kindle format
($9.99).
The Art Shelf
Billy Showell's Botanical Painting in Watercolour
Billy Showell
Search Press USA
c/o Publishers Group West
1700 Fourth Street, Berkeley, CA 94710
www.searchpressusa.com
9781844484515, $35.00, HC, 192pp, www.amazon.com
Botanical artists Billy Showell's highly accomplished paintings give a contemporary twist to the
traditional art of botanical painting, and have received worldwide acclaim. In "Billy Showell's
Botanical Painting in Watercolour" she draws upon her years of experience and expertise to
produce an impressive compendium of simply stunning works of art. As an instruction manual,
"Billy Showell's Botanical Painting in Watercolour" covers every aspect of botanical painting,
including the materials and tools needed, preserving specimens, drawing, painting, color mixing
and composition. Richly illustrated throughout with step-by-step demonstrations and examples of
her work, "Billy Showell's Botanical Painting in Watercolour" is a visual feast as well as an
invaluable source of expert guidance and inspiration. With a diverse range of subjects that
include flowers, foliage, fruit and vegetables, Billy provides an insight into her painting
techniques that artists of all abilities will find both informative and inspirational. "Billy Showell's
Botanical Painting in Watercolour" is thoroughly 'user friendly' in tone, commentary,
organization and presentation, making it an ideal and very highly recommended addition to
personal, professional, community, and academic library Art Studies instructional reference
collections in general, and Botanical Art supplemental studies reading lists in particular. It should
be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Billy
Showell's Botanical Painting in Watercolour" is also available in a Kindle format ($22.30),.
Hockney's Pictures: The Definitive Retrospective
David Hockney
Thames & Hudson, Inc.
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110-0017
www.thamesandhudsonusa.com
9780500286715, $29.95, PB, 368pp, www.amazon.com
David Hockney is an English painter, draughtsman, printmaker, stage designer and photographer.
An important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is arguably one of the most
influential British artists of the 20th century. "Hockney's Pictures: The Definitive Retrospective"
is a stunningly beautiful compendium that showcases almost fifty years of this truly extraordinary
artist's creativity across a range of media. The pieces are selected and organized thematically by
Hockney himself, tracking his lifelong experiments in ways of looking and depicting. Including
more than 300 perfectly reproduced illustrations, accompanied by quotes from the artist that
illuminate the passionate thinking behind the work, "Hockney's Pictures" shows the evolution
and diversity of his paintings, drawings, watercolors, prints, and photography, confirming and
reinforcing his position as one of the world's most popular living artists. "Hockney's Pictures" is
a 'must' for the legions of David Hockney fans, and a critically important addition to community,
college, and university library Contemporary Art History collections in general, and David
Hockney supplemental studies reading lists in particular.
The Animator's Sketchbook
Tony White
CRC Press
6000 NW Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300, Boca Raton, FL 33487
www.crcpress.com
9781498774017, $49.95, www.amazon.com
The Animator's Sketchbook: How to See, Interpret & Draw Like a Master Animator is
recommended for students of animation who want to improve their work through drawings, and
uses an exercise format designed to enhance the analysis and basic skills needed to become a
master animator. Each exercise is timed, while the different art styles encourage individual
creativity and skills. Readers of all levels - those with some animation skills under their belts as
well as relative novices - will find this can be used as a self-teaching workbook while educators
can use it to help students reach new goals and new levels of expertise.
Creative Revolution
Flora Bowley
Quarry Books
c/o Quarto Publishing Group USA
400 First Avenue North, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55401-1722
www.quartoknows.com
9781631592591, $24.99, PB, 128pp, www.amazon.com
Flora Bowley is an internationally celebrated painter, workshop facilitator, author, visionary, and
inspirationalist. "Creative Revolution: Personal Transformation Through Brave Intuitive
Painting" is the culmination of Flora's life's work as an artist, and offers a profusely and
beautifully illustrated instruction, inspiration, and guidance for others to embrace their authentic
selves through paint. In the pages of "Creative Revolution" Flora has created a kind of
do-it-yourself workshop. After reading "Creative Revolution", Flora's readers will have a deeper
connection to their intuition, increased confidence to make bolder choices, freedom to let go and
explore various options, an understanding that everything is transformable, the trust that it will
all work out in the end, and a renewed sense that creating can be fun and playful. All of this
powerful transformation begins with paint. While very highly recommended for community and
academic library collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Creative
Revolution" is also available in a Kindle format ($11.99).
The Graphic Novel Shelf
Glenn Gould: A Life Off Tempo
Sandrine Revel
NBM Publishing
160 Broadway, Suite 700, East Wing, New York, NY 10038
www.nbmpub.com
9781681120652, $25.99, HC, 136pp, www.amazon.com
A prolific and award-winning French creator of graphic novels, Sandrine Revel has turned the
life of Canadian pianist Glenn Gould into a graphic novel format. Gould was a child genius who
became a worldwide superstar of classical music and is remembered for, among others, his
almost revolutionary interpretations of Bach. This graphic novel style approach to biography
seeks to understand the eccentric personality behind the persona. Who is the mysterious Glenn
Gould? Why did he abruptly end his career as a performing musician? Why did he become one
of the very first of his peers to disappear from the public eye like J.D. Salinger? Author and
illustrator Sandrine Revel deftly delves into the life of Gould with her hand painted illustrations
and the viewpoint of an adoring fan. Unique, unusual, informative and effective, "Glenn Gould:
A Life Off Tempo" is very highly recommended for personal reading lists and community library
Contemporary Biography collections. It should be noted that "Glenn Gould: A Life Off Tempo"
is also available in a Kindle format ($14.99).
Blame! 2
Tsutomu Nihei
Vertical, Inc.
451 Park Avenue South, 7th floor, New York, NY 10016
www.vertical-inc.com
9781942993780 $34.95, 374 pp., amazon.com
Blame! 2 is a black-and-white manga (Japanese graphic novel), continuing a gritty, post-
apocalyptic cyberpunk saga, set in a future where humanity is on the brink of extinction. The City
is a sprawling, technological world populated by human and semi-human tribes struggling for
survival. Kyrii and Cibo are tasked with a desperate mission - to search for the Net Terminal
Gene, the only thing that can halt the City's expansion and preserve what remains of humankind.
Hostile, robotic enemies threaten them; Kyrii awakens a new power of observation within
himself; and Cibo must confront her trepidations about Kyrii's true nature. Brought to life with
sweeping, intense artwork and dramatic battles, Blame! is a "must-have" for cyberpunk
connoisseurs, highly recommended.
The Knight in the Crypt
Raymond Khoury, author
Miguel Lalor, artist
Cinebook, Ltd
www.cinebook.com
c/o National Book Network (dist.)
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, MD 20706
www.nbnbooks.com
9781849183086, $13.95, PB, 56pp, www.amazon.com
"The Knight in the Crypt" is the second volume in the outstanding four issue series 'The Last
Templar" written by Raymond Khoury and illustrated by Miguel Lalor. In this installment, the
investigation onto the lethal museum raid continues, but it's a difficult one. One of the four
'knights' has already died in his guarded hospital room, and FBI Agent Reilly is unknowingly
engaged in a race to find the other thieves before the mysterious assassins trying to eliminate
them. Meanwhile, young archaeologist Tess Chaykin is following up the Templar lead -- one that
the FBI considers too far-fetched to be worth looking into. The storytelling combination of
medieval Templar flashbacks and the contemporary action/adventure is flawless. Very highly
recommended for personal reading lists and community library Graphic Novel collections, it
should be noted that "The Knight in the Crypt" is also available in a Kindle format ($7.55).
Clear Blue Tomorrows
Fabien Vehlmann, author
Bruno Gazzotti, artist
Ralph Meyer, contributor
Cinebook Ltd.
www.cinebook.com
c/o National Book Network (dist.)
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, MD 20706
www.nbnbooks.com
9781849182843, $15.05, PB, 64pp, www.amazon.com
"Clear Blue Tomorrows" begins with a future in which the entire population is under a de facto
dictatorship because of cerebral implants invented by one F.G. Wilson -- implants which prevent
anyone from trying to harm Wilson. Trying to get around his own implant's prohibition against
harming Wilson, Nolan Ska, an engineer, manages to travel back in time, with the intention of
changing history by preventing Wilson form inventing his implant through encouraging him to
pursue what was his first career of being a novelist. But the man who will eventually become a
seemingly immortal despot turns out to be a poor writer, and it will be up to Nolan to use his own
memories to be his ghost writer. Superbly illustrated and featuring 'stories within stories', "Clear
Blue Tomorrows" is a superbly presented science fiction graphic novel that is enthusiastically
recommended for both community library graphic novel collections and the personal reading lists
of any and all science fiction buffs.
The Audiobook Shelf
The Go-Between
L.P. Hartley
Read by Sean Barrett
Naxos of America, Inc.
1810 Columbia Avenue, Suite 28, Franklin, TN 37064
www.naxosaudiobooks.com
9781781980255 $59.98 amazon.com
Read by film and theater actor Sean Barrett, The Go-Between is the unabridged audiobook
edition of the classic 1953 novel by L.P. Hartley, which has also been adapted to stage and
screen. The story lies in the memories of a man who, as a child in the hot summer of 1900's, was
persuaded to act as a message carrier between an aristocratic young woman and her lowborn
lover. Blinded by his own affections, he was at first unaware of his role in sustaining an illicit
love affair. But neither his naivete nor the deception shrouding the love affair could endure
forever, with tragic consequences. The Go-Between is poignant, dramatic, and highly
recommended especially for personal and public library audiobook collections. 9 CDs, 10 hours
39 min.
If Someone Says "You Complete Me," Run!
Whoopi Goldberg
Hachette Audio
237 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10017
www.HachetteAudio.com
9781478960072 $30.00 amazon.com
Read aloud by author, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, and talk show host Whoopi
Goldberg, If Someone Says "You Complete Me," Run! is the unabridged audiobook rendition of
her straightforward, candid chat about human relationships, spiced with her natural genius for
comedy. Why is the modern divorce rate so high? Why does our society insist that marriage is
the best path for everyone, when for some individuals it clearly isn't? If Someone Says "You
Complete Me," Run! does not demean the institution of marriage in any way; rather, it
emphasizes that understanding one's own nature and desires is crucial to living a happy life,
whether or not that life is shared with an intimate partner. Wise, funny, and thoughtful, If
Someone Says "You Complete Me," Run! is highly recommended. It should be noted that If
Someone Says "You Complete Me," Run! is also available in a hardcover edition
(9780316302012, $26.00).
Best. State. Ever.
Dave Barry
Recorded Books, LLC
270 Skip Jack Road, Prince Frederick, MD 20678
www.recordedbooks.com
C04462, $40.00, CD, www.amazon.com
David McAlister "Dave" Barry (born July 3, 1947) is a Pulitzer Prize winning American author
and columnist, who wrote a nationally syndicated humor column for the Miami Herald from
1983 to 2005. Every few months, Dave will get a call from some media person wanting to know,
"What the hell is wrong with Florida?" Somehow, the state has acquired an image as a
subtropical festival of stupid. As a loyal Floridian, Dave begs to differ. Sure, there was the 2000
election. And people seem to take their pants off for no good reason. And it has flying insects the
size of LeBron James. But it is a great state, and Dave is going to tell you why in a series of
unfailingly witty storytelling vignettes superbly narrated by Dick Hill. Listeners will join Dave as
he celebrates his beloved state of Florida from Key West at the bottom to whatever it is that's at
the top, and from the Sunshine State's earliest history to the fun-fair of weirdness that is Florida
today. Wonderfully entertaining from beginning to end, "Best. State. Ever.: A Florida Man
Defends His Homeland" is very highly recommended, especially for community library audio
book collections.
Settle for More
Megyn Kelly
Harper Audio
195 Broadway, Floor 2, New York, NY 10007-3132
www.harperaudio.com
9780062565945 $39.99 amazon.com
Megyn Kelly is a television journalist well-known for her show "The Kelly File" on the Fox
News Channel. Settle for More is her autobiography, now available as an unabridged audiobook
read by Kelly herself. Kelly speaks openly about growing up in a strict family, the heart-
wrenching death of her father, and how she chose to "settle for more" by changing career paths
from law to the news business. Kelly also tells her side of her public feud with Donald Trump,
offers new insight into the Republican debates of the 2016 presidential primary, and on a
personal level, how she balances her job and her home life as a working mother. Told with wry
humor, keen insight, and unfettered honesty, Settle for More is highly recommended. 9 CDs, 10
hours.
Burning Bright
Melissa McShane, author
Read by Cat Gould
Tantor Media, Inc.
6 Business Park Road, Old Saybrook, CT 06475
www.tantor.com
9781515914303 $42.99 amazon.com
Burning Bright is the unabridged audiobook rendition of a historical fantasy novel about a
strong-willed young woman with an unusual talent for pyromancy. Elinor is the only
Extraordinary in England capable of wielding fire magic for over one hundred years. When her
father tries to force her into a loveless marriage to propagate her gift in more powerful offspring,
she rebels and joins the Royal Navy. She turns her burning talent against the French privateers
and ruthless pirates of the Caribbean, gradually earning the respect of her captain and the ship's
crew. But could her growing talent spiral out of control? Burning Bright is a sweeping, character-
driven adventure, highly recommended. 10 CDs, 13 hours.
Ad Astra
Jack Campbell
Tantor Media, Inc.
6 Business Park Road, Old Saybrook, CT 06475
www.tantor.com
9781515960638, $24.99, CD, MP3, www.amazon.com
Expertly narrated by Adam Verner, "Ad Astra" is an audio book collection of science fiction
short stories by John Hemry writing under the pseudonym of Jack Campbell. This is a simply
outstanding compendium of tales about spaceships, interstellar travel, and far flung colonies.
These are the kind of stories that were the mainstay of such classic 'Golden Age of Science
Fiction' magazines such as Galaxy and Astounding Tales. Of special note are the succinct
introductions to each individual story that reveal the author's original inspiration for writing
them. Complete and unabridged (6 CDs, 7 Hours), "Ad Astra" is wholeheartedly recommended
for community library audio book collections in general, and the listening lists of dedicated
science fiction fans in particular!
Seeds of Deception
Sheila Connolly, author
Read by Marguerite Gavin
Tantor Media, Inc.
6 Business Park Road, Old Saybrook, CT 06475
9781515907725 $39.99 www.tantor.com
Seeds of Deception is the unabridged audiobook rendition of a murder mystery that disrupts the
honeymoon of a newly married couple. Meg and Seth both share a love for apples, and come to
Thomas Jefferson's orchards at Monticello for their ideal vacation. But when Meg's parents
discover the corpse of their handyman in the backyard, Meg and Seth must take action to prove
her father's innocence! A dramatic, finely crafted whodunnit brought to life by award-winning
performer Marguerite Gavin, Seeds of Deception is highly recommended.
Christmas Caramel Murder
Joanne Fluke, author
Narrated by Suzanne Toren
Recorded Books, LLC
270 Skip Jack Road, Prince Frederick, MD 20678
9781501932595 $TBA www.recordedbooks.com
Part of the "Hannah Swensen Holiday Mystery" series (with over a dozen recipes!), Christmas
Caramel Murder follows Hannah and her close friend Lisa, who agree to provide snacks for their
Minnesota town's production of "A Christmas Carol". Then the ex-girlfriend of Lisa's husband is
found dead, clad in a scanty costume. Suspects abound; Hannah and Lisa have to find the
season's murderer quickly, before he or she strikes again! A cozy curl-up-by-the-fire audiobook,
Christmas Caramel Murder is especially recommended for fans of the genre. 4 CDs, 4.5
hours.
Hachette Audio
237 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10017
www.hachetteaudio.com
Maria Semple's Today Will Be Different (9781478927624, $30.00) receives a fine narration by
Kathleen Wilhoite, who brings a vigorous voice to the story of an erratic, scattered woman who
one day decides to change her life through a series of little changes. Unexpectedly, the little
changes she decides upon pale in comparison with the bigger changes that have been taking place
around her, and which she discovers on this day. Family secrets and secret lives come to life in a
story filled with deep impressions and engrossing insights. Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child's
The Obsidian Chamber (9781478938941, $40.00) tells of a special agent's disappearance, a
harrowing discovery, and a kidnapping which evolves into an international manhunt as a
long-time bodyguard finds himself chasing after the truth behind the special agent's ward's
disappearance. Rene Auberjonois' television background and Emmy-nominated style lends well
to his ability to elevate The Obsidian Chamber to exquisite levels of tension and intrigue, backed
by his seasoned and powerful voice. Nicholas Sparks' Two by Two (9781619691391, $35.00) is
narrated by Ari Fliakos, who brings to life the vivid story of Russell Green, who has a stunning
wife, perfect family, fine career and big home. His world seems perfect; but underneath the
veneer of perfection is a world cracking open and in just a few months Russ will find himself
unemployed and caring for his young daughter alone. In true Sparks fashion, emotional turmoil
comes to life in a story that benefits from the narrator's quiet strength and delivery. Dr. Sue
Johnson works with Kenneth Sanderfer in Created for Connection (9781478912415, $30.00),
narrated by Sarah Mollo-Christensen, which addresses the real emotional support systems of
relationships and how to nurture the type of dependency that is healthy and supportive of the
relationship and God. Discussions brought to life in audio seek to connect emotional with
spiritual progress. Joel Osteen's Think Better Live Better: A Victorious Life Begins in Your
Mind (9781609418250, $30.00) is read by the author and offers a solid strategy for using one's
mindset to reach for better opportunities in life. It advocates the idea of better thinking patterns
and shows how to take control of one's thoughts for a better, God-driven lifestyle. Osteen's ability
to lend his words powerful emphasis through his audio narration makes this a winner especially
recommended for self-help and spiritually-minded listeners.
The Library CD Shelf
Beyond Karma
Gyuto Monks of Tibet
Featuring Kim Cunio & Heather Lee
New Earth Records
c/o Sounds True
413 South Arthur Avenue, Louisville, CO 80027
www.soundstrue.com
$10.73 CD / $9.49 MP3 amazon.com
Beyond Karma is a unique melding of traditional sacred music. The Gyuto Monks of Tibet
perform along with two Australian music artists, Kim Cunio and Heather Lee, to create an
emotionally moving, transcendent experience. Beyond Karma is a treasure for both personal and
public library collections. The tracks are "Beyond Karma", "Karma Burning", "O Pastor
Animarum", "Tantric Grace", "Unity of Life", "Mahakala", "Lament for a Lost Land", "On the
Path", "As the Sun Sets", "The Suffering of the World", and "Dedication". Also highly
recommended for connoisseurs of reflective, spiritual soundscapes is "Shakti Sutra" by Sheela
Bringi, an album of evocative music crafted to be especially suitable for chanting, yoga, and
movement.
Expansions Live
The Dave Liebman Group
Whaling City Sound
www.whalingcitysound.com
c/o Naxos of America, Inc. (dist.)
www.naxosaudiobooks.com
$16.99 amazon.com
Expansions Live is a 2-CD set of a live performance of Dave Liebman's group Expansions, five
musicians who tour and record together: Dave Liebman (soprano sax and flute), Matt Vashlishan
(reeds), Bobby Avey (keys), Tony Marino (bass), and Alex Ritz (drums). One CD is devoted to
acoustic songs, the other to electric songs; all are brimming with creativity, improvisation, and
flourish. Expansions Live is highly recommended, especially for jazz connoisseurs, and public
library collections. The tracks are "Introduction of band members", "JJ", "Continues to Ignore",
"All Blues", "Vendetta", "Good Bait", "Selim", and "India" on the Acoustic disc, and
"Surreality", "The Moors", "Footprints", "Ugly Beauty", "Liberian Hummingbird", "Love Me
Tender", and "Danse de la Fureur" on the Electric disc.
More Than a Little
Adrian + Meredith
www.adrianplusmeredith.com
Vertigo Productions
$11.00 CD / $7.00 MP3 / $20.00 vinyl
East Nashville based due Adrian + Meredith present More Than a Little, an original Americana
music album that freely experiments with punk, folk, rock & roll, and even early swing and jazz.
Featuring the stylings of quintessentially Midwestern instruments such as tenor banjo,
harmonica, and fiddle as well as guitar, drums, bass, trombone, trumpet, and clear-as-day vocals,
More Than a Little is a joy to experience. Highly recommended! The tracks are "Take a Boat",
"Bank", "Birthday Cakes", "More Than a Little", "Hero", "Greasy Coat + Kitchen Girl", "Fixer",
"Get What She Wants", "Country Tune", "Southern Call", and "Old Midwestern Home".
Late Nights & Heartbreak
Hannah Williams & The Affirmations
Record Kicks
$19.98 CD / $8.99 MP3 amazon.com
Late Nights & Heartbreak is the second dulcet album by UK-based soul performer Hannah
Williams and The Affirmations. A resonant, emotionally moving experience, Late Nights &
Heartbreak is truly captivating, and a sparkling gem for connoisseurs of the genre. Highly
recommended! The tracks are "Tame In The Water", "Dazed and Confused", "Fighting Your
Shadow", "Woman Got Soul", "Ain't Enough", "Fool", "Late Nights & Heartbreak", "In Your
Arms", "Still In My Head", "Callin' Me Back", "7am to Seville", "Another Sunrise", and "Your
Luck Can Change".
Andalusia of Love
Marcel Khalife, composer
Mahmoud Darwish, poetry
Nagam Records
www.andalusiaoflove.com
$18.20 CD / $9.49 MP3 amazon.com
Master of the oud (a stringed instrument used in traditional Middle Eastern music) and composer
Marcel Khalife combines his talent with Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish (lyrics), Rami
Khalife (piano), Jilbert Yamine (kanoun, a stringed instrument similar to the zither), and Bachar
Khalife (percussion) to create Andalusia of Love, a passionate, beautiful album. Influenced by
Western classical, jazz, experimental music, and traditional Arabic music, Andalusia of Love
voices the Arab experience of everyday life, and memories of the glory days of Al-Andalus, a
time in history when southern Span was ruled by Muslim Arabs but open to Muslims, Christians,
and Jews, who cooperated freely with one another. An album of inspiration and hope, Andalusia
of Love is supported by the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) which
supports civil rights for all people and opposes all forms of racism and bigotry. Also highly
recommended for world music collections is "Damar" by Bosnian singer Amira Medunjanin
($16.98 CD / $8.99 MP3).
The Library DVD Shelf
When Two Worlds Collide
First Run Features
630 Ninth Avenue, Suite 1213, New York, NY 10036
$19.95 www.firstrunfeatures.com
An award-winning selection of the Sundance film festival, When Two Worlds Collide is a
gripping documentary about an ongoing struggle set in Peru. On one side is President Alan
Garcia who, in order to bolster his nation's economy, has begun seizing oil, minerals, and gas
from previously untouched Amazonian land inhabited by indigenous peoples. On the other side
is indigenous leader Alberto Pizango, who has made profound, passionate speeches against
Garcia's destructive actions and rallied opposition. Their war of words has erupted into outbreaks
of violence. A sober, revealing video essay of the potentially deadly conflict over land and its
use, When Two Worlds Collide is highly recommended for both personal and public library
viewing. 103 min., Spanish language with English subtitles.
Indian Point
A film by Ivy Meeropol
First Run Features
630 Ninth Avenue, Suite 1213, New York, NY 10036
$24.95 www.firstrunfeatures.com
Indian Point is a documentary on DVD about Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant, an aging facility
located a mere 35 miles from Times Square. Although the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC) supports the plant, a local anti-nuclear movement has voiced fears that a disaster similar
to the 2012 meltdowns at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant could occur. America needs clean
energy, and the appeal of nuclear power is very strong, but could government complacency or
insufficient regulation cause a nuclear crisis? A balanced appraisal of the risks and rewards of
relying on nuclear power, Indian Point is highly recommended especially for public, school, and
college library DVD collections. DVD extras include bonus and deleted scenes. 94 min.
Oregon's Crater Lake National Park
Bennett Watt HD Productions, Inc.
13021 - 244th Avenue SE, Issaquah, WA 98027
www.Bennett-Watt.com
9781604902099 $24.95 DVD
9781604902327 $24.95 Blu-ray
Part of the Discoveries... America National Parks series of beautiful, high-definition video essays
(available in both DVD and Blu-ray formats), Oregon's Crater Lake National Park is a stunning
showcase of the features and natural beauty of this remote natural park. Crater Lake is America's
deepest lake, and scientists believe it to be the cleanest and clearest large body of water in the
world. Steep, 2,000 foot rock walls surround this difficult-to-reach yet utterly breathtaking
natural spectacle. Oregon's Crater Lake National Park includes ranger-guided boat tours, footage
from hiking old growth forests, Crater Lake Lodge, ranger-guided snow shoeing and cross
country skiing in winter, and the "Dancing Dozers". The next best thing to visiting this
extraordinary national park in person, Oregon's Crater Lake National Park is a joy to view, and
especially recommended for public library DVD collections. 51 min.
Soundbreaking
Athena
c/o RLJ Entertainment
www.us.RLJEntertainment.com
$49.99 www.acornonline.com
Soundbreaking is a Blu-ray documentary series about the rise of recorded music in the 20th
century. Eight episodes draw upon archival studio footage, insights from 150 original interviews,
and more to provide a stunning tour of the artists and producers who permanently transformed
the modern-day experience of music. As entertaining as it is edifying, Soundbreaking is also
available in DVD format ($49.99) and highly recommended for both personal and public library
collections. Bonus features include extra footage of Elton John, Sir George Martin, Les Paul, and
others, plus a 20-page booklet. 425 min. plus bonus, 1080p, widescreen, SDH subtitles.
Sailor Moon Crystal Set 1
Viz Media LLC
1355 Market Street, Suite 200, San Francisco CA 94103
www.viz.com
$79.99 Blu-ray & DVD combo pack limited edition
$69.98 Blu-ray & DVD combo pack standard edition
$28.29 DVD amazon.com
Usagi is a capricious teenage girl prone to daydreams, who struggles with poor grades in school.
Then an intelligent black cat gifts her with magical powers, and the costumed identity of Sailor
Moon! Only Sailor Moon, her fellow Sailor Scouts, and the dapper yet mysterious Tuxedo Mask
have the power to confront the menace of the Dark Kingdom and the relentless Queen Beyrl.
Based on the popular shojo manga (Japanese comics created especially for girls) by Naoko
Takeuchi, Sailor Moon Crystal Set 1 is the brand new anime (Japanese animation) series that
completely re-imagines the 1990's Sailor Moon television series. Featuring gorgeous, 100%
original animation, captivating music, and the viewer's choice of Japanese or English voice
acting, Sailor Moon Crystal brings the pretty, klutzy, and somewhat ditzy heroine to a new
generation of viewers. Set one consists of fourteen episodes, spanning the complete Dark
Kingdom Arc. Since there are fewer episodes than the 1990's Sailor Moon anime, Sailor Moon
Crystal follows the original manga's story more closely and doesn't have repetitive "filler"
episodes with "monster of the week" battles. Children and nostalgic adults alike will find this
timeless tale of good versus evil a "must-have"! Highly recommended. Bonus content includes an
interview with the English cast, clean opening and ending songs, and an art gallery. Sailor Moon
Crystal Set 1 is available in an inexpensive DVD format (2-disc, $28.29), as a Blu-ray and DVD
combo pack (4-disc, $69.98), or in a special Limited Edition Blu-ray and DVD combo pack
bundled with a full-color artbook and set of illustrated notecards (4-disc, $79.99). 320 min.,
Japanese and English stereo audio, subtitles, 1080p HD, widescreen, rated TV-14.
The Syndicate: All Or Northing
Acorn Media
c/o RLJ Entertainment
www.us.RLJEntertainment.com
$39.99 www.acornonline.com
The Syndicate: All Or Northing is a British television series about class tensions exacerbated by
the vagaries of fate. The palatial home of Hazelwood Manor has a rich history dating back to the
18th century, but its owners are burdened with 6.5 million in debt, and have been forced to
dismiss all but five of the maintenance staff. When their remaining staff unexpectedly win the
lottery, their influx of money rapidly erodes the distinction between social classes! The
Syndicate: All or Nothing is a "must" for connoisseurs of character-driven British drama. It
should be noted that The Syndicate: All Or Nothing contains coarse language, nudity, and sexual
situations, and is therefore recommended for mature viewers. 6 episodes on 2 DVDs, 366 min.
widescreen, SDH subtitles. Also highly recommended for fans of the genre is the suspenseful
series Capital: Someone Wants What They Have (189 min., $34.99).
Brief Encounters
Acorn Media
c/o RLJ Entertainment
www.us.RLJEntertainment.com
$39.99 www.acornonline.com
Brief Encounters is a British comedy-drama series set in 1980's England. Four married women,
in an effort to make ends meet, collaborate in a business for selling exotic lingerie and other
"marital aids" that ignites a renewed zest for lovemaking in the local community. But success has
its own headaches, in this saga about societal transformation and the difficulties of balancing
family responsibilities and professional life. A soundtrack straight from the 80's enhances this
character-driven period piece, highly recommended for connoisseurs of the unique wit and
insight of British television. Bonus material consists of 14 minutes of behind-the-scenes
featurettes. 6 episodes on 2 DVDs, 288 min. plus bonus, widescreen, SDH subtitles.
The Fantasy/SciFi Shelf
The Guttersnipes
Scott Eric Barrett
Vanguard Press
c/o Perseus Books Group
250 W. 57th St., Suite 1500, New York, NY 10107
www.vanguardpressbooks.com
9781784651374, $14.99, PB, 250pp, www.amazon.com
Charlie Daniels is more than six feet tall, allergic to almost everything, and has a pet dinosaur
named Trike at home. His life in Arizona is relatively normal. That is, apart from the nightmares
Charlie has. But when Trike, gets kidnaped by a strange old lady and her cat-like sidekick,
Charlie and his misfit friend Arty are sucked into a story bigger than both of them. Risking
everything to rescue Trike, Charlie and Arty are flung into the past, landing in the chaos of New
York City, 1865. Dodging the mysterious Nasten Cobblestine, and avoiding the perils of New
York's nastiest street cleaners' strikes, test Charlie's wits as well as his courage. All he wants to
do is reunite with his dinosaur and somehow find a way back home. As Charlie searches for
Trike, he draws dangerously close to P.T. Barnum's eerie museum and the creature that lies
within. Will he find Trike and get home alive? And who is the Ice Lady of his nightmares?
The Needlecraft Shelf
Corner-to-Corner Lap Throws For the Family
Sarah Zimmerman
Annie's
P.O. Box 8000, Big Sandy, TX 75755
www.anniescatalog.com
9781590127872, $8.99, PB, 20pp, www.amazon.com
Sarah Zimmerman is a yarn lover, crafter, blogger, and a self-taught crocheter. In
"Corner-to-Corner Lap Throws For the Family" she draws upon her experience and expertise to
provide needlecraft enthusiasts with a fun and unique way of crocheting! By following a pixel
graph instead of a written pattern, anyone can incorporate virtually any character or image they
desire into a crochet blanket. "Corner-to-Corner Lap Throws For the Family" is great
do-it-yourself instructional guide that includes how-to instructions and step-by-step photos. Also
included are instructions for 5 cute throws and each showcased design is made using #4
worsted-weight yarn. Simply stated, "Corner-to-Corner Lap Throws For the Family" is
enthusiastically recommended for personal and community library Needlecraft instructional
reference collections. It should be noted that "Corner-to-Corner Lap Throws For the Family" is
also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).
Home Sewn Quilts
Trine Bakke
Sellers Publishing
161 John Roberts Road, South Portland, ME 04106
www.sellerspublishing.com
9781416245858, $19.95, PB, 128pp, www.amazon.com
Trine Bakke is an avid quilt maker and pattern designer. She is the author of two previous books
on quilting: "Patchwork Quilts" and "Scandinavian Quilt Style". Now in her third quilting book,
"Home Sewn Quilts: 31 Hand & Machine Stitched Projects for All Levels" Trine presents
indispensable, straightforward advice for both novice and experienced quilt makers. Throughout
"Home Sewn Quilts" needlecrafters will find ideas and inspiration as well as suggestions for
tools and supplies, fabric selection, working with repurposed materials, and specific information
on cutting. Each individual project includes the finished size, a materials list, cutting methods,
and step-by-step instructions accompanied by full-color photography and instructional line
drawings. "Home Sewn Quilts" begins with an extensive section on Patchworks and includes 18
scrap-friendly projects for pillows, table runners, shopping bags, and more. The second part
moves into Quilt Making and presents six designs for simple bed-size quilts using Four Square
and Brick Wall blocks. The following chapter is for the experienced quilter and presents seven
designs using Clamshell blocks as well as Grandmother's Flower Garden, Ohio Star, Jack in the
Pulpit, Four Square, and Log Cabin. It is interesting to note that Trine has even included at the
back of "Home Sewn Books" an enormously helpful 14 page encyclopedia of quilt-making tips
and tricks with entries on hand and machine stitching, working with and without special
equipment, how to make templates, applying applique, embroidery, assembling the quilt, and
types of finishing. Everything is included to get started, making "Home Sewn Quilts" an
unreservedly and enthusiastically recommended addition to personal and community library
Needlecraft/Quilting instructional reference collections.
Within: Knitting Patterns to Warm the Soul
Jane Richmond & Shannon Cook
Marian Rae Publications
c/o Independent Publishers Group
814 North Franklin Street, Chicago, IL 60610
www.ipgbook.com
www.marianraepublications.com
9780991728923, $21.95, PB, 132pp, www.amazon.com
Jane Richmond is a knitwear designer and a blogger who discusses her process and inspiration
through her blog. "Within: Knitting Patterns to Warm the Soul" is the newest collection by
designers Jane in collaboration with needlecrafter Shannon Cook, and features six signature
patterns knitting patterns. "Within: Knitting Patterns to Warm the Soul" features thoroughly 'user
friendly' instructions for knitting accessories, a shawl, and other everyday garments. Together,
the pieces in this accessible collection make a functional and beautiful addition to any knitter's
wardrobe. More than just another knitting pattern book, "Within" takes the dedicated
needlecrafter on an inherently fascinating visual journey through a world of rustic coziness that
was photographed on Vancouver Island, and designed to stimulate the senses and kindle
inspiration. Exceptionally well organized and presented, "Within" is unreservedly and
enthusiastically recommended for personal and community library Knitting/Needlecraft
instructional reference collections.
Crochet Cowls
Sharon Hernes Silverman
Stackpole Books
5067 Ritter Road, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055-6921
www.stackpolebooks.com
9780811716741, $21.95, PB, 120pp, www.amazon.com
Cowls are a perennially popular wearable accessory and great cowl designs can be deftly
crocheted by even the most novice of needlecrafters. "Crochet Cowls: 15 Bold & Beautiful
Designs" crochet design expert Sharon Hernes Silverman draws upon her years of experience and
expertise to showcase fifteen simple graphic designs, some in striking black and white, as well as
more complex color patterns to present a variety of looks and styles. Includes instructions and
patterns for crocheting strikingly beautiful cowls using traditional and Tunisian techniques, plus
beautiful color photos of the finished pieces. Profusely illustrated throughout and thoroughly
'user friendly' in organization and presentation, "Crochet Cowls" is very highly recommended for
personal and community library Needlecraft instructional reference collections. It should be
noted that "Crochet Cowls" is also available in a Kindle format ($11.99).
The Grid Design Workbook
Cindy Seitz-Krug
American Quilter's Society
PO Box 3290, Paducah, KY 42002-3290
www.americanquilter.com
9781683390114, $24.95, PB, 96pp, www.amazon.com
Award winning quilter Cindy Seitz-Krug first started quilting in 1992 when her mom signed her
up for a quilting class. After making that first quilt, she was immediately hooked on quilting. She
considers herself a traditional quilter, but she really likes innovative quilts which take traditional
patterns and enhance them. In "The Grid DesignWorkbook" Cindy draws upon her years of
experience and expertise to create a thoroughly 'user friendly' instruction manual showcasing a
step-by-step process through a an impressive array of gridded quilting designs. Included are
numerous examples of where the stitches can be used to best enhance quilts. Detailed diagrams
and instructions make learning to quilt these stitches easy. A prize-winning quilt gallery is
included that features gridded background designs for inspiration. Beautifully and profusely
illustrated throughout, "The Grid Design Workbook" will prove to be an exceptional and highly
popular addition to personal and community library Needlecraft instructional reference
collections.
Knitter's Know-How
Cap Sease
Martingale & Company
19021 - 120th Avenue NE, Suite 102, Bothell, WA 98011
www.shopmartingale.com
9781604687743, $28.99, www.amazon.com
Knitters seeking a general how-to guide that covers the basics all knitters need to know should
begin with Knitter's Know-How: 127 Techniques Every Knitter Needs to Know. It offers
close-up step-by-step illustrations of different stitches and techniques, it is packaged in lay-flat
binding so knitters can easily knit and follow along with the visual display instructions, and it
includes notes on the applications of each stitch and its common use to further knowledge and
assure correct applications of end results. Any knitter who is learning the basics and wants a
visual workbook of progressive learning opportunities will find this holds just the ticket to
success.
Martingale
19021 - 120th Avenue NE, Suite 102, Bothell, WA 98011
www.shopmartingale.com
www.martingale-pub.com
The Big Book of Fat-Quarter Quilts (9781604688078, $27.99) packs in patterns, color photos,
materials, cutting, and piecing instructions, and over two hundred pages of tips in a focus on how
to use fat quarters in a wide range of quilt styles, and is a top recommendation for quilters who
would receive an extensive coverage to all the different approaches and options in making such
quilts. Projects directed to beginning to intermediate quilters pair full-page patterns with
step-by-step directions that leave little to wonder. If only one general fat quarter reference were
desired, it should be this one. Bonnie Sullivan's A Change of Seasons (9781604687460, $27.99)
features fall folk art quilts and home accessories based on different needlework techniques, and is
the perfect item of choice for anyone seeking fresh new home designs suitable for the holiday
season. Color photos and full-page patterns invite needleworkers at different skills levels to think
about Fall-specific accents in new ways.
The Cookbook Shelf
Gluten-Free Small Bites
Nicole Hunn
Lifelong Books / Da Capo Press
c/o Perseus Book Group
250 W. 57th St., Suite 1500, New York, NY 10107
www.perseusbooksgroup.com
9780738218588, $22.99, PB, 240pp, www.amazon.com
Gluten-related disorders is the umbrella term for all diseases triggered by gluten. Gluten-related
disorders include celiac disease, non-celiac gluten sensitivity, gluten ataxia, dermatitis
herpetiformis and wheat allergy. This condition is present in a significant percentage of the
general population and has given rise to an increasing awareness on the necessity to avoid gluten
for those affected by this medical condition. It has also given rise to an increasing number of
cookbooks offering gluten-free recipes so those with a gluten allergy can still continue to enjoy
gluten free meals that are as palate pleasing as they are appetite satisfying. One of the latest and
very highly recommended is Nicole Hunn's "Gluten-Free Small Bites: Sweet and Savory
Hand-Held Treats for On-the-Go Lifestyles and Entertaining" -- a thoroughly 'kitchen cook
friendly' and beautifully illustrated culinary compendium of outstanding dishes ranging from
Fried Pickle Chips; Sticky Barbecue Chicken Wings; Pizza Pinwheels; Beef Stromboli; and Soft
Beef Tacos; to Peanut Butter Cookie Chips; One-Bite Apple Fritters; Miniature Vanilla Beans
Scones. Of special note is the chapter devoted to gluten free Breads, Tortillas, and Doughs.
While strongly recommended for personal, family, and community library cookbook collections,
it should be noted that "Gluten-Free Small Bites: Sweet and Savory Hand-Held Treats for
On-the-Go Lifestyles and Entertaining" is also available in a Kindle format ($15.99).
Super Fast Food: No Chef Required!
Jason Vale
Crown House Publishing
81 Brook Hills Circle, White Plains, NY 10605
www.crownhousepublishing.com
9780954766474, $39.95, HC, 272pp, www.amazon.com
"Super Fast Food: No Chef Required!" by Jason Vale is an outstanding compendium showcases
over 100 truly inspirational recipes ranging from incredibly healthy super food breakfasts to
palate pleasing desserts! Here are offered healthy versions of all the classics from pizza to pasta
to risotto, and even a healthy veggie burger and fries! Also features are super salads, super soups
and amazing fish recipes. Whether you're a vegan, veggie or pesci there's something for
everyone! The thoroughly 'kitchen cook friendly' recipes range from Sweet Potato, Beetroot &
Ginger Soup; and Seared Tuna on a Bed of Noodles with a Warm Mango, Orange & Coriander
Salsa; to Veggie Layered Lasagne; Thai Green Prawn Curry; and Pecan power Granola Bars.
Beautifully illustrated throughout, "Super Fast Food: No Chef Required!" is expressly
recommended for personal, family, and community library cookbook collections.
Smoke It Like a Pit Master with Your Electric Smoker
Wendy O'Neal
Ulysses Press
PO Box 3440, Berkeley CA 94703-3440
www.ulyssespress.com
9781612436128, $18.95, PB, 144pp, www.amazon.com
Wendy O'Neal is the creator of the popular food and homemaking blog, Around My Family
Table. In "Smoke It Like a Pit Master with Your Electric Smoker: Recipes and Techniques for
Easy and Delicious BBQ" she draws upon her experience and expertise to compile and present a
series of outstanding recipes for dishes using an electric smoker in their preparation that will
please any palate and satisfy any appetite. Beautifully illustrated and with thoroughly 'kitchen
cook friendly' recipes that range from Bacon-Wrapped Stuffed Dates; Herb-Crusted Pork Loin;
Classic Texas Brisket; and Homemade Patrami; to Cajun Salmon BLTs; Smoked Walnut Pesto;
Smoked No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Coconut Cookies; No-Churn Smoked Peach Ice Cream.
Enhanced with the inclusion of Conversion Charts and a Recipe Index, "Smoke It Like a Pit
Master with Your Electric Smoker" is very highly recommended for personal, family, and
community library cookbook collections.
The Fly Creek Cider Mill Cookbook
Brenda Michaels & Bill Michaels
Surrey Books
c/o Agate Publishing
1328 Greenleaf Street, Evanston, IL 60202
www.agatepublishing.com
9781572841949, $22.95, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Compiled by the husband and wife team of Bill and Brenda Michaels (owners of the Fly Creek
Cider Mill & Orchard in Fly Creek, New York), "The Fly Creek Cider Mill Cookbook" is an
extraordinary culinary celebration of the versatile apple and showcases more than one hundred
recipes based upon apples. Beautifully illustrated throughout, "The Fly Creek Cider Mill
Cookbook" begins with a section of basic apple recipes beginning with the 'Fly Creek Cider Mill
1856 Barbecue Sauce'; to breakfasts dishes such as Apple Pie Spice Pancakes with Cider Syrup
and Spiced Apples; to starters and snacks such as Thai Chicken-Apple Skewers; to Soups and
Salads including Molded Apple Cider Salad; to side dishes like The Michaels Family
Thanksgiving Apple-Sweet Potato Bake; to main course dishes such as Apple Butter-Glazed
Salmon; eight different Breads including Apple-Caramel Bread; drink recipes including the Fly
Creek Cider Mill Appletini; and of course wonderfully delicious desserts such as a Fly Creek
Apple-Cheddar Pie. Thoroughly 'kitchen cook friendly' in organization and presentation, "The
Fly Creek Cider Mill Cookbook" will prove to be an especially and enduringly popular addition
to personal, family, and community library cookbook collections. It should be noted that "The
Fly Creek Cider Mill Cookbook" is also available in a Kindle format ($13.49).
The Photography Shelf
Shoot What You Love
Henry Horenstein
Monacelli Studio
http://penguinrandomhouse.ca
9781580934558, $40.00, HC, 208pp, www.amazon.com
"Shoot What You Love: Tips and Tales from a Working Photographer" showcases more than
four decades of the work professional photographer Henry Horenstein has produced with images
that often richly evoke older cultures and places, especially ones that are disappearing including:
country musicians in Branson, horse racing at Saratoga Springs, nightlife in Buenos Aires, fais
do-dos in Cajun Louisiana, old highways everywhere. A rich visual memoir, enhanced with
behind-the-scenes stories, insights, and tips and suggestions for being a better photographer,
"Shoot What You Love" will prove to be an inherently fascinating, beautifully illustrated blend
of autobiography and instructional guide for professionals and non-specialist general readers with
an interest in photography. "Shoot What You Love" is unreservedly recommended for personal,
professional, community, college, and university library American Photography collections and
supplemental studies reading lists.
Wedding Photography 101
Michelle Turner
Ilex Press
c/o Octopus Publishing
236 Park Avenue, New York NY 10017
www.octopusbooksusa.com
9781781573440, $19.99, www.Ilex-press.com
Wedding Photography 101: Capturing the Perfect Day With Your Camera comes from a
successful wedding photographer who shares the secrets of her success of blending photojournal
techniques with wedding subjects, and is a 'must' for modern aspiring wedding photographers
who want keys to success with modern brides. Michelle Turner's candid shots and how they were
made lends to a better appreciation of all the nuances of a wedding day and how best to capture
them. From creating light to supplement natural environment to capturing the venue and
ceremonies of the wedding day itself, this is a powerful survey highly recommended for any
aspiring wedding photographer who wants to move beyond posed pictures.
A Wandering Eye: Photographs 1975 - 2005
Eric Boman
Damiani
Distributed Art Publishers
155 Sixth Avenue, 2nd floor, New York, NY 10013-1507
www.artbook.com
9788862084871, $45.00, HC, 128pp, www.amazon.com
Swedish-American photographer Eric Boman embarked on a career in fashion photography in
the early 1970s, working for British Vogue, Harper's & Queen, and The World of Interiors in
London, and Marie-Claire in Paris. "A Wandering Eye: Photographs 1975 - 2005" is comprised
personal photographic work that has remained unseen for over 45 years, and was stored away as
35mm slides. Most of the showcased photographs are devoid of people, in contrast to Boman's
professional work, which almost always has involved some form of portraiture. In "A Wandering
Eye: Photographs 1975 - 2005" the photographs are juxtaposed for the visual dialogue that
emerges including: a picture of a glass merchant in Morocco that faces a nearly identical one of a
brass merchant in Tunisia; an image of a manicured Swedish topiary facing a lush rainforest
around the corner from Boman's house; and a sculptural memorial to a fallen soldier in Denmark
facing a desert island in the Caribbean. Beautifully designed in collaboration with renowned
book designer Miko McGinty, "A Wandering Eye: Photographs 1975 - 2005" is a tribute to a
well-traveled eye. An inherently fascinating volume that is enhanced with commentary by Kevin
Moore, "A Wandering Eye: Photographs 1975 - 2005" is especially recommended for the
personal reading lists of photography buffs, as well as community and academic library
Contemporary Photography collections.
Little Book of Wonders
Nadia Drake
National Geographic Press
101 West 104th Street, Suite 8, New York, NY 10025
www.nationalgeographic.com
9781426216893 $12.95 amazon.com
Little Book of Wonders: Celebrating the Gifts of the Natural World pairs vivid, full-color
photography of natural wonders with fascinating fact vignettes on every two-page spread. "Rare,
emerald-colored icebergs are actually capsized chunks of ice. When the bergs tip over, their
formerly submerged bottoms are exposed, revealing frozen seawater colored by algae." The result
is a joy to page through, and makes an excellent gift, especially for nature lovers. Highly
recommended!
The Travel Shelf
My First Trip to Paris
Sara DeGonia, author
Giovanni Simeone, photographer
Sime Books
www.sime-books.com
9788899180539, $19.95, PB, 240pp, www.amazon.com
Beautifully and profusely illustrated with the full color photography of Giovanni Simeone, "My
First Trip to Paris: A Family's Travel Survival Guide" by Sara DeGonia features informative
highlights and helpfully practical advice for visiting more than 100 attractions, restaurants, parks,
and playgrounds while touring Paris, France with kids in tow. A thoroughly 'user friendly' and
handy guide filled from cover to cover with essential tips and tidbits, as well as metro stops and
corresponding websites for logistics of every destination on a dream Parisian vacation (come rain
or shine). Along with a metro map, a book of French phrases, and sense of adventure; "My First
Trip to Paris" will guarantee a fun-filled journey the whole family will cherish. Simply stated,
"My First Trip to Paris" is enthusiastically recommended for personal, family, and community
library Travel Guide collections and is ideal for the armchair traveler interested in what an
on-site visit to Paris would have to offer.
The Education Shelf
Embracing Rough-and-Tumble Play
Mike Huber
Redleaf Press
10 Yorkton Court, St. Paul, MN 55117-1065
www.redleafpress.org
9781605544687, $39.95, PB, 240pp, www.amazon.com
Physical play is vital to young children's development. "Embracing Rough-and-Tumble Play:
Teaching with the Body in Mind" by Mike Huber (an early childhood teacher since 1992 and
currently teaches at the Seward Child Care Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is practical,
hands-on resource encourages teachers to incorporate boisterous physical play into children's
every day activities and offers concrete advice on how to create spaces for safe play, how to
effectively work big body movement into children's daily schedule, and how to use physical play
to make teaching practice more dynamic and effective. Profusely illustrated and exceptionally
well organized and presented, "Embracing Rough-and-Tumble Play" covers: Learning about the
importance of big body play for social and emotional development throughout life; Discovering
how to communicate about safe and intentional rough and tumble play with children and
families; Incorporating big body play into all areas of the child care program while maintaining
boundaries and teaching self-regulation; Using the family companion (sold separately) to educate
families on the importance of rough and tumble play for all children. While very highly
recommended for college and university Teacher Education collections, it should be noted that
"Embracing Rough-and-Tumble Play" is also available in a Kindle format ($39.95).
Ensuring High-Quality Curriculum
Angela Di Michele Lalor
ASCD
1703 North Beauregard Street, Alexandria, VA 22311-1714
www.ascd.org
9781416622796, $28.95, PB, 208pp, www.amazon.com
A curriculum is the core of the classroom experience. Just what makes a quality curriculum?
How can educators be sure that what they teach is strongly aligned to the specific standards that
their district or school has adopted? What kinds of lessons, learning experiences, and
assessments are most effective, and how should they be embedded within the curriculum?
"Ensuring High-Quality Curriculum: How to Design, Revise, or Adopt Curriculum Aligned to
Student Success" by Angela Di Michele Lalor (a senior consultant at Learner-Centered
Initiatives, where her work includes facilitating schoolwide initiatives in the areas of curriculum,
instruction, and assessment. Her primary focus having been helping districts design high-quality
units of study that incorporate meaningful and engaging learning experiences for students)
provide the answers to these and many other questions in a definitive, step-by-step guide to
curriculum design and evaluation. "Ensuring High-Quality Curriculum" offers targeted advice
and real-life examples from elementary and secondary units of study across a variety of content
areas and standards, as well as field-tested rubrics, protocols, and other tools. Included are
criteria for evaluating each component of a curriculum and end-of-chapter checklists to help
educators ensure that the criteria are met. Exceptionally well organized and presented, "Ensuring
High-Quality Curriculum" is an especially recommended addition to professional, school district,
college, and university library Educational Administration collections and supplemental studies
reading lists.
Teaching Math to People with Down Syndrome and Other Hands-On Learners, second
edition
DeAnna Horstmaeier
Woodbine House
6510 Bells Mill Road, Bethesda, MD 20817
www.woodbinehouse.com
9781606132784, $29.66, PB, 372pp, www.amazon.com
Children and adults with Down syndrome need math for operating in the real world, this includes
the skills of counting with meaning, adding the scores in a game, and tracking time in order to
keep to a schedule, etc.. Written in a straightforward and user-friendly style, the newly updated
and expanded second edition of "Teaching Math to People with Down Syndrome and Other
Hands-On Learners" by DeAnna Horstmaeier ( a retired educator, former instructor of special
education and speech, language, and communication at the Ohio State University) provides
strategies and activities that are relevant to daily living, are concrete and practical, offer hands-on
practice, and provide opportunity for successful completion. It covers: Prenumber Concepts;
Counting; Recognition & Writing of Numbers; Time & Measurement; Addition, Subtraction,
Multiplication & Division; Fractions; Money; and Calculator Use. The included appendices,
available to photocopy, feature more than 150 activities such as worksheets, games, and teaching
aids for practicing math skills. Parents and teachers can use the comprehensive coverage of math
concepts to tailor lessons to students' needs at home and in the community, incorporate goals into
IEPs, and help students access the general education curriculum. An ideal classroom curriculum
text, "Teaching Math to People with Down Syndrome and Other Hands-On Learners" is very
highly recommended for Down Syndrome class curriculums in particular, academic library
Special Education instructional collections in general. Impressively well written, organized and
presented, "Teaching Math to People with Down Syndrome and Other Hands-On Learners" is
ideal for home school parents of Down Syndrome children.
From the Big Screen to the Classroom K-2!
Lynne Stover
Pieces of Learning
1990 Market Road, Marion, IL 62959
www.piecesoflearning.com
9781632790569, $14.95, Spiral Bound PB, 116pp, www.amazon.com
Movie makers have discovered that a popular children's book can be excellent source material for
a blockbuster motion picture. Now classroom teachers can take advantage of this trend by using
recently released movies as a hook to spark students interest in content connections of the books
those movies are based on. K-2 students will learn lessons in civics, economics, geography,
history, and world cultures. "From the Big Screen to the Classroom K-2!" contains nine popular
book/movie titles and features interactive lessons and activities that will challenge and engage
students in content area investigation, skill application, and creative problem solving including:
The Adventures of Captain Underpants; Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very
Bad Day; The Bad Beginning: A Series of Unfortunate Events; The BFG; Cloudy with a Chance
of Meatballs; Fantastic Mr. Fox; The Lorax; The Tale of Despereaux; and Where the Wild
Things Are. Also very highly recommended in this outstanding series are: "From The Big Screen
To The Classroom 3-6!" (9781632790576, $14.95) and "From The Big Screen To The
Classroom 6+!" (9781632790583, $14.95).
Corwin Press, Inc.
2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320-2218
www.corwin.com
Jennie Magiera's Courageous Edventures: Navigating Obstacles to Discover Classroom
Innovation (9781506318349, $38.95) is a fun, encouraging discussion of innovation and
educational technology and defines an 'edventure' as a teacher's willingness to take risks and
incorporate innovations into a classroom structure. Each approach includes tips (such as creating
physical badges to accompany and support digital ones), overviews of problems and challenges
commonly encountered in the classroom's response to innovative approaches, and keys to leading
one's class through the routines described in this book. The result is a winning, unique coverage
teachers will want to consider. Kathryn Kee, et.al.'s Results Coaching Next Steps: Leading for
Growth and Change (9781506328751, $34.95) discusses the benefits of leadership coaching, a
technique that can be combined with the latest neuroscientific thinking to help develop routines
and approaches that build leadership as well as better learning. Examples of how leaders translate
coaching approaches to everyday best practices accompany discussions of the differences
between supervision and coaching, how leaders can act as coaches, and how engagement may be
better fostered by leaders. The result is a powerful survey that will reach not just educators, but
business leaders as well. David M. Horton's Leading School Teams: Building Trust to Promote
Student Learning (9781506344928, $28.00) considers team effectiveness and how to create a
more engaged teaching environment by increasing student learning strategies, and provides a
series of short activities that are quick to apply and easy methods of helping administrators lead
teams more effectively. From encouraging collaboration to solving different implementation
challenges, Leading School Teams is a powerful key to successful school administration. Tracey
K. Shiel's Designing and Using Performance Tasks: Enhancing Student Learning and Assessment
(9781506328720, $30.00) provides a step-by-step approach to using performance tasks for
teaching and expanding student learning. From different kinds of performance tasks and
decisions to making learning progressions a part of school culture, this book offers an assessment
of performance task attributes, rubrics for scoring, different curriculum design standards,
classroom management rules, and more. John Hattie, et.al.'s Visible Learning for Mathematics:
What Works Best to Optimize Student Learning (9781506362946, $36.95) is more than an
overview of a process, but packs in video clips, templates, planning tools, and everything needed
to quickly assess which instructional strategies to apply to different phases of the learning cycle.
From surface versus deep learning phases to assessing a student's ability to move between
different mathematical frameworks and steps, this book is packed with specific keys for grades
K-12 and assesses direct instruction and other methods for their appropriateness to the math
learning process at many different stages of progress. Paul Bloomberg and Barb Pitchford's
Leading Impact Teams: Building a Culture of Efficacy (9781506322674, $27.00) offers a model
supporting two practices - formative assessment and collaborative inquiry - and promotes a kind
of school culture that encourages students and teachers to be partners in the process of learning.
This 'efficacy culture' encourages a model team approach and outlines evidence supporting
success criteria and case studies about Impact Team interactions. The result is recommended for
any school culture looking at forming and leading better impact teams.
The Architecture Shelf
Total Latin American Architecture
Ana de Brea
Actar D
c/o Actar Publishers
355 Lexington Avenue, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10017
http://actar.com
9781940291475, $44.95, PB, 400pp, www.amazon.com
A selected, fully open, and deep assemblage, that carries the explicit intent of outlining,
conceptual and practical verifications, on critical views and specific projects, concerning the
actual architecture in the Latin American territory, "Total Latin American Architecture: Libretto
of Modern Reflections & Contemporary Works" by academician and architect Ana de Brea
communicates a targeted objective, to circumscribe a segment, and a series of observations and
actions in architecture. However, it is a selected, fully open, and deep fragment, outlining
conceptual and practical verifications on critical views and concrete projects, concerning the
actual, extensive world of architecture in the Latin American territory, and in the first years of the
new century. "Total Latin American Architecture" is comprised of a sequence of topical
segments organized as an unsystematic series and through a number of different projects in each
case including: the single family house; searches on bigger scales; poetical structures; topics
under consideration; a look over laboratories; terrain, landscape and topography; covering folk
factors; and the volumetric reasoning and physical features. A selected and deep assemblage of
the current architecture in the Latin American territory, "Total Latin American Architecture" is a
seminal work that is a 'must' for professional, college, and university library Architectural
Reference collections in general, and Latin American Architecture supplemental studies reading
lists in particular.
A Guidebook to Contemporary Architecture in Montreal, second edition
Nancy Dutton & Helen Malkin
Douglas & McIntyre
c/o Harbour Publishing
PO Box 219, Madeira Park, BC, Canada, V0N 2H0
www.douglas-mcintyre.com
9781771621113 $24.95 amazon.com
Featuring full-color photography throughout, as well as maps ideal for a self-guided walking
tour, A Guidebook to Contemporary Architecture in Montreal showcases the extraordinary
architecture of Montreal, Canada. More than 100 notable contemporary architectural projects are
featured, each with photographs and a few descriptive paragraphs. A Guidebook to
Contemporary Architecture in Montreal is also highly recommended to armchair travelers, as the
next best thing to seeing Montreal's architectural wonders in-person!
The Native American Studies Shelf
Dividing the Reservation
Nicole Tonkovich
Washington State University Press
PO Box 645910, Pullman, WA 99164-5910
www.wsupress.wsu.edu
9780874223446, $29.95, PB, 344pp, www.amazon.com
Alice C. Fletcher was an ethnologist who helped write the Dawes General Allotment Act of 1887
and became one of the first women to serve as a federal Indian agent. A commanding presence,
she spent four summers with the Nez Perce, completing close to 2,000 allotments. Charged with
supervising the daunting task of re-surveying, verifying, and assigning nearly 757,000 acres,
Fletcher also had to preserve land for transportation routes and restrain white settlers claiming
prime properties. She sought to "give the best lands to the best Indians", but faced numerous
other challenges, including the terrain, complex ancestries, and her own misperceptions about
Native American life. Fletcher wrote daily in the diverse forms of letters, reports, petitions,
scholarly documents, articles, diaries. The collection reproduced here as "Dividing the
Reservation: Alice C. Fletcher's Nez Perce Allotment Diaries and Letters, 1889 - 1892" fully
illuminates her relations with the key players and offers insight into how federal policy was
applied, resisted, and amended, as well as her internal conflicts over dividing the reservation. A
unique and critically important contribution to college and university Native American Studies
reference collections and supplemental studies reading lists, "Dividing the Reservation" is a
seminal work of scholarship for academia and will prove to be a fully accessible and highly
recommended study for the non-specialist general reader with an interest in the subject.
World of the Teton Sioux Indians: Their Music, Life & Culture
Frances Densmore
World Wisdom
1501 East Hillside Drive, Bloomington, IN 47401
www.worldwisdom.com
9781936597512, $23.95, www.amazon.com
World of the Teton Sioux Indians: Their Music, Life & Culture is edited by Joseph A. Fitzgerald
and explores the Lakota Sioux Indians through their eyes, as it was told to anthropologist Frances
Densmore. This book is an abridged, illustrated edition of the definitive monograph on Lakota
culture, and has been edited and revised to make it more accessible to general-interest audiences.
A foreword by Charles Trimble, a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and over a hundred color
and black and white illustrations supplement an in-depth coverage of Sioux culture, rituals, and
society that should not be missed by any serious Native American library.
"All the Real Indians Died Off" and 20 Other Myths about Native Americans
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and Dina Gilio-Whitaker
Beacon Press
24 Farnsworth Street, Boston, MA 02210
www.beacon.org
9780807062654 $15.00 pbk / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
Award-winning author Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and award-winning journalist Dina Gilio-
Whitaker present "All the Real Indians Died Off" and 20 Other Myths about Native Americans, a
sober, serious deconstruction of popular beliefs about the indigenous peoples of the Americas.
Why are Native Americans purported to be "dying off" when, according to the 2010 US census,
5.2 million people identified as Native American or Alaskan Native (either alone or in
combination with other races), and 2.9 million people identified as Native American or Alaskan
Native alone? Why does the bizarre idea that "Sports Mascots Honor Native Americans" get so
much traction, in spite of Native American protests? How does the false belief that "Indian
Casinos Make Them All Rich" persist in spite of the high rate of poverty among the Native
American population? "The myths about Native peoples outlined in this book grow from the
racialized social structures upon which the United States is built... Ultimately they serve the
settler state and by extension its international allies, who largely fail to recognize the political
existence of Indigenous peoples." "All the Real Indians Died Off" and 20 Other Myths about
Native Americans is enlightening from cover the cover, and highly recommended for both public
library collections and personal reading lists.
The Metaphysical Studies Shelf
Tarot for One
Courtney Weber
www.thecocowitch.com
Weiser Books
c/o Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari
65 Parker Street, Suite 7, Newburyport, MA 01950
www.redwheelweiser.com
9781578635955 $19.95 pbk / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
Tarot are a set of specialized cards that have been used for divination since the late 18th century.
Simple, black-and-white illustrations and card layout diagrams illustrate Tarot for One: The Art
of Reading for Yourself, a user-friendly guide to the history, practice, and interpretations of
Tarot. Guiding readers step-by-step to the basics of a Tarot reading that allows the cards' message
to come through, Tarot for One is a choice pick for self-study or Tarot workshops. Author
Courtney Weber, a Wiccan priestess and a Tarot reader of 20 years' experience, has provided a
clear, concise, and thoroughly accessible how-to book, highly recommended for anyone with an
interest in Tarot.
The Self-Help Shelf
You Are What You Believe
Hyrum W. Smith
Berrett-Koehler Publishers Inc.
1333 Broadway, Suite 1000, Oakland CA, 94612
www.bkconnection.com
9781626566668 $14.95 pbk / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
You Are What You Believe: Simple Steps to Transform Your Life is a self-help guide to
improving one's own behavior for greater success in one's career and in everyday life. The core
concept is that changing one's principles and beliefs changes one's behavior. Readers are guided
step-by-step to a "Reality Model" for remaking one's approach to life from the inside out. You
Are What You Believe is candid, accessible, and positive, and highly recommended. "Imprinting
a new principle on a Belief window is the same as developing a new habit. At first, it will seem
awkward, and you will have to consciously remind yourself that you believe in a new way. Over
time, especially as you see the results of the new behaviors that grow out of your new principle, it
will become a natural part of you."
The Philosophy Shelf
The Ultimate Game of Thrones and Philosophy
Edited by Eric J. Silverman and Robert Arp
Open Court Publishing Company
70 East Lake Street, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601
www.opencourtbooks.com
9780812699500 $19.95 pbk / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
The Ultimate Game of Thrones and Philosophy: You Think or Die is an anthology of essays by
learned authors discussing philosophical concepts in the wildly popular television series "Game
of Thrones" (which is based on the novels by George R.R. Martin). Individual writings include
"Jon Snow, a Misshapen Christ Figure", "How Can We Know Anything in a World of Magic and
Miracles?", "Horrifying Violence, Gratuitous Sex, and the Truth", and more. The Ultimate Game
of Thrones and Philosophy will appeal to both fans of the series, and to philosophy students
interested in seeing concepts applied in methodical practice. Highly recommended.
The Woodworking Shelf
The Fundamentals of Segmented Wood Turning
James Rodgers
Linden Publishing
2006 South Mary, Fresno, CA 93721-9875
www.woodworkerslibrary.com
9781610352789, $24.95, www.amazon.com
The Fundamentals of Segmented Wood Turning: Projects, Techniques, and Innovations for
Today's Woodturner provides a fine crafts guide for woodworkers new to the art who want to
begin with the basics. The approach is visual in nature, offering step-by-step directions that begin
with acquiring and using basic tools and moving to cutting and turning processes. The designs
are simple and require a bare minimum of tools and woodworking basics to prove accessible, and
they can apply to a range of projects based on just a few techniques. Anyone who wants to learn
segmented woodturning will find this an easy approach, packed with good-sized and clear color
photos throughout.
The Crafts Shelf
Cool Copper Cuffs
Eva M. Sherman
Kalmbach Publishing
21027 Crossroads Circle, Waukesha, WI 53187-1612
www.kalmbachstore.com
9781627002332, $22.99, www.amazon.com
Cool Copper Cuffs: 25 Metal and Wire Projects comes from an experienced jewelry-making
teacher who provides the basics of different cuff-style bracelets and how to make them from
copper. Close-up and good-sized how-to color photos for each project accompany a surprisingly
wide array of styles and methods of shaping and decorating the copper, while materials and tools
lists assure that newcomers to working with copper or making jewelry will receive everything
they need for successful results.
The Technology Shelf
On-Wafer Microwave Measurements and De-Embedding
Errikos Lourandakis
Artech House Publishing
685 Canton Street, Norwood, MA 02062
www.artechhouse.com
9781630810566, $169.00, www.amazon.com
On-Wafer Microwave Measurements and De-Embedding is a technical manual on microwave
design that tackles state-of-the-art information on on-wafer measurements, building a theoretical
framework for understanding for researchers and lab professionals working with microwave
devices and silicon applications. College-level engineering holdings receive discussions that
cover basic to advanced techniques and tools, including the equations, charts, diagrams and
design discussions necessary to understand the latest technology's applications. Students will find
it an excellent and specific set of discussions.
The Autism Shelf
The Power Card Strategy 2.0
Elisa Gagnon, MS and Brenda Smith Myles, PhD
AAPC Publishing
11209 Strang Line Road, Lenexa, KS 66215
9781942197263, $27.95, www.aapcpublishing.net
The Power Card Strategy 2.0: Using Special Interests to Motivate Children and Youth with
Autism Spectrum Disorder offers an evidence-based approach to working with kids on the
autism spectrum, and presents a tested strategy developed by parents and educators committed to
helping kids understand social situations, routines, and the daily world around them. This
strategy can be integrated into educational and socialization pursuits alike and the Power Cards
are easy tools any can learn and apply.
The Sports Shelf
Human Kinetics
PO Box 5076, Champaign, IL 61820-5076
www.humankinetics.com
David Magida and Melissa Rodriguez's The Essentials of Obstacle Race Training
(9781492513773, $23.95) comes from the founder of Elevate Internal Fitness and a TV sports
show host and a woman who is the former contributing editor for Mud & Obstacle magazine, and
covers the events, obstacles, and strategies for succeeding in obstacle race courses. Over a
hundred exercises to improve mobility, balance, endurance and more accompany nearly thirty
workouts that are keyed to obstacle course challenges, with chapters adding a basic knowledge of
nutrients and diet, exercise, and obstacle race-specific tips. The color photos throughout illustrate
everything that's needed to know about race training. Helen Vanderburg's Fusion Workouts:
Fitness, Yoga, Pilates, and Barre (9781492521389, $21.95) combines fitness, yoga, Pilates and
barre for a workout that is a synthesis of all these techniques, incorporating their special strengths
into one unified program. While some might think that each program's unique approach wouldn't
lend to such a fusion, in fact the 15 ready-made workouts in this book provides easy and exact
guidelines for participating in a workout that incorporates the best strategies of each discipline.
Clear color photos of each routine make for a winning blend especially recommended for readers
who may have prior experience with one or more of the techniques and affinity for trying the
rest.
The International Studies Shelf
Modern Finland
Harald Haarmann
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
9781476662022, $39.95, PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
The Republic of Finland is a sovereign state in Northern Europe. A peninsula with the Gulf of
Finland to the south and the Gulf of Bothnia to the west, Finland has land borders with Sweden
to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east. Providing a multifaceted view of
modern Finland, German linguist, cultural scientist, and Finland resident Harald Haarmann
covers topics that include Fenno-Scandia inhabitants and their environment, traditional
naturalism and modern environmentalism, and the salient features of "Finnishness", including an
analysis of the Finnish educational system and gender equality. Also represented are Finland's
art, architecture and music, along with its peace-keeping missions worldwide. The country's
several ethnic groups and their languages are discussed including the Saami, Finns,
Finland-Swedes, Russian-speaking peoples, Jews and Gypsies. "Modern Finland" deftly
examines Finland's late but rapid development in commerce and industry, with a focus on the
history of Nokia Corporation, which grew from a 19th-century manufacturer of pulpwood and
rubber boots to a 21st-century international digital communications company. Exceptionally well
written, organized and presented, "Modern Finland" is impressively informed and informative.
While very highly recommended for community and academic library Finland collections in
general and supplemental studies lists in particular. For the personal reading lists of students and
non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject it should be noted that "Modern
Finland" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).
The Government and Politics of the Middle East and North Africa, eighth edition
Mark Gasiorowski and Sean L. Yom, Editors
Westview Press
c/o Perseus Book Group
250 W. 57th St., Suite 1500, New York, NY 10107
www.westviewpress.com
9780813349947, $52.00, www.amazon.com
The eighth updated edition of The Government and Politics of the Middle East and North Africa
has been completely revised to reflect the latest and ongoing changes in politics and government
in the region, which makes this a 'must' for any college-level collection strong in the area's
history. Among the many features of this update are a newly expanded introduction,
incorporation of political changes, and a blend of historical background with discussion of
regional changes that are supplemented by extensive bibliographic references, black and white
maps, and detailed discussions contributed by experts. No college-level history and political
science collection strong in the Middle East or Africa should be without this latest survey.
The Botany Shelf
Botanical Miracles: Chemistry of Plants That Changed the World
Raymond Cooper and Jeffrey John Dakin
CRC Press
6000 NW Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300, Boca Raton, FL 33487
www.crcpress.com
9781498704281, $119.95, www.amazon.com
Botanical Miracles: Chemistry of Plants That Changed the World belongs in botany and
college-level chemistry collections as it considers how the composition of natural products have
changed the world. It uses selected plants from around the world and provides a combination of
science and history, discussing their properties, use in various products, and how plant extracts
contribute to mankind. From the growing and processing of tea and its use as a modern medicine
to the uses and properties of nicotine and the medicinal qualities of frankincense, black and white
and color photos and charts pepper chemistry facts to bring the discussions in line with the latest
science and plant applications. Study questions at the end of each chapter pair with bibliographic
references for further reading, making for a solid college-level classroom reader.
The Agriculture Shelf
Biting the Hands that Feed Us
Baylen J. Linnekin
Island Press
2000 M St NW Suite 650, Washington, DC 20036
www.islandpress.org
9781610916752, $30.00, HC, 257pp, www.amazon.com
Food waste, hunger, inhumane livestock conditions, disappearing fish stocks -- all of these are
exactly the kind of issues we expect food regulations to combat. Yet, today in the United States,
laws exist at all levels of government that actually make these problems worse. In "Biting the
Hands that Feed Us: How Fewer, Smarter Laws Would Make Our Food System More
Sustainable", Baylen Linnekin (a food lawyer and an Adjunct Professor at George Mason
University Law School, where he teaches the Food Law & Policy Seminar, and is an Adjunct
Faculty Member at American University, where his teaching focuses chiefly on food policy) ably
argues that, all too often, government rules handcuff America's most sustainable farmers,
producers, sellers, and consumers, while rewarding those whose practices are anything but
sustainable. Impressively well researched, written, organized and presented, "Biting the Hands
that Feed Us" is as informed and informative as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking. A
critically important contribution to our on-going national conversations over food safety, animal
management, contemporary hunger management, and related social issues. Of special note is the
chapters on to 'Wasting Your Money Wasting Food' and 'There Are Good Food Rules'. Enhanced
with 48 pages of Notes and an eight page Index, "Biting the Hands that Feed Us" is highly
recommended for community, college, and university library Contemporary Social Issues
collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of academics and non-specialist
general readers with an interest in the subject that "Biting the Hands that Feed Us" is also
available in a Kindle format ($3.03).
The Terrorism Studies Shelf
Syria in Ruins
David S. Sorenson
Praeger
c/o ABC-CLIO
PO Box 1911, Santa Barbara, CA 93116-1911
www.abc-clio.com
9781440838361 $75.00 amazon.com
Syria in Ruins: The Dynamics of the Syrian Civil War lives up to its title as a scholarly, expertly
researched and meticulously presented analysis of the ongoing war that has torn apart Syria,
fueled the rise of the Islamic State terrorist organization, and flooded neighboring nations and
Europe with Syrian refugees. Chapters offer a straightforward, candid discussion of the Syrian
Civil War's origins, the rise of the Islamic State, international responses, and an overview of the
different possible ways in which the war may end. "One sign of the impact of IS's declining
resources is the announcement that it had cut the wages of its fighters in half, from US $400 to
$200 in early 2016." Extensive notes, a bibliography, and an index round out this measured and
candidly honest accounting, highly recommended especially for public and college library
reference shelves.
The Health/Medical Shelf
Managing Hypertension
Sandra A. Moulton
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
9780786494217, $29.95, PB, 244pp, www.amazon.com
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a common chronic disease affecting people of different
ages, cultural backgrounds and socio-economic statuses worldwide. Research links hypertension
to increased risk of heart disease, kidney disease and cardiovascular disease--the leading cause of
death worldwide. "Managing Hypertension: Tools to Improve Health and Prevent
Complications" by Registered nurse Sandra A. Moulton (who is an urgent care coordinator at
Toronto Central Community Care Access Centre in Toronto, Canada) provides an up-to-date
illustrated overview of research findings concerning hypertension, covering risk factors, increase
in prevalence, cultures affected and challenges to treating and managing the disease in specific
populations. Pharmacological and non-pharmacological methods for effectively managing
hypertension are discussed. Exceptionally well informed and informative, "Managing
Hypertension " is especially recommended for health center, community, college, and university
library Health/Medicine collections in general, and Hypertension supplemental studies reading
lists in particular. It should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an
interest in the subject that "Managing Hypertension " is also available in a Kindle format
($17.99).
The Writing/Publishing Shelf
Publishing Your Medical Research, second edition
Daniel W. Byrne
Wolters Kluwer
PO Box 1600, Hagerstown, MD 21740
www.lww.com
9781496353863 $59.99 pbk / $47.39 Kindle amazon.com
Now in an updated second edition with additional details to aid medical researchers in a "publish
or perish" world, Publishing Your Medical Research is a practical, no-nonsense guide to
planning a balanced, publishable paper; anticipating and avoiding common criticisms; observing
and collecting requisite data; writing fluently with proper formatting; and editing and revising
one's work. "If you collected your data by surveying the past (retrospectively), explain why this
approach was appropriate, despite its limitations. Retrospectively collected information often is
of poorer quality than prospectively collected information because the presence or absence of
many conditions is not documented consistently in routine medical records. For instance,
smoking and drinking histories may be vague or may not be recorded at all." Publishing Your
Medical Research is a "must-have" for college library collections and professionals in the field,
highly recommended.
The Science Shelf
A Space Traveler's Guide to the Solar System
Mark Thompson
Pegasus Books
80 Broad Street, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10004
www.pegasusbooks.com
9781681772394 $27.95 hc / $14.99 Kindle amazon.com
British astronomer Mark Thompson, also well-known as the host of the award-winning BBC
program "Stargazing Live", presents A Space Traveler's Guide to the Solar System, an eye-
opening tour of the planets in the solar system and beyond. Written to be accessible to readers of
all backgrounds, touches upon the history of astronomical discoveries about the solar system as
well as what a hypothetical space traveler might expect to see and encounter. A Space Traveler's
Guide to the Solar System is the ultimate "must-read" for armchair travelers, highly
recommended for both personal and public library collections!
The Money/Finance Shelf
How to Go to College on a Shoe String, second edition
Ann Marie O'Phelan, author
Revised by Debra Lipphardt
Atlantic Publishing Group, Inc.
1405 S.W. 6th Avenue, Ocala, FL 34471
www.atlantic-pub.com
9781620231180 $21.95 pbk / $21.95 Kindle amazon.com
Now in a revised, up-to-date second edition, How to Go to College on a Shoe String: The
Insider's Guide to Grants, Scholarships, Cheap Books, Fellowships, and Other Financial Aid
Secrets lives up to its title as a reader-friendly guide to funding one's higher education. Chapters
discuss how to choose the best college for one's needs, the pros and cons of student loan
programs, work opportunities while attending college, how to pursue grants and scholarships,
and much more. A list of additional online resources and an index round out this absolute "must-
have" for any high school graduate who is not independently wealthy!
The Civil War Shelf
Confederate in Congress
Joshua E. Kastenberg
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
9781476664897, $35.00, PB, 208pp, www.amazon.com
In May 1865, the final month of the Civil War, the U.S. Army arrested and prosecuted a sitting
congressman in a military trial in the border state of Maryland, though the federal criminal courts
in the state were functioning. Convicted of aiding and abetting paroled Confederate soldiers,
Benjamin Gwinn Harris of Maryland's Fifth Congressional District was imprisoned and barred
from holding public office. Harris was a firebrand (and uniquely effectively as Confederate
serving in Congress) and had long advocated the constitutionality of slavery and the right of
states to secede from the Union. "A Confederate in Congress: The Civil War Treason Trial of
Benjamin Gwinn Harris" is first book-length analysis of the unusual trial examines the prevailing
opinions in Southern Maryland and in the War Department regarding slavery, treason and the
Constitution's guarantee of property rights and freedom of speech. Illuminating a heretofore
obscure incident in the political history of the American Civil War, "Confederate in Congress" is
a unique and seminal work of impressive scholarship that will prove to be an especially welcome
addition to the growing body of Civil War literature and is unreservedly recommended for
community, college, and community library Civil War collections. It should be noted for
academia and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Confederate in
Congress" is also available in a Kindle format ($19.99).
The Chickamauga Campaign - Barren Victory
David A. Powell
Savas Beatie
PO Box 4527, El Dorado Hills, CA 95762
9781611213287 $34.95 hc / $9.99 Kindle www.savasbeatie.com
The third and final volume of the "Chickamauga Campaign" trilogy studying a series of battles
fought in northwestern Georgia during the American Civil War, The Chickamauga Campaign -
Barren Victory examines the conclusion of this important and complicated military operation.
Chapters scrutinize events from Monday, September 21, 1863, immediately after Confederate
commander Braxton Bragg's victory, to the end of the extremely costly campaign. An
extraordinarily detailed Chickamauga orders of battle, including information about unit strengths
and losses, as well as a comprehensive bibliography round out this scholarly military history,
highly recommended especially for public and college library collections along with the first two
volumes of the trilogy, "The Chickamauga Campaign - A Mad Irregular Battle"
(9781611211740, $37.50 hc / $9.99 Kindle) and "The Chickamauga Campaign - Glory or the
Grave" (9781611212020, $39.95 hc / $13.99 Kindle).
The American History Shelf
A New Deal for South Dakota
R. Alton Lee
South Dakota Historical Society Press
900 Governors Drive, Pierre, SC 57501-2217
www.sdshspress.com
9781941813119 $24.95 amazon.com
A New Deal for South Dakota: Drought, Depression, and Relief, 1920-1941 is a scholarly
examination how New Deal programs, instituted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, impacted
the state of South Dakota during the Great Depression. In the depths of depression, economic
hardship and unemployment were so extreme that many fled the state, and New Deal programs
supported nearly half of South Dakota's remaining population. Political historian R. Alton Lee
(professor emeritus of history, University of South Dakota) examines how the programs affected
families, farmers, miners, young people, and women. A handful of black-and-white photographs,
extensive notes, a bibliography, and an index round out this excellent contribution to public and
college library American History collections.
Honor Before Glory
Scott McGaugh
Da Capo Press
c/o Perseus Book Group
250 W. 57th St., Suite 1500, New York, NY 10107
www.perseusbooksgroup.com
9780306824456 $25.99 hc / $17.99 Kindle amazon.com
After Pearl Harbor was attacked and America entered World War II, over 100,000 Japanese
Americans were incarcerated along the West Coast for no crime. Honor Before Glory: The Epic
World War II Story of the Japanese-American GI's Who Rescued the Lost Battalion is the
striking true story of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, which consisted of thousands of
Japanese men who volunteered from within the internment camps to fight in a segregated unit, on
behalf of the nation that had imprisoned them. The 442nd Regiment was charged with rescuing
the "Lost Battalion", over two hundred American soldiers surrounded by German troops in the
forests of eastern France's Vosges Mountains. Despite suffering over 350 casualties, the "Go-for-
Broke" regiment succeeded in their mission, and rescued 211 of the "Lost Battalion". Honor
Before Glory is the story of these brave Japanese-American veterans during and after their two
years of military service, both in the context of history and with a focus on the personal stories of
many individuals - some of whom returned home after the war, and some who did not. Highly
recommended, especially for both personal and public library American History collections.
When Lincoln Came to Egypt
George W. Smith
Southern Illinois University Press
1915 University Press Drive, SIUC Mail Code 6806, Carbondale, IL 62901
www.siupress.com
9780809335527, $20.50, PB, 202pp, www.amazon.com
In "When Lincoln Came to Egypt", the late George Washington Smith (who served on the faculty
of the History Department at Southern Illinois University from 1890 to 1935 and was a professor
emeritus from 1935 until his death in 1945) provides a detailed record of Abraham Lincoln's
travel in the southernmost region of Illinois, commonly referred to as Egypt. These visits began
in 1830, before Lincoln had held public office, and continued through 1858, when he debated
Stephen A. Douglas in Jonesboro and Alton as they ran against each other for a seat in the U.S.
Senate. Lincoln found in the southern third of Illinois a political climate very different from that
of central Illinois, where his career had begun. Lincoln's trips to Egypt thus broadened his
experience and understanding of the state as well as the nation. Professor Smith also discusses
the origins of the people of the region and Lincoln's early public life and provides historical and
political background for his detailed discussion of the Lincoln-Douglas debates. The culmination
of fifty years of extensive research, "When Lincoln Came to Egypt" provides a glimpse into an
often overlooked part of Lincoln's development as a politician. A work of detailed and seminal
scholarship "When Lincoln Came to Egypt" and a part of the Southern University Press 'Shawnee
Classics" series and a critically essential addition to community, college, and university library
American History collections in general, and Abraham Lincoln Studies supplemental reading
lists in particular. For students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject it
should be noted that "When Lincoln Came to Egypt" is also available in a Kindle format
($19.48).
Italian Prisoners of War in Pennsylvania
Flavio G. Conti and Alan R. Perry
Fairleigh Dickinson University Press
The Gatehouse M010C, 285 Madison Avenue, Madison, NJ 07940
www.fdupress.org
9781611479973 $95.00 hc / $69.82 Kindle amazon.com
During World War II, 51,000 Italian prisoners of war were detained in the United States. In
September of 1943, Italy signed an armistice with the Allies, and most of these Italian soldiers
agreed to swear allegiance to the United States and aid in the war effort against Germany. More
than 1,200 Italian soldiers were detained at the Letterkenny Army Depot of Pennsylvania. They
formed the 321st Italian Quartermaster Battalion and remained until October 1945. These
soldiers helped to order, stock, repair, and ship military goods, munitions, and equipment. Italian
Prisoners of War in Pennsylvania gathers the stories of these Italian soldiers from oral histories
of surviving POWs, memoirs generously provided by family members, archival material from
Italy and United States, and much more. The portrait that emerges is fascinating and remarkably
positive; it's notable that Italian co-operators received a modest regular salary and more freedom
than most POWs, even the liberty to leave their posts in groups chaperoned by American
soldiers. Notes, appendices, and an index round out this welcome contribution to public and
college library American history collections, highly recommended.
The World History Shelf
The Secret History of World War II
Neil Kagan & Stephen G. Hyslop
National Geographic Press
101 West 104th Street, Suite 8, New York, NY 10025
www.nationalgeographic.com
9781426217012, $40.00, HC, 352pp, www.amazon.com
The collaborative work of Neil Kagan and Stephen G. Hyslop, "The Secret History of World War
II: Spies, Code Breakers, and Covert Operations" is the inherently fascination and true story
behind the covert activity that shaped the outcome of one of the Second World War. This
profusely illustrated and consistently compelling military history reveals the secret lives of spies
and spy masters; the role of secret agents and secret armies; Enigma machines and code breakers;
the shadowy world of psychological warfare and black propaganda; secret weapons and secret
battle strategies. Seven heavily illustrated narrative chapters reveal the truth behind the lies and
deception that shaped the "secret war", eight informed and informative essays showcasing
hundreds of rare photos and artifacts (many never before seen); and featuring more than 50
specially created sidebars tell the stories of spies and secret operations, "The Secret History of
World War II" is emphatically and unreservedly recommended for personal, school, college,
university, and community library World War II military history collections. It should be noted
that "The Secret History of World War II" is also available in a complete and unabridged MP3
audio book format (Blackstone Audio, 9781504746960, $29.95).
The Political Science Shelf
Critical Government Documents on Law and Order
Don Philpott
Bernan Press
c/o Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group
4501 Forbes Blvd., Suite 200, Lanham, MD 20706
http://www.bernan.com
9781598887839, $50.00, HC, 324pp, www.amazon.com
"Critical Government Documents on Law and Order" reviews of many law and order issues
relevant to our current national issues. This extensive volume does not offer any new science, nor
does it attempt to take sides with respect to any given law and order issue. It is, however, an
impressive attempt to gather together information from as many sources as possible so that the
reader doesn't have to. "Critical Government Documents on Law and Order" presents arguments
for and against the issues covered so that the reader can come to their own conclusions. Areas
and issues covered include the threat from domestic and international terrorism and the growth of
extremist militias; the increase in school place and workplace violence; relationships between
police and the public; and how people can protect themselves from being victims of crime.
Enhanced with the inclusion of eleven pages of Notes, and a ten page Glossary, "Critical
Government Documents on Law and Order" is very highly recommended for community,
college, and university library Political Science collections in general, and Contemporary Judicial
& Law Enforcement supplemental studies reading lists in particular. It should be noted for
students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Critical
Government Documents on Law and Order" is also available in a Kindle format ($47.50).
The Gardening Shelf
Indoor Green: Living with Plants
Bree Claffey, author
Lauren Bamford, photographer
Thames & Hudson, Inc.
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110-0017
www.thamesandhudsonusa.com
9780500500538, $39.95, HC, 206pp, www.amazon.com
In the pages of "Indoor Green: Living with Plants", Bree Claffey (the owner of Mr. Kitly, an
emporium of carefully curated ceramics, housewares, and indoor plants) provides a visual and
informational journeys into the interior worlds of fellow plant lovers for the purpose of exploring
the enduring attraction of houseplants. From the ever-reliable peace lily and beguiling fiddle leaf
fig to the elusive Chinese money plant, "Indoor Green" makes it obvious that even the humblest
greenery can transform a home. Houseplants encompass the art of decorative arrangement and
add romance to any room. Within the pages of "Indoor Green" gorgeous photographs were taken
by Lauren Bamford of interiors from across the globe, and then divided into chapters such as
"Plant Music", "How to Grow Fresh Air", "Plant Portraits", and more, making the house plant
magic easy to replicate in within any home. Interviews of indoor green enthusiasts appear
alongside the images, as well as tips on caring for plants and an index of plant varieties. More
than just good-looking decorative props, plants are living, growing, joyful things rooted in
community and creativity, and are easy to introduce into any home and lifestyle. Simply beautiful
and inspiring to browse through, "Indoor Green" is thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and
presentation, making it an ideal and enduringly popular addition to personal, professional,
community, and academic library Gardening & Interior Design collections and supplemental
studies reading lists.
The Aviation Shelf
Training the Right Stuff
Mark A. Frankel & Tommy H. Thomason, authors
Jack Morris, illustrator
Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310
www.schifferbooks.com
9780764350306, $69.99, HC, 352pp, www.amazon.com
"Training the Right Stuff: The Aircraft That Produced America's Jet Pilots" is a comprehensive
and profusely illustrated study of the training aircraft used to transition the United States military
into the jet age. At the end of World War II, high-performance jets with unfamiliar operating
characteristics were replacing propeller-driven airplanes. As accident rates soared, the Air Force
and Navy recognized the need to develop new trainers to introduce fledgling as well as
experienced pilots to jet flight. The first step occurred in 1948, when a two-seat jet trainer, the
T-33, was developed with private funds. It was welcomed by the Air Force and subsequently the
Navy, allowing both services to start building modern air arms. Over time other new trainers
were developed to serve specific needs while innovations, such as high fidelity simulators,
accelerated the process, reduced costs, and increased safety. That military aviation evolution
continues today with the goal of producing high-quality newly winged aviators for assignment to
operational squadrons. Impressively informed and informative, "Training the Right Stuff" is a
truly extraordinary and unique addition to personal, community and academic library Military
Aviation History collections.
The Library Science Shelf
Winning Grants, second edition
Stephanie K. Gerding & Pamela H. MacKellar
Neal-Shuman Publishers
c/o American Library Association
50 East Huron Street, Chicago, IL 60611
www.alastore.ala.org
9780838914731, $108.00, PB, 248pp, www.amazon.com
When economic times get tough, one of the first community resources to see cutbacks in their
funding are the libraries. Now in a newly revised and updated second edition, "Winning Grants:
A How-To-Do-It Manual For Librarians" is invaluable how-to manual that will effectively
instruct librarians and library board members in the skills and strategies crucial for finding,
applying for, and winning grants. Loaded with a wide variety of forms, worksheets, and
checklists to help stay organized when applying for a grant, "Winning Grants": summarizes the
grant process cycle and outlines a clear path to success; shares inspiring grant success stories in
action from diverse libraries; offers guidance on gathering knowledge and conducting research,
with updated resource lists and links to the various types of funders; covers every stage of
planning, including how to cultivate community involvement, methods for needs assessment,
advice on organizing the grant team, and exercises to help you write realistic goals and
objectives; gives tips on writing the proposal, such as where to find the best statistics and census
data to support your statement of needs; advises how to announce a successful grant to the
community, and other first steps of implementation, including the basic principles of project
management; provides guidance on what to do when you're turned down and how to conduct an
effective review session that keeps the process moving forward; highlights ways to stay current
through online discussion groups, blogs, networking groups, and more; and features sample
RFPs, budget templates, grant partnership documents, and many other helpful tools.
Collaboratively written by Stephanie Gerding and Pamela MacKellar (two librarians who are
experts in grantsmanship), "Winning Grants" is an all-in-one toolkit for successfully applying for
grants that will prove to be an invaluable instructional guide for library directors, grant writers,
board members, consultants, and anyone else involved in planning library programs and
services.
Prison Librarianship Policy and Practice
Suzanna Conrad
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
9781476666334, $45.00, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Prison libraries violate many tenets of librarianship under the justification of maintaining order.
The field is de-professionalized in that many of positions are filled by persons without degrees in
library science, and corrections administrators often write policy for library services within their
correctional institutions. Critics of prison library systems cite the need to implement public
library service models despite practical difficulties. "Prison Librarianship Policy and Practice" by
Suzanna Conrad (Head of Library Information Systems in the University Library at California
State University - Sacramento) investigates state, national and international policies on prison
libraries, reviews literature on the topic and describes partnerships between prisons and public
libraries. Results from a national survey and follow-up interviews are included, providing a full
narrative of policy outcomes in U.S. prisons. Informed and informative, exceptionally well
written, organized and presented, "Prison Librarianship Policy and Practice" is a core and
unreservedly recommended addition to college and university Library Science collections and
supplemental studies reading lists -- and should be considered mandatory for anyone having
responsibilities for operating or servicing a prison library system.
The Music Shelf
The Words and Music of Sheryl Crow
Christopher Gable
Praeger Publishers
c/o ABC-CLIO
PO Box 1911, Santa Barbara, CA 93116-1911
www.abc-clio.com
9781440831287, $49.00, HC, 138pp, www.amazon.com
Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter and actress whose music incorporates
elements of pop, rock, folk, country and blues. She has released eight studio albums, two
compilations, a live album and has contributed to a number of film soundtracks. Crow has
garnered nine Grammy Awards (out of 32 nominations) from the National Academy of
Recording Arts and Sciences. In addition to her own work, Crow has performed with the Rolling
Stones, Stevie Nicks, Michael Jackson, Steve Earle, Prince, Eric Clapton, Luciano Pavarotti,
Willie Nelson, Smokey Robinson, B.B. King, George Strait, Tony Bennett, Kid Rock and Sting,
among others. She has also performed backing vocals for Tina Turner, Don Henley, Stevie
Nicks, Belinda Carlisle, Bob Dylan and Joe Cocker. "The Words and Music of Sheryl Crow" by
Christopher Gable (a lecturer of music at the University of North Dakota) combines commentary,
musical analysis, and detailed interpretation of Crow's songs' lyrics. Exceptionally well written,
organized and presented, "The Words and Music of Sheryl Crow" presents an in-depth and
complete listening guide to all of Crow's songs, including B-sides and rarities; features insightful
commentary with song analysis; and includes a glossary of musical and technical terms for the
non-specialist general reader. Impressively informed and informative, "The Words and Music of
Sheryl Crow" is a 'must' for the legions of Sheryl Crow fans. While highly recommended for both
community and academic library Contemporary American Music collections, it should be noted
for the personal reading lists of students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the
subject that "The Words and Music of Sheryl Crow" is also available in a Kindle format
($38.71).
The Literary Studies Shelf
Eight Children in Narnia
Jared Lobdell
Open Court Publishing Company
70 East Lake Street, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601
www.opencourtbooks.com
9780812699012 $49.95 pbk / $29.49 Kindle amazon.com
Author and literary scholar C.S. Lewis (1898-1963) decided late in his life to embark upon a new
type of project - a fantasy novel especially for children and young adults. He drew upon his own
childhood memories as well as concepts from philosophy and spirituality to create the timeless
Narnia series, which eventually spanned seven books. Eight Children in Narnia: The Making of a
Children's Story is an in-depth study of the Narnia series, influences upon their creation, their
themes, and their legacy. A studious literary analysis, Eight Children in Narnia is especially
recommended for college library literary studies shelves, as well as for connoisseurs of Lewis'
work seeking to better understand the Chronicles of Narnia.
The Holocaust Studies Shelf
Defying The Nazis
Artemis Joukowsky
Beacon Press
24 Farnsworth Street, Boston, MA 02210
www.beacon.org
9780807071823, $25.95, HC, 272pp, www.amazon.com
In 1939, the Reverend Waitstill Sharp, a young Unitarian minister, and his wife, Martha, a social
worker, accepted a mission from the American Unitarian Association: they were to leave their
home and young children in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and travel to Prague, Czechoslovakia, to
help address the mounting refugee crisis. Seventeen ministers had been asked to undertake this
mission and had declined; Rev. Sharp was the first to accept the call for volunteers in Europe.
Armed with only $40,000, Waitstill and Martha quickly learned the art of spy craft and undertook
dangerous rescue and relief missions across war-torn Europe, saving refugees, political
dissidents, and Jews on the eve of World War II. After narrowly avoiding the Gestapo
themselves, the Sharps returned to Europe in 1940 as representatives of the newly formed
Unitarian Service Committee and continued their relief efforts in Vichy France. "Defying the
Nazis: The Sharps' War" offers a fascinating and detailed portrait of resistance as told through
the story of one courageous couple as it offers a rare glimpse at the high-stakes international
relief efforts during WWII. This is the remarkable true story of a couple whose faith and
commitment to social justice inspired them to risk their lives to save countless others. "Defying
The Nazis" is the companion to a documentary film directed by Ken Burns and Artemis
Joukowsky and is very highly recommended for both community and academic library
collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Defying The Nazis" is also
available in a Kindle format ($15.99). Librarians should note that "Defying The Nazis" is
available as a complete and unabridged MP3 audio book (Tantor Audio, 9781515959793,
$24.99).
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Diane C. Donovan, Editor
Midwest Book Review
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Oregon, WI 53575-1129
phone: 1-608-835-7937
e-mail: mbr@execpc.com
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