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Reviewer's Choice
U.S. Immigration Made Easy, 19th edition
Iliona Bray, J.D. & Richard Link, attorney
Nolo Press
950 Parker Street, Berkeley, CA 94710
www.nolo.com
9781413325959, $44.99, PB, 696pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Comprehensive, authoritative, thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and
presentation, and now in a fully updated and expanded 19th edition, "U.S. Immigration Made
Easy" is essential to help anyone get a visa, green card, or other immigration status.
"U.S. Immigration Made Easy" addresses such issues as: Determining whether you and your
family qualify for a short-term visa, permanent U.S. residence, or protection from deportation;
How to obtain, fill out, and submit the necessary forms and documents; Insider tips on dealing
with bureaucratic officials, delays, and denials; Strategies for overcoming low income and other
immigration barriers; How to select the right attorney.
"U.S. Immigration Made Easy" also provides detailed descriptions of application processes and
helps you avoid traps that might destroy your chances. Of special note is the inclusion of an
immigration eligibility self-quiz, which helps to match a person's background and skills to a
likely category of visa or green card.
"U.S. Immigration Made Easy" even covers the recent legal and fee changes including the Trump
administration's efforts to end TPS for various countries and to end DACA.
Critique: An absolutely essential addition to every community, college, and university library
Emigration & Immigration collection in the country, it should be noted for personal reading lists
that this new and expanded 19th edition of "U.S. Immigration Made Easy" is also available in a
digital book format (Kindle, $22.07).
Author in Chief
Michael B. Costanzo
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
https://mcfarlandbooks.com
9781476675701, $39.95, PB, 246pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: With the publication of his Personal Memoirs in 1885, Ulysses S. Grant established
what is today known as the presidential memoir. Every U.S. president since Benjamin Harrison
has written one and many have turned to other forms of writing, as well.
"Author in Chief: The Presidents as Writers from Washington to Trump" by Michael B.
Costanzo covers the history of these presidential literary works including autobiographies,
diaries, political manifestos, speeches, fiction and poetry. All of which were authored by U.S.
presidents and published prior to, during or after their terms.
The writing was easy for some, harder for others, with varying success, from literary comebacks
and bestsellers to false starts and failures.
Critique: A unique, informative, and inherently fascinating read from cover to cover, "Author in
Chief: The Presidents as Writers from Washington to Trump" will prove to be of special and
particular interest to academia and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject.
While unreservedly recommended for both community and academic library collections, it
should be noted for personal reading lists that "Author in Chief" is also available in a digital book
format (Kindle, $9.99).
The Vinyl Frontier
Jonathan Scott
Bloomsbury Sigma
c/o Bloomsbury Press
175 Fifth Avenue, Suite 315, New York, NY 10010
9781472956132 $28.00 hc / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
Synopsis: In 1977, a team led by the great Carl Sagan was put together to create a record that
would travel to the stars on the back of NASA's Voyager probe. They were responsible for
creating a playlist of music, sounds and pictures that would represent not just humanity, but
would also paint a picture of Earth for any future alien races that may come into contact with the
probe. The Vinyl Frontier tells the whole story of how the record was created, from when NASA
first proposed the idea to Carl to when they were finally able watch the Golden Record rocket off
into space on Voyager.
The final playlist contains music written and performed by well-known names such as Bach,
Beethoven, Glenn Gould, Chuck Berry and Blind Willie Johnson, as well as music from China,
India and more remote cultures such as a community in Small Malaita in the Solomon Islands. It
also contained a message of peace from US president Jimmy Carter, a variety of scientific figures
and dimensions, and instructions on how to use it for a variety of alien lifeforms. Each song,
sound and picture that made the final cut onto the record has a story to tell.
Through interviews with all of the key players involved with the record, this book pieces together
the whole story of the Golden Record. It addresses the myth that the Beatles were left off of the
record because of copyright reasons and will include new information about US president Jimmy
Carter's role in the record, as well as many other fascinating insights that have never been
reported before. It also tells the love story between Carl Sagan and the project's creative director
Ann Druyan that flourishes as the record is being created.
Critique: The Vinyl Frontier: The Story of the Voyager Golden Record is an extraordinary
chronicle of a monumentally ambitious project - to create a representation of human culture that
would be sent to the stars. Here also is a portrait of the key people driving the project, including
the team leader, the scientific and polymath genius Carl Sagan. Extensively researched, yet
thoroughly accessible to readers of all backgrounds, The Story of the Voyager Golden Record is
highly recommended especially for public library collections. It should be noted for personal
reading lists that The Story of the Voyager Golden Record is also available in a Kindle edition
($9.99).
The Education Shelf
Connecting Through Talk
David K. Dickinson & Ann B. Morse
Brookes Publishing Company
PO Box 10624, Baltimore, MD 21285-0624
www.brookespublishing.com
9781681252315, $34.95, PB, 264pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: How do responsive adult-child interactions influence early language development?
How do a child's language skills develop in tandem with social-emotional development,
executive function, and literacy? What are effective ways to help parents support their child's
development? Uncover the answers to these questions in this fascinating book, which draws on
current research to examine connections between language, social-emotional, and literacy
development and profiles effective programs that support this development.
"Connecting Through Talk: Nurturing Children's Development With Language" by the team of
David K. Dickinson and Ann B. Morse addresses these questions with a research-based
examination of multiple facets of early childhood development and examine how each one is
linked to language development.
Readers will explore critical topics such as: How the brain develops in the first years of life; Why
parent-child attachment is fundamental to early development; How executive function skills
affect academic achievement and social success; What responsive and language-rich parent-child
exchanges look like and how they support multiple developmental areas; How children begin to
understand symbols, establish joint attention, and develop a theory of mind: How children learn
the building blocks of language and literacy, from phonology to pragmatics; What role
socioeconomic factors play in early development and intervention; Which guiding principles
professionals should follow for effective intervention; Which economic arguments support early
development.
Building on this foundational knowledge, "Connecting Through Talk provides snapshots of more
than a dozen programs that support language and literacy development by coaching parents and
providing books for young children. Readers will learn how these programs promote thoughtful,
responsive adult-child interactions and expand children's access to books, and be presented with
brief summaries of the research that demonstrates the success of each program.
Essential reading for researchers, administrators, and educators, "Connecting Through Talk" is a
synthesis of science and practical guidance that will help to foster foundational language skills
and nurture the healthy development of every young child.
Critique: Impressively researched, exceptionally well written, deftly organized and presented,
"Connecting Through Talk: Nurturing Children's Development With Language" is a seminal
body of meticulous scholarship. While unreservedly recommended as a core addition to
community, school district, college, and university library Child Development, Education,
collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of education students, academia, and
non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Connecting Through Talk" is
also available in a digital book format (eTextbook, $28.73).
Editorial Note: David K. Dickinson, Ed.D., is the Associate Dean for Research and Strategic
Initiatives and holds the Margaret Cowan Chair of Education, Peabody College of Education,
Vanderbilt University. He received his doctorate from Harvard University's Graduate School of
Education after teaching elementary school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania while earning his
masters degree at Temple University. For over 30 years, he has studied early language and
literacy development among children from low-income backgrounds. Using observational and
intervention research, he has sought to understand factors that foster short- and long-term
development of language and reading comprehension and to improve the quality of support
children receive. He has co-authored the widely used preschool curriculum, Opening the World
of Learning (OWL), co-authored three volumes of The Handbook of Early Literacy Research, as
well as authoring or co-authoring over 100 peer review articles and spoken to practitioner and
research audiences around the world.
Ann B. Morse earned her master's in education with a focus in early childhood from Lesley
University. For over 30 years, she has worked on behalf of young children from low-income
backgrounds and their families. Through the Head Start National Training and Technical
Assistance Network, she provided professional development to programs related to supporting
children with disabilities and enhancing literacy skills. She coached Pre-K teachers to enhance
children's language and literacy skills through intervention research projects at Vanderbilt
University. She was a contributing author of the language and literacy-based curriculum,
Opening the World of Learning (OWL).
Integrating Worlds
Scott D. Carpenter, Helena Kaufman, Malene Torp
Stylus Publishing, Inc.
22883 Quicksilver Drive, Sterling, VA 20166-2012
www.styluspub.com
9781620360019, $32.50, PB, 198pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: While off-campus study (both study abroad or study away) occupies a marginal
position on most campuses, it has the almost unique capacity to bring together a high
concentration of high-impact educational practices. When we combine global learning with
collaborative work, shared intellectual pursuits, learning communities, and more, these practices
reinforce each other, exerting a multiplier effect that can potentially result in the most intense
learning experience our students will have. It can energize and inspire them for the work they
will continue to undertake on their home campus.
It thus becomes crucial for us to identify or design high-quality programs that will achieve these
goals. Moreover, we need to reimagine off-campus study as an integrated portion of the
undergraduate arc -- one that begins well before our students depart and continues long after they
return. In this way, we help them understand the interconnectedness not only of the world, but
also of their own education.
At the same time, the three authors of "Integrating Worlds: How Off-Campus Study Can
Transform Undergraduate Education" recognize material constraints and educational imperatives.
Off-campus study costs money; its complexity makes it difficult to assess; it overlaps
increasingly with internships and civic engagement; and by its nature, it is more subject to
external forces than the on-campus experience. In careful, practical ways Integrating Worlds
advances suggestions for dealing with these issues.
"Integrating Worlds" urges educators to go beyond the episodic ways we currently link
on-campus curricula to off-campus experience. While of interest to specialists in international or
intercultural education, it speaks most directly to faculty, deans and provosts -- many of whom
may have little (or dated) experience of study abroad and who thus feel unprepared to address
this issue of pressing importance. As our disciplines and institutions face the complexities of a
rapidly changing world, "Integrating Worlds" seeks to fuel the necessary conversations.
Critique: A critically important, impressively informative, articulate and thought-provoking
study, "Integrating Worlds: How Off-Campus Study Can Transform Undergraduate Education" is
unreservedly recommended for college and university library Educational Studies collections and
supplemental curriculum lists. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of education
students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that
"Integrating Worlds" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $25.99).
Editorial Note: Scott D. Carpenter is Professor of French and the Library Arts at Carleton
College; Director of Cross-Cultural Studies, and the Founding Director of Carleton's Center for
Global and Regional Studies. Helena Kaufman is the Director of Off-Campus Studies and
Lecturer in Latin American Studies at Carleton Colege. Malene Torp is the Executive Director of
DIS-Study Abroad in Scandinavia (Copenhagen) for American students in Europe.
The Aspiring Principal
Baruti K. Kafele
ASCD
1703 North Beauregard Street, Alexandria, VA 22311-1714
www.ascd.org
9781416627647, $19.95, PB, 113pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In "The Aspiring Principal: 50 Critical Questions for New and Future School Leaders",
school leadership expert Baruti Kafele presents reflective questions aimed at assisting both new
and aspiring school leaders as they work to become effective school leaders and consider making
a leap to a leadership position, respectively. This book will help aspiring principals determine
whether "The Principal" is truly who they want to be and help new principals grow and thrive in
the principalship.
Of special note is that "The Aspiring Principal" contains an entire chapter devoted to preparing
for the school administrator job interview.
Urban educator Kafele infuses this instructional reference from beginning to end with succinct
advice on everything from remaining focused on the principal's number one priority (student
achievement), to addressing maintenance concerns, managing budget allocations, and ensuring
that the school's website puts the school in the best possible light.
Critique: With the help of "The Aspiring Principal" both the neophyte school administrator and
experienced building principals can increase the likelihood that their tenure as a principal will be
a successful, beneficial, and healthful one for themselves, their faculty, and above all, their
students -- making it an ideal and unreservedly recommended addition to college and university
library Education Administration collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should
be noted that "The Aspiring Principal" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$16.70).
Advancing Formative Assessment in Every Classroom, second edition
Connie M. Moss & Susan M. Brookhart
ASCD
1703 North Beauregard Street, Alexandria, VA 22311-1714
www.ascd.org
9781416626695, $28.95, PB, 186pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Formative assessment is one of the best ways to increase student learning and enhance
teacher quality. But effective formative assessment is not part of most classrooms, largely
because teachers misunderstand what it is and don't have the necessary skills to implement
it.
Now in a fully updated and expanded second edition, "Advancing Formative Assessment in
Every Classroom: A Guide for Instructional Leaders" is a practical and effective guide for school
leaders that defines formative assessment as an active, continual process in which teachers and
students work together (every day, every minute) to gather evidence of learning, always keeping
in mind three guiding questions: Where am I going? Where am I now? What strategy or
strategies can help me get to where I need to go?
Using specific examples based on their extensive work with teachers, "Advancing Formative
Assessment in Every Classroom: A Guide for Instructional Leaders: provides: Strategic talking
points and conversation starters to address common misconceptions about formative assessment;
Practical classroom strategies to share with teachers that cultivate students as self-regulated,
assessment-capable learners; Ways to model the elements of formative assessment in
conversations with teachers about their professional learning; "What if" scenarios and advice for
how to deal with them; Questions for reflection to gauge understanding and progress.
Critique: Exceptionally well written and presented, "Advancing Formative Assessment in Every
Classroom: A Guide for Instructional Leaders" is an essential and unreservedly recommended
core addition to school district, college, and university library Teacher Education instructional
reference collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for the
personal reading lists of teachers and school administrators that "Advancing Formative
Assessment in Every Classroom: A Guide for Instructional Leaders" is also available in a digital
book format (Kindle, $27.99).
A Meaningful Mess
Andi McNair
Prufrock Press
PO Box 8813, Waco, TX 76714-8813
www.prufrock.com
9781618218414, $24.95, PB, 175pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: As a teacher, how do you organize what may seem like a chaotic mess into a classroom
that empowers students to engage with content and pursue their passions? "A Meaningful Mess:
A Teacher's Guide to Student-Driven Classrooms, Authentic Learning, Student Empowerment,
and Keeping It All Together Without Losing Your Mind" by Andi McNair offers suggestions and
specific tools that can be used to engage this generation of students in meaningful, relevant, and
student-driven learning experiences -- even if things in the classroom may get messy, both
literally and figuratively.
Such strategies and tools include Genius Hour, Makerspaces, flexible learning spaces,
meaningful technology, global learning experiences, critical and creative thinking, collaboration,
and reflection. Packed with relevant evidence and research, "A Meaningful Mess" is specifically
intended to help classroom teachers understand why traditional teaching strategies are no longer
working and what they can do to engage and empower this generation of learners.
Critique: Packed from cover to cover with useful, real-world practical ideas, suggestions,
insightful commentaries, all designed to bring useful order out of the inherent stresses and strains
of today's education system at the classroom level, "A Meaningful Mess: A Teacher's Guide to
Student-Driven Classrooms, Authentic Learning, Student Empowerment, and Keeping It All
Together Without Losing Your Mind" is unreservedly recommended for school district, college,
and university library Teacher Education collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It
should be noted for the personal reading lists of education students, teachers, school
administrators, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "A
Meaningful Mess" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $15.52).
Editorial Note: Andi McNair believes that if what we are teaching is not meaningful for students,
it's a waste of time. She was recently named one of the Top People to Watch in Education in
2016 by the Academy of Education Arts and Sciences. Andi currently teaches gifted students in
Waco, TX.
The International Studies Shelf
Voices of Latin America
Edited by Tom Gatehouse
Monthly Review Press
134 W. 29th Street, Suite 706, New York, NY 10001
www.monthlyreview.org
9781583677971 $32.00 pbk / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
Synopsis: These are uncertain times in Latin America. Popular faith in democracy has been
shaken; traditional political parties and institutions are stagnating, and there is a growing
right-wing extremism overtaking some governments. Yet, in recent years, autonomous social
movements have multiplied and thrived. This book presents voices of these movement
protagonists themselves, as they describe the major issues, conflicts, and campaigns for social
justice in Latin America today. Latin America Bureau, a London-based, independent organization
providing news and analysis on the region, spoke to people from fourteen countries, from
Mexico to the Southern Cone.
The book captures the voices indigenous activists, fighting oil drilling in their homelands;
mothers from favelas seeking justice for their children killed by police; opponents of large-scale
mining projects; independent journalists working, at great personal risk, to expose corruption and
human rights violations; women and LGBT people confronting violence and discrimination; and
students demanding their right to a free, universal and high-quality education system. Though
their locations and causes are disparate, these people and their movements share learning and
activism, and their cooperation helps to link the movements across national borders. Voices of
Latin America is essential reading for students, travelers, journalists - anyone with an interest in
social justice movements in Latin America.
Critique: Voices of Latin America: Social Movements and the New Activism examines social
efforts to enact cultural change and push for justice, even though popular faith in democracy and
traditional institutions has eroded. Here are the true of stories of indigenous activists resisting
oil drilling; mothers whose children were killed by police; LGBT people resisting violence and
discrimination; and much more. Astute, eye-opening, and potentially offering a ray of hope amid
disturbing and troubled times, Voices of Latin America is highly recommended especially for
public and college library International Studies collections. It should be noted for personal
reading lists that Voices of Latin America is also available in a Kindle edition ($9.99).
Moscow Rules
Keir Giles
Brookings Institution Press
1775 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20036-2188
www.brookings.edu
9780815735748, $34.99, PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: From Moscow, the world looks different. It is through understanding how Russia sees
the world (and its place in it) that the West can best meet the Russian challenge.
Russia and the West are like neighbors who never seem able to understand each other. A major
reason, Keir Giles (a senior expert on Russia at Britain's prestigious Chatham House) argues in
"Moscow Rules: What Drives Russia to Confront the West ", is that Western leaders tend to
think that Russia should act as a "rational" Western nation -- even though Russian leaders for
centuries have thought and acted based on their country's much different history and
traditions.
Russia, through Western eyes, is unpredictable and irrational, when in fact its leaders from the
czars to Putin almost always act in their own very predictable and rational ways. For Western
leaders to try to engage with Russia without attempting to understand how Russians look at the
world is a recipe for repeated disappointment and frequent crises.
"Moscow Rules" describes how Russian leaders have used consistent doctrinal and strategic
approaches to the rest of the world. These approaches may seem deeply alien in the West, but
understanding them is essential for successful engagement with Moscow. "Moscow Rules"
argues that understanding how Moscow's leaders think (not just Vladimir Putin but his
predecessors and eventual successors) will help their counterparts in the West develop a less
crisis-prone and more productive relationship with Russia.
Critique: A timely critique and history of political and international relations between Russia and
the Western nations, "Moscow Rules: What Drives Russia to Confront the West" is a critically
important analysis that is an outstanding contribution to our present on-going crisis with respect
to Russia's sabotage efforts in American elections. While very highly recommended for both
community and academic library Contemporary Russian & International Studies collections, it
should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, governmental policy makers,
and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Moscow Rules" is also
available in a digital book format (Kindle, $15.39).
Editorial Note: Keir Giles' work has appeared in a wide range of academic and military
publications across Europe and in North America, and he is a regular contributor and
commentator on Russian affairs for international print and broadcast media. He is a Senior
Consulting Fellow at the UK's Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), and also
works with the Conflict Studies Research Centre (CSRC), a group of deep subject matter experts
on Eurasian security formerly attached to the British Ministry of Defence. He is a regular
contributor to research projects on Russian security issues in the U.S., UK and Europe.
The Environmental Studies Shelf
The Heart of the Lakes
Dave Dempsey
Michigan State University Press
1405 South Harrison Road, Suite 25, East Lansing, MI 48823-5245
http://msupress.org
9781948314046 $19.95 amazon.com
Synopsis: The water corridor that defines southeast Michigan sits at the heart of the world's
largest freshwater ecosystem, the Great Lakes. Over forty-three trillion gallons of water a year
flow through the Detroit River, providing a natural conduit for everything from fish migration to
the movement of cargo-bearing one thousand-foot freighters, and a defining sense of place. But
in both government policies and individual practices, the freshwater at the heart of the lakes was
long neglected and sometimes abused. Today southeast Michigan enjoys an opportunity to learn
from that history and put freshwater at the center of a prosperous and sustainable future. Joining
this journey downriver in place and time, from Port Huron to Monroe, from the 1600s to the
present, provides insight and hope for the region's water-based renaissance.
Critique: A handful of color photographs illustrates this studious scrutiny of the history and
possible future of the water corridor that flows through the Detroit River - the heart of the world's
largest freshwater ecosystem that is the Great Lakes. Chronicling the toll that American settlers
have taken upon the water system from the 1600s to the present day, The Heart of the Lakes
explores progressive and practical options for a future of sustainable water usage. Thoroughly
accessible to readers of all backgrounds, The Heart of the Lakes is highly recommended
especially for public and college library Environmental Studies collections.
Independent Assessment of Science and Technology for the Department of Energy's Defense
Environmental Cleanup Program
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Division on Earth and Life
Studies
National Academies Press
500 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001
www.nap.edu
9780309487757 $65.00 pbk / $54.99 Kindle amazon.com
Synopsis: The National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2017 contained a request for a
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine review and assessment of science
and technology development efforts within the Department of Energy's Office of Environmental
Management (DOE-EM). This technical report is the result of the review and presents findings
and recommendations.
Critique: True to its title, Independent Assessment of Science and Technology for the
Department of Energy's Defense Environmental Cleanup Program is a scholarly review of the
Department of Energy's efforts to identify and select technologies to develop for use in
environmental cleanup programs. A technical resource written by experts, for professionals in the
field, Independent Assessment of Science and Technology for the Department of Energy's
Defense Environmental Cleanup Program is a welcome addition to college and university library
environmental studies shelves. It should be noted for personal reading lists that Independent
Assessment of Science and Technology for the Department of Energy's Defense Environmental
Cleanup Program is also available in a Kindle edition ($54.99).
The Biography Shelf
Marie Marvingt, Fiancee of Danger
Rosalie Maggio
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
https://mcfarlandbooks.com
9781476675503, $39.95, PB, 310pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Marie Marvingt (1875-1963) set the world's first women's aviation records, won the
only gold medal for outstanding performance in all sports, invented the airplane ambulance, was
the first female bomber pilot in history, fought in World War I disguised as a man, took part in
the Resistance of World War II, was the first to survive crossing the English Channel in a
balloon, worked all her life as a journalist, spent years in North Africa and invented metal
skis.
Her life story was so unusually rich in exploits and accomplishments that some dismissed it as a
hoax.
"Marie Marvingt, Fiancee of Danger: First Female Bomber Pilot, World-Class Athlete and
Inventor of the Air Ambulance" by Rosalie Maggio is biography that explores the life of "the
most incredible woman since Joan of Arc" and investigates the reasons she has been
forgotten.
Known as the "fiancee of danger", she was the model for the silent film series The Perils of
Pauline.
Critique: An extraordinary woman with extraordinary accomplishments, "Marie Marvingt,
Fiancee of Danger" is a deftly written and inherently fascinating account. Enhanced for academia
with the inclusion of a four page Chronology, thirty-eight pages of Notes, a thirty-two page
Bibliography, and a two page Index, "Marie Marvingt, Fiancee of Danger" is unreservedly
recommended for personal reading lists, as well as community and academic library Women's
History and American Biography collections.
Dr. David Murray
Benjamin Duke
Rutgers University Press
106 Somerset St., 3rd Floor, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
http://rutgerspress.rutgers.edu
9780813594972, $69.95, HC, 426pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Dr. David Murray: Superintendent of Education in the Empire of Japan, 1873-1879"
by Benjamin Duke (who is Professor Emeritus of International Christian University in Tokyo,
Japan, where he was chairman of the graduate faculty of education.) is the first biography in
English of an uncommon American who was a professor of mathematics at Rutgers College, and
who was appointed by the Japanese government as Superintendent of Education in the Empire of
Japan in 1873.
The founding of the Gakusei (the first public school system launched in Japan) marks the
beginning of modern education in Japan, accommodating all children of elementary school age.
Murray's unwavering commitment to its success renders him an educational pioneer in Japan in
the modern world.
Professor Duke has compiled this comprehensive biography of David Murray to showcase
Murray's work, both in assisting around 100 samurai students in their studies at Rutgers, and in
his unprecedented role in early Japanese-American relations. This fascinating biography
uncovers a little-known link between Rutgers University and Japan, and it is the only study to
conclude that Rutgers made a greater contribution to the development of modern education in the
early Meiji Era than any other non-Japanese college or university in the world.
Critique: A seminal work of meticulous and detailed scholarship, "Dr. David Murray:
Superintendent of Education in the Empire of Japan, 1873-1879" is an inherently fascinating
story from beginning to end. Enhanced for academia with the inclusion of two pages of Notes
and a six page Index, "Dr. David Murray: Superintendent of Education in the Empire of Japan,
1873-1879" is a unique and esspecially recommended addition to community and academic
library American Biography collections in general, and Japanese Education History supplemental
studies reading lists in particular.
The Military Shelf
Meuse-Argonne Diary
William M. Wright, author
Robert H. Ferrell, editor
University of Missouri Press
113 Heinkel Bldg., 201 S. 7th Street, Columbia, MO 65211
www.umsystem.edu/upress
9780826221919, $22.95, PB, 192pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: During America's participation in World War I, 1917-1918, only a single commander
of a division, William M. Wright, is known to have kept a diary. In it, General Wright relates his
two-month experience at St. Mihiel and especially the Meuse-Argonne, the largest and most
costly battle in American history.
In the Meuse-Argonne, the Eighty-ninth Division, made up of 28,000 draftees from Missouri and
Kansas and under Wright's command, was one of the two American point divisions beginning
November 1, 1918, when the U.S. First Army forced the German defenders back to the Meuse
River and helped end World War I as the main German railway line for the entire Western Front
came under American artillery fire.
It was a great moment, and Wright was at the center of it.
With the publication of "Meuse-Argonne Diary: A Division Commander in World War I", editor
Robert Ferrell skillfully supplements the diary with his own narrative, making use of pertinent
manuscripts, notably a memoir by one of Wright's infantry regiment commanders.
The diary shows the exacting attention that was necessary to keep such a large, unwieldy mass of
men in motion. It also shows how the work of the two infantry brigadiers and of the two
supporting artillery brigades required the closest attention. Meuse-Argonne Diary, a unique
account of, among other things, a singular moment in the Great War in which American troops
ensured victory, will fascinate anyone interested in military history in general and World War I in
particular.
Critique: A unique, informative, and at times riveting read, "Meuse-Argonne Diary: A Division
Commander in World War I" is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended addition to
personal, community, and academic library World War I History collections and supplemental
studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and military buffs that "Meuse-Argonne
Diary: A Division Commander in World War I" is also available in a digital book format
(Kindle, $21.80).
Editorial Note: Robert H. Ferrell is Professor Emeritus of History at Indiana University. He is the
author or editor of numerous books, including A Youth in the Meuse-Argonne: A Memoir, 1917-
1918 by William S. Triplet; Harry S. Truman: A Life; and The Dying President: Franklin D.
Roosevelt, 1944-1945, all available from the University of Missouri Press.
Special Operations in Norway
Ian Herrington
I. B. Tauris Publishers
www.ibtauris.com
9781788312622, $115.00, HC, 392pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Between 1940 and 1945, Britain's Special Operations Executive (SOE) carried out
sabotage and organised resistance across occupied Europe. Over 5 years, SOE sent over 500
agents into Norway to carry out a range of operations from sabotage and assassination to attempts
to organise an underground guerrilla army.
"Special Operations in Norway: SOE and Resistance in World War II" by Ian Herrington (who is
a retired higher education professional who worked latterly at Hertfordshire University and
whose book is based on his PhD from De Montfort University) is the first multi-archival,
international academic analysis of SOE's policy and operations in Norway and the influences that
shaped them, challenging previous interpretations of the relationship between this organisation
and both the Norwegian authorities and the Milorg resistance movement.
Critique: An impressive work of meticulous and exhaustive research, "Special Operations in
Norway: SOE and Resistance in World War II" is an extraordinarily informed and informative
study that will prove to be a welcome addition to the growing library of World War II histories.
Enhanced for academia with the inclusion of three appendices, seventy pages of Notes, an
eighteen page Bibliography, and a seven page Index, "Special Operations in Norway" is
unreservedly recommended for community and academic library World War II collections and
supplemental studies curriculums. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of students,
academia, and military buffs that "Special Operations in Norway" is also available in a digital
book format (Kindle, $103.50).
Valley of the Shadow
Kevin Boylan & Luc Olivier
Osprey Publishing
4301 21st St, Suite 220B, Long Island City, NY 11101
www.ospreypublishing.com
9781472824370,$30.00, HC, 368pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Struggling to reassert control over their Indochinese colonies after World War II, the
French established a huge air-land base in the valley of Dien Bien Phu. But when the opposing
Vietnamese People's Army (VPA) began massing its forces against the base in late 1953, French
commanders seized the opportunity to draw their elusive enemy into a decisive set-piece
battle.
Defending a series of fortified positions which were reliant upon a single airstrip (and later, risky
and inaccurate airdrops) for reinforcement and resupply, the French troops quickly discovered
that they had underestimated their enemy. In 56 days of costly close-quarters fighting, the VPA
slowly dislodged the French from one strongpoint after another by developing novel tactics and
accomplishing incredible feats of engineering.
Drawing upon Vietnamese-language sources never previously employed in Western accounts of
the siege, "Valley of the Shadow: The Siege of Dien Bien Phu" by Kevin Boylan and Luc Olivier
is a dramatic re-telling of the climactic battle of the First Indochina War, the conflict that saw the
French expelled from their former colony and set the stage for the "American War" in
Vietnam.
Critique: An impressively researched and extraordinarily detailed battlefield history, "Valley of
the Shadow: The Siege of Dien Bien Phu" is enhanced for academia with the inclusion of
Illustrations, Maps, Tables, a ten page Bibliography, twenty-two pages of Appendices, forty-one
pages of End Notes, and a twelve page Index. While very highly recommended as a core addition
to 21st Century Military History collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of
students, academia, and dedicated military history buffs that "Valley of the Shadow" is also
available in a paperback edition (9781472824417, $21.00) and in a digital book format (Kindle,
$12.60).
Editorial Note: Kevin Boylan is a professor of history at Emmanuel College in Boston,
Massachusetts. From 1995 to 2005, he was employed by the Pentagon as a defense analyst for the
US Defense Department and the US Army Staff. Boylan returned to academia in 2005, teaching
first at the University of Maine, Augusta, and then at a variety of colleges and universities in
Connecticut and Wisconsin before moving to Boston. In October 2014, his groundbreaking
article on the topic of Viet Minh artillery at Dien Bien Phu was published in the Journal of
Military History, and won the Society of Military History's Moncado Prize in 2015.
France, Luc Olivier served in the French Army as a second lieutenant and platoon commander.
He also has an extensive background in IT consulting and is presently the managing director of a
French-Hungarian IT company. He has designed a dozen commercial wargames (including two
on Dien Bien Phu) which have been published in magazines including Vae Victis and Battles
Magazine. Living in Paris, France, he has also written and published many articles on historical
military topics over the last 20 years.
Pilgrim Days
Alastair Mackenzie
Osprey Publishing
4301 21st St, Suite 220B, Long Island City, NY 11101
www.ospreypublishing.com
9781472833181, $25.00, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: If there was ever anyone who went a little further, a little beyond as a soldier, it was
Alastair MacKenzie. In a military career spanning 30 years, MacKenzie served uniquely with the
New Zealand Army in Vietnam, the British Parachute Regiment, the British Special Air Service
(SAS), the South African Defense Force's famed ParaBats, the Sultan of Oman's Special Forces,
and a host of private security agencies and defense contractors. MacKenzie lived the soldier's life
to the full as he journeyed "the Golden Road to Samarkand."
"Pilgrim Days: From Vietnam to the SAS" is extraordinary and extraordinary military biography
that vividly documents, (and in a detail that stuns), as Mackenzie showcases the experience of
infantry combat in Vietnam, life with the Paras, the tempo of selection for UK Special Forces,
covert SAS operations in South Armagh and SAS Counter Terrorist training on the UK
mainland, vehicle-mounted Pathfinder Brigade insertions into Angola, and maritime
counter-terrorism work in Oman.
Critique: Nicely illustrated with a special section of photographs, "Pilgrim Days: From Vietnam
to the SAS" is an impressively written, exceptionally informative, and inherently riveting read
that is unreservedly recommended for both community and academic library Military History &
Biography collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of all military buffs that
"Pilgrim Days" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Alastair MacKenzie comes from a military family of long standing and he served
as a para-trained platoon commander for 12 months with the New Zealand infantry on combat
operations in South Vietnam and in the special forces of South Africa, Oman and the UK, where
for four years he was troop commander in the 22nd Special Air Service Regiment. After his
retirement as a full-time Army officer he enjoyed a successful commercial career with Royal
Ordnance and British Aerospace before moving to consultancy roles. In civilian life he retained
an involvement with the Territorial Army as an SAS officer and retired with the rank of
lieutenant colonel in 2001. He obtained his PhD in politics in 2005 and is the author of works
including "Special Force: The Untold Story of 22nd Special Air Service Regiment (SAS)" and
"The Sounds Soldiers' Memorial--Stories of the Fallen".
Left for Dead at Nijmegen
Marcus A. Nannini
Casemate Publishers
1940 Lawrence Road, Havertown, PA 19083
www.casematepublishers.com
9781612006963, $32.95, HC, 256pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Left for Dead at Nijmegen" vividly recalls the larger-than-life experiences of an
American paratrooper, Gene Metcalfe, who served in the 82nd Airborne during WWII.
This personal military memoir covers his recruitment into the military at Camp Grant to his
training with the 501st Paratroop Infantry Regiment at Camp Toccoa. It wasn't until D-Day itself
that he first arrived in England to join the 508th PIR.
When Metcalfe boarded the C-47 which would drop him at Groesbeek Heights, just outside of
Nijmegen, Holland, he was handed a box of twelve dozen condoms by an overconfident British
lieutenant. He was to be among the first to jump into what should have been a picture-book
meadow, free of German troops. Instead, it was defended by three German antiaircraft cannon
emplacements.
As he jumped into a hail of bullets and exploding shells he watched his plane roll over and
plummet into the ground. It was at that moment he realized the condoms had either been a bad
joke or the planners of Operation Market Garden had seriously underestimated German
resistance. Gene was listed as KIA and left for dead by his patrol, who presumed the worst when
they saw his injuries from a shell explosion.
The rest of his story is equally gripping, as he became a POW held outside Munich, being moved
between various camps ridden with disease and a severely undernourished population.
Eventually, after making an escape attempt and being captured within sight of the snow-capped
Swiss mountains, his camp was liberated by American troops in April 1945.
Critique: "Left for Dead at Nijmegen: The True Story of an American Paratrooper in World War
II" is an extraordinary and simply riveting memoir that will prove to be an immediate and
enduringly valued addition to both community and academic library World War II Military
History & Biography collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Left for Dead
at Nijmegen" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $19.95).
The Fiction Shelf
History. A Mess.
Sigrun Palsdottir
Open Letter Books
c/o University of Rochester
Lattimore Hall 411, Box 270082, Rochester, NY 14627
www.openletterbooks.org
9781940953984, $13.95, PB, 120pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: While studying a seventeenth-century diary, a student uncovers information about the
first documented professional female artist. This discovery promises to change her academic
career, and life in general -- until she realizes that her "discovery" was nothing more than two
pages stuck together. At this point there's no going back though, and she goes to great lengths to
hide her mistake -- undermining her sanity in the process.
Critique: "History, A Mess." by Sigrun Palsdottir is deftly crafted satirical novel that's funny,
colorful, thoughtful, thought-provoking, and inherently entertaining while also raising basic
questions about truth, research, and the very nature of belief. Ably translated from Icelandic into
English for the benefit of an American readership by Professor Lytton Smith (SUNY Geneseo),
"History. A Mess." is strongly and unreservedly recommended for both community and academic
library Contemporary Literary Fiction collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists
that "History. A Mess." is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.95).
When the Music Stopped
Beryl Matthews
Magna Large Print
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9780750547048, $35.50, HC, Large Print, 324pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Set in London in 1910, "When the Music Stopped" by Beryl Mathews is the story of
two twins, Lester and Lillia Holdsworth, who are destined for the stage. Lester is a brilliant
pianist; Lillia a magnificent opera singer. But their cruel father has other ideas for their
future.
Lester is sent to a military academy, while Lillia must marry Lord Dalton -- a pompous friend of
her father's looking for a young wife to give him an heir.
Their plans to defy their father's wishes are put on hold when war breaks out. Lester flies planes
for the Royal Flying Corps and Lillia trains as a nurse. They wait (like the rest of Europe) for the
war to end and the music to start again.
Critique: A wonderfully entertaining and deftly crafted novel by an author with an impressive
flair for the kind of narrative storytelling that grips the reader's rapt attention from beginning to
end, this large print edition of Beryl Matthew's "When the Music Stopped" is an especially
recommended addition to personal reading lists and community library General Fiction
collections.
The Mystery/Suspense Shelf
Dark Site
Patrick Lee
Minotaur Books
c/o St. Martin's Publishing Group
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010
www.minotaurbooks.com
9781250030795, $27.99, HC, 400pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: On an otherwise normal morning, former Special Forces operative Sam Dryden is the
target of an unsuccessful attempted abduction. Using his attacker's cellphone, he learns that
another person, a woman named Danica Ellis, is also being targeted. Dryden arrives just in time
to save Danica from the assault team sent after her. But neither of them recognize the other, or
have any idea why they are being targeted. The only clue is a heavily redacted, official-looking
document given to Danica by her stepfather before he was killed.
Dryden immediately recognizes it as a "scrub file." A scrub file is a record of what a subject
knew before their memories were chemically destroyed. The redacted document refers to
witnesses to a secret military site in Ashland, Iowa in 1989. Both Dryden and Danica Ellis lived
in Ashland in 1989, when they were both twelve years old, though neither of them has any
memory of the other.
Switching back and forth between the present day, when Dryden and Danica try to elude the
forces that are after them, and the past in Ashland, Iowa, when both were twelve, making a
discovery that forever changed their lives, this latest Sam Dryden novel proves yet again that
Patrick Lee is one of the most original, compelling thriller writers today.
Critique: A simply riveting read from first page to last, Patrick Lee's "Dark Site" is the author's
third title in his Sam Dryden series. An impressively crafted and original thriller by a master of
the genre, and highly recommended, especially for community library collections, it should be
noted for personal reading lists that "Dark Site" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$14.99) and as a complete and unabridged audio book (Macmillan Audio, 9781427272508,
$50.99, CD).
Claws of the Cat
Susan Spann
Seventh Street Books
c/o Prometheus Books
59 John Glenn Drive, Amherst, NY 14228
www.prometheusbooks.com
9781633885448, $15.95, PB, 240pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: When in May of 1564 a samurai is brutally murdered in a Kyoto teahouse, master ninja
Hiro has no desire to get involved. But the beautiful entertainer accused of the crime enlists the
help of Father Mateo, the Portuguese Jesuit Hiro is sworn to protect, leaving the master shinobi
with just three days to find the killer in order to save the girl and the priest from execution.
The investigation plunges Hiro and Father Mateo into the dangerous waters of Kyoto's floating
world, where they learn that everyone from the elusive teahouse owner to the dead man's
dishonored brother has a motive to keep the samurai's death a mystery. A rare murder weapon
favored by ninja assassins, a female samurai warrior, and a hidden affair leave Hiro with too
many suspects and far too little time.
Worse, the ninja's investigation uncovers a host of secrets that threaten not only Father Mateo
and the teahouse, but the very future of Japan.
Critique: Now in a paperback edition, "Claws of the Cat" by Susan Spann is an extraordinary
mystery that is deftly set in feudal Japan and a part of her Hiro Hattori series of mystery novels.
A simply riveting and exceptionally entertaining read from cover to cover, "Claws of the Cat"
will prove to be an enduringly popular addition to both the personal reading lists of dedicated
mystery buffs and community library Mystery/Suspense collections. It should be noted that
"Claws of the Cat" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Susan Spann is the 2015 Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers' Writer of the Year and
the author of six other novels in the Shinobi Mystery series: Blade of the Samurai, Flask of the
Drunken Master, The Ninja's Daughter, Betrayal at Iga, Trial on Mount Koya, and Ghost of the
Bamboo Road. She has a degree in Asian Studies and a lifelong love of Japanese history and
culture.
The Fantasy/SciFi Shelf
The Gordian Protocol
David Weber & Jacob Holo
Baen Books
PO Box 1188, Wake Forest NC 27588
www.baen.com
9781481483964, $27.00, HC, 512pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Doctor Benjamin Schroder was far from a man of action. In fact, he was a history
teacher (Chairman of the Castle Rock University history department) and if his life wasn't
perfect, it was close. Until, that is the discussion of his star student Elzbieta Abramowski's
dissertation on Operation Oz, the Pacific Allies' invasion of Vladivostok, staged through
occupied Japan to meet their Imperial German allies, was brutally interrupted.
The psychotic episode that turned his entire world upside down struck with absolutely no
warning, and it was more terrifying than anything he should have been able to imagine, leaving
him with a complete, incredibly detailed set of false, nightmare "memories". Not just of his own
life, but of an entire, ghastly world in which Operation Oz had never happened. In which millions
of helpless civilians had been systematically slaughtered in "extermination camps" that were
horrific beyond belief. In which there was still a Soviet Union. In which the Chinese Communists
had succeeded, the Korean Peninsula had been permanently divided, thousands of nuclear
warheads had spread their deadly threat across the entire Earth, and the Middle East was a
festering sore of bloodshed, fanaticism, and terrorism.
The knowledge that those false memories had come from somewhere inside his own psyche was
terrible, but with the help of Commander Abramowski, a highly decorated Navy fighter pilot
who'd been forced to deal with her own PTSD after crippling combat wounds invalided her out
of service, he's put his life back together. With Elzbieta's support, he's learned to deal with the
nightmares, to recognize that they are only nightmares that can't (and won't) be permitted to rule
his life.
Until, that is, a lunatic named Raibert Kaminski knocks on his door one afternoon with an
impossible and horrifying story about alternate realities, time travel, temporal knots, and more
than a dozen doomed universes which must inevitably die if the temporal storm front rushing
towards the distant future isn't stopped. He has to be lying, of course. Or completely insane. But
what if he's not a madman after all? What if he's actually telling the truth?
That possibility is the most terrifying thing of all. Because if he is, the false memories aren't false
after all, and that other world is just as real as the one Schroder has always known. And if that's
true, Benjamin Schroder is about to become the greatest mass murderer in human history,
because he has to choose. Whether he acts or refuses to act, Benjamin Schroder is the one man
who will decide which universe lives and which dies, along with every star system, every galaxy
(and every single human being ) in it -- including the woman he's discovered he loves more than
life itself!
Critique: A successful collaboration between the legendary science fiction author David Weber
and writer, gamer, hobbyist, and engineer Jacob Holo, "The Gordon Protocol" is a deftly crafted
and riveting great read from cover to cover. While unreservedly recommended for community
library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of
all dedicated science fiction fans that "The Gordon Protocol" is also available in a digital book
format (Kindle, $7.39).
The Western Fiction Shelf
Death Came Calling
Adam Smith
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444839463, $20.99, PB, Large Print, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Sheriff Ray Cairney is sure something untoward is going on in Bristow, and that Curtis
Waring, bank manager and town council leader, is behind it. The arrival of two gunslingers and
the subsequent turn of events convince Cairney his hunch was right - but how to prove it? Those
involved are rich and powerful, and he is just one man. That, however, won't stop him. The brutal
murder of an entire family gives Cairney the evidence he will need to bring justice to Bristow -
but it will be a long, hard, lethal journey.
Critique: Once again with "Death Came Calling", author Adam Smith has deftly crafted an
original and riveting read that will hold special appeal to all dedicated western action/adventure
fans. This large print edition from the Linford Western Library will prove to be an immediate and
enduringly popular addition to personal reading lists and community library collections alike --
and leave Adam Smith's fully entertained readers looking eagerly toward his next thrilling, gun-
blazing western!
Pirates Of The Desert
C. J. Sommers
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444840469, $20.99, PB, Large Print, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The locals call the sand dunes of the Arizona Territory southland a white ocean. One
man, Barney Shivers, carries the comparison a little further when he orders his men to attack any
freight shipping that he does not control, and steal the goods on board -- just in the fashion of sea
borne pirates would a ship. But one little old lady, Lolly Amos, objects to the resulting corruption
that increases the price of sugar! So she contracts her nephew, Captain Parthenon Downs of the
Arizona rangers, to fight back and take down these land pirates and whoever is behind them.
Downs eagerly takes on the challenge -- but little does he realize that his decision will draw him
into a war against two bands of competing pirates!
Critique: Author C. J. Sommers is a master of the western action/adventure genre and with
"Pirates Of The Desert" has deftly crafted another riveting read with more plot twists than a
Disney Land roller coaster. This large print edition of "Pirates Of The Desert" is unreservedly
and enthusiastically recommended for the personal reading lists of dedicated western fans and the
Western Fiction collections of community libraries everywhere!
Friends Call Me Bat
Paul Colt
Five Star Publishing
10 Water Street, Suite 310, Waterville, ME 04901
http://gale.cengage.com/fivestar
9781432855017, $25.95, HC, 237pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: William Barclay "Bat" Masterson lived a truly extraordinary life that would become
legendary to succeeding generations. If the stories about him weren't true, no one would believe
it. Bat Masterson lived the West when the West was wild. But his true significance in Western
history remains largely unknown to days western fans.
His story includes encounters some of the West's most deadly gunfighters and dangerous
desperados. He counted among his friends a veritable "Who's Who" in old West history. He
ultimately walked away from his Western adventures to live out the last twenty years of his life
as a sportswriter for a New York daily newspaper.
A work of fiction solidly grounded in historical fact, "Friends Call Me Bat" by Paul Colt is his
story and those of his friends as he might have told them -- complete with an otherworldly twist
at the end!
Critique: A terrifically entertaining and deftly crafted western novel by an author with a genuine
gift for originality and a reader engaging narrative storytelling style, "Friends Call Me Bat" by
Paul Colt will prove to be an immediate and exceptionally popular addition to community library
Western Fiction collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Friends Call Me
Bat" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $7.99).
Run Masked
Jake Douglas
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444840117, $20.99, PB, Large Print, 248pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Brock Chase and Jake Cash are neighbors and friends, helping each other 'prove up'
their homesteads on time. There are plenty of others like them in Cannon Valley, except for the
fact that the areas of land belonging to each of the men are coveted by a murderous sheriff when
a gold nugget is found by Brock. The trouble begins when Brock calls out the sheriff's card shark
brother for cheating at cards and proves to be a little faster on the draw, killing the crooked
gambler. Framed for murder, first Brock and then Jake must start running with a 'shoot on sight'
order issued by the sheriff to his posse. It becomes a case of run, run and run some more, to stay
one step ahead and trying to correct the slander that threatens to lose them their claims -- and
their lives!
Critique: A straight forward western by a gifted writer, "Run Masked" will hold the reader's rapt
attention right up to the final page -- but leaving him with the wish that author Jake Douglas had
gone a couple of chapters further before ending the novel as he did. Still, "Run Masked" is a
great read and this large print edition is highly recommended for personal reading lists and
community library western fiction collections.
Hell Paso
Matt Cole
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444840100, $20.99, PB, Large Print, 288pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Morgan Latimer is a drifter, riding through the West trying to escape his past, and
especially trouble. During his travels, he is forced to take shelter in a cave as a massive dirt storm
plunges him into darkness. After it passes, Latimer overhears a scuffle breaking out between a
man and a woman at a nearby creek. Not one to sit back and watch a woman be assaulted, he
intervenes - and immediately realizes he has found the trouble he was trying to avoid -- and that
trouble includes an attempted shotgun wedding, a lethal feud between to hostile family clans, and
a sinister force in the background determined to keep the feud going until an obscure goal is
reached.
Critique: Another gem of an original and entertaining western by a past master of the genre, this
large print edition of Matt Cole's "Hell Paso" is very highly recommended for personal reading
lists and community library collections alike.
Sixgun Doom
Bradford Scott
Sagebrush Large Print
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781785416798, $29.99, PB, Large Print, 186pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In "Sixgun Doom" by Bradford Scott we findTexas Ranger Walt Slade (who is also
known south of the border as El Halcon -- the Hawk) rides into the troubled town of El Paso to
aid the local sheriff in halting a series of savage raids by a gang leader with an uncanny ability to
slip away unscathed from any gunfighting scrap. Can Slade with the aid of the sheriff and his
deputies, and Slade's own knife-wielding Mexican sidekick bring peace to the land and justice to
the outlaws and their diabolical leader?
Critique: A solidly entertaining western with the flavor of those old 1940s westerns with such
heroes as Lash Larue, Hoppalong Cassidy, and Tex Riter, "Sixgun Doom" by Bradford Scott in
this thoroughly 'reader friendly' large print edition is unreservedly recommended for both
personal reading lists and community library Western Fiction collections.
The Architecture Shelf
Balkrishna Doshi: Architecture for the People
Khushnu Hoof, et al.
Vitra Design Museum
c/o Distributed Art Publishers
155 Sixth Avenue, 2nd floor, New York, NY 10013-1507
www.artbook.com
9783945852316, $85.00, HC, 400pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Balkrishna Doshi is one of India's most influential architects, renowned for his
harmonious designs that merge the formal language of classical modernism with Indian building
traditions and local craft skills. Always designed with a sensitivity to the social, environmental
and economic conditions of a given commission or site, Doshi's architecture honors the past
while at the same time accommodating the rapidly changing conditions and needs of modern
India.
Doshi has designed more than 100 buildings (educational and cultural institutions, public
buildings, private residences and low-income housing projects among them) and has taught
scores of students over the course of his 60-year career, a career distinguished by a sense of
responsibility and dedication to the country and communities he has served.
"Balkrishna Doshi: Architecture for the People" presents the first comprehensive survey of this
groundbreaking architect's oeuvre in over 20 years. With a complete overview of all of Doshi's
projects, it provides insights into the inspiration behind his work and the background to his
projects through essays written by outstanding experts in the field.
This richly illustrated, coffee-table sized volume is further supplemented by an interview with the
architect, an illustrated biography and new photographs that document the impressive timeliness
of the Indian master's buildings.
Critique: Offering a wealth of expertly organized and presented information, commentary, and
images, "Balkrishna Doshi: Architecture for the People" is impressively organized and presented.
Showcasing a remarkable body of work, this extensive and instructive study if unreservedly
recommended for personal, professional, corporate, community, and academic library
Contemporary Architecture collections and supplemental studies lists.
Editorial Note: Balkrishna Doshi (born 1927) began his architecture studies in 1947 before
working with Le Corbusier and Louis Kahn in Chandigarh and Ahmedabad. He founded his own
practice, Vastu Shilpa Consultants, in 1956, combining the lessons he learned from this earlier
generation of architects with an understanding of Indian architectural traditions. In 2018, Doshi
became the first-ever Indian winner of the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize.
The Library Science Shelf
Practical Knowledge and Information Management
Katharine Schopflin & Matt Walsh
Facet Publishing
www.facetpublishing.co.uk
9781783303366, $178.07, HC, 208pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Practical Knowledge and Information Management" by Katharine Schopflin and
matt Walsh provides a practical guide to implementing knowledge and information initiatives in
the workplace. Drawing on case studies from practitioners in a range of different work
environments, it outlines best practice, pitfalls and advice on a range of topics, including making
the business case, audits, establishing communities of practice, building knowledge bases and
knowledge capture.
Many workplaces have moved from providing research support to knowledge services. "Practical
Knowledge and Information Management" will help librarians and information managers provide
those services, to improve existing techniques for knowledge sharing and capture and to help
transition from the more traditional library model.
The individual chapters are based on case studies drawn from across the knowledge management
community in the UK, Ireland and North America. Although not an edited collection, "Practical
Knowledge and Information Management" draws on contributions from workplaces in both the
public and private sectors, including law, finance, Government, non-profit, academic and
business.
"Practical Knowledge and Information Management" will be useful reading for information
professionals with responsibility for knowledge and information management activity and will
suit both experienced professionals, those new to the area, and students on relevant courses/new
professionals looking to increase their knowledge.
Critique: Exceptionally well organized and presented, impressively informative and enhanced
with the inclusion of an Afterword (The Future of Knowledge and Information Management),
"Practical Knowledge and Information Management" is an extraordinary and unreservedly
recommended addition to professional, community, corporate, college, and university Library
Science & Information Management collections and supplemental studies curriculum reading
lists. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academics, librarians, corporate
data managers, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Practical
Knowledge and Information Management" is also available in a paperback edition
(9781783303359, $94.99).
Editorial Note: Katharine Schopflin is an information professional with more than 20 years'
experience. She has worked in sectors ranging from media to government and in a range of
information and knowledge management roles. She teaches regularly on MA LIS courses and
publishes regularly in both trade and academic journals. She is the editor of A Handbook for
Media Librarians and author of A Handbook for Corporate Information Professionals.
Matt Walsh is Global Knowledge Manager at Pearson. With 16 years' experience as knowledge
and information management professional, Matt has worked in a variety of different
organizations including public and private sector to deliver successful KM and IM solutions.
The American History Shelf
Civic Pioneers
Gretchen Dykstra
www.gretchendykstra.com
Wise Ink Creative Publishing
807 Broadway St. NE, Suite 46, Minneapolis, MN 55413
https://wiseink.com
9781634892087, $16.95, PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: At the turn of the 20th century, when industrialization, urbanization, and immigration
were radically changing the face of America, an activist government was taking root across the
nation. Innovative public servants fought to meet the needs of ordinary people who didn't have
access to the benefits afforded by wealth and power.
From a lonely champion of Native American children in Oklahoma to a postal
clerk-turned-police chief in Berkeley, "Civic Pioneers: Local Stories from a Changing America
1895-1915" by Gretchen Dykstra (who has worked in and around local government for more than
twenty years in New York City, growing to respect people who devote their professional lives to
the everyday needs of ordinary people) tells the dramatic tales of how these individuals, both
heroic and flawed, shaped the country for generations to come.
Critique: A unique approach to American political history, an unabashed salute to the men and
women who worked as dedicated public servants for the benefit of their communities and the
nation as a whole, and a work of fact that reads with all the narrative smoothness of a fiction
novel, "Civic Pioneers: Local Stories from a Changing America 1895-1915" is an informative
and inherently engaging read from cover to cover. Meticulously researched, impressively written,
exceptionally well organized and presented, "Civic Pioneers" will prove to be an immediate and
enduringly popular addition to both community and academic library American History
collections and supplemental studies lists. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of
students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Civic
Pioneers" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $6.99).
Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith
Thomas G. Alexander
University of Oklahoma Press
2800 Venture Drive, Norman, OK 73069
www.oupress.com
9780806162775, $29.95, HC, 416pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: As president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Utah's first
territorial governor, Brigham Young (1801-77) shaped a religion, a migration, and the American
West. He led the Saints to Utah, guided the establishment of 350 settlements, and inspired the
Mormons as they weathered unimaginable trials and hardships. Although he generally succeeded,
some decisions, especially those regarding the Mormon Reformation and the Black Hawk War,
were less than sound.
"Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith" is a new biography by historian
Thomas G. Alexander (who is Lemuel Hardison Redd Jr. Professor Emeritus of Western
American History at Brigham Young University) that draws on a lifetime of research to provide
an evenhanded view of Young and his leadership.
Following the murder in 1844 of church founder Joseph Smith, Young bore a heavy
responsibility: ensuring the survival and expansion of the church and its people. Alexander
focuses on Young's leadership, his financial dealings, his relations with non-Mormons, his
families, and his own deep religious conviction.
"Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith" addresses such controversial issues as
the practice of polygamy (Young himself had fifty-five wives), relations and conflicts between
Mormons and Indians, and the circumstances and aftermath of the horrific events of Mountain
Meadows in 1857. Although Young might have done better, Alexander argues that he bore no
direct responsibility for the tragedy.
Young relied on the counsel of his associates, and at times, the Mormon people pushed back to
prevent him from implementing changes. In some cases, such as polygamy and the doctrine of
blood atonement, the church leadership eventually rejected his views. Yet on the whole, Brigham
Young emerges as a multifaceted human figure, and as a prophet revered by millions of LDS
members, an inspired leader who successfully led his people to a distant land where their
community expanded and flourished.
Critique: A meticulously detailed and documented historical studies of Brigham Young and his
influence on American history as the leader of the Mormon migration and colonization of the
west, "Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith" by Professor Thomas G.
Alexander is an extraordinary volume that is unreservedly recommended for both community and
academic library 19th Century American History, Mormon History, and 19th Century American
Biography collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for the
personal reading lists of students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in
the subject that "Brigham Young and the Expansion of the Mormon Faith" is also available in a
digital book format (Kindle, $19.04).
The Frontier Army
R. Eli Paul, editor
South Dakota Historical Society Press
900 Governors Drive, Pierre, SC 57501-2217
https://www.sdhspress.com
9781941813218, $29.95, HC, 184pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Romanticized scenes of heroic soldiers fighting on the vast plains are strewn
throughout early chronicles of the old frontier army. Such interpretations rarely convey the
complex truth or reality of the day-to-day existence of the soldiers or of the American Indians on
whose land the battles took place. As new documents surface, coupled with increased digital
access for scholars, in-depth examinations of the army's role during this time in United States
history are moving forward.
Under the direction of editor R. Eli Paul, contributors to "The Frontier Army: Episodes from
Dakota and the West" present new primary sources and fresh interpretations of the Regular Army
in the West in fitting tribute to the careers of Thomas R. Buecker and John D. ( Jack )
McDermott. Centering on military conflicts and postings around present-day South Dakota and
in the Black Hills between 1854 and 1890, the contributors highlight the diverse experiences of
those associated with the American frontier army and the people they fought on the Great
Plains.
Observations formed by studying personal letters, recorded memories, and contemporary
monuments provide an analysis of how the army and its soldiers are remembered today.
Firsthand accounts give previously ignored groups a voice, and readers learn more about
lesser-known actors foot soldiers, minorities, and others on the periphery of popular history.
Individually, the essays bring much needed context to this era; together, they present a more
complete picture of those confronted with and involved in the nineteenth-century mission of
expansion and control.
Critique: A seminal and outstanding work of collaborative scholarship that includes a listing of
the contributors and their credentials, as well as a ten page Index, "The Frontier Army: Episodes
from Dakota and the West" is an extraordinary and highly recommended addition to both
community and academic library 19th Century American History collections and supplemental
studies reading lists.
The Civil War Shelf
The Most Desperate Acts of Gallantry
Daniel T. Davis
Savas Beatie
www.savasbeatie.com
9781611214116 $14.95 pbk. amazon.com
Synopsis: On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer led the 7th U.S. Cavalry into the
valley of the Little Bighorn. By sunset, Custer and five of his companies lay dead - killed in
battle against Sioux and Cheyenne warriors.
Through the passage of time, Custer's last fight has come to overshadow the rest of his military
career, which had its brilliant beginning in the American Civil War.
Plucked from obscurity by Maj. Gen. George McClellan, Custer served as a staff officer through
the early stages of the war. His star began to rise in late June, 1863, when he catapulted several
grades to brigadier general and was given brigade command. Shortly thereafter, at Gettysburg
and Buckland Mills, he led his men - the Wolverines - in some of the heaviest cavalry fighting of
the Eastern Theater.
At Yellow Tavern, Custer's assault broke the enemy line, and one of his troopers mortally
wounded the legendary Confederate cavalryman, J.E.B. Stuart. At Trevilian Station, his brigade
was nearly destroyed. At Third Winchester, he participated in an epic cavalry charge. Elevated to
lead the Third Cavalry Division, Custer played a major role at Tom's Brook and, later, at
Appomattox, which ultimately led to the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia.
Historian Daniel T. Davis, a long-time student of George Custer, has spent countless hours
walking and studying the battlefields where Custer fought in Virginia, Maryland, and
Pennsylvania. In The Most Desperate Acts of Gallantry, he chronicles the Civil War experiences
of one of the most recognized individuals to emerge from that tragic chapter in American
history.
Critique: The Most Desperate Acts of Gallantry: George A. Custer in the Civil War is a scholarly
examination of Custer's military service during the American Civil War, a phase of his life that is
nowhere near as well-known in the public consciousness as his notorious end at Little Bighorn.
Researched with scholarly precision, yet thoroughly accessible to readers of all backgrounds, The
Most Desperate Acts of Gallantry chronicles Custer's meteoric rise in rank, and the valiant
assaults he led. A wealth of black-and-white photographs enrich this seminal contribution to
public and library Civil War shelves, highly recommended.
The Civil War from Its Origins to Reconstruction
James S. Pula
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
https://mcfarlandbooks.com
9781476674117, $49.95, PB, 334pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The period of Sectionalism, Civil War and Reconstruction was the most traumatic era
in American history. The outcome changed the foundations of the nation, with effects still felt
today.
While most Civil War histories focus on specific topics (military history, economics, politics)
"The Civil War from Its Origins to Reconstruction" by James S. Pula presents the narrative as it
unfolded against a broader historical background. Drawing on direct quotations from actual
participants, Professor Pula provides an interpretive overview of the issues and events that
divided and then devastated the United States.
Critique: Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "The Civil War from Its Origins to
Reconstruction" provides an impressive overview of the American Civil War. Of special note is
the final chapter on 'The Legacy of Sectionalism, Civil War and Reconstruction'. Enhanced with
ten pages of Chapter Notes, a four page Bibliography, and a five page Index, "The Civil War
from Its Origins to Reconstruction" is a strongly recommended addition to the personal reading
lists of dedicated Civil War History buffs, as well as community, college, and university library
American Civil War collections.
Editorial Note: James S. Pula is a Professor of History at Purdue University Northwest and editor
of Gettysburg Magazine. He is the author of numerous books, his work has been honored with
the Mieczyslaw Haiman Award for sustained scholarly contributions to Polish American history
and culture, he has received the Distinguished Service Award from the American Council for
Polish Culture, and has been awarded three Oskar Halecki Prizes for various books, and the
Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, among others.
British Blockade Runners in the American Civil War
Joseph McKenna
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
https://mcfarlandbooks.com
9781476676791, $49.95, PB, 217pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Perhaps more than all the campaigns of the Union armies, it was the Union naval
blockade which, covering all major Southern ports along 3,500 miles of coastline for the duration
of the war, was key to bringing down the Confederacy. The daring exploits of Confederate
blockade runners are well known with many of them being British citizens operating out of
neutral ports such as Nassau, Havana and Bermuda.
Focusing on British involvement in the war, "British Blockade Runners in the American Civil
War" by Joseph McKenna (who is a former senior assistant librarian in the Central Library,
Birmingham, England) is history names the overseas bankers and manufacturers who, in critical
need of cotton and other Confederate exports, financed and equipped the fast little ships that ran
the blockade. The author attempts to disentangle the names and aliases of the captains (many of
whom were Royal Navy officers on temporary leave) and tells their stories in their own
words.
Critique: A unique and exceptionally informative contribution to the growing library of
American Civil War histories, "British Blockade Runners in the American Civil War" is an
information packed and nicely illustrated study that is unreservedly recommended for personal,
community, college, and university library American Civil War collections and supplemental
curriculum studies reading lists.
The Vicksburg Assaults, May 19-22, 1863
Steven E. Woodsworth & Charles D. Grear, editors
Southern Illinois University Press
1915 University Press Drive, SIUC Mail Code 6806, Carbondale, IL 62901
www.siupress.com
9780809337194, $29.50, HC, 136pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: After a series of victories through Mississippi early in the spring of 1863, General
Ulysses S. Grant's Army of the Tennessee had reached the critical point in its campaign to
capture Vicksburg. Taking the city on the hill would allow the Union to control the Mississippi
River and would divide the Confederacy in half. Confederate morale was low, and a Union
victory in the war appeared close before the start of Grant's assault against General John C.
Pemberton's Army of Mississippi.
But due to difficult terrain, strong defenses, and uncoordinated movements, the quick triumph
Grant desired was unattainable. On the afternoon of May 19, with little rest, preparation, or
reconnaissance, Union forces charged the Confederate lines only to be repulsed. A respite
between the assaults allowed both sides to reinforce their positions. Early on May 22 the Union
artillery sought to soften the stronghold's defenses before the general attack, but despite the
Union forces' preparation, the fighting proved even more disorganized and vicious. Again Grant
failed to move Pemberton. Not wanting to risk more soldiers in a third attack, Grant conceded to
the necessity of laying siege. Confederate morale climbed as the Southerners realized they had
held their ground against an overwhelming force.
In "The Vicksburg Assaults, May 19-22, 1863", the editorial team of Steven E. Woodworth and
Charles D. Grear have assembled five captivating essays that examine Grant's unsuccessful
assaults against Confederate defensive lines around Vicksburg. Ranging from military to social
history, the essays further historical debates on prominent topics, such as the reactions of
Midwesterners to the first failures of Grant's Vicksburg campaign. Two essays from opposing
sides analyze the controversial decisions surrounding the Railroad Redoubt, the site of the
bloodiest fighting on May 22. Another investigates how the tenacity of Texan reinforcements
forced Union soldiers to abandon their gains.
Peppered with first-hand observations and bolstered by an impressive depth of research, this
anthology is an invitingly written account and comprehensive assessment. By zeroing in on the
two assaults, the contributors offer essential clarity and understanding of these important events
within the larger scope of the Civil War's Vicksburg Campaign.
Critique: Certain to be an enduringly valued and appreciated contribution to the growing library
of American Civil War histories, "The Vicksburg Assaults, May 19-22, 1863" is an extraordinary
and exceptionally well presented compendium of five erudite and informative studies that are
further enhanced for academia with illustrations, a listing of the contributors and their
credentials, and a four page index, making it a critically essential and core addition to the
personal reading lists of Civil War buffs, as well as both community and academic American
Civil War collections and supplemental studies curriculums.
Editorial Note: Steven E. Woodworth, a professor of history at Texas Christian University, is the
author or editor of more than thirty books, including This Great Struggle: America's Civil War,
Nothing but Victory: The Army of the Tennessee, 1861-1865, and Jefferson Davis and His
Generals: The Failure of Confederate Command in the West. He is a co-editor of the Civil War
Campaigns in the West series.
Charles D. Grear, a professor of history at Central Texas College, is the author or editor of eight
books, including The Tennessee Campaign of 1864, Why Texans Fought in the Civil War, and
The House Divided: America in the Era of the Civil War & Reconstruction. He is a co-editor of
the Civil War Campaigns in the West series.
The Judicial Studies Shelf
Common Law and Natural Law in America
Andrew Forsyth
Cambridge University Press
One Liberty Plaza, Fl. 20, New York, NY 10006
www.cambridge.org
9781108476973, $110.00, HC, 168pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Common Law that body of law derived from judicial decisions of courts and similar
tribunals. Natural Law is a philosophy asserting that certain rights are inherent by virtue of
human nature, endowed by nature, God, or some other transcendent source, and that these can be
understood universally through human reason
Speaking to today's flourishing conversations on both law, morality, and religion, and the
religious foundations of law, politics, and society in America, "Common Law and Natural Law in
America: From the Puritans to the Legal Realists" by Andrew Forsyth (Lecturer in the
Department of Religious Studies, Yale University) is an ambitious re-assessment of the varied
American interactions of 'common law' and 'natural law'.
"Common Law and Natural Law in America" offers a counter-narrative to the dominant story of
common law and natural law by drawing widely from theological and philosophical accounts of
natural law, as well as primary and secondary work in legal and intellectual history. With
consequences for today's natural-law proponents and critics alike, Professor Forsyth deftly
explores the thought of the Puritans, Revolutionary Americans, and seminal legal figures
including William Blackstone, Joseph Story, Christopher Columbus Langdell, Oliver Wendell
Holmes, and the legal realists.
Critique: An inherently fascinating and impressively informative work of remarkably detailed
and documented scholarship, "Common Law and Natural Law in America: From the Puritans to
the Legal Realists" is an extraordinary and very highly recommended addition to community,
college, and university library Judicial History Studies collections and supplemental curriculum
lists. For the personal reading lists of students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with
an interest in the subject it should be noted that Common Law and Natural Law in America" is
also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $88.00).
The Death of the Rule of Law
Paul Singh
Science Literacy Books
www.scienceliteracybooks.com
9781949454079, $65.95, HC, 424pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: A companion to Dr. Paul Singh's "Guilty at Gunpoint" (9781949454062, $74.95 HC;
9780997054187, $24.95 PB; $14.67 Kindle, 326pp), "The Death of the Rule of Law" is a case
study for law students interested in pursuing Criminal Law. It provides a candid look at what
future lawyers will be facing in the real world of criminal justice.
A 'must read' for anyone wanting to learn more about what goes on behind the scenes, as well as
those interested in the point of view on the part of the defendant, and most especially anyone
wearing rose-colored glasses when it comes to our criminal justice system.
"The Death of the Rule of Law" provides a wealth of specific exhibits with irrefutable evidence
to prove Dr. Singh's claims -- and cites various laws and books by top-level insiders to show how
laws were broken by corrupt prosecutors whose only objective was to further their careers.
Critique: A seminal and critically important study, "The Death of the Rule of Law" is
unreservedly recommended as a core addition to community, college, university, graduate law
school, and prison Contemporary Judicial & Criminology Studies collections and supplement
curriculum reading lists. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of law students,
academia, social activists, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that
"The Death of the Rule of Law" is also available in a paperback edition (978-0997054194,
$22.99) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.65).
Editorial Note: Paul Singh is a biochemist, mathematician, surgeon-physician, a Urogynecologis,
and the founder and president of Singh Global initiatives, a philanthropic organization that
promotes health and science education worldwide. His lifelong passion is bringing scientific
literacy to the public for the benefit of humanity and alleviating suffering caused by poverty,
disease, and incurable illnesses. He is the co-author of "Discovering Our World" and the author
of "The Great Illusion" and "The Seduction of Religion".
The Agriculture Shelf
Holistic Management Handbook
Jody Butterfield, Sam Bingham, Allan Savory
Island Press
2000 M St NW Suite 650, Washington, DC 20036
www.islandpress.org
9781610919760, $35.00, PB, 264pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Holistic management is a systems-thinking approach developed by biologist Allan
Savory to restore the world's grassland soils and minimize the damaging effects of climate
change and desertification on humans and the natural world. This newly updated and expanded
third edition of "Holistic Management Handbook: Regenerating Your Land and Growing Your
Profits" was deftly crafted under the direction of Savory's longtime collaborator Jody Butterfield,
and is key to developing a comprehensive holistic land plan based on Savory's principles that will
help you to restore health to your land and ensure a stable, sustainable livelihood from its
bounty.
"Holistic Management Handbook" accessibly explains the planning procedures described in
Holistic Management, and offers step-by-step instructions for running a ranch or farm using a
holistic management approach. Butterfield and her coauthors describe how to use the handbook
in conjunction with the textbook to tailor a management plan for your unique combination of
land, livestock, and finances. Their mantra is "plan, monitor, control, and replan." Using a
four-part approach, the authors walk readers through basic concepts and techniques, help them
put a plan onto paper, monitor the results, and adjust the details as needed. Appendixes provide
updated worksheets, checklists, planning and monitoring forms, and detailed examples of typical
scenarios a user might encounter. The handbook includes a comprehensive glossary of
terms.
Critique: Unreservedly recommended for personal, community, corporate, college, and university
library Agriculture, Agronomy, Soil Science, and Environmental Engineering collections and
supplemental studies lists, "Holistic Management Handbook" will prove to be of special and
practical interest for the personal reading lists of ranchers, farmers, pastoralists, social
entrepreneurs, government agencies, and NGOs working to address global environmental
degradation.
Editorial Note: Jody Butterfield is a former journalist specializing in agriculture and the
environment. She is a cofounder of the Savory Institute. Sam Bingham, a Savory Network
Accredited Educator, is the author of five books and numerous articles on the land and the people
who make a living from it. Allan Savory is a former wildlife biologist and farmer who conceived
of and developed Holistic Management. He is a cofounder and President of the Savory
Institute.
The Political Science Shelf
The Great Lie
F. Flagg Taylor IV
ISI Books
3901 Centerville Road, Wilmington, DE 19807-1938
www.isibooks.org
9781935191360, $30.00, PB, 698pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Totalitarianism was the dominant phenomenon of the twentieth century and lead
directly to two world wars and the subsequent 'Cold War'. Deeply troubling questions endure
regarding the nature of such tyrannical regimes: What enabled human beings to carry out such
horrific crimes against their fellow man? What does the endurance of Communism reveal about
human liberty? Why did human beings suffer rule by ideological lies for so long, and what kept
them open to the truth? What are we to make of the relationship between totalitarianism and the
foundational principles of democratic modernity?
Some of the greatest minds of the twentieth century sought answers to these haunting questions.
Now, for the first time ever, their incisive and profound reflections on totalitarianism have been
brought together in one volume. Compiled and edited by Flagg Taylor (Assistant Professor of
government at Skidmore College) "The Great Lie: Classic and Recent Appraisals of Ideology and
Totalitarianism" showcases the insights of such giants as Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Vaclav Havel,
Hannah Arendt, Eric Voegelin, Czeslaw Milosz, Leo Strauss, and Raymond Aron, along with
neglected but important thinkers such as Waldemar Gurian, Aurel Kolnai, Leszek Kolakowski,
Pierre Manent, Claude Lefort, and Chantal Delsol. The thirty-six brilliant essays comprising
volume collectively illuminate the very nature of totalitarian regimes, and the monstrous ideology
that is their defining feature.
"The Great Lie" allows readers to make sense of political evil and how it can attract so many
people into its ideological fold. This is not a matter of mere academic interest in an age when we
confront totalitarianism in such regimes as North Korea and Cuba -- and, arguably, in radical
Islamist movements and the current American presidency.
Critique: An impressive body of meticulously presented scholarship that is as exceptionally
informed and informative as it is insightful, thoughtful and thought provoking, "The Great Lie:
Classic and Recent Appraisals of Ideology and Totalitarianism" is a particularly timely and
valued contribution to our on-going national dialogue with respect to the survival of our
American style democracy against authoritarian and totalitarian movements at home and abroad.
Enhanced for academia with the inclusion of sixteen pages of Notes, a three page listing of
Sources and Permissions, a five page listing of the contributors and their credentials, and a fifteen
page Index, "The Great Lie" is unreservedly recommended for both community and academic
library Political Science & History collections, as well as the personal reading lists of students,
political scientists, political reform activists, governmental policy makers, and non-specialist
general readers with an interest in the subject.
Women of Westminster
Rachel Reeves
I. B. Tauris Publishers
www.ibtauris.com
9781788312202, $27.00, HC, 320pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In 1919 Nancy Astor was elected as the Member of Parliament for Plymouth Sutton,
becoming the first woman MP to take her seat in the House of Commons. Her achievement was
all the more remarkable given that women (and even then only some women) had only been
entitled to vote for just over a year.
In the past 100 years, a total of 491 women have been elected to Parliament. Yet it was not until
2016 that the total number of women ever elected surpassed the number of male MPs in a single
parliament.
The achievements of these political pioneers have been remarkable -- Britain has now had two
female Prime Ministers and women MPs have made significant strides in fighting for gender
equality from the earliest suffrage campaigns to Barbara Castle's fight for equal pay to Harriet
Harman's recent legislation on the gender pay gap.
Yet the stories of so many women MPs have too often been overlooked in political histories. In
"Women of Westminster: The MPs who Changed Politics", Rachel Reeves brings forgotten MPs
out of the shadows and looks at the many battles fought by the female British MPs from 1919 to
2019.
Critique: Now even more timely with the resignation of Theresa May from the post of Britain's
Prime Minister, "Women of Westminster: The MPs who Changed Politics" is an extraordinary
and unreservedly recommended addition to both community and academic library British
Political Science and 20th Century Women's History collections. It should be noted for personal
reading lists that "Women of Westminster" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$23.09) and as a complete and unabridged audio book (Brilliance Audio, 978-1799700951,
$14.99, CD).
The Art Shelf
Calligraphy and Lettering: A Maker's Guide
Victoria & Albert Museum
Thames & Hudson, Inc.
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110-0017
www.thamesandhudsonusa.com
9780500294307, $29.95, PB, 176pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Located in London, England, the Victoria and Albert Museum is the world's leading
museum of art, design, and performance, housing a permanent collection of over 2.3 million
objects that span over 5,000 years of human creativity.
Calligraphy (along with brush lettering, sign writing, and the chalkboard) is undergoing a surge
in popularity. Examples of beautiful lettering and penmanship are all around us, and all over
Instagram, depicted on book covers, posters, and invitations.
Perfect for anyone wanting to learn more about calligraphy and lettering, this practical
introduction showcases many examples from the Victoria and Albert Museum's massive
collection, and will offer a new understanding and appreciation of letterforms.
Detailed instructions, complete with sample alphabets, lead you through the essentials of classic
styles such as Gothic and Italic lettering, on to vintage- inspired sign writing and chalkboard
design and even into the elegant, image-led worlds of illuminated capitals and zoomorphic
calligraphy. Projects include a handmade booklet, banner, menu, gift tags, a monogram rubber
stamp, greetings cards, and more.
Lettering often has a decorative as well as informative function, and with Calligraphy and
Lettering and a bit of practice, it is possible for anyone to elevate their message, whatever it may
be, into a personalized piece of art.
Critique: Beautifully illustrated, deftly organized, and thoroughly 'user friendly' in presentation
and style, "Calligraphy and Lettering: A Maker's Guide" is an ideal introduction for the novice
and will have continuing value as an instructional reference for experienced calligraphers. The
perfection 'how to' instructional guide, "Calligraphy and Lettering: A Maker's Guide" is
unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library
Calligraphy and Hand-Lettering reference collections.
The Graphic Flower
Michael B. Emery & Iriwn Richman
Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310
www.schifferbooks.com
9780764357268, $34.99, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "The Graphic Flower: Ray Flowers and Roses in American Art and Culture" by the
collaborative team of Michael B. Emery (who the site administrator of Cornwall Iron Furnace)
and Irwin Richman (who works with the Landis Valley Associates, a private group dedicated to
forwarding the aims of the Landis Valley Village and Farm Museum) beautifully showcases
America's favorite flora -- the homey ray flowers, a tribe featuring daisies, sunflowers,
chrysanthemums, dahlias, coneflowers, and black-eyed-Susans, combined with the elegant,
multifaceted rose.
Critique: Profusely illustrated with images drawn from seed packets, advertising, period photos,
as well as American and European works of art, "The Graphic Flower" is a compendium of
memorable images are combined with an informed and informative commentary on the history
and romance of America's favorite flowers. Offering a beautifully illuminated and impressively
illuminating experience for the reader, "The Graphic Flower is unreservedly recommended as an
addition to personal, community, and academic library collections.
The Technology Shelf
NASA Mission AS-506 Apollo 11 Owners' Workshop Manual
Christopher Riley & Philip Dolling
Haynes Publishing UK
c/o Quarto Publishing Group USA
400 First Avenue North, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55401-1722
www.quartoknows.com
9781785215926, $36.95, HC, 216pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: On 20 July 1969, US astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first men
to walk on the moon. "NASA Mission AS-506 Apollo 11 Owners' Workshop Manual" is the
illustrated story of the Apollo 11 mission and the 'space hardware' that made it all possible. This
exceptionally informative manual looks at the evolution and design of the mighty Saturn V
rocket, the Command and Service Modules, and the Lunar Module. The manual also describes
the space suits worn by the crew and their special life support and communications systems.
Interested readers will learn about how the Apollo 11 mission was flown - from launch
procedures to 'flying' the Saturn V and the 'LEM', and from moon walking to the earth re-entry
procedure.
Critique: This new edition of the "NASA Mission AS-506 Apollo 11 Owners' Workshop
Manual" celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing and is unreservedly
recommended for personal, community, and academic library collections.
Practical ESM Analysis
Sue Robertson
Artech House
685 Canton Street, Norwood, MA 02062
www.artechhouse.com
9781630815288, $143.00, HC, 328pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Sue Robertson is a defense consultant with more than 20 years of experience in ESM
analysis and system optimization. In "Practical ESM Analysis" she draws upon her decades of
experience and expertise to provide an authoritative resource for students and technicians
involved with electronic warfare with a complete instructional textbook that considers radar
parameters and how they affect ESM systems.
"Practical ESM Analysis" describes the ESM environment, including types of radar, pulse
density, the latest radar developments and how they will be seen by ESM systems. Different
types of ESM systems are described, with methods of calculation of Direction of Arrival (DOA)
of pulses.
Conventional wisdom about RF scan strategies for narrow-band receivers will be challenged and
new methods (proven to be effective in trials) will be proposed. "Practical ESM Analysis" also
describes ESM Antenna separation, which plays a significant part in the generation of DOA
errors, with examples of the effects for different situations.
Critique: Expertly organized and presented, "Practical ESM Analysis" is an comprehensive and
unreservedly recommended textbook and should be considered a core addition to college and
university library Electronic Warfare collection and supplemental studies curriculum lists. It
should be noted for students, academia, corporate ESM engineers, that "Practical ESM Analysis"
is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $135.85).
Lithium-Ion Battery Failures in Consumer Electronics
Ashish Arora, et al.
Artech House
685 Canton Street, Norwood, MA 02062
www.artechhouse.com
9781630816032, $139.00, HC, 238pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The collaborative work of lithium battery experts Ashish Arora, Sneha Arun Lele,
Noshirwan Medora, and Shukri Souri, "Lithium-Ion Battery Failures in Consumer Electronics" is
comprehensive resource that specifically caters to system designers who are looking to
incorporate lithium ion (li-ion) batteries in their applications.
Detailed discussion of the various system considerations that must be addressed at the design
stage to reduce the risk of failures in the field is presented. "Lithium-Ion Battery Failures in
Consumer Electronics" also includes technical details of all state-of-the-art Li-on energy storage
subsystems and their requirements, and provides a system designer a single resource detailing all
of the common issues navigated when using Li-ion batteries to reduce the risk of field
failures.
Further more, "Lithium-Ion Battery Failures in Consumer Electronics" details the various
industry standards that are applicable to the subsystems of Li-ion energy storage systems and
how the requirements of these standards may impact the design of their system.
Checklists are included to help readers evaluate their own battery system designs and identify
gaps in the designs that increase the risk of field failures. "Lithium-Ion Battery Failures in
Consumer Electronics" is packed with numerous examples of issues that have caused field
failures and how a proper design/assembly process could have reduced the risk of these
failures.
Critique: A complete and ideal textbook on the subject, "Lithium-Ion Battery Failures in
Consumer Electronics" is enhanced with the inclusion of a ten page Glossary, a two page listing
of the authors and their credentials, and a three page Index, and a two page listing of recent
Artech House titles in the field of Power Engineering. Expertly and professionally organized and
presented, "Lithium-Ion Battery Failures in Consumer Electronics" is unreservedly recommended
for corporate, college and university library Lithium Battery technology collections and
supplemental studies reading lists.
The LGBT Studies Shelf
Accidentally Gay
Lucky Bradley & Wolsey Bradley
Riverdale Avenue Books
www.riverdaleavebooks.com
9781626014961, $19.99, PB, 210pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: When Lucky Bradley married his wife 25 years ago, he had the happily ever after he'd
always wanted. Then, 20 years into their marriage, he found himself in a same sex marriage, as
his wife transitioned from wife to husband.
When Wolsey married Lucky, he never thought he could be his true self. After 20 years, he took
a chance, and transitioned female to male. To his joy, his husband accepted him, and was his
biggest cheerleader throughout the process. But most of all, he loved him throughout the arduous
physical and emotional process.
True love wins out as they both explain what this meant for them and their relationship in
Accidentally Gay, the blog that chronicled the day-by-day transformation of this happily married
couple.
Some love stories do have happy endings.
Critique: "Accidentally Gay: The True Love Story When a Wife Becomes a Husband" is an
extraordinary story of two extraordinary people and unreservedly recommended reading for all
members of the gay and straight community. While especially commended for community and
academic library LGBT collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that
"Accidentally Gay" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
The Sports Shelf
Climbing Manual
Nigel Shepherd
Haynes Publishing UK
c/o Haynes North America
www.revdex.com/reviews/haynes-north-america/995922
9781785212611, $19.95, PB, 172pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: From getting started with equipment, clothing, fitness and basic skills through to
advanced techniques and coping with tricky situations, "Climbing Manual: The essential guide to
rock climbing - Getting started - Techniques - Knots - Safety - Protection - Abseiling" is manual
that is packed with practical and illustrated step-by-step sequences and inspirational photography,
making it the perfect guide for the novice or intermediate climber.
The Haynes Climbing Manual is a thoroughly modern introduction to this growing adventure
sport, written by by Nigel Sheherd who is an experienced mountain guide, photographer and
author.
Critique: Immensely practical, comprehensive, informed and informative, and unreservedly
recommended for personal, community, and academic library collections, Nigel Sheperd's
"Climbing Manual" is a complete and thoroughly 'user friendly' course of instruction that should
be considered as mandatory reading for anyone wanting to engage in the physically demanding
and potentially dangerous sport of mountain climbing.
Editorial Note: Nigel Shepherd began climbing aged 11 in Wales and became a qualified
International Mountain Guide in 1979. Since then he has pioneered climbs in the UK, New
Zealand, North America and Greenland, and continues to work in all aspects of mountaineering
in many parts of the world. He has written several books and many magazine articles, and his
photography has been published in The Independent, The Times and the Daily Telegraph, as well
as outdoor magazines and manufacturers' brochures.
Jai Alai
Paula E. Morton
University of New Mexico Press
MSC05 3185, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM 87131-0001
www.unmpress.com
9780826355492, $19.95, PB, 176pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In the pages of "Jai Alai: A Cultural History of the Fastest Game in the World",
independent journalist and the author, Paula Morton provides a fun, concise introduction to jai
alai, a fast-paced ball game with ancient roots that is admired by fans for the sport's power and
spectacle. Cesta punta, as the game is known in its Basque homeland, became a phenomenon
during the twentieth century as organized jai alai spread from Spain into the Caribbean, Latin
America, the United States, and Asia.
"Jai Alai: A Cultural History of the Fastest Game in the World" deftly outlines the multifaceted
history of the sport, from its beginnings in Basque country to its North American "unveiling" at
the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Centennial Exposition and World's Fair and to its rise and fall in
popularity in the United States.
Guest essays and historic photographs offer extensive insight into the sport's fascinating history.
Morton further explores the players and venues, providing a carefully crafted and thoroughly
researched look into jai alai. Sports lovers and cultural history enthusiasts will marvel at the
sport's unique history and reach.
Critique: An impressive combination of sports history and cultural study, "Jai Alai: A Cultural
History of the Fastest Game in the World" is an extraordinary and highly recommended addition
to both community and academic library collections. It should be noted for the personal reading
lists of all dedicated Jai Alai enthusiasts that this outstanding and thoroughly 'reader friendly'
study is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
The Music Shelf
Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's 50-Year Quest
Robert McParland
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
https://mcfarlandbooks.com
9781476674896, $35.00, PB, 194pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, with their distinct vocal harmonies, blending of rock,
jazz, folk, and blues, and political and social activism, have remained one of the most enduring
musical acts of the 1960s.
"Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's 50-Year Quest: Music to Change the World" by Robert
McParland (who is a professor of English at Felician University in Rutherford, New Jersey and
whose popular music writings include publications on The Beatles, The Who, U2, Bruce
Springsteen, John Fogerty, Paul Simon, and American lyricists) examines their songs and
themes, which continue to resonate with contemporary listeners, and argues that Crosby, Stills,
Nash, and Young reflect part of the broader story of American culture.
This appreciative study deftly contextualizes their work within the political climate of the late
1960s, and makes the case that the values and concerns expressed in their music thread through
the American experience today.
Critique: An inherently fascinating, impressively informative, exceptionally well organized and
presented study, "Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's 50-Year Quest: Music to Change the World"
is unreservedly recommended for both community and academic library American Music History
collections in general, and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young supplemental studies reading lists in
particular. It should be noted for the legions of their fans that "Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's
50-Year Quest: Music to Change the World" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$9.99).
The Comix/Graphic Novel Shelf
Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes
Jon Burlingame, et al.
Verlag fur moderne Kunst
c/o Distributed Art Publishers
155 Sixth Avenue, 2nd floor, New York, NY 10013-1507
www.artbook.com
9783903269323, $35.00, PB, 248pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Once reserved for children's comic books, newspaper comic strips, and Saturday
morning radio programs, the Super Hero has become mainstream for an adult audience thanks to
television, movies, and graphic novels -- and the aging of the Babyboom Generation. One of the
pioneering sources for the creation and popularization of the Super Hero is Marvel Comics under
the management of the now legendary Stan Lee.
Marvel Comics and Marvel Studio Films are not only the enduring voices of the Super Heroes
themselves, but also the diverse visions of Marvel's writers, artists, actors and filmmakers.
Accompanying an exhibition at Seattle's Museum of Pop Culture, "Marvel: Universe of Super
Heroes" features legendary comic creators, up-and-coming talent, editors, executives, artists,
actors and show-runners, along with articles about the history and power of the Marvel fans, with
stories that stretch our conceptions of heroes, whether through personal history, fandom or
fashion. Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes features dozens of images of the creation and
realization in both the comics and films of some of the biggest stars of the Marvel Universe,
including Black Panther, Captain America, Spiderman, Ms. Marvel and the Hulk, as well as
in-depth photographs of the exhibition itself.
Featuring in "Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes" are interviews with and articles by some of the
stars and legends who created the Marvel Universe, including Marvel founder Stan Lee; author
of Rise of the Black Panther Evan Narcisse; the actor Clark Gregg, who embodied Phil Coulson
in countless MCU films; Ms. Marvel creator G. Willow Wilson; and Marvel's Chief Creative
Officer and former Editor-in-Chief, Joe Quesada; as well as many others.
Critique: Simply stated, "Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes" is unreservedly recommended for
the legions of Super Hero fans in general, and the Marvel Universe of Super Heros in particular.
Indeed, "Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes" will prove to be an immediate and enduringly
popular addition to personal and community library collections, as well as college and university
library Contemporary American Popular Culture collections.
King Shaka: Zulu Legend
Luke W. Molver
Catalyst Press/Story Press Africa
www.catalystpress.org
9781946498939 $16.95 pbk / $14.95 Kindle amazon.com
Synopsis: Shaka has fought his brother to the death for rulership of the Zulu. Now king of the
southern chiefdoms, Shaka seeks to uplift his people, consolidate alliances, and expand the reach
of his power. But challenges both external and internal threaten his rule. A rogue military unit
exacts revenge on its enemies. Land-hungry Europeans arrive and ingratiate themselves with
Shaka, even while plotting their own path to power. And closer to home, Shaka's own brothers
conspire in secret.
Critique: King Shaka: Zulu Legend is a full-color graphic novel about the Zulu monarch Shaka
(c. 1787-1828), one of the most influential leaders of the Zulu people of Africa. King Shaka:
Zulu Legend is a work of historical fiction, using artistic license to interpret the actions of
historical figures. Even so, King Shaka: Zulu Legend stays as close as reasonably possible to
what is empirically known about Shaka, his allies, his rivals, and his enemies, in spite of limited,
incomplete, and often biased primary sources from the era. An extensive "The Story Continues"
postscript teaches the reader more about Zulu history and culture from Shaka's time. King Shaka:
Zulu Legend is an exciting read about a strong-willed ruler who faced enormous challenges, and
thoroughly engrossing from cover to cover. Highly recommended, as is the previous graphic
novel in this two-part series, "Shaka Rising" (9781946498984, $16.99 pbk). It should be noted
for personal reading lists that both "Shaka Rising" and "King Shaka: Zulu Legend" are available
in Kindle editions.
Four Sisters Vol. 2 Hortense
Written and illustrated by Cati Baur
Colors by Elodie Balandras
Based on the novel by Malika Ferdjoukh
Euro Comics
c/o IDW Publishing
www.idwpublishing.com
9781684054336 $19.99 amazon.com
Synopsis: Since the deaths of their parents, Hortense and her sisters have been on their own. But,
although their parents are gone, their spirits can still visit.
Winter arrives, and, as the world is buried in snow, Hortense buries her life in books. She
wonders what she will become: A character in her favorite series? A surgeon of incurable
diseases who can help her new friend Muguette? Or perhaps an actress? But to go on stage,
Hortense would have to overcome her shyness, which seems unlikely for a girl who'd rather write
in her diary than express her feelings out loud. It's in her diary where she exposes her innermost
thoughts and shares the ups and downs of her teenage life.
Critique: The second color graphic novel novel about four sisters who have lost their parents,
Hortense is about the titular eleven-year-old girl with a fondness for books. She writes in her
diary and dreams about the future, but she's painfully shy, and her new friend Muguette suffers
from a terrible disease. A wistful and at times heartwrenching saga of growing up, taking on hard
responsibilities, the fate of unwanted kittens, and more, Hortense is a choice pick for personal
and public library graphic novel collections. Also highly recommended is the first graphic novel
in the series, Four Sisters Vol. 1 Enid (9781684051960, $19.99).
The Chronicles Of Corum: The King Of Swords
Michael Moorcock, et al.
Titan Comics
https://titan-comics.com
9781782763277, $24.99, HC, 112pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In this volume of Michael Moorcock's epic sword & sorcery epic, the old races have
perished. Across the fifteen planes of reality, the ceaseless struggle between Law and Chaos
continues. Corum, the Prince in the Scarlet Robe, has destroyed two of the company of Chaos,
but Mabelode the Faceless will not see his actions go unpunished. Now the Eternal Champion
must call upon the power of other incarnations (Elric, and Erekose) and travel to the last five
planes to defeat the King of the Swords. At stake: not only the balance of forces at the crux of
existence, but also a personal vendetta, since the captain of the enemy army is the same Mabden
who slaughtered Corum's family!
Critique: Beautifully adapted to a graphic novel format by the team of Mike Baron, Mark
Shawnblum, and illustrated by Ken Hooper, this Titan Comics edition of "The Chronicles Of
Corum: The King Of Swords" is unreservedly recommended for community library Graphic
Novel collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of the legions of Michael
Moorcock fans that "The Chronicles Of Corum: The King Of Swords" is also available in a
digital book format (Kindle, $15.67).
The Library CD Shelf
Culture Kin
Real Vocal String Quartet
www.rvsq.com
Flower Note Records
$15.00 CD / $9.99 download https://store.cdbaby.com
California ensemble Real Vocal String Quartet presents Culture Kin, their fourth album. The
songs transcend cultures, combining the talents of Irene Sazer on violin, Sumaia Jackson on the
fiddle, David Tangney on the cello, and Sam Shuhan on the string bass. Although vocals are
present, the heart and soul of the original compositions are cultural collaborations between string
music artists of different backgrounds and affinities. A unique treasure of talent and creativity,
Culture Kin is highly recommended for personal and public library music collections. The tracks
are "Woui Le M'en Fe", "Seasons Song", "Bright Sun, Shade of a Tree", "For Choro", "Holding
an Eye", "Ananta", "Exist", "Aurora", and "Improvisation #3".
Sound Currents
Tom Moore and Sherry Finzer
Heart Dance Records
www.heartdancerecords.com
$10.41 CD / $9.49 MP3 amazon.com
Sound Currents is an original, instrumental new age music album featuring peaceful, relaxing
music to soothe the mind and spirit, and create an environment conducive to meditation and
healing. The beautiful music reflects the moving currents of life itself, in this treasure highly
recommended for personal and public library collections. The tracks are "A Sound Traveler's
Dream", "Following the Current", "Canyon Echoes", "Star Trails", "Timeless Flow", "Night
Tides", "Midnight Mystique", "This Side of Silence", and "Theta Waves".
Our People
Gerry Gibbs and Thrasher People Band
Whaling City Sound
www.whalingcitysound.com
$16.99 CD / $8.99 MP3 amazon.com
Our People is the twelfth album of multi-instrumentalist and composer Gerry Gibbs, who
combines his talent with five skilled multi-instrumentalists, two of whom are party of Thrasher
People Band. A nineteen-part suite crafted in tribute to many different cultures worldwide, Our
People embraces a vibrant diversity of styles and cultural heritages. The result is a wondrous
celebration of diversity, highly recommended especially for personal and public library world
music collections! The tracks are "The Calm Before the Storm", "The Journey Begins", "Music
from the Universe", "Our People", "Dance of the Freedom People", "The Streets", "Oh Yeah!",
"Boys Sent to Die", "Messengers on the Run", "Chick Corea", "Friends Before We Were Friends
(Part 1)", "Friends Before We Were Friends (Part 2)", "Flying on the Wings of a Fantasy",
"Volkswagens, Peace Signs & Dashiki's", "Mike & Lenny", "Thrasher Peoples Blues",
"Memories of Home", "The Final Message", and "Tune In! We Return You Back to Your
Reality".
The Library DVD Shelf
Guilty Until Proven Guilty
A documentary by Harry Moses
First Run Features
630 Ninth Avenue, Suite 1213, New York, NY 10036
www.guiltyuntilprovenguiltyfilm.com
$19.95 www.firstrunfeatures.com
Guilty Until Proven Guilty is an award-winning documentary about the harsh realities of
America's criminal justice system, especially when the accused is poor or a person of color. This
is the true story of Tim Conerly, a young African-American man who was arrested for armed
robbery in New Orleans. Though he says he did not commit the crime, his lack of resources and
the laggard system forced him to spend two years in jail before giving him a perilous choice:
plead guilty and serve five more years of a seven-year sentence for the alleged offense, or go to
trial and risk being sentenced for up to 198 years if convicted. Disturbing, thought-provoking,
and spotlighting the inherent injustices in the American system, Guilty Until Proven Guilty is
highly recommended especially for public and college library documentary collections. 53
min.
The Economic Studies Shelf
Bankruptcy
Joseph Spooner
Cambridge University Press
One Liberty Plaza, Fl. 20, New York, NY 10006
www.cambridge.org
9781107166943, $110.00, HC, 306pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: A decade after the Global Financial Crisis and Great Recession, developed economies
continue to struggle under excessive household debt. While exacerbating inequality and political
unrest, this debt (when combined with wage stagnation and a shrinking welfare state) has played
a key role in maintaining economic growth and allowing households faced with rising costs of
living to make ends meet.
In "Bankruptcy: The Case for Relief in an Economy of Debt", Professor Joseph Spooner
examines this economic model and finds it increasingly unsustainable. In a call to action to
reduce debt burden, he turns to bankruptcy law, which is uniquely situated as a mechanism of
social insurance against the risks of a debt-dependent economy.
Critique: A comprehensive study that is of vital interest in understanding the problem of
consumer debt and how best to address it, "Bankruptcy: The Case for Relief in an Economy of
Debt" is an outstanding work of meticulous, seminal, and detailed scholarship that is
unreservedly recommended for college and university library Contemporary Economics
collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, corporate
executives, governmental policy makers, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the
subject that "Bankruptcy: The Case for Relief in an Economy of Debt" is also available in a
digital book format (Kindle, $88.00).
Editorial Note: Joseph Spooner is an Assistant Professor at the London School of Economics and
Political Science Law Department. He researches issues of law, policy and politics relating to
household debt and over-indebtedness. He has worked on the World Bank's Report on the
Treatment of the Insolvency of Natural Persons (2013) and the Law Reform Commission of
Ireland's project on personal debt management (2010-12). He has published articles on the law
and politics of bankruptcy and household debt in leading journals including the Journal of Law
and Society and Modern Law Review.
The Language Studies Shelf
The Latin of Science
Marcelo Epstein & Ruth Spivak
Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers
1570 Baskin Road, Mundelein, IL 60060
9780865168602, $29.00, PB, 395pp, www.bolchazy.com
Synopsis: The collaborative work of Marcelo Epstein and Ruth Spivak, "The Latin of Science"
offers a unique text that provides students and linguists with a firsthand experience of what was
for centuries the universal language of science -- Latin.
An historical survey sets the context for Latin selections drawn from seventeen authors
(Agricola, Alberti, Alhazen, Bacon, Copernicus, de Soto, Euclid, Faventinus, Galvani, Harvey,
Isidore of Seville, Kepler, Leibniz, Libavius, Maimonides, Newton, Oresme, Pliny the Elder,
Seneca, Vitruvius) who wrote in Latin and three whose works were translated into Latin. This
anthology of twenty-two science readings in Latin covers eight subject areas (Architecture and
Engineering, Astronomy and Rational Mechanics, Chemistry, Economics, General Knowledge,
Mathematics, Medicine, and Optics).
Of special note is a brief but informative essay introducing each author while vocabulary, syntax,
and contextual notes facilitate reading the Latin passages. Images present the Latin selections as
their original readers would have experienced them.
Critique: A unique and invaluable contribution to the growing library of Latin Language
instructional references and textbooks, "The Latin of Science" is a deftly organized and
unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, college, and
university library Latin Studies and Science History collections and supplemental curriculum
reading lists.
The Genealogy Shelf
Tracing Your Potteries Ancestors
Michael Sharpe
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526701275, $29.95, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Michael Sharpe is a professional genealogist, writer and lecturer who specializes in the
local and family history of Birmingham and the wider West Midlands. He is a member of the
Society of Genealogists, Midland Ancestors, and other family and local history societies. He has
authored several books on family history including "Family Matters: A History of Genealogy"
and "Tracing Your Birmingham Ancestors", and is frequently in demand as a lecturer and
speaker.
In "Tracing Your Potteries Ancestors: A Guide for Family & Local Historians", he introduces
readers to the wealth of information available to those wishing to trace their North Staffordshire
roots and provides fascinating insights into the history of this part of the Midlands -- which was
for so long dominated by the pottery industry.
The six pottery towns Tunstall, Burslem, Hanley, Stoke, Fenton and Longton are at the heart of
the story presented in "Tracing Your Potteries Ancestors", a handbook that is an essential guide
for anyone researching the life of an individual or family connected with the area, bringing
together all the relevant local and national archives for the first time.
In a series of short information-packed chapters "Tracing Your Potteries Ancestors" describes the
lives and experiences of ordinary people in this most extraordinary of landscapes. It charts the
transition of the Six Towns from scattered farming communities to a thriving industrial
conurbation. The living conditions of the urban poor, health and welfare, the influence of religion
and migration, education, leisure pursuits, and the traumatic experience of war are all explored,
and the many different archives and sources that are open to family history researchers are
explained.
Critique: Impressively researched, expertly written, deftly organized and presented, "Tracing
Your Potteries Ancestors: A Guide for Family & Local Historians" is an extraordinarily
informative and thoroughly 'reader friendly' resource that is unreservedly recommended for
personal, community, and academic library Genealogy instructional reference collections &
British History supplemental studies reading lists.
The Cookbook Shelf
Skinny Southern
Lara Lyn Carter
Familius
1254 Commerce Way, Sanger, CA 93657
www.familius.com
9781641701082, $29.99, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: America's uniquely delicious comfort food just got healthy! The recipes comprising the
"Skinny Southern" cookbook don't just "lighten up" Southern food, they offer gluten-free and
paleo options as well. It's the Southern cuisine at it's very finest.
With 90 reinvented Southern Classic entrees such as truffle and rosemary chicken, or grilled
lamb with sweet onion sauce; even the most novice of kitchen cooks can successfully dabble
with the citrus vinaigrette; sample the seafood gumbo, the quinoa salad, or the spaghetti squash
with pecan truffle oil and herbs.
Private chef and Emmy-Award winner, Lara Lyn Carter is considered Georgia's go-to authority
on Southern entertaining. With "Skinny Southern" she has showcases healthy, clean cooking, as
well as sharing her vast experience and array of healthy Southern recipes.
Critique: "Skinny Southern" is an original, groundbreaking compendium of palate pleasing,
appetite satisfying, health-conscious, and profusely illustrated cookbook that is unreservedly
recommended for personal, professional, family, and community library collections.
Editorial Note: Lara Lyn Carter has her first Emmy win in the category of On Camera Talent for
hosting "Thyme for Sharing with Lara Lyn Carter", which she also created and produced. It aired
as part of Georgia Public Broadcasting's summer cooking line-up and received excellent ratings
and praise. The show was nominated for four Emmys in the categories of: lighting; photography;
director; and on camera talent. In addition, Lara Lyn created and hosted "Savor the Good Life"
with Raycom Media's WALB, the NBC and ABC affiliate in Southwest Georgia, for three
years.
Naturally Sweet Baking
Sebastian Keitel and Carolin Strothe
DK Publishing, Inc.
c/o Penguin Group USA
375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014
www.dk.com
9781465483959 $17.99 pbk / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com
Synopsis: The healthy recipes for these beautiful baked goods cut down on sugar or cut it out
altogether, thanks to the imaginative use of natural ingredients. As a bonus, many of the recipes
are also gluten-free and dairy-free.
Discover how to bake more than 70 delicious low-sugar and sugar-free recipes, including
healthier versions of favorites such as carrot cake, muffins, gingerbread, and hot cross buns.
Every recipe tempts with a stunning photo of the finished cake or baked good.
The recipes contain little or no processed sugar, instead relying on easy-to-source sugar
substitutes and natural sugar alternatives, such as honey and seasonal produce. Foraged edible
flowers adorn decadent chocolate muffins, and freshly picked berries peek out from between the
layers of beautiful cakes, creating a feast for the eyes, too.
Written by Carolin Strothe--cook, food stylist, and author of the award-winning blog Frau
Herzblut--and her husband, Sebastian Keitel, the book explains the benefits of a low-sugar diet
and debunks the myth that healthy baking must come with a compromise. Carolin includes a
seasonal calendar to help you choose the best ingredients; basic recipes for pantry essentials such
as applesauce and cashew icing; and tips to help you elevate the look of your creations using
natural colorings. With Naturally Sweet Baking, you can cook and enjoy treats without a sugar
overload.
Critique: Illustrated with striking color photography of its mouth-watering creations, Naturally
Sweet Baking is filled low-sugar and sugar-free recipes, offering a healthier alternative for bakers
who love to craft sweet treats. From Apple Waffles (which happen to be vegan - the recipe uses a
plant-based milk such as almond milk), to Beet Bundt Cake (made with fruity pear and poppy
seeds), to Blackberry Swiss Roll (with light cream and fresh berries) and much more, Naturally
Sweet Baking is a treasure for culinary connoisseurs, and also makes an excellent giftbook.
Highly recommended! It should be noted for personal reading lists that Naturally Sweet Baking is
also available in a Kindle edition ($9.99).
Dairy Free: Recipes & Preparation
Angela Litzinger
Flame Tree Publishing
https://www.flametreepublishing.com
9781787552814, $24.99, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Dairy Free: Recipes & Preparation" by Angela Litzinger is ideal for anyone who is
lactose intolerant, has a milk allergy, or are just trying a dairy-free diet. There is an enormous
selection of varied and delicious dairy product free recipes.
"Dairy Free: Recipes & Preparation" also presents useful information about dairy and the lactose
enzyme, the benefits of going dairy-free, and how to make the transition to a dairy free diet, as
well as key foods to avoid, naturally-dairy-free foods and great substitutes, along with tools and
techniques.
Methods are provided to make your own staples such as plant- and nut-based milks, cheeses,
yogurt, spreads and creams, and a wealth of tempting recipes are included, for everything from
Sauces, Dips & Dressings to Comforting Mains to Baking & Desserts and more. Of special note
are the recipes for making Rice Milk Pancakes, Cheesy Broccoli Soup, Pizza with Peppers &
'Ricotta', and Perfect Cupcakes with Buttercream. The accessible text by Litzinger (an expert in
dairy-free living) is accompanied by gorgeous, inspirational photography.
Critique: Beautifully organized and presented, "Dairy Free: Recipes & Preparation" is certain to
be an immediate and enduringly popular addition to personal, family, professional, and
community library cookbook collections.
Editorial Note: Angela Litzinger is an expert in gluten- and dairy-free recipe development and
living. She teaches food preservation and allergen-free cooking classes, contributes articles and
recipes to numerous publications, and speaks to local and national organizations about the
gluten-free diet and other important allergy issues. Angela documents her family's allergen-free
journey on www.angelaskitchen.com.
The Automotive Shelf
The Jeep: Second World War
Lance Cole
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526746511, $22.95, PB, 64pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The Second World War Jeep was one of the most famous and influential military
vehicles of all time, and over 600,000 were produced. It served with all the Allied forces during
the war on every front and it has been the inspiration behind the design of light, versatile, rugged
military and civilian vehicles ever since. "The Jeep: Second World War" by Lance Cole is, the
first volume in new Pen & Sword's LandCraft series and traces the design, development and
manufacturing history of the Jeep and describes its operational role within the Allied armies.
A selection of archive photographs showing the Jeep in service in European and Pacific
campaigns gives a graphic impression of how adaptable the Jeep was and records the variety of
equipment it could carry. "The Jeep: Second World War" is also an excellent source for the
modeler, providing details of available kits, together with specially commissioned color profiles
recording how the Jeeps used by different units and armies appeared.
Critique: Profusely illustrated, impressively informative, exceptionally well organized and
presented, "The Jeep: Second World War" is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended
addition to community and academic library Automotive History & American Military History
collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of military buffs and model making
enthusiasts that "The Jeep: Second World War" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$11.02).
Editorial Note: Lance Cole has been an automotive and aviation writer for over 25 years and is
internationally published and syndicated. A former Sir William Lyons Scholar, and national press
columnist, Lance is the author of over a dozen books and is also a trained designer, photographer
and illustrator. His passion for design led him to Bugatti and many years attending Prescott's
action. The evocative photos in this book truly capture Lance's passion for all things Bugatti.
The Pets/Wildlife Shelf
Office Dogs: The Manual
Stephanie Rousseau
Hubble & Hattie
www.hubbleandhattie.com
9781787113817, $12.99, PB, 80pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Office Dogs: The Manual" is the ideal guide to having dogs in the workplace. As the
popularity of bringing our canine companions to the office continues to grow, the many benefits
for employers are increasingly recognised. Meanwhile, a new generation of employees are
prioritizing their dog's needs more than ever before.
Written by a specialist dog behaviourist Stephanie Rousseau, "Office Dogs: The Manual" offers a
unique insight into how to integrate your dog into office life, making the arrangement work for
all involved: the employer, the employee, and perhaps most importantly, the dog! Uniquely,
"Office Dogs: The Manual" considers the dog's perspective on office life, whilst also providing
plenty of practical advice for making your dog's time in the office a success. It takes you through
the entire process, from gaining the support of your colleagues to policy considerations for the
employer.
With helpful, ready-to-use materials for the office included within, and real-life case studies of
workplace dog success stories throughout, "Office Dogs: The Manual" is the ultimate essential
reading for anyone involved with office dogs including owners, employers, those who work with
dogs professionally, and those who are simply lucky enough to share their office with a dog!
Critique: Profusely illustrated, exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "Office
Dogs: The Manual" is a 'must read' choice for anyone with a canine companion that they would
like to take to work with them be it on special occasion or permanently.
Editorial Note: Stephanie Rousseau is an Irish dog trainer currently residing in Dublin, having
previously worked extensively with dogs in London. She is passionate about dog behavior, and
over the past few years has developed a particular interest in facilitating dogs in the human
workplace. Steph takes an holistic view in her work with dogs, prioritizing their needs foremost.
She has completed Turid Rugaas's IDTE, and currently sits on the board of the Pet Dog Trainers
of Europe (PDTE), and is its country representative for Ireland. Outside of her work, she enjoys
looking after her two dogs, a Greyhound called Fia and an ex-laboratory Beagle cross called
Ferdia.
The Religion/Spirituality Shelf
40 Questions About Calvinism
Shawn D. Wright
Kregel Academic
c/o Kregel Publications
2450 Oak Industrial Drive, NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49505
www.kregel.com
9780825442315, $24.99, PB, 304pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In "40 Questions About Calvinism", Shawn Wright (who is the Professor of Church
History at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Pastor at the Clifton Baptist Church
in Louisville, Kentucky) tackles many issues about the theological system known as
Calvinism.
Taking an irenic approach, Professor Wright explains the key doctrines while also contrasting
them with Arminianism. The accessible format allows readers to easily look up topics they're
most interested in, including: What is the difference between Calvinism and the Reformed
tradition?; Does God love all people?; What is predestination?; Did Jesus die for the sins of the
whole world?; Can people resist the Holy Spirit?; Do Calvinists practice evangelism and
missions?
For Calvinists or those seeking to understand Calvinism better, "40 Questions About Calvinism"
helps readers understand the key terms, issues, and debates of this highly influential theological
viewpoint.
Critique: Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "40 Questions About Calvinism"
is an ideal and thoroughly 'reader friendly' introduction to Calvinism and an unreservedly
recommended addition to personal reading lists, as well as church, community and academic
library Christian Studies collections.
The Business Shelf
Play Nice
Brigitte Gawenda Kimichik, JD, author
J. R. Tomlinson, author
Brown Books Publishing Group
16250 Knoll Trail Drive, Suite 205, Dallas, TX 75248
www.BrownBooks.com
9781612542904, $15.95, PB, 240pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: As a direct result of the #MeToo movement, one of today's most hotly discussed topics
is sexual harassment in the workplace: what it looks like, how to prevent it, and what to do about
it.
So many people don't realize that they have been victims of sexual harassment or that they have a
right to speak up and demand different treatment. Many don't realize that they are committing it,
thanks certain behaviors being dismissed, forgiven, or ignored for many years when they should
have been corrected long ago.
In "Play Nice: Playground Rules for Respect in the Workplace", Brigitte Gawenda Kimichik and
and J.R Tomlinson take things back to basics by applying the rules we all learned on the
playground to the modern-day workplace, thus making clear to everyone what is and what isn't
OK.
"Play Nice: Playground Rules for Respect in the Workplace" was specifically written to be a 'real
world' practical and indispensable resource for empowering those who wish to reassert their
boundaries, as well as teaching allies how to help in bringing awareness and reform with respect
to gender equality, gender equity, and gender respect in the workplace.
Critique: Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "Play Nice: Playground Rules for
Respect in the Workplace" is a timely and critically important contribution to our current and on-
going national dialogue over how to deal with sexual harassment in the workplace.
Editorial Note: Brigitte Kimichik retired in 2015 from the practice of law with over thirty years'
experience as a commercial real estate finance partner of the law firm of Andrews Kurth LLP,
now Hunton Andrews Kurth. She received her JD in 1986 from Southern Methodist University
Dedman School of Law in Dallas, Texas, and her BBA with Honors from the McCombs School
of Business at The University of Texas in 1983 after only two and a half years, where she was a
member of the Dean's List and the Golden Key Honor Society. Brigitte was on the board of
Wednesday's Child Benefit Corporation from 1993 to 1997 and received the Most Powerful &
Influential Women of Texas Award in 2012 from the National Diversity Council.
Beginning her career as a financial consultant with Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith, earning
her Series 7, 63, and 22 licenses after earning a BBA in finance and investments from Texas
Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, JR Tomlinson has over twenty-nine years' expertise in the
commercial real estate and strategic alignment of corporate real estate operations for companies.
She manages numerous multimillion-dollar complex transactions for Fortune clients in North
America such as Ecolab, Nalco Company LLC, Huitt-Zollars, Jack in the Box, Distribution
International, and One Vision Solutions. Awards for her skills and broad-based experience as one
of the best in her field include the Dallas Power Broker Award by D Magazine, The US Green
Council Building Award, and The Notable Women of Texas Award. JR is currently an executive
managing director with Newmark Knight Frank.
The Social Issues Shelf
The Coffeehouse Resistance
Sarina Prabasi
Green Writers Press
c/o Trafalgar Square Books
PO Box 257, North Pomfret, VT 05053
www.trafalgarbooks.com
9781732854031, $19.95, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Writing as a mother, immigrant, new American, coffeehouse owner, and international
nonprofit leader, "The Coffeehouse Resistance: Brewing Hope in Desperate Times" is Sarina
Prabasi's personal story that deftly weaves between Nepal, Ethiopia, and the United States.
When Prabasi and her husband move from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to New York City with their
young daughter in 2011, they start a thriving coffee business, grow their family, and are living
their American Dream. After the 2016 election, they are suddenly unsure about their new
home.
Reclaiming the tradition of coffee houses throughout history, their coffeehouses became a hub
for local organizing and action. Moving from despair to hope, "The Coffeehouse Resistance" is a
true story that is ultimately about building community, claiming home, and fighting for our
dreams against a fostered resurgence of bigotry and racism.
Critique: A timely, funny, and poignant contribution to our on-going national debates on the
nature of our country and the attacks on democracy by those currently in power, "The
Coffeehouse Resistance" is an impressively written combination of a coming-to-America story, a
lyrical crafted, memoir, and an activist's call to action. While unreservedly recommended for
both community and academic library collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists
that "The Coffeehouse Resistance" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$11.99).
The Parenting Shelf
ParentShift
Linda Hatfield, Ty Hatfield, Wendy Thomas Russell
Brown Paper Press
https://www.brownpaperpress.com
9781941932100, $24.99, PB, 330pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "ParentShift: Ten Universal Truths That Will Change the Way You Raise Your Kids"
by the team of develompent experts Linda Hatfield, Ty Hatfield, and journalist Wendy Thomas
Russell, is extraordinarily instructive guidebook that offers an effective new approach to raising
confident, healthy, whole human beings, from toddler to teen. Groundbreaking in both its scope
and methodology, "ParentShift" challenges some of our most popular disciplinary tools
(including punishments, threats, bribery, and rewards) all of which the science of child
psychology has shown actually sabotage so many of the long-term goals parents have for their
kids. "ParentShift" dismantles the pervasive myths that have given rise to these tactics and
introduce a method designed to solve virtually any household challenge while honoring children's
emotional needs, preserving the parent-child relationship and strengthening each child's
self-esteem.
Critique: Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "ParentShift" is impressively 'user
friendly' for the non-specialist general reader and unreservedly recommended for personal,
community, and academic library Parenting instructional reference collections. It should be noted
for parents that "ParentShift" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.99).
The Literary Studies Shelf
Hamlet Made Simple and Other Essays
David P. Gontar
New English Review Press
PO Box 158397, Nashville, Tennessee 37215
www.newenglishreview.org
9780985439491, $28.95, PB, 428pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Hamlet Made Simple and Other Essays" by David P. Gontar (Adjunct Professor of
English and Philosophy at Inner Mongolia University in China) presents the most compelling and
original reading of Hamlet since A.C. Bradley. Professor Gontar dispenses once and for all with
the psychoanalytic interpretation of the play; explains the actual meaning of the Oedipus myth;
provides the "smoking gun" which establishes Shakespeare's true identity; explodes the fable of
Shakespeare's appearance; and in the process of correcting misreadings of Shakespeare's poetry
and drama offers vital insights and indispensable guidance on how this challenging writer can be
fairly and productively approached today.
Critique: Hamlet Made Simple and Other Essays is a welcome work of scholarship offering a fresh perspective of Shakespeare's classic plays for the twenty-first century. The essays scrutinize not only "Hamlet", but also "King Lear", "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar", and Shakespeare's comedies and tragedies as a whole. Individual writings include "Crown of Horns: Male Self- Betrayal in Shakespeare", "An Islamic Reading of King Henry IV", "Speeches of Love in Shakespeare", and much more. Inspiring, thoughtful, and daring to break new ground, Hamlet Made Simple and Other Essays is a choice pick for public and college library Literary Studies collections, along with author David Gontar's "Unreading Shakespeare" (9781943003006, $34.95). It should be noted for personal reading lists that "Hamlet Made Simple and Other Essays" is also available in a Kindle edition ($9.95).
The Holocaust Studies Shelf
Left to the Mercy of a Rude Stream
Stanley A. Goldman
Potomac Books, Inc.
c/o University of Nebraska Press
22841 Quicksilver Drive, Dulles, VA 20166-2012
www.potomacbooksinc.com
9781640120440, $27.95, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Seven years after the death of his mother, Malka, Stanley A. Goldman traveled to
Israel to visit her best friend during the Holocaust. The best friend's daughter showed Goldman a
pamphlet she had acquired from the Israeli Holocaust Museum that documented activities of one
man's negotiations with the Nazi's interior minister and SS head, Heinrich Himmler, for the
release of the Jewish women from the concentration camp at Ravensbruck. While looking
through the pamphlet, the two discovered a picture that could have been their mothers being
released from the camp. Wanting to know the details of how they were saved, Goldman set out
on a long and difficult path to unravel the mystery.
After years of researching the pamphlet, Goldman learned that a German Jew named Norbert
Masur made a treacherous journey from the safety of Sweden back into the war zone in order to
secure the release of the Jewish women imprisoned at the Ravensbruck concentration camp.
Masur not only succeeded in his mission against all odds but he contributed to the downfall of
the Nazi hierarchy itself. "Left to the Mercy of a Rude Stream: The Bargain That Broke Adolf
Hitler and Saved My Mother" is the amazing, little-known story uncovers a piece of history about
the undermining of the Nazi regime, the women of the Holocaust, and the strained but loving
relationship between a survivor and her son.
Critique: An inherently fascinating read from cover to cover, "Left to the Mercy of a Rude
Stream: The Bargain That Broke Adolf Hitler and Saved My Mother" is an extraordinarily
informative, exceptionally well written, accessibly organized, impressively presented, and
unreservedly recommended addition to community, and academic library Holocaust Studies
collections and supplemental studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-
specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Left to the Mercy of a Rude Stream"
is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $17.87) and as a complete and unabridged
audio book (Tantor Audio, 9781977318831, $32.99, CD).
James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Diane C. Donovan, Editor
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive
Oregon, WI 53575-1129
phone: 1-608-835-7937
e-mail: mbr@execpc.com
e-mail: mwbookrevw@aol.com
http://www.midwestbookreview.com
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