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Reviewer's Choice
Abu Simbel and the Nubian Temples
Nigel Fletcher-Jones
American University in Cairo Press
420 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10018-2729
www.aucpress.com
9789774168789, $29.95, HC, 190pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The three-thousand-year-old rock-cut temples at Abu Simbel and the story of their
rescue from the rising waters of Lake Nasser in the 1960s are almost as familiar worldwide as the
tale of the gold funerary mask and brief life of the boy king Tutankhamun. Yet although they
remain among the most celebrated, visited, and photographed archaeological sites in the world,
the lower Nubian temples (from Philae in the north to Abu Simbel in the south) are some of the
least understood by the visitor.
"Abu Simbel and the Nubian Temples" is a lucidly written, beautifully illustrated study in which
Egyptologist Nigel Fletcher-Jones places the temples in their historical context, telling the story
of the discovery of the Abu Simbel temples, and why and how they were moved, explaining what
the Nubian temples teach us about ancient Egypt, which gods and goddesses were worshiped
there, and the place of Rameses II in the long line of ancient Egyptian kings and queens.
With over 80 new photographs, diagrams, and maps, and packed with fascinating insights, "Abu
Simbel and the Nubian Temples" is an ideal introduction to one of the world's great regions of
archaeological splendor.
Critique: Impressively informative and expertly organized and presented work of meticulous
scholarship, "Abu Simbel and the Nubian Temples" is enhanced for academia and the non-
specialist general reader with the inclusion of a one page listing of Further Readings and a five
page Index, making it an ideal and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional,
community, college and university library Egyptology collections and supplemental curriculum
studies lists.
Editorial Note: Nigel Fletcher-Jones, with a PhD in archaeology and anthropology from Durham
University, UK, has been director of the American University in Cairo Press since 2012. He
writes regularly on Egyptian archaeology and history for magazines, and blogs at
www.imagesofcenturies.com.
Coming Full Circle
Wanda Smalls Lloyd
NewSouth, Inc.
105 South Court Street, Montgomery, AL 36104
www.newsouthbooks.com
9781588384072, $28.95, HC, 296pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis:"Coming Full Circle: From Jim Crow to Journalism" by Wanda Smalls Lloyd is the
personal memoir of an African American woman who grew up privileged and educated in the
restricted culture of the American South during the 1950s and 1960s. Her path was shaped by
segregated social, community, and educational systems, religious and home training, a strong
cultural foundation, and early leadership opportunities.
Despite Jim Crow laws that affected where she lived, how she was educated, and what civil
rights she would be denied, Lloyd grew up to realize her childhood dream of working as a
professional journalist. In fact, she would eventually hold some of the nation's highest-ranking
newspaper editorial positions and become one of the first African American women to be the top
editor of a mainstream daily newspaper.
Along the way she helped her newspapers and other media organizations understand how the
lack of newsroom and staff diversity interfered with perceptions of accuracy and balance for their
audiences. Her memoir is thus a window on the intersection of race, gender, culture and the
media's role in our uniquely American experiment in democracy. How Lloyd excelled in a
profession where high-ranking African American women were rare is a memorable story that will
educate, entertain, and inspire.
"Coming Full Circle" is a self-reflective exploration of Wand's life journey from growing up in
coastal Savannah, Georgia, to editing roles at seven daily newspapers around the country, and
circling back to her retirement in Savannah, where she now teaches journalism to a new
generation.
Critique: An inherently fascinating, candidly informative, and ultimately inspiring life story,
"Coming Full Circle: From Jim Crow to Journalism" is an exceptionally well written and
unreservedly recommended addition to personal, community, college, and university library
Contemporary American Biography, Black History, and Journalism History collections and
supplemental curriculum studies lists.
River Teeth: Twenty Years of Creative Nonfiction
Joe Mackall & Daniel W. Lehman, editors
University of New Mexico Press
1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM 87131-0001
www.unmpress.com
9780826361394, $24.95, PB, 360pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Nationally recognized River Teeth: A Journal of Nonfiction Narrative has published a
host of new and significant voices in creative nonfiction that have included essays, memoir, and
literary journalism since 1999.
To celebrate twenty years of introducing talented new writers to readers and publishing great
nonfiction, the founding editors, Joe Mackall and Daniel W. Lehman, have selected their all-time
favorite essays published in a stunning literary collection called "River Teeth: Twenty Years of
Creative Nonfiction".
The essays comprising this unique anthology include up-and-coming authors as well as
luminaries such as Ann Hood, Lee Martin, Chris Offutt, Angela Morales, Brenda Miller, Judith
Kitchen, Ted Kooser, and Andre Dubus III.
"River Teeth: Twenty Years of Creative Nonfiction" further includes a thoughtful foreword by
Robert Atwan that illuminates the importance, breadth, and reach of the journal and shows the
diversity of nonfiction writing available in the twenty-first century. A trailblazing publication
since its inception, River Teeth continues to share the important work of contemporary writers
and will thrive for years to come.
Critique: Expertly organized and presented, "River Teeth: Twenty Years of Creative Nonfiction"
is enhanced for academia with a complete listing of all the contributors and their credentials. The
result is a very special and unreservedly recommended addition to community, college, and
university library Literary Studies collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that
"River Teeth: Twenty Years of Creative Nonfiction" is also readily available in a digital book
format (Kindle, $24.95).
Editorial Note: Joe Mackall is a retired professor of English, the former director of creative
writing at Ashland University, and a founder of River Teeth: A Journal of Nonfiction Narrative.
He is also the author of The Last Street Before Cleveland: An Accidental Pilgrimage and Plain
Secrets: An Outsider among the Amish.
Daniel W. Lehman is a Trustees' Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Ashland University and a
founder of River Teeth: A Journal of Nonfiction Narrative. He is also the author of Matters of
Fact: Reading Nonfiction over the Edge and John Reed and the Writing of Revolution.
Two Popes
Anthony McCarten
Flatiron Books
c/o Macmillan Books
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010
www.macmillan.com
9781250207920, $16.99, PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In February 2013, the arch-conservative Pope Benedict XVI made a startling
announcement: he would resign, making him the first pope to willingly vacate his office in over
700 years. Reeling from the news, the College of Cardinals rushed to Rome to congregate in the
Sistine Chapel to pick his successor. Their unlikely choice? Francis, the first non-European pope
in 1,200 years, a onetime tango club bouncer, a passionate soccer fan, a man with the common
touch.
Why did Benedict walk away at the height of power, knowing his successor might be someone
whose views might undo his legacy? How did Francis (who used to ride the bus to work back in
his native Buenos Aires) adjust to life as leader to a billion followers? If, as the Church teaches,
the pope is infallible, how can two living popes who disagree on almost everything both be
right?
Having immersed himself in these men's lives to write the screenplay for The Two Popes,
Anthony McCarten masterfully weaves their stories into one gripping narrative. From Benedict
and Francis's formative experiences in war-torn Germany and Argentina to the sexual abuse
scandal that continues to rock the Church to its foundations to the intrigue and the occasional
comedy of life in the Vatican, The Two Popes glitters with the darker and the lighter details of
one of the world's most opaque but significant institutions
Critique: An inherently fascinating and deftly scripted read from first page to last, "The Two
Popes" is unreservedly recommended for community and academic library collections. It should
be noted for personal reading lists that "The Two Popes" is also available in a digital book format
(Kindle, $9.99) and as a complete and unabridged audio book (Macmillan Audio,
9781250219886, $34.99, CD).
Editorial Note: Anthony McCarten is a New Zealand-born award-winning novelist, playwright,
and screenwriter. He's written seven novels and twelve stage plays including Ladies' Night,
which won France's Moliere Prize in 2001, and Death of a Superhero. His screenplays The
Theory of Everything and Darkest Hour each garnered worldwide critical acclaim and were
nominated for multiple awards, winning three Oscars, three Golden Globes, and five BAFTAs
between them. McCarten's screenplay, The Two Popes, is now a major motion picture starring
Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce.
The Writing/Publishing Shelf
A Friendly Guide to Writing & Ghostwriting
Andrea Cagan
Palmetto Publishing Group
https://www.palmettopublishinggroup.com
9781641115803, $25.99, HC, 220pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Most aspiring authors have experience having an intriguing idea for a book that has
captured their imagination. A story or concept that follows them everywhere they go with an
insistence that demands that they can't wait to get the words on the page.
But first, they have to learn how to turn that idea or concept into a finished manuscript ready for
publication. In "A Friendly Guide to Writing & Ghostwriting", prolific author, editor, writing
coach, Andrea Cagan, shows just how to transform our inner critic from (as she puts it) 'a
demanding ogre into an encouraging fairy godmother'.
Cagan's thoroughly 'user friendly' approach teaching about writing and ghostwriting will help
even the most novice of authors to dissolve the blocks to creativity and reveal the hidden
gateways that exist beyond the words. "A Friendly Guide to Writing & Ghostwriting" shows,
step-by-step, how to shorten the distance between the couch and the computer so aspiring authors
can do the thing they want to do most -- write.
Whether engaged in journal writing, finding a way to begin a book, making our way through the
halfway point, or searching for a great ending, when we see our words as tiles in the mosaic of
our lives, we can unburden our hearts and get our authentic message onto the written page.
Critique: Deftly organized and presented in four major sections (Preparing to Write; Getting
Down to Business; Ghostwriting & Collaborating; The Finishing Touches), "A Friendly Guide to
Writing & Ghostwriting" will prove to be an immediately useful and enduringly practical
instructional reference guide and manual for the novice author and the experienced writer alike.
While especially and unreservedly recommended for professional, community, and academic
library Writing/Publishing collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "A
Friendly Guide to Writing & Ghostwriting" is also available in a paperback edition
(9781641115506, $15.99) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $6.99).
Editorial Note: Andrea Cagan is an author and writing coach who has over a dozen bestsellers to
her credit, many of them iconic celebrity memoirs. She has written her life story, "Memoirs of a
Ghost: One Sheet Away," and is well known for her unique approach to making friends with the
writing process.
Writing Fiction: A User-Friendly Guide
James Essinger
The Conrad Press
https://theconradpress.com
9781911546542, $13.00, PB, 184pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The twenty-four chapters comprising "Writing Fiction: A User-Friendly Guide" by
James Essinger cover every important matter an aspiring novelist or short story writer would
need to know about, including: devising a compelling story, creating and developing characters,
plotting, 'plants', backstory, suspense, dialogue, 'show' and 'tell', and how to make the writing feel
real to their reader.
Along with a number of others, ranging from Anthony Burgess to J.R.R. Tolkien, "Writing
Fiction" is enhanced with the inclusion of 'special guest advice' from professional screenwriter
Bob Gale, who wrote the three immortal 'Back to the Future' movies (1985, 1989 and 1990), and
novelist and screenwriter William Osborne, whose many screen credits include the co-writing of
the blockbuster 'Twins' (1988).
Simply stated, "Writing Fiction" is a highly entertaining instructional guide and manual that will
provide aspiring authors all the advice and practical guidance needed to make their dream of
becoming published fiction writers come true.
Critique: Expertly written, impressively informative, and thoroughly living up to the promise of
its subtitle, "Writing Fiction: A User-Friendly Guide" is an especially and unreservedly
recommended addition to personal, professional, community, college, and university library
Writing/Publishing collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of all aspiring
novelists that "Writing Fiction: A User-Friendly Guide" is also readily available in a digital book
format (Kindle, $4.99).
Editorial Note: James Essinger has been a professional writer since 1988. His non-fiction books
include Jacquard's Web (2004), Ada's Algorithm (2013), and Charles and Ada: The Computer's
Most Passionate Partnership (2019). His novels include The Mating Game (2016) and The Ada
Lovelace Project (2020).
A Writer's Guide to Speculative Fiction
Crawford Kilian & Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Self-Counsel Press Inc.
www.self-counsel.com
9781770403161, $19.95, PB, 168pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "A Writer's Guide to Speculative Fiction: Science Fiction and Fantasy" by Crawford
Kilian and Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a instructive 'how to' manual that is comprised of
hands-on, practical, put-the-book-down-and-start-writing advice that speaks to new and emerging
authors of science fiction and fantasy.
Crawford and Silvia are bestselling SciFi writers who have compiled this instructional guide
offer far more than pep talks and success stories; they explain genres and how to bend and blend
them, giving concrete suggestions for overcoming inevitable writing problems across genres:
self-editing, creating plausible characters, and building a plot without writing formula
fiction.
With a combined fifty years of experience, Kilian and Moreno-Garcia will save aspiring writers
time, energy, and grief by showing them how to master the craft of storytelling and how to
market their stories as successfully as possible. Their invaluable advice persuades readers to go
beyond expectations of market and genre, pushing them to be better writers, and to add their own
unique voices into the growing speculative fiction arena. For aspiring writers of the SciFi &
Fantasy genre, this book will light the way to creating your own books.
Critique: Impressively informative, expertly organized, accessibly presented, and especially
recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library Writing/Publishing
collections, "A Writer's Guide to Speculative Fiction: Science Fiction and Fantasy" will prove to
be invaluable and practical addition to the personal reading lists of anyone with an interest in
writing (and having published!) their books and stories in the science fiction and fantasy
genres.
Editorial Note: Crawford Kilian has been teaching and writing online since the 1980s. He has
published more than twenty books, including Writing for the Web, Writing Science Fiction and
Fantasy, and Sell Your Nonfiction Book.
Silvia Moreno-Garcia is the author of Signal to Noise, Certain Dark Things, The Beautiful Ones,
and the science fiction novella Prime Meridian.
The Author's Checklist
Elizabeth K. Kracht
New World Library
14 Pamaron Way, Novato, CA 94949
www.newworldlibrary.com
9781608686629, $15.95, PB, 240pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The bad news for all aspiring writers seeking to get their work published -- even really
good manuscripts have weak spots that are enough to garner rejections from agents and
publishers. But the good news is that most of these problems are easy to fix once the writer sees
and understands them.
After several years of evaluating manuscripts, literary agent Elizabeth Kracht noticed that many
submissions had similar problems, so she began to make a list of the pitfalls. She has compiled
those observations into "The Author's Checklist: An Agent's Guide to Developing and Editing
Your Manuscript" and offers her short, easy-to-implement bites of advice, illustrated by inspiring
(and cautionary) real-world examples.
Most aspiring authors yearn for a friend in book publishing. "The Author's Checklist" is just
that.
Critique: Expertly organized and presented, the information, observations, insights, and
information comprising "The Author's Checklist: An Agent's Guide to Developing and Editing
Your Manuscript" will prove to be an invaluable and practical resource for the novice author and
even the seasoned professional. An ideal addition to writer workshop supplemental studies lists,
"The Author's Checklist" is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to personal,
professional, community, college, and university library Writing/Publishing instructional
reference collections.
Editorial Note: Elizabeth K. Kracht is a literary agent with Kimberley Cameron & Associates and
a freelance editor. She often participates in writers' conferences nationally and
internationally.
The Health/Medicine Shelf
Virusphere: From Common Colds to Ebola Epidemics
Frank Ryan
Prometheus Books
15200 NBN Way, Blue Ridge Summit, PA 17214
www.prometheusbooks.com
9781633886049, $24.00, HC, 288pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Virusphere: From Common Colds to Ebola Epidemics--Why We Need the Viruses
That Plague Us" is a fascinating and long overdue examination of viruses - ranging from what
they are and what they do, to the vital role they have played in human history.
What are viruses? Do they rely on genes, like all other forms of life? Do they follow the same
patterns of evolution as plants and animals? Dr. Frank Ryan answers these questions and many
more in a sweeping tour of illnesses caused by viruses. He examines the common cold, measles,
chicken pox, herpes, mumps, and rubella, as well as less familiar maladies, such as rabies,
"breakbone fever", hemorrhagic fevers like Ebola, and virus-induced cancers.
Along the way, readers will learn about the behaviors of viruses and what drives them to infect a
human host. Ryan also explains the role of viruses in the evolution of life, revealing how viruses
have changed us at the most intimate level, helping to make us quintessentially human.
Critique: An incredibly timely book given the emergence of a new virus out of China that is
currently threatening to evolve into a full blown pandemic, "Virusphere: From Common Colds to
Ebola Epidemics--Why We Need the Viruses That Plague Us" is an essential, high priority, and
unreservedly recommended addition to community, college, and university library
Health/Medicine collections -- as well as the personal reading lists of medical professionals and
non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject.
Editorial Note: Frank Ryan is a consultant physician and pioneering evolutionary biologist at the
University of Sheffield. He is the bestselling author of The Forgotten Plague and Darwin's Blind
Spot. He is also the author of The Mysterious World of the Human Genome, Virolution, and
many other books. Ryan was named Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Animal and
Plant Sciences at the University of Sheffield, with the express purpose of developing his
evolutionary concepts and helping to translate evolutionary science into medicine. He is a Fellow
of The Royal College of Physicians, the Royal Society of Medicine, and the Linnean Society of
London.
The Social Issues Shelf
Migrating to Prison
Cesar Cuauhtemoc & Garcia Hernandez
The New Press
120 Wall Street, floor 31, New York, NY 10005
www.thenewpress.com
9781620974209, $22.99, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: For most of America's history, America simply did not lock people up for migrating
here. Yet over the last thirty years, the federal and state governments have increasingly tapped
their powers to incarcerate people accused of violating immigration laws. As a result, almost
400,000 people annually now spend some time locked up pending the result of a civil or criminal
immigration proceeding.
In "Migrating to Prison: America's Obsession with Locking Up Immigrants", Professor Cesar
Cuauhtemoc Garcia Hernandez takes a hard look at the immigration prison system's origins, how
it currently operates, and why. He tackles the emergence of immigration imprisonment in the
mid-1980s, with enforcement resources deployed disproportionately against Latinos, and he
looks at both the outsized presence of private prisons and how those on the political right
continue, disingenuously, to link immigration imprisonment with national security risks and
threats to the rule of law.
Interspersed with powerful stories of people caught up in the immigration imprisonment industry,
including children who have spent most of their lives in immigrant detention, "Migrating to
Prison" is an urgent call for the abolition of immigration prisons and a radical reimagining of the
United States: who belongs and on what criteria is that determination made?
Critique: Timely, informative, expertly written, organized and presented, "Migrating to Prison:
America's Obsession with Locking Up Immigrants" is unreservedly recommended for
community, college, and university library Contemporary Social Issues collections in general,
and Immigration Issues supplemental curriculum studies in particular. It should be noted for the
personal reading lists that "Migrating to Prison" is also readily available in a digital book format
(Kindle, $14.49), as well as a complete and unabridged audio book (Tantor Audio,
9781494539702, $24.99, CD).
Editorial Note: Cesar Cuauhtemoc Garcia Hernandez is a professor of law at the University of
Denver and an immigration lawyer. He runs the blog www.Crimmigration.com and regularly
speaks on immigration law and policy issues. He has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall
Street Journal, NPR, and many other venues.
The Education Shelf
MLA Guide to Digital Literacy
Ellen C. Carillo
Modern Language Association
85 Broad Street, Suite 500, New York, NY 10004-2434
www.mla.org
9781603294393, $16.00, PB, 148pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Students at all grade levels face challenges assessing, responding to, and producing
information in today's fast-paced, complex digital landscape. "MLA Guide to Digital Literacy" is
guide by Ellen C. Carillo that will significantly help students understand why digital literacy is an
urgently needed skill: their education, future careers, and participation in democratic processes
rely on it.
"MLA Guide to Digital Literacy " is comprised of hands-on, structured activities give students
strategies for evaluating the credibility of sources, detecting fake news, understanding bias, and
more. Readings and writing prompts support specific concepts, including how to craft a research
question and effectively conduct searches. An appendix contains three sample lesson plans.
Critique: Now in our global age of social media it is vital for a functioning democracy that its
citizens be able to detect misinformation, bias, and 'fake news'. In short, to become digitally
literate. That's why "MLA Guide to Digital Literacy" is an absolutely essential addition to
community and academic library General Library & Digital Information Sciences collections and
supplemental studies reading lists. An excellent curriculum textbook, it should be noted for the
personal reading lists of students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in
the subject that the "MLA Guide to Digital Literacy" is also readily available in a digital book
format (Kindle, $15.20).
Engineering Education for the Next Generation
Samuel Cord Stier
W. W. Norton & Company
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110
www.wwnorton.com
9780393713770, $39.95, PB, 360pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Enhanced for the reader with more than 150 illustrations of natural phenomena and
engineering concepts, "Engineering Education for the Next Generation: A Nature-Inspired
Approach" is a fascinating and practical book that clearly demonstrates how engineering design
is broadly relevant for all students, not just those who may become scientists or engineers.
In "Engineering Education for the Next Generation" Samuel Cord Stier deftly describes clever,
engaging activities for students at every grade level to grasp engineering concepts by exploring
the everyday design genius of the natural world around us. Students will love learning about
structural engineering while standing on eggs; investigating concepts in sustainable design by
manufacturing cement out of car exhaust; and coming to understand how ant behavior has
revolutionized the way computer programs, robots, movies, and video games are designed
today.
Classroom teachers will come away with an understanding of engineering and Nature unlike any
they have had before, while taking their ability to engage students to a whole new level.
Engineering Education for the Next Generation is a wonderful introduction to the topic for any
teacher who wants to understand more about engineering design in particular, its relation to the
larger subjects of STEM/STEAM, and how to engage students from all backgrounds in a way
that meaningfully transforms their outlook on the world and their own creativity in a lifelong
way.
Critique: Enhanced with the inclusion of thirty-two pages of Notes and a thirty-one page Index,
"Engineering Education for the Next Generation: A Nature-Inspired Approach" will prove to be
an ideal and extraordinary curriculum textbook that is unreservedly recommended for school
district in-service teacher training programs, as well as college and university library Teacher
Education collections and supplemental studies reading lists. It should be noted for the personal
reading lists that "Engineering Education for the Next Generation: A Nature-Inspired Approach"
is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $34.98).
Editorial Note: Sam Stier is the Executive Director of The Center for Learning with Nature
(www.LearningWithNature.org), a non-profit organization providing STEM curricula and
teacher training founded on the captivating power and modern importance of the natural world.
Mr. Stier leads teacher trainings for primary, secondary, and post-secondary educators all over
the world, workshops for design professionals, and is a sought-after public speaker. A consultant
on Nature-inspired technological innovation and author of the award-winning K-12 curriculum
Engineering Inspired by Nature, he is a faculty member at Otis College of Art and Design in Los
Angeles, where he teaches science and sustainable design.
Educational Politics for Social Justice
Catherine Marshal, Cynthia Gerstil-Pepin, Mark Johnson
Teachers College Press
1234 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027
www.tcpress.com
9780807763247, $110.00, HC, 264pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Employing a social justice framework, "Educational Politics for Social Justice"
provides educational leaders and practitioners with tools and strategies for grappling with the
political fray of education politics. The framework offers ways to critique, challenge, and alter
social, cultural, and political patterns in organizations and systems that perpetuate inequities.
"Educational Politics for Social Justice" focus on the processes through which educational
politics is enacted, illustrating how inequitable power relations are embedded in our democratic
systems. Readers will explore education politics at five focal points of power (micro,
local/district, state, federal, and global). The text provides examples of how to "work the system"
in ways that move toward greater justice and equity in schools.
"Educational Politics for Social Justice": Conceptualizes educational politics within a pragmatic
social justice framework; Examines the various layers of politics and how they interact; Explains
governance structures and policymaking processes, such as policy formulation and
implementation; Offers insights into how power operates and how it can be invoked to support
the needs of struggling students; Explores why certain values, needs, and ideas are heard while
others are not.
Critique: A timely, thoughtful and thought-provoking contribution for educators wanting to
prepare their students for participation in the politically intense and complicated American
system of governance from the local level to international relations world-wide, "Educational
Politics for Social Justice" is ideal as a classroom curriculum textbook and is unreservedly
recommended for both community and academic library Contemporary Education Issues
collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, and non-
specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Educational Politics for Social
Justice" is also available in a paperback edition (9780807763230, $39.95) and in a digital book
format (Kindle, $37.95).
Editorial Note: Catherine Marshall is the R. Wendell Eaves Distinguished Professor Emerita of
Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Cynthia
Gerstl-Pepin is a professor and dean of the College of Education at the University of
Massachusetts Amherst. Mark Johnson has been a classroom teacher, school administrator, and
policy analyst and is currently a researcher at The Learning Partnership in Chicago.
Storycraft: How to Teach Narrative Writing
Martin Griffin & Jon Mayhew
Crown House Publishing
81 Brook Hills Circle, White Plains, NY 10605
www.crownhousepublishing.com
9781785834028, $22.95, PB, 232pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Martin Griffin and Jon Mayhew's "Storycraft: How to Teach Narrative Writing" is an
inspiring and practical resource to support secondary school teachers in developing their students
creative writing.
Not a style manual, "Storycraft" deftly picks apart the craft of narrative writing and equips
teachers with activities designed to help their students overcome the difficulties they experience
when tasked with creating something from nothing.
"Storycraft" also packs in expert guidance relating to idea generation and the nature of story and
provides off-the-peg writing prompts that teachers can immediately adopt and adapt in the
classroom. It continues by breaking down the simple components that must be in place for a
narrative to work the crafting of character, setting, shape and structure and shares fifty-one
stimulating activities that will get students writing narratives regularly, more creatively and with
greater confidence.
"Storycraft" also include helpful advice in a chapter dedicated to the process of editing in which
they provide activities designed to help students diagnose and improve misfiring narratives, and
they close the book with invaluable tips for GCSE exam preparation written directly for students
and with an impending creative writing exam in mind.
Critique: An ideal curriculum textbook, "Storycraft: How to Teach Narrative Writing" is
especially designed for English teachers of students aged eleven to eighteen. While very highly
recommended for school district in-service training programs, "Storycraft" should be a part of
every college and university library Teacher Education instructional reference collection. It
should be noted for the personal reading lists of aspiring authors seeking to expand their narrative
writing skills that "Storycraft" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$20.99).
Editorial Note: Martin Griffin has over two decades experience teaching students aged eleven to
eighteen, and has been a head of faculty, an assistant head teacher and a deputy head teacher. He
is also an award-winning writer of children's fiction, whose books include 'The Poison Boy'
written under the pseudonym Fletcher Moss and young adult thrillers 'Lifers and Payback'.
Having worked as an English and special educational needs teacher for twenty-five years, Jon
Mayhew is now in demand on the school event circuit delivering writing workshops to students
from Key Stage 2 to sixth form. He is also a Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow, helping
students to improve their academic writing at Chester University. Jon is the author of the
Monster Odyssey series and the multi-award-winning 'Mortlock'.
Cultural Competence Now
Vernita Mayfield
ASCD
1703 North Beauregard Street, Alexandria, VA 22311-1714
www.ascd.org
9781416628491, $31.95, PB, 212pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: What will it take to create equitable educational opportunities for all students?
According to veteran educator Vernita Mayfield, teachers and school leaders need to learn how to
recognize culturally embedded narratives about racial hierarchy and dismantle the systems of
privilege and the institutions that perpetuate them with knowledge, action, and advocacy.
Comprised of 56 exercises to help classroom teachers to understand and challenge bias, racism,
and privilege, "Cultural Competence Now" provides a structure to begin meaningful
conversations about race, culture, bias, privilege, and power within the time constraints of an
ordinary school. The 56 exercises include activities, discussions, and readings in which to engage
during each of the four quarters of the school year. School leaders will discover how to facilitate
learning through the four steps (awaken and assess; apply and act; analyze and align; advocate
and lead) as they and their colleagues: Increase their awareness of privilege and bias; Adapt their
professional practices to meet the needs of all students; Examine policies and practices that
inhibit opportunities for marginalized populations; Align resources to eradicate inequity in their
schools.
Mayfield offers advice on establishing a safe environment for professional conversations, setting
goals for cultural competency, overcoming resistance, reviewing school data and the school's
vision and mission through the lens of race and culture, and strategically managing what can be a
transformative yet uncomfortable change process. "Cultural Competence Now" responds to the
urgent need to build the cultural competency of educators -- for the sake of children and in the
interest of supporting and retaining all educators.
Critique: Expertly written, organized and presented, "Cultural Competence Now" is an ideal
textbook for school district in-service training programs and is unreservedly recommended for
both college and university library Teacher Education instructional reference collections. It
should be noted for personal reading lists that "Cultural Competence Now" is also available in a
digital book format (Kindle, $30.99).
Editorial Note: Vernita Mayfield began her career as an elementary school teacher in Los
Angeles, California. As a classroom teacher, Mayfield found her first love serving and supporting
students who have been historically marginalized. Since then, she has continued to do so through
numerous positions of service, including secondary school principal, researcher and lecturer, and
educational consultant at state and national levels. In 2012, she founded Leadervation Learning to
support organizations seeking to build leadership capacity, particularly in marginalized
communities. The company evolved into a vehicle supporting leaders at all levels to understand
and dismantle inequitable systems and organizations by building the cultural competency of
staff.
Let Them Shine
Michael Alan Haggood, EdD
Redleaf Press
10 Yorkton Court, St. Paul, MN 55117-1065
www.redleafpress.org
9781605547213, $24.95, PB, 120pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Let Them Shine: Inspiring Stories of Empowering Young Children" is a collection of
inspiring personal stories of empowerment of young children from Los Angeles Unified District
principal Michael Alan Haggood, EdD.
Dr. Haggood highlights the crucial role educators play in young children's lives and how their
actions often have lifelong effects on the children in their care. After all, "No child can learn
from you if they feel you are not interested in them."
Woven into each narrative are teaching and learning strategies for parents and teachers. Readers
will be asked to reflect on their own experiences as each chapter challenges them with thoughtful
questions to ponder and answer to make positive, intentional changes.
Critique: Expertly organized and presented, "Let Them Shine: Inspiring Stories of Empowering
Young Children" inspire classroom teachers and school support staff to nurture the light in each
student. Organized around twelve traits,"Let Them Shine" is ideal for use with study groups and
book clubs. All stories accurately portray adversity and are ultimately inspirational, making "Let
Them Shine" unreservedly recommended for community, school district, college, and university
library Teacher Education collections. It should be noted for classroom teachers, education
students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Let
Them Shine" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $16.99).
Editorial Note: Michael Alan Haggood, EdD, is a principal in the Los Angeles Unified School
District. He is also a professor with National University where he instructs professional educators
on a variety of subjects to strengthen their practice.
The American History Shelf
George Washington's Nemesis
Christian McBurney
Savas Beatie
PO Box 4527, El Dorado Hills, CA 95762
www.savasbeatie.com
9781611214659, $32.95, HC, 288pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Revolutionary War historians and biographers of Charles Lee have treated him as
either an inveterate enemy of George Washington or a great defender of American liberty. In
"George Washington's Nemesis: The Outrageous Treason and Unfair Court Martial of Major
General Charles Lee during the American Revolution", historian and author Christian McBurney
argues that neither approach is accurate. McBurney stresses that in order to fully understand the
war's most complicated general, objectivity is required.
In this new book relies on original documents (some newly discovered) to combine two dramatic
stories involving the military law of treason and court-martials, creating a balanced view of the
Revolution's most fascinating personality.
Critique: An extraordinary and meticulous work of detailed and documented scholarship,
"George Washington's Nemesis: The Outrageous Treason and Unfair Court Martial of Major
General Charles Lee during the American Revolution" is an impressive and iconoclastic
contribution to the growing library of American Revolutionary War histories and George
Washington biographies. While unreservedly recommended for community, college, and
university library American Military History collections in general, and American Revolutionary
Biographies collections in particular, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of students,
academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "George
Washington's Nemesis" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $11.99).
Editorial Note: An attorney in Washington, D.C., Christian McBurney has written five books on
the American Revolutionary War, including Kidnapping the Enemy: The Special Operations to
Capture Generals Charles Lee & Richard Prescott. His published articles include one in MHQ:
The Journal of Military History, on the British attempt to abduct George Washington, which was
nominated by the U.S. Army Historical Foundation as best magazine article for 2017. He also
publishes Rhode Island's leading history blog (www.smallstatebighistory.com).
The Best Years, 1945-1950
Joseph C. Goulden
Dover Publications, Inc.
31 East 2nd Street, Mineola, NY 11501
www.doverpublications.com
9780486838267, $24.95, PB, 480pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: For many Americans, the five-year period between the end of World War II and the
start of the Korean War was a golden era, marked by a booming economy and a national mood of
unity and optimism. For others, it represents a simmering mix of tensions, an era shadowed by
troubled race relations and out-of-control anti-Communism. "The Best Years, 1945-1950" by
journalist Joseph C. Goulden is unique and highly regarded five year history that offers a nuanced
and perceptive exploration of how Americans of the era thought and behaved that's based on
then-current information rather than through the long-distance prism of history.
In "The Best Years, 1945-1950" Goulden quotes both prominent and obscure citizens, who
describe their experiences of postwar America. His historical narrative is punctuated by several
brief reminiscences of his own youth in Texas during these pivotal years, and in this new Dover
Publications edition he provides a new Preface with additional insights garnered since the book's
original 1976 publication. The result is an intricate and indelible record of a crucial period in
American political and social history.
Critique: An impressively informative, exceptionally well written, deftly presented, and
inherently interesting history of a socially, culturally, politically, and economically impactful
half-decade, "The Best Years, 1945-1950" is an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended
addition to personal, community, college, and university library 20th Century American History
collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.
Editorial Note: Joseph C. Goulden is the author and co-author of 19 nonfiction books, including
The Superlawyers, a five-month national bestseller, and Korea: The Untold Story of the War.
Goulden spent a decade in daily journalism with The Dallas Morning News and as Washington
Bureau Chief for the Philadelphia Inquirer. His other Dover book is The Dictionary of
Espionage: Spyspeak into English.
Yountsville
Ronald V. Morris
University of Notre Dame Press
310 Flanner Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556
www.undpress.nd.edu
9780268106614, $35.00, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In "Yountsville: The Rise and Decline of an Indiana Mill Town", Ronald Morris (a
Professor of History at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana) and his contributing collaborators
examine the history and context of a rural Midwestern town, including family labor, working
women, immigrants, and competing visions of the future. Combing perspectives from history,
economics, and archaeology, this exploration of a pioneering Midwestern company town
highlights how interdisciplinary approaches can help recover forgotten communities.
The Yount Woolen Mill was founded during the pioneer period by immigrants from Germany
who employed workers from the surrounding area and from Great Britain who were seeking to
start a life with their families. For three generations the mill prospered until it and its workers
were faced with changing global trade and aging technology that could not keep pace with the
rest of the world. Deindustrialization compelled some residents to use education to adapt, while
others held on to their traditional skills and were forced to relocate.
Educators in the county seat offered Yountsville the opportunity to change to an education-based
economy. Both the educators and the tradesmen associated with the mill believed their chosen
paths gave children the best opportunities for the future. Present-day communities working
through industrialization and deindustrialization still push for educational reform to improve the
lives of their children.
In the Midwest, many stories exist about German immigrants working in urban areas, but there
are few stories of immigrants as capitalists in rural areas. The story of the Yount family is one of
an immigrant family who built an industry with talent, labor, and advantage. Unfortunately,
deindustrialization, dislocation, adaptation, and reuse were familiar problems in the
Midwest.
Critique: An impressive work of meticulous and collaborative scholarship, "Yountsville: The
Rise and Decline of an Indiana Mill Town" that will have special appeal to archeologists,
scholars, and students of state and local history and the Midwest. Enhanced for academia with
the inclusion of figures, tables and graphs, plus fourteen pages of Notes, a six page Bibliography,
and a four page Index, "Yountsville: The Rise and Decline of an Indiana Mill Town" is an
especially and unreservedly recommended addition to community and academic library
American Regional History collections in general, and Indiana State History supplemental
studies lists in particular. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general
readers with an interest in the subject that "Yountsville: The Rise and Decline of an Indiana Mill
Town" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $16.99).
The World History Shelf
The Impact of World War One on the Jewish People
Larry Domnitch
Urim Publications
c/o KTAV Publishing House
527 Empire Boulevard, Brooklyn, New York 11225
www.UrimPublications.com
9781602803749, $26.95, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The First World War was a calamity which significantly impacted the Jewish people.
Millions of Jews were personally affected whether upon the battlefields by being in close
proximity to the fighting, or as refugees. The era of the First World War ignited existing hatreds
against Jewry and posed unprecedented challenges in a world rife with peril. With the Wars end
in 1918, dangers and hardships facing Jewry continued. Amid this bleak and ominous picture, the
Balfour Declaration gave hope for Jewish statehood. The aftermath of the war eventually led to
the rebirth of the Jewish State.
Critique: An extraordinary, impressively informative, and inherently fascinating history of war's
impact on the Jewish community, the Judaic diaspora, and the precursor groundwork for the
establishment of the state of Israel, "The Impact of World War One on the Jewish People" by
Larry Domnitch is especially and unreservedly recommended for personal, community, college,
and university library 20th Century Jewish History collections and supplemental curriculum
studies reading lists.
Editorial Note: Larry Domnitch has taught history at Touro College and is the author of The
Cantonists: The Jewish Children's Army of the Tsar and The Jewish Holidays: A Journey
through History, as well as many articles, including in the Algemeiner, The Jewish Press, and
Israel National News.
Ireland and the Monarchy
John Gibney, editor
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526736710, $39.95, HC, 240pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: John Gibney is a historian attached to the Royal Irish Academy's Documents on Irish
Foreign Policy Project. He is a longtime contributor to History Ireland.
In "Ireland and the Monarchy: Irish Perspectives" Gibney lays out that in the twenty-first century
there are two jurisdictions on the island of Ireland, and two very different heads of state represent
the populations of Ireland and Northern Ireland respectively: the elected presidency of the
republic, and the hereditary monarchy of the United Kingdom.
But the idea of monarchy, and the related notion of aristocracy, has a long heritage in Ireland.
There was a native aristocracy long before the British conquest, and British monarchs were not
the only monarchs to matter to Irish people.
Now, in the third installment of the collaboration between Pen and Sword and History Ireland
magazine, a range of experts examine how the role played by monarchs and their monarchies
from the middle ages up to the present has had a role in shaping Ireland and its peoples,
exploring some unexpected highways and byways along the way. From the Vikings to the
Jacobites, and from the high-kings of Irish mythology to Mrs Simpson, "Ireland and the
Monarchy" is comprise of seventeen informative articles that collectively surveys Ireland's kings,
queens, their followers and their opponents to cast light on Ireland's history from a unique and
unexpected perspective.
Critique: An inherently fascinating, thoughtful and thought-provoking work of meticulous
collective scholarship, "Ireland and the Monarchy" is an extraordinary and very highly
recommended addition to community and academic library Irish History collections and
supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-
specialist general readers with an interest in the subject tyhat "Ireland and the Monarchy" is also
available in a paperback edition (9781526757647, $24.95) and in a digital book format (Kindle,
$12.99).
Lost Heirs of the Medieval Crown
J. F. Andrews
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526736512, $39.95, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: When William the Conqueror died in 1087 he left the throne of England to William
Rufus who was his second son. The result was an immediate war as Rufus's elder brother Robert
fought to gain the crown he saw as rightfully his; this conflict marked the start of 400 years of
bloody disputes as the English monarchy's line of hereditary succession was bent, twisted and
finally broken when the last Plantagenet king, Richard III, fell at Bosworth in 1485.
The Anglo-Norman and Plantagenet dynasties were renowned for their internecine strife, and in
"Lost Heirs of the Medieval Crown: The Kings and Queens Who Never Were", historian J. F.
Andrews unearths the hidden stories of fratricidal brothers, usurping cousins and murderous
uncles; the many kings (and the occasional queen) who should have been monarchs but never
were.
History is written by the winners, but every game of thrones has its losers too, and their
fascinating stories bring richness and depth to what is a colorful period of history. King John
would not have gained the crown had he not murdered his young nephew, who was in line to
become England's first King Arthur; Henry V would never have been at Agincourt had his father
not seized the throne by usurping and killing his cousin; and as the rival houses of York and
Lancaster fought bloodily over the crown during the Wars of the Roses, life suddenly became
very dangerous indeed for a young boy named Edmund.
Critique: An original and seminal work of simply outstanding and documented historical
scholarship, "Lost Heirs of the Medieval Crown: The Kings and Queens Who Never Were" is
further enhanced for academia with the inclusion of illustrations, a list of abbreviations, twenty-
seven pages of notes, a four page bibliographical listing of suggestions for further reading, and an
eight page index. While unreservedly recommended as a core addition to British history
collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists, it should be noted for students, academia,
and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Lost Heirs of the Medieval
Crown" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $19.99).
Editorial Note: J. F. Andrews is the pseudonym of an historian who has a PhD in Medieval
Studies specializing in warfare and combat. Andrews has published a number of academic books
and articles in the UK, the USA and France, and was one of the contributors to the Oxford
Encyclopaedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology (Oxford University Press, 2010).
Andrews is also active in public engagement with history, having written several historical
novels and contributed popular history articles to blogs and magazines.
Charles II and His Escape into Exile
Martyn R. Beardsley
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526725721, $39.95, HC, 192pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Charles II (29 May 1630 - 6 February 1685) was king of England, Scotland, and
Ireland. He was king of Scotland from 1649 until his deposition in 1651, and king of England,
Scotland and Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685.
Returning to England to try to reclaim his throne, King Charles II was defeated at the Battle of
Worcester -- but the battle to save his own life had only just begun. Pursued wherever he went by
soldiers from the conflict as well as local militia, Charles donned peasant clothing, crudely cut
his hair and tried to adopt a rustic accent. With the secret help of a succession of loyal citizens,
he walked till his feet were shredded, waded rivers, coolly mixed with anti-royalists and enemy
troopers -- and, of course, famously hid in an oak tree. Never sure of who could be trusted, it was
touch and go all the way to the coast and, hopefully, a boat that would take him to freedom.
Critique: Written with all the narrative storytelling skill of a novelist, this meticulously detailed
and informative history is enhanced for academia with the inclusion of two Appendices (Lord
Henry Wilmot/The Penderels and Petitioners to the King), and a three page Bibliography. Certain
to be an enduringly valued contribution to 17th Century English History, "Charles II and his
Escape into Exile: Capture the King" is unreservedly recommended for personal reading lists, as
well as community, college, and university library Historical Royal British Biographies
collections.
Editorial Note: History is Martyn Beardsley's big passion, and he has written books on a variety
of subjects. He got the idea for (King Charles) while enjoying a pint (or two) in the George Inn
Mere, Wiltshire, which sheltered Charles while on the run, and which has a King Charles room.
His other non-fiction works include The Gunpowder Plot Deceit and A Matter of Honour, an
account of Britain's last fatal duel.
From Berber State to Moroccan Empire
Maya Shatzmiller
Markus Wiener Publishers
231 Nassau Street, Princeton, NJ 08542
www.markuswiener.com
9781558769519, $26.95, PB, 246pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Medieval Fez was a main center of education, art, and commerce from the 13th to the
16th centuries after the Berber tribe of the Marinids seized power in Morocco and moved the
capital from Marrakesh to Fez. As non-Arabs they gained legitimacy by founding medresas,
religious universities. They also supported the arts and commerce, and expanded their state into
an empire. It was the Golden Age of Fez. Maya In "From Berber State to Moroccan Empire: The
Glory of Fez Under the Marinids" academician and historian Maya Shatzmiller (University of
Western Ontario) draws a historical panorama of this era, highlighting its movers and shakers in
locations from North Africa to the Mediterranean world.
Critique: A masterpiece of historical scholarship, "From Berber State to Moroccan Empire: The
Glory of Fez Under the Marinids" is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to
personal, professional, community, college, and university library North African & Middle East
History collections in general, and Berber/Marinid History supplemental studies reading lists in
particular.
The Civil War Shelf
The Second Colorado Cavalry
Christopher M. Rein
University of Oklahoma Press
2800 Venture Drive, Norman, OK 73069
www.oupress.com
9780806164816, $34.95, HC, 288pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: During the Civil War, the Second Colorado Volunteer Regiment played a vital and
often decisive role in the fight for the Union on the Great Plains -- and in the westward expansion
of the American empire."The Second Colorado Cavalry: A Civil War Regiment on the Great
Plains" by Civil War historian Christopher M. Rein is the first in-depth history of this regiment
operating at the nexus of the Civil War and the settlement of the American West.
Composed largely of footloose '59ers who raced west to participate in the gold rush in Colorado,
the troopers of the Second Colorado repelled Confederate invasions in New Mexico and Indian
Territory before wading into the Burned District along the Kansas border, the bloodiest region of
the guerilla war in Missouri. In 1865, the regiment moved back out onto the plains, applying
what it had learned to peacekeeping operations along the Santa Fe Trail, thus definitively linking
the Civil War and the military conquest of the American West in a single act of continental
expansion.
Emphasizing the cavalry units, whose mobility proved critical in suppressing both Confederate
bushwhackers and Indian raiders, Rein tells the neglected tale of the "fire brigade" of the
Trans-Mississippi Theater -- a group of men, and a few women, who enabled the most significant
environmental shift in the Great Plains' history: the displacement of Native Americans by
Euro-American settlers, the swapping of bison herds for fenced cattle ranges, and the substitution
of iron horses for those of flesh and bone.
"The Second Colorado Cavalry" offers a much-needed history of the "guerilla hunters" who
helped suppress violence and keep the peace in contested border regions; it adds nuance and
complexity to an understanding of the unlikely "agents of empire" who successfully transformed
the Central Plains.
Critique: An impressively informative and comprehensive history that is expertly enhanced for
academia with the inclusion of a twelve page Bibliography, twenty-two pages of Notes, and an
eight page Appendix (Statistical Abstract of the Second Colorado Cavalry), and a seven page
Index, "The Second Colorado Cavalry: A Civil War Regiment on the Great Plains" is an
extraordinary and ground-breaking addition to the growing body of American Civil War
literature. While unreservedly recommended for both community and academic library Civil War
history collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, Civil
War buffs, and nonspecialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "The Second
Colorado Cavalry" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $29.95).
Editorial Note: Christopher M. Rein is the Managing Editor of the Air University Press at
Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama, and the author of The North African Air
Campaign: The U.S. Army Air Forces from El Alamein to Salerno and Alabamians in Blue:
Freedmen, Unionists, and the Civil War in the Cotton State.
Martin R. Delany's Civil War and Reconstruction
Tunde Adeleke
University Press of Mississippi
3825 Ridgewood Road, Jackson, MS 39211
www.upress.state.ms.us
9781496826633, $99.00, HC, 262pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Militant? Uncompromising? Pragmatic? Utilitarian? Accommodating? Conservative?
To engage Martin Robison Delany (1812-1885) is to wrestle with almost all the complexities and
paradoxes of nineteenth-century black leadership in one public intellectual.
An African American abolitionist and journalist, Delany advocated for black nationalism, one of
the first to do so. After working alongside Frederick Douglass to publish the North Star in the
1840s, Delany looked into establishing a settlement in West Africa. Yet during the Civil War, he
served as the first African American field grade officer in the Union Army. Then he labored for
the Freedmen's Bureau in South Carolina. Delany even ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor
as a Republican and later defected to the Democrats.
Compiled and edited by senior historian and academician Tunde Adeleke, "Martin R. Delany's
Civil War and Reconstruction: A Primary Source Reader" is comprised of letters, speeches,
contemporary nineteenth-century newspaper articles, and reports written by and about Delany.
These vital primary sources cover his Civil War and Reconstruction career in South Carolina and
include key critical reactions to Delany's ideas and writings from his contemporaries. There are
over ninety documents, the vast majority not previously published.
Delany remains the subject of conflicting and confusing interpretations. Professor Adeleke
indicates that Delany actually manifested complex dispositions. He presaged manifestations of
the strands of both protest and compromise that would define the early twentieth-century world
of Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois. These documents will prove an indispensable
call and response to an unparalleled intellectual life.
Critique: An impressively thorough and meticulous work of seminal scholarship and exhaustive
research, "Martin R. Delany's Civil War and Reconstruction: A Primary Source Reader" is a
unique and unreservedly recommended addition to community and academic library 19th
Century American History and Black History collections and supplemental studies lists. It should
be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject
that "Martin R. Delany's Civil War and Reconstruction: A Primary Source Reader" is also
available in a paperback edition (9781496826640, $30.00) and in a digital book format (Kindle,
$28.50).
Editorial Note: Tunde Adeleke is a Professor of History and the Director of the African and
African American Studies Program at Iowa State University. His books include the critically
acclaimed UnAfrican Americans: Nineteenth-Century Black Nationalists and the Civilizing
Mission; The Case against Afrocentrism; and Without Regard to Race: The Other Martin R.
Delany, the latter two published by University Press of Mississippi.
The Spirits of Bad Men Made Perfect
Constance Hall Jones
Southern Illinois University Press
1915 University Press Drive, Carbondale, IL 62901
www.siupress.com
9780809337613, $26.50, PB, 272pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "The Spirits of Bad Men Made Perfect: The Life and Diary of Confederate Artillerist
William Ellis Jones" by Constance Hall Jones (who is an antiquarian book dealer and author
working in Raleigh, North Carolina) is a remarkable biography presented in an edited diary
format to tell the story of William Ellis Jones (1838-1910), an artillerist in Crenshaw's Battery,
Pegram's Battalion, the Army of Northern Virginia. One of the few extant diaries by a
Confederate artillerist, Jones's articulate writings cover camp life as well as many of the key
military events of 1862, including the Peninsula Campaign, the Second Battle of Manassas, the
Maryland Campaign, and the Battle of Fredericksburg.
In 1865 Jones returned to his prewar printing trade in Richmond, and his lasting reputation stems
from his namesake publishing company's role in the creation and dissemination of much of the
Lost Cause ideology. Unlike the pro-Confederate books and pamphlets that Jones had previously
published (primary among them the Southern Historical Society Papers) his diary shows the
mindset of an unenthusiastic soldier.
In a model of contextualization, biographer Constance Hall Jones shows how her ancestor came
to embrace an uncritical veneration of the army's leadership and to promulgate a mythology
created by veterans and their descendants who refused to face the amorality of their cause.
Jones brackets the soldier's diary with rich, biographical detail, profiling his friends and relatives
and providing insight into his childhood and post-war years. In doing so, she offers one of the
first serious investigations into the experience of a Welsh immigrant family loyal to the
Confederacy and makes a significant contribution to our understanding of Civil War era
Richmond and the nineteenth-century publishing industry.
Critique: An inherently fascinating and impressively informative Civil War biography, "The
Spirits of Bad Men Made Perfect: The Life and Diary of Confederate Artillerist William Ellis
Jones" will prove to be a welcome and enduringly popular addition to community, college, and
university library American Civil War collections and supplemental studies curriculum lists. It
should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, Civil War history buffs, and
non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "The Spirits of Bad Men Made
Perfect" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $14.31).
The Military Shelf
Unbreakable Hearts!
Earl "Dusty" Trimmer
https://www.unbreakableheartsbook.com
Dog Ear Publishing
8888 Keystone Crossing, Suite 1300, Indianapolis, IN 46240
www.dogearpublishing.net
9781457569975, $34.99, HC, 586pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In "Unbreakable Hearts!: The Vietnam Wars from 111 BC to 1979", Earl 'Dusty'
Trimmer provides invaluable insight into Vietnamese history and culture as he skillfully brings
the reader into more comprehensive understanding our Vietnamese enemy's amazing resolve to
win against the most powerful military on earth.
Dusty deftly explains in impressive detail the evolution of our Vietnamese enemy over hundreds
of years of invasions and wars. Always defending their country to remain free became an art. Of
special note is the chapter in which Dusty describes the role and expertise of Vietnamese women
fighters.
Critique: Earl "Dusty" Trimmer relates with both skill and personal experience events
surrounding the Viet Nam conflict -- perhaps the most forgettable and misunderstood war in
America's history. Presenting a nearly two millennia history of the wars that took place in Viet
Nam, "Unbreakable Hearts!: The Vietnam Wars from 111 BC to 1979" is unreservedly
recommended for community, college, and university library Military History collections in
general, and Viet Nam War supplemental studies reading lists in particular. It should be noted for
the personal reading lists of students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an
interest in the subject that "Unbreakable Hearts!: The Vietnam Wars from 111 BC to 1979" is
also available in a paperback edition (9781457568565, $29.99) and in a digital book format
(Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Earl "Dusty" Trimmer was a combat infantry soldier in the Vietnam War from
1968-1969. As a combat infantryman, often he walked at the head of the combat mission as the
point man during the bloodiest year of the Vietnam War, 1968.
"Vincere!"
Federica Saini Fasanotti
Naval Institute Press
291 Wood Road, Annapolis, MD 21402
www.nip.org
9781682474280, $44.00, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Vincere!" presents an overview of the counterinsurgency operations carried out by the
Italian Royal Army from 1922 to 1941 in Libya and Ethiopia. Based on ten years of study
conducted in the Italian archives and on the ground, "Vincere!" looks at a period when the Italian
Royal Army faced significant new challenges in the conduct of war. Facing new challenges in an
atypical theater of war, Italian Royal Army forces learned significant lessons that would shape
the conduct of future combat.
In the period covered in "Vincere!", the Italian Royal Army forces had to adapt to new terrain,
while modifying their techniques and methods in relation to the local populations and the overall
characteristics of the territories in Africa. Moving away from a reliance on heavy, slow battalions
formed for the most part by Italian troops, the Italians instead turned to mobile units, lightly
armed and composed primarily by African troops who were able to respond quickly to the needs
of this kind of war.
Men coming from the loyal Eritrean colony, from Somalia, Libya, from the countries on the Red
Sea and even from Ethiopia, progressively replaced Italian troops. In Libya, warfighting and
counterinsurgency operations were conducted mainly by regular infantry (Libyan battalions,
Meharists, Saharian) and cavalry units (Savaris and Spahis), while in Ethiopia, regular and
irregular bands were used. "Vincere!" offers insights into some of the earliest irregular warfare
and counterinsurgency operations the modern Italian forces ever conducted.
Critique: An impressive work of extensively detailed and documented scholarship, "Vincere!:
The Italian Royal Army's Counterinsurgency Operations in Africa 1922-1940" is a unique and
exceptionally informative military history that is unreservedly recommended for community,
college, and university library military history collections. It should be noted for the personal
reading lists of students, academia, military buffs, and non-specialist general readers with an
interest in the subject that "Vincere!" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$27.49).
Editorial Note: Federica Saini Fasanotti graduated in Contemporary History with honors and then
gained a PhD at the University of Milan. She is a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings
Institution in Washington, DC. She has published five books on military history and her many
essays and articles have appeared in a number of journals and historical magazines.
Normandy 1944
Niklas Zetterling
Casemate Publishers
1940 Lawrence Road, Havertown, PA 19083
www.casematepublishers.com
9781612008165, $34.95, HC, 480pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Normandy 1944: German Military Organization, Combat Power and Organizational
Effectiveness" by Niklas Zetterling is a significantly revised and updated single-source reference
which accurately details the German field forces employed in Normandy in 1944 and their
losses.
Dr. Zetterling also provides a sobering analysis of the subject matter and debunks a number of
popular myths concerning the campaign (the effectiveness of Allied air power; the preferential
treatment of Waffen-SS formations in comparison to their army counterparts; etc.). He supports
his text with exhaustive footnoting and provides an organizational chart for most of the
formations covered in the book.
Critique: Of special note is the inclusion of numerous organizational diagrams, charts, tables and
graphs, making "Normandy 1944: German Military Organization, Combat Power and
Organizational Effectiveness" a critically important and unreservedly recommended addition to
community, college, and university library World War II Military History collections and
supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, military history
buffs, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Normandy 1944" is
also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $12.99).
Editorial Note: Niklas Zetterling is a military historian and researcher at the Swedish Defense
College. His previous books include Bismarck, The Korsun Pocket, and The Drive on Moscow,
1941.
Operation Crusader
Hermann Buschleb, author
David Dorondo, translator
Casemate Publishers
1940 Lawrence Road, Havertown, PA 19083
www.casematepublishers.com
9781612007236, $29.95, HC, 128pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The port of Tobruk, Libya, was besieged by German and Italian forces in April 1941.
Following an abortive attempt in June, the Allies tried to relieve the siege in late November,
when the Eighth Army launched Operation Crusader, which aimed at destroying the Axis
armored force then advancing. After a number of inconclusive engagements, the British 7th
Armoured Division was defeated by the Afrika Korps at Sidi Rezegh.
Erwin Rommel was then forced to withdraw his troops to the defensive line at Gazala, making
the operation the first Allied victory over German land forces in World War II. "Operation
Crusader: Tank Warfare in the Desert, Tobruk 1941" is a detailed and documented account of the
tank warfare during Operation Crusader in front of Tobruk in the fall of 1941 and examines the
roles of commanders in the battles of Operation Crusader, in particular the part of Erwin
Rommel, who achieved some defensive successes during the battle.
As well as examining the part of commanders, "Operation Crusader" discusses the parameters of
the battle: the terrain, weather, visibility, logistics, intelligence, and the forces involved. It then
narrates the course of the battle, and the result of the battle.
Critique: Ably translated from German by David Dorondo for the benefit of an American
readership, "Operation Crusader: Tank Warfare in the Desert, Tobruk 1941" by the late Hermann
Buschleb (1915-1998) who fought in World War II and subsequently became an respected
historian who wrote a number of books on military history, is an especially and unreservedly
recommended addition to both community and academic library World War II Military History
collections. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, and dedicated
military buffs that "Operation Crusader" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$9.99).
Shooting Vietnam
Dan Brookes & Bob Hillerby
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526744005, $32.95, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Shooting Vietnam: The War By Its Military Photographers" is comprised of firsthand
accounts and view the hundreds of photographs by men who lived the war through the lens of a
camera from the mid-1960s to the early 1970s, revealing what was it like in the Vietnam War to
be a military combat photographer in the most photographed war in history.
Military and civilian photographers documented everything from the horror of combat, to the
people and culture of a land they suddenly found themselves immersed in. Some even juggled
cameras with rifles and grenade launchers as they fought to survive while carrying out their
assignments to record the war. "Shooting Vietnam" also finally brings recognition to these
unheralded military combat photographers in Vietnam that documented the brutal, unpopular,
and futile war.
Although some didn't survive. The cameras around their necks often shared space with a rifle or
grenade launcher that enabled them to stay alive while performing their assigned military duties,
killing, if necessary, to survive.
Often, during a brief respite from trudging through swamps and rice paddies or jumping from a
chopper into a hot landing zone, they would wander the streets of villages or even downtown
Saigon, curiously photographing a people and a culture so strange and different to them. It is
these photographs, of a kinder, more personal nature, removed from the horror and death of war
that they also share with the reader.
The accounts in this historical study by Dan Brookes (with the assistance of Bob Hillerby) come
from young men thrust into a conflict half way around the world, and all who had their own
unique perspective on the war. Some were seasoned photographers before the military, others
had only recently held a camera for the first time.
Critique: A unique and impressively informative contribution to the growing body of Vietnam
War histories, "Shooting Vietnam: The War By Its Military Photographers" is an extraordinary,
profusely illustrated, and inherently fascinating read from first page to last. While especially
recommended for community, college, and university library 20th Century American Military,
Vietnam War History, and 20th Century Photography collections, it should be noted for the
personal reading lists of students, academia, military history buffs, and non-specialist general
readers with an interest in the subject that "Shooting Vietnam: The War By Its Military
Photographers" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $15.99).
Editorial Note: Dan Brookes is a writer, photographer, and graphic artist. His tour in Vietnam
gave him the travel bug and he still takes to the road, ocean, and air the world over adding to his
collection of stories and pictures for his next books and photo exhibits. In addition to many other
things, has been the production manager of a Hollywood-based gambling magazine, piloted a
riverboat through the Amazon where he helped establish schools in tribal rainforest areas, ran a
catering business that fed some of the most famous rock stars on tour, co-founded a UFO
research group, and recently retired from Apple where he was a computer solutions
consultant.
Chosin: Heroic Ordeal of the Korean War
Eric Hammel
Casemate Publishers
1940 Lawrence Road, Havertown, PA 19083
www.casematepublishers.com
9781612007885, $24.95, HC, 432pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Told from the point of view of the men in the foxholes and tanks, outposts and
command posts, "Chosin: Heroic Ordeal of the Korean War" is the definitive account of the epic
retreat under fire of the 1st Marine Division from the Chosin Reservoir.
Author and military historian Eric Hammel first sketches in the errors and miscalculations on the
part of the American high command that caused the Marines to be strung out at the end of a
narrow road scores of miles from the sea. He then plunges right into the action: the massing of
Chinese forces in about ten-to-one strength; the Marines' command problems due to the climate
and terrain and high-level over confidence; and the onset of the overwhelming Chinese
assault.
Critique: Exceptionally well written on a foundation of exhaustive and meticulous reserarch the
results in the offering the read a genuine wealth of tactical detail and small-unit action, "Chosin:
Heroic Ordeal of the Korean War" is the most complete book written to date on this iconic battle
and is masterful account offers invaluable perspective on war at the gut level -- making it an ideal
and unreservedly recommended addition to both community and academic library Korean War
collections, as well as the personal reading lists of all dedicated military history buffs.
Editorial Note: Eric Hammel's passion for writing military history books began when he was
twelve years old. He has established a formidable reputation as an author and journalist, with
forty books and nearly seventy magazine articles to his name. A particular specialty is the U.S.
Marine Corps at war, and he has appeared in numerous television documentaries on Marine
Corps operations in World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and Beirut.
Mil Mi-24 Attack Helicopter
Michael Normann
Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310
www.schifferbooks.com
9780764358678, $39.99, HC, 208pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The Mil Mi-24 Soviet/Russian gunship and attack helicopter has been in continuous
combat service since its first appearance in the early 1970s. Its impressive performance, ability to
transport fully armed troops, and imposing armament soon earned the Mi-24 the nickname
"Crocodile" and have made the big helicopter an opponent that is still feared to this day.
The Mi-24's technical, developmental, and operational details, as well as upgrades and variants,
all are discussed in documented detail in "Mil Mi-24 Attack Helicopter: In Soviet/Russian and
Worldwide Service, 1972 to the Present" by Michael Normann. Included are discussions of all
versions, armament, radio, radar warning and navigational equipment, and defense systems.
Tactics and operations are also presented, with special emphasis on the Mi-24's service in
Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989. Worldwide use by over 30 countries includes the air forces of
Angola, Brazil, Cuba, India, Iraq, North Korea, Syria, Vietnam, Yemen, and others.
Critique: Profusely illustrated throughout, "Mil Mi-24 Attack Helicopter: In Soviet/Russian and
Worldwide Service, 1972 to the Present" is a comprehensively informative and model study.
Certain to be an immediate and enduringly popular addition to personal, professional,
community, and academic library Military Aviation History collections and supplemental studies
reading lists.
Editorial Note: Michael Normann performed his military service in an East German helicopter
unit and is an expert on the Mi-24. He regularly publishes articles on aviation in the specialized
press.
The Economic Studies Shelf
Debt Entanglement Between the Wars
Era Dabla-Norris, editor
International Monetary Fund
www.imf.org
9781513511795, $27.00, PB, 322pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: World War I created a set of forces that affected the political arrangements and
economies of all the countries involved. This period in global economic history between World
War I and II offers rich material for studying international monetary and sovereign debt
policies.
Expertly compiled and deftly edited by Era Dabla-Norris (who is a Division Chief in the IMF's
Fiscal Affairs Department), "Debt and Entanglements Between the Wars" focuses on the
experiences of the United States, United Kingdom, four countries in the British Commonwealth
(Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Newfoundland), France, Italy, Germany, and Japan, with the
contributors collectively offering unique insights into how political and economic interests
influenced alliances, defaults, and the unwinding of debts. The narratives presented show how
the absence of effective international collaboration and resolution mechanisms inflicted damage
on the global economy, with disastrous consequences.
Critique: A unique and impressively informative anthology of seven independent and erudite
studies, "Debt Entanglement Between the Wars" is enhanced for academia with a complete
listing of the contributors and their credentials, an Appendix (The Interwar Debt Database), and a
ten page Index. While especially and unreservedly recommended for both community and
academic library Economic Studies collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists
of students, academia, economists, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the
subject that "Debt Entanglement Between the Wars" is also available in a digital book format
(Kindle, $9.99).
The Science Shelf
The Anatomy Bible
Ken Okona-Mensah
Firefly Books Ltd.
www.fireflybooks.com
9780228102403, $19.95, PB, 320pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "The Anatomy Bible: The Incredible Biology of You" by Ken Okona-Mensah delivers
a concise and entertaining package of authoritative information on a fundamental aspect of
human existence; in this case, the bones and muscles and organs that make up human anatomy,
the one common element of all human life.
The 13 illustrated chapters comprising "The Anatomy Bible" cover: The discovery and
application of knowledge of human anatomy; the language of anatomy; The organization of your
body from cellular to chromosomal, to tissues and organs; The 3 layers of skin that protect us;
fat, hair, glands and nails; The musculoskeletal system, bone; tendons, ligaments and muscles;
cartilage and bone growth; aging; The heart, arteries, capillaries, veins, oxygen; Immunity and
wound repair; lymphocytes; hypersensitivity; Respiration and lungs; The nervous system;
neurons, axons, the brain parts, cortices, the senses; Chemicals and glands; Upper and lower
gastrointestinal tract and its parts, from mouth to throat to stomach to lower intestines; liver and
gallbladder; The urinary system; kidneys, bladder, ureter and urethra; blood filtering; blood
pressure; The structure and function of the male and female reproductive systems; genetics and
inherited characteristics; And looking ahead on the subject of 21st-century anatomy.
Critique: Comprehensive and exceptionally well written, organized and presented, this compact,
illustrated, and succinct edition of "The Anatomy Bible: The Incredible Biology Of You" is an
ideal and highly recommended addition to personal, community, and academic library Human
Physiology & Biology collections.
Editorial Note: Ken Okona-Mensah is a freelance science writer who has over 16 years'
experience working in academia and writing about health-based topics. With a background in
pharmacology and toxicology, research and science communication he previously worked as a
scientific writer for Imperial College London where he produced technical and lay reviews for
scientific advisory committees of Public Health England.
The Biography Shelf
Texas Ranger Lee Hall
Chuck Parsons
University of North Texas Press
1155 Union Circle #311336, Denton, TX 76203-5017
www.untpress.unt.edu
9781574417906, $29.95, HC, 432pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: When he left North Carolina to find adventure in Texas, Jesse Lee Hall (October 9,
1849 - March 17, 1911) was one of many young men seeking a new life following the Civil War.
After a stint as a deputy sheriff and a Sergeant-at-Arms in the House of Representatives, he
joined Captain Leander McNelly's Texas Ranger Special State Troops in 1876. This was the
career move that he had needed as he soon found enough action in South Texas.
When McNelly could no longer command due to illness, Hall was named to take his place. Hall
was involved in arresting King Fisher and his gang, and he (with a small squad) arrested seven of
the Sutton faction, effectively ending the bloody Sutton-Taylor Feud. One of his men, John B.
Armstrong, finally captured the most wanted man in Texas, John Wesley Hardin, in far-off
Florida. In 1878 Hall took part in the gun battle ending the career of outlaw Sam Bass.
Nearing his fiftieth birthday, Hall hoped to join Teddy Roosevelt's "Rough Riders," but that did
not happen. Instead he was posted to the Philippines, where as a commander during the
Philippine Insurrection he was so badly injured that he was given a medical discharge. The old
warrior died in San Antonio in 1911, loved and respected, having a reputation equaled by
few.
Critique: An impressively detailed, illustrated, documented, and meticulously presented
biography that is as riveting a read as any action/adventure western novel, "Texas Ranger Lee
Hall: From the Red River to the Rio Grande" is certain to be an immediate and enduringly
popular addition to both community and academic library American Biography collections in
general, and Texas Ranger supplemental studies lists in particular. It should be noted that "Texas
Ranger Lee Hall: From the Red River to the Rio Grande" is also readily available in a digital
book format (Kindle, $23.96).
Editorial Note: Texas based historian Chuck Parsons is the author of Captain John R. Hughes:
Lone Star Ranger; The Sutton-Taylor Feud; Captain Jack Helm; John B. Armstrong: Texas
Ranger, Pioneer Rancher; and Captain L. H. McNelly. He is also co-author of A Lawless Breed:
John Wesley Hardin, Texas Reconstruction, and Violence in the Wild West and Texas Ranger N.
O. Reynolds.
Ernest Thompson Seton
David L. Witt
Gibbs Smith, Publisher
PO Box 667, Layton UT 84041
www.gibbs-smith.com
9781423654711, $24.99, PB, 192pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: One of the world's first conservationists, Ernest Thompson Seaton (August 14, 1860 -
died October 23, 1946), "Ernest Thompson Seton: The Life and Legacy of an Artist and
Conservationist" is the inherently intriguing story of the man who served as the inspiration
behind the Boy Scouts of America and who dedicated his life to preserving nature and promoting
outdoor youth education. Celebrated in text and visuals, "Ernest Thompson Seton" by David L.
Witt showcases more than 100 of Seton's paintings and illustrations.
Critique: Featuring an impressively informative and profusely illustrated commentary, "Ernest
Thompson Seton: The Life and Legacy of an Artist and Conservationist" is an unreservedly
recommended addition to personal, community, college and university library American
Biography collections.
Editorial Note: David L. Witt is curator and director of the Seton Legacy Project for the
Academy of the Love of Learning, an educational organization in Santa Fe. A lifelong naturalist,
he lives in Taos, New Mexico.
Boy on the Bridge
Andrew Marble
The University Press of Kentucky
663 South Limestone Street, Lexington, KY 40508-4008
www.kentuckypress.com
9780813178028, $36.95, HC, 416pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Born in Poland, John Shalikashvili (June 27, 1936 - July 23, 2011) descended from
aristocratic European families that served with distinction in both battle and government for
centuries. After barely surviving the Warsaw Uprising, he and his family fled to Germany during
World War II to escape advancing Soviet troops and emigrated to the United States in 1952.
Shalikashvili was drafted into the army as a private in 1958 and rose steadily through the ranks,
serving in every level of unit command from platoon to division. In 1993 Shalikashvili was
tapped by President Bill Clinton to replace General Colin Powell as chairman of the Joint Chiefs
of Staff, becoming the first immigrant, first draftee, and first Officer Candidate School graduate
to hold the position.
"Boy on the Bridge: The Story of John Shalikashvili's American Success" by Andrew Marble (a
writer and editor who has worked in the fields of Chinese politics, Taiwan studies, US policy to
Asia, and international food policy) is first and thus far only biography of Shalikashvili's
classically American riches-to-rags-and-back-to-riches story reveals how his distinctive
background helped him become one of the United States's greatest military leaders.
Shalikashvili exhibited a unique and unconventional leadership style that employed expertise,
humility, straightforwardness, and empathy with which he adroitly used to resolve or prevent
destructive conflict. His distinctive leadership style greatly benefitted the United States, Europe,
and beyond: as when he led the rescue of 500,000 Kurdish refugees in the first Gulf War's
aftermath; when he represented Joint Chiefs chairman Colin Powell in helping secure loose
nukes in the former Soviet republics; as he joined forces with fellow immigrant Madeleine
Albright on the Partnership for Peace initiative and NATO enlargement program in the 1990s;
and in retirement, when he helped end the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, thereby
finally allowing gay service members to serve openly without fear of dishonorable
discharge.
Critique: The life and career of John Shalikashvili is the embodiment of the American dream and
this impressively informative, meticulously researched, expertly organized and presented
biography is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to both community and
academic library American Military Biography collections. It should be noted for the personal
reading lists of all dedicated military buffs that "Boy on the Bridge" is also readily available in a
digital book format (Kindle, $20.99).
The General Fiction Shelf
The Body Politic
Brian Platzer
Atria Books
c/o Simon & Schuster
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
www.simonandschuster.com
9781501180774, $27.00, HC, 320pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: New York City is still regaining its balance in the years following 9/11, when four
twenty-somethings (Tess, Tazio, David, and Angelica) meet in a bar, each yearning for
something: connection, recognition, a place in the world, a cause to believe in. Nearly fifteen
years later, as their city recalibrates in the wake of the 2016 election, their bond has endured --
but almost everything else has changed.
As freshmen at Cooper Union, Tess and Tazio were the ambitious, talented future of the art
world -- but by thirty-six, Tess is married to David, the mother of two young boys, and working
as an understudy on Broadway. Kind and steady, David is everything Tess lacked in her own
childhood -- but a recent freak accident has left him with befuddling symptoms, and she's still
adjusting to her new role as caretaker.
Meanwhile, Tazio has left the art world for a career in creative branding and politics. But in
December 2016, fresh off the astonishing loss of his candidate, Tazio is adrift, and not even his
gorgeous and accomplished fiancee, Angelica, seems able to get through to him. With tensions
rising on the national stage, the four friends are forced to face the reality of their shared histories,
especially a long-ago betrayal that has shaped every aspect of their friendship.
Critique: An elegant, erudite and perceptive novel by Brian Platzer, "The Body Politic" deftly
explores the meaning of commitment, the nature of forgiveness, the way that buried secrets will
always find their way to the surface, and how all of it can shift (and eventually erupt) over the
course of a life. A skillfully crafted and inherently riveting read throughout, "The Body Politic"
will be an immediate and enduringly popular addition to community library Contemporary
Fiction collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "The Body Politic" is also
readily available in a paperback edition (Washington Square Press, 9781501180781, $17.00) and
in a digital book format (Kindle, $12.99).
O America: Discovery in a New Land
William Least Heat-Moon
University of Missouri Press
201 S. 7th Street, Columbia, MO 65211
https://upress.missouri.edu
9780826222046, $29.95, HC, 338pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: As word of the discovery of gold in northern California spreads, Nathaniel Trennant,
an English physician, accepts an offer to serve as doctor on a ship carrying immigrants to
America. Alongside some two hundred emigres from northern Europe is a contingent of wealthy
British people who call themselves not immigrants, but colonists. With this imported cultural
divide, Nathaniel begins a long journey into what he terms the American experiment, one already
under the stress of social injustices and economic inequities.
Trennant arrives in Baltimore and stumbles onto its slave market, where he witnesses the horrors
of human bondage. One night in a boardinghouse he discovers under his bed a runaway slave.
Disturbed and angered by the selling of human lives, he offers to help the young man escape, a
criminal action that will put the slave and physician into flight from both the law and
opportunistic slave hunters.
Traveling by foot, horse, stage, canal boat, and steamer, the two men gradually form a bond as
they explore the backcountry and forge a deep friendship as they encounter the land and a host of
memorable characters who reveal the nature of the American experiment.
Critique: A remarkable and skillfully crafted historical novel by an author with an impressively
original and effective narrative storytelling style, "O America: Discovery in a New Land" is a
thoroughly entertaining and compellingly thought-provoking read throughout. While
unreservedly recommended addition to both community and academic library Literary Fiction
collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "O America: Discovery in a New
Land" is also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $16.17).
The Romantic Fiction Shelf
The Land Beneath Us
Sarah Sundin
Fleming H. Revell Company
c/o Baker Publishing Group
6030 East Fulton, Ada, MI 49301
www.revellbooks.com
9780800737757, $29.99, HC, 384pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In 1943, Private Clay Paxton trains hard with the US Army Rangers at Camp Forrest,
Tennessee, determined to do his best in the upcoming Allied invasion of France. With his future
stolen by his brothers' betrayal, Clay has only one thing to live for -- fulfilling the recurring
dream of his death.
Leah Jones works as a librarian at Camp Forrest, longing to rise above her orphanage upbringing
and belong to the community, even as she uses her spare time to search for her real family -- the
baby sisters she was separated from so long ago.
After Clay saves Leah's life from a brutal attack, he saves her virtue with a marriage of
convenience. When he ships out to train in England for D-day, their letters bind them together
over the distance. But can a love strong enough to overcome death grow between them before
Clay's recurring dream comes true?
Critique: Featuring characters that seem as real as our next door neighbors, "The Land Beneath
Us" by Sarah Sundin is an inherently riveting read from first page to last. While especially
recommended for community library Romance Fiction collections, it should be noted for
personal reading lists that "The Land Beneath Us" is also readily available in a paperback edition
(9780800727994, $15.99), in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99), and as a complete and
unabridged audio book (Tantor Audio, 9781977363596, $29.99, CD).
The Western Fiction Shelf
Rio Ruidoso
Preston Lewis
Five Star Publishing
10 Water Street, Suite 310, Waterville, ME 04901
http://gale.cengage.com/fivestar
9781432868420, $25.95, HC, 292pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Rio Ruidoso" is one of those western novels that offers a gripping blend of history
and story as author Preston Lewis explores the violent years before the famed Lincoln County
War in New Mexico Territory. Seamlessly weaving fact with fiction, Lewis details the county's
corruption, racism, and violence through the eyes of protagonist Wes Bracken, newly arrived in
the region to start a horse ranch with his alcoholic brother. Bracken's dreams for the Mirror B
Ranch are threatened by his brother's drunkenness, the corruption of economic kingpin Lawrence
G. Murphy, and the murderous rampages of the racist Horrell Brothers. To bring tranquility to
Lincoln County, Bracken must defeat those threats and stand his ground against the
ever-changing alliances that complicate life and prosperity in multi-racial Lincoln County.
Critique: Another riveting and entertaining read by the award winning western novelist Preston
Lewis, "Rio Ruidoso" will prove to be an enduringly popular addition to the personal reading
lists of all dedicated western fans, as well as any and all community library collections.
Send For The BAD Guy!
Ethan Flagg
Linford Western Library
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444841398, $20.99, PB, Large Print, 248pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: A gang of notorious outlaws led by Cain Vender is causing mayhem in Sweetwater
County. Special agent Drew Henry is reluctant to come out of retirement until he learns that his
brother has been killed by Vender and his men. Drew adopts the persona of a deceased train
robber to infiltrate the gang -- but a conflict of interest in the delectable form of Ruth Vender
threatens to overshadow his subterfuge. Will he have the strength of will he needs to defeat the
outlaws?
Critique: A thoroughly engaging action/adventure western novel by a master of the genre, this
large print edition of "Send For The BAD Guy" by Ethan Flagg is especially recommended for
the personal reading lists of all dedicated western buffs and will prove to be an enduringly
popular addition to community library Western Fiction collections.
Last Stage To Aspen
Allan Vaughan Elston
Sagebrush Large Print Western
c/o Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781785416897, $30.59, PB, Large Print, 246pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: When his stage is held up, driver Wes Brian is lucky to get away with his life, let alone
his cash. He asks his broker, Frank Bayard, to invest his life's savings, $300.00, -- but what he
doesn't know is that Bayard is a double-crossing swindler who'd sell his grandma for a profit. So
when aging miner John Hostetter comes in to sell a busted claim he sinks Brian's money into it.
But then Bayard finds out that a sample mix-up it is really worth millions. So Bayard erases
Brian's name on the deed and inserts his own, he initiates an unexpectedly lethal chain of events,
while selling Brian a small ranch some 40 miles away. Meanwhile, Brian finds himself dodging
bullets and dynamite, and dealing with a gang of outlaws with a score to settle. And in addition,
an assassin on Bayard's payroll seeking to terminate anyone who might reveal Bayard's
treachery.
Critique: Once again with the publication of "Last Stage To Aspen", seasoned western author
Allan Vaughan Elston has produced still another terrific action/adventure western with a wealth
of unexpected by always entertaining twists and turns -- right down to an unexpected final
confrontation! This large print edition is unreservedly and emphatically recommended for
personal reading lists and community library Western Fiction collections.
The Mystery/Suspense Shelf
Ghosts of the Missing
Kathleen Donohoe
Mariner Books
c/o Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
3 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016
www.hmhco.com
9780544557178, $17.99, PB, 320pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Culleton, New York has a long history of writers, of artists, and of unsolved
mysteries.
That's where Adair grew up before she moved to Brooklyn to try to make it as an artist. But after
years away from her hometown and little to show for it, Adair decides to return. She moves back
in to Moye House, the old mansion, and current writer's retreat, imbued with her family's
legacy.
Ciaran is a writer staying at Moye House in the hopes of finally solving the mystery of what
happened to Rowan Kinnane -- his sister, and Adair's childhood best friend. As the two begin
investigating, secrets long buried rise to the surface, complicating their sense of themselves and
their understanding of what happened on that fateful day.
Critique: With a true noir style of narrative storytelling, "Ghosts of the Missing" by Kathleen
Donohoe is a compelling novel that will prove to be an immediate and enduringly popular
addition to community library contemporary suspense thriller collections. It should be noted for
the personal reading lists of all dedicated mystery fans that "Ghosts of the Missing" is also
readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
The Fantasy/SciFi Shelf
The Initiate
James L. Cambias
Baen Books
PO Box 1188, Wake Forest NC 27588
www.baen.com
9781982124359, $25.00, HC, 288pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: If people who can work magic are so powerful, why don't they rule the world? Well, as
it happens, they do. And one man wants to change that.
The Apkallu are masters of magic. They rule the world from the shadows, using mind control and
deadly monsters to eliminate any threat to their power. Sam Arquero lost his family to a demon
sent by an Apkallu. He knew that nobody would believe the truth, but now an old man offers
Sam the chance to find out who is responsible and bring down the Apkallu forever.
Under a new identity, Sam must learn the secrets of magic, infiltrate the Apkallu, and walk a
razor's edge of daring as he attempts to destroy the Apkallu leaders and avoid the supernatural
detectives on his trail. But Sam's greatest challenge perhaps lies within -- to avoid becoming like
the hated Apkallu himself!
Critique: An original and impressively crafted fantasy novel by game designer, and cofounder of
Zygote Games. James L. Cambias. an author with a genuine flair for reader engaging narrative
storytelling, "The Initiate" is a simply riveting read from beginning to end. While especially
recommended for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections, it should be noted
for the personal reading lists of all dedicated fantasy fans that "The Initiate" is also readily
available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
The Firmament of Flame
Drew Williams
Tor Books
c/o Tor/Forge Books
120 Broadway, 22nd Floor, New York, NY 10271
www.tor-forge.com
9781250186195, $30.99, HC, 368pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: For nearly a century, the Justified have been searching for gifted children to help
prevent the return of the Pulse. Until recently, they thought they were the only ones. Jane Kamali
and her telekinetic protege Esa, now seventeen, barely managed to claim victory against a Cyn (a
being of pure energy) hell bent on hunting down the gifted. Now they face an army. The Cyn and
their followers will stop at nothing to find Esa and the others. No one knows what they want, but
Jane, Esa, and their allies in the Justified are determined to find out -- even if they have to go to
the ends of the known universe to do it!
Critique: The third volume in author Drew Williams' the 'Universe After' science fiction
action/adventure series, "The Firmament of Flame" is the kind of novel that dedicated Star Wars
and Battlestar Galactica fans will especially appreciate. A riveting page turner of a read from
cover to cover, "The Firmament of Flame" is unreservedly recommended for community library
Science Fiction & Fantasy collections. It should be noted for personal reading lists that "The
Firmament of Flame" is also available in a paperback edition (9781250186201, $18.99) and in a
digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
The Theatre/Cinema Shelf
Hollywood: Her Story
Jill S. Tietjen & Barbara Bridges
The Lyons Press
c/o The Globe Pequot Press
246 Goose Lane, Suite 200, Guilford, CT 06437
www.lyonspress.com
9781493037056, $35.00, HC, 400pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The year was 1896, the woman was Alice Guy-Blache, and the film she created was
called The Cabbage Fairy. It was less than a minute long. But it made Guy-Blache the first
female director who would go on to make hundreds of movies during her career.
Thousands of women with passion and commitment to storytelling followed in her footsteps.
Working in all aspects of the movie industry, they collaborated with others to create memorable
images on the screen. This book pays tribute to the spirit, ambition, grit and talent of these
filmmakers and artists.
With more than 1200 women featured in this profusely illustrated history of women and the
movies, "Hollywood: Her Story" is comprised of names that everyone knows and loves -- the
movie legends, as well as the hundreds and hundreds of women whose names are unknown to the
general public and include actresses, directors, stuntwomen, screenwriters, composers, animators,
editors, producers, cinematographers and on and on.
Critique: A delight to browse the photographs that capture and document the women who
worked in the movie business, "Hollywood: Her Story" an ideal and thoroughly 'user friendly'
informational reference for all dedicated movie buffs. A comprehensive photo-treasury of women
and film, "Hollywood: Her Story" will prove to be an immediate and enduringly popular addition
to personal, professional, community, college, and university library Cinema History collections.
It should be noted that "Hollywood: Her Story" is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$18.49).
Editorial Note: Jill S. Tietjen has conducted research into historical women around the world for
the past thirty years and speaks around the country about women's contributions to history. One
of the top historians on women across all fields of endeavor in the U.S., she works to bring more
visibility to women through her continual nominations of historical and living women for
national, state and local awards. Her nominees have been successfully inducted into the National
Women's Hall of Fame, the National Inventor's Hall of Fame, and a number of state women's
halls of fame. Jill is often profiled and quoted in the media, and her articles have been printed in
a wide variety of publications. She has received numerous awards and has been inducted into the
Colorado Women's Hall of Fame.
Barbara Bridges founded Women+Film, a program in partnership with the Denver Film Society,
in 2006. This is where she has been bringing audiences together with films, by and about women,
that ignite discussions around global issues facing women today. With the annual Women+Film
Festival, a section of movies in the Denver Film Festival and movie screenings throughout the
year, it is a popular film program that not only entertains but educates and inspires as well.
Barbara speaks to various groups about the role of women in the movies and has been involved
with various film festivals. The Denver Post named her one of Colorado's Top Thinkers in Arts
and Culture. Barbara has served on the boards of several women's organizations, both locally and
nationally, and has received numerous awards as a result.
A Long Time Ago in a Cutting Room Far, Far Away
Paul Hirsch
Chicago Review Press
814 North Franklin Street, Chicago, IL 60610
www.chicagoreviewpress.com
9781641602556, $30.00, HC, 384pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "A Long Time Ago in a Cutting Room Far, Far Away: My Fifty Years Editing
Hollywood Hits - Star Wars, Carrie, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Mission: Impossible, and More",
provides a behind-the-scenes look at some of the most influential films of the last fifty years as
seen through the eyes of Paul Hirsch, the Oscar-winning film editor who worked on such classics
as George Lucas's Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back, Brian De Palma's Carrie and
Mission: Impossible, Herbert Ross's Footloose and Steel Magnolias, John Hughes's Ferris
Bueller's Day Off and Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Joel Schumacher's Falling Down, and
Taylor Hackford's Ray.
Hirsch breaks down his career movie by movie, offering a riveting look at the decisions that went
into creating some of cinema's most iconic scenes. He also provides behind-the-scenes insight
into casting, directing, and scoring and intimate portraits of directors, producers, composers, and
stars. Part film school primer, part paean to legendary filmmakers and professionals, this funny
and insightful memoir will entertain and inform aficionados and casual moviegoers alike.
Critique: An absolute 'must read' for all dedicated movie fans, "A Long Time Ago in a Cutting
Room Far, Far Away: My Fifty Years Editing Hollywood Hits - Star Wars, Carrie, Ferris
Bueller's Day Off, Mission: Impossible, and More" is a unique and unreservedly recommended
addition to community, college, and university library American Cinema History collections and
supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of film
students, academic, movie buffs that "A Long Time Ago in a Cutting Room Far, Far Away" is
also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $19.71) and as a complete and unabridged
audio book (Blackstone Audio, 9781094008844, $29.95, CD).
Editorial Note: Paul Hirsch received the Academy Award for his editing work on Star Wars in
1978. In 2005, he received his second Academy Award nomination for Taylor Hackford's Ray.
He is the only person to ever win the Saturn Award for best editing twice. In 2017 he was given
the special Award to Editor with Unique Visual Sensitivity by the International Film Festival of
the Art of Cinematography, Camerimage.
The Library Science Shelf
A Practical Guide to Privacy in Libraries
Paul Pedley
Facet Publishing
www.facetpublishing.co.uk
9781783304684, $59.95, PB, 201pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "A Practical Guide to Privacy in Libraries" is groundbreaking new book that considers
how privacy issues can arise in a library context and what library and information professionals
can do to protect the privacy of their users. Featured are a wide range of practical examples of
such issues, providing insights and practical steps which readers can follow. In-depth case studies
and scenarios support the examples laid out, while examples of data breaches which have
occurred in a library setting, and the lessons we can learn from them, are also included. "A
Practical Guide to Privacy in Libraries" also covers the main legislation governing data
protection - GDPR - which will be particularly relevant to European librarians, and international
librarians offering services to EU citizens.
"A Practical Guide to Privacy in Libraries" provides a range of tools through which libraries can
communicate how they handle the personal data of their users whilst ensuring that they are
following best practice with their privacy policy statements, their privacy audits and data
protection impact assessments. Privacy is not the same thing as data protection, and the book
outlines the differences between these two concepts. Nevertheless, "A Practical Guide to Privacy
in Libraries" has been written with the requirements of data protection law very much in
mind.
Critique: Essential reading for library and information professionals who need to understand and
support privacy in the library setting and a useful reference for students and researchers in the
field who need to understand this topic in practice, "A Practical Guide to Privacy in Libraries" is
an ideal textbook for library system in-service training programs, and must be considered a core
and unreservedly recommended addition to community, college, and university Library Science
collections and supplemental studies reading lists.
Editorial Note: Paul Pedley MA MLib is a leading expert in information law. He regularly
provides training on copyright, licensing and other legal issues. He has been a member of LACA,
the Libraries and Archives Copyright Alliance since 1998; and is the author of Essential Law for
Information Professionals, Practical Copyright for Library and Information Professionals, The
E-copyright Handbook, Digital Copyright, and Copyright Compliance: practical steps to stay
within the law, and editor of Managing Digital Rights.
The Parenting Shelf
The New Adolescence
Christine Carter
BenBella Books
10300 N. Central Expressway, Ste 400, Dallas, TX 75204
www.benbellabooks.com
9781948836548, $16.95, PB, 230pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "The New Adolescence: Raising Happy and Successful Teens in an Age of Anxiety
and Distraction" by Christine Carter is a realistic and reassuring handbook for the parents of
teenagers. It offers road-tested, science-based solutions for raising happy, healthy, and successful
teenagers.
Readers will find practical guidance for: Providing the support and structure teens need (while
still giving them the autonomy they seek); Influencing and motivating teenagers; Helping kids
overcome distractions that hinder learning; Protecting them from anxiety, isolation, and
depression; Having effective conversations about tough subjects -- including sex, drugs, and
money.
"The New Adolescence" is based upon the latest findings in neuroscience, sociology, and social
psychology, along with Christine Carter's own real-world experiences as the mother of four
teenagers.
Critique: Thoroughly 'reader friendly' in tone, commentary, organization and presentation, "The
New Adolescence: Raising Happy and Successful Teens in an Age of Anxiety and Distraction" is
an impressively informative and imminently practical instruction guide and manual that is also
readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $10.99) and as a complete and unabridged
audio book (HighBridge Audio, 9781684579778, $29.99, CD). Especially and unreservedly
recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library Parenting collections,
every parent of a teenager would benefit immensely from reading Christine Carter's "The New
Adolescence"!
Editorial Note: A sociologist and senior fellow at UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center,
Christine Carter draws on the latest scientific research in psychology, sociology, and
neuroscience (and uses her own often hilarious real-world experiences) to give advice for living,
working, and parenting with greater joy and meaning.
Parenting the New Teen in the Age of Anxiety
John Duffy
Mango Publishing
www.mango.bz
9781642500493, $18.95, PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Children are growing up with nearly unlimited access to social media and the internet,
and unprecedented academic, social, and familial stressors. Starting as early as eight years old,
children are exposed to information, thought, and emotion that they are developmentally
unprepared to process. As a result, saving the typical "teen parenting" strategies for
thirteen-year-olds is now years too late.
Comprised of urgent and 'real world practical' advice for parents of teenagers. "Parenting the
New Teen in the Age of Anxiety: A Complete Guide to Your Child's Stressed, Depressed,
Expanded, Amazing Adolescence" by John Duffy is a new and necessary parenting instructional
guide that specifically addresses this hidden phenomenon of the changing teenage brain.
"Parenting the New Teen in the Age of Anxiety" will help parents to: Sort through the
overwhelming circumstances of today's teens and better understand the changing landscape of
adolescence; Come away with a revised, conscious parenting plan more suited to addressing the
current needs of the New Teen; Discover the joy in parenting again by reclaiming the role of your
teen's ally, guide, and consultant.
Critique: Expertly written, impressively informative, exceptionally insightful, and thoroughly
'user friendly' in organization and presentation, "Parenting the New Teen in the Age of Anxiety:
A Complete Guide to Your Child's Stressed, Depressed, Expanded, Amazing Adolescence" is an
especially and unreservedly recommended addition to community and academic library
Contemporary Parenting instructional reference collections. It should be noted for personal
reading lists that "Parenting the New Teen in the Age of Anxiety" is also readily available in a
digital book format (Kindle, $10.49) and as a complete and unabridged audio book (Dreamscape
Media, 9781974972661, $29.99, CD).
The Journalism Shelf
Breaking News
Alan Rusbridger
Picador USA
175 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1800, New York, NY 10010
www.picadorusa.com
9780374279622, $30.00, HC, 464pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Technology, social media, and the 24-hour news cycle has radically altered the news
landscape. Once-powerful newspapers have lost their clout or been purchased by owners with
particular agendas. Algorithms select which stories we see. The Internet allows consequential
revelations, closely guarded secrets, and dangerous misinformation to spread at the speed of a
click.
In "Breaking News: The Remaking of Journalism and Why It Matters Now", veteran journalist
Alan Rusbridger demonstrates how these decisive shifts have occurred, and what they mean for
the future of democracy. In the twenty years he spent editing The Guardian, Rusbridger managed
the transformation of the progressive British daily into the most visited serious English-language
newspaper site in the world. He oversaw an extraordinary run of world-shaking scoops, including
the exposure of phone hacking by London tabloids, the Wikileaks release of U.S. diplomatic
cables, and later the revelation of Edward Snowden's National Security Agency files.
At the same time, Rusbridger helped The Guardian become a pioneer in Internet journalism,
stressing free access and robust interactions with readers.
In "Breaking News" Rusbridger vividly observes the media's transformation from close range
while also offering a vital assessment of the risks and rewards of practicing journalism in a
high-impact, high-stress time.
Critique: Impressively informative, expertly organized and presented, "Breaking News: The
Remaking of Journalism and Why It Matters Now" is a timely and unreservedly recommended
addition to both community and academic library Journalism History collections and
supplemental studies lists. It should be noted for the personal reading lists of journalism students,
academia, practicing journalists, political activists, social reformers, and non-specialist general
readers with an interest in the subject that "Breaking News" is also available in a paperback
edition (9781250234940, $20.00) and in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Alan Rusbridger was editor in chief of Guardian News and Media from 1995 to
2015. He is the author of Play It Again: An Amateur Against the Impossible and is currently
chair of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism and principal of Lady Margaret Hall,
Oxford University.
The Literary Studies Shelf
The Next Instalment
Wendy Roy
Wilfrid Laurier University Press
www.wlupress.wlu.ca
9781771123914, $85.00, HC, 440pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: McClung's Pearlie Watson trilogy (1908-1921), Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables
books (1908-1939), and de la Roche's Jalna novels (1927-1960) were read avidly not just as
sequels but as serials in popular and literary newspapers and magazines. A number of the books
were also adapted to stage, film, and television.
In "The Next Instalment: Serials, Sequels, and Adaptations of Nellie L. McClung, L.M.
Montgomery, and Mazo de la Roche", Professor Wendy Roy argues that these three Canadian
women writers, all born in the same decade of the late nineteenth century, were influenced by
early-twentieth-century publication, marketing, and reading practices to become heavily invested
in the cultural phenomenon of the continuing story.
A close look at their serials, sequels, and adaptations reveals that, rather than existing as separate
cultural productions, each is part of a cultural and material continuum that encourages repeated
consumption through development and extension of the original story concept. "The Next
Installment" is a deftly written work that considers the effects that each mode of dissemination of
a narrative has on the other.
Critique: A unique, exceptionally informative, meticulously researched and thought-provoking
work of seminal scholarship that is enhanced for academia with the inclusion of bibliographical
references and an index, "The Next Instalment: Serials, Sequels, and Adaptations of Nellie L.
McClung, L.M. Montgomery, and Mazo de la Roche" is especially and unreservedly
recommended for community, college, and university library Canadian Literature collections and
supplemental curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-
specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "The Next Instalment" is also
available in a digital book format (Kindle, $30.99).
Editorial Note: Wendy Roy is Professor of Canadian Literature at the University of
Saskatchewan. She researches gender and culture in Canadian women's writing and is the author
of Maps of Difference: Canada, Women, and Travel (2005) and co-editor of Listening Up,
Writing Down, and Looking Beyond: Interfaces of the Oral, Written, and Visual (2012).
The Aviation Shelf
North American Aviation in the Jet Age
John Fredrickson
Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310
www.schifferbooks.com
9780764358746, $45.00, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: During the waning days of World War II, a frenzied race was underway in
rubble-strewn Europe as US and Soviet forces sought to seize advanced German weapons
technology. Over the next quarter century, North American Aviation (NAA) would enhance
these spoils of war into fearsome weapons in America's arsenal.
There's the swept-wing F-86 Sabre jet fighter, which would go on to be the only Allied warplane
to outmaneuver a Soviet MiG-15 over Korea. X-15 rocket planes that carried humans to the
boundaries of space, setting speed and altitude records that still hold today.
"North American Aviation in the Jet Age: The California Years, 1945-1997" by John Fredrickson
is the detailed and documented story of these weapons and the engineers who nourished them is a
fascinating look into postwar corporate history of the NAA and its impact on US aviation and
space history.
Critique: Copiously and lavishly illustrated throughout with both color and b/w photography,
"North American Aviation in the Jet Age: The California Years, 1945-1997" is an inherent
fascinating and impressively informative history -- and one that is unreservedly recommended as
a core addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library 20th Century
American Aviation collections in general, and American Military Aviation supplemental studies
reading lists in particular.
Editorial Note: John Fredrickson worked at Boeing from 1975 to 2011. His military service
included four years of active duty, followed by 17 years with the USAF Reserve. A one-year
assignment with the B-52 unit (307th Strategic Wing) at U-Tapao Airfield earned him the
Vietnam Service Medal.
The Comix/Graphic Novel Shelf
For Better or for Worse The Complete Library, Volume Four: 1990-1993
Lynn Johnston
IDW Publishing
idwpublishing.com
9781684055852 $49.99 hc / $29.92 Kindle amazon.com
Synopsis: Collect the beloved newspaper comic strip that chronicles the saga of the Patterson
family in real time, over three decades, in this definitive edition.
This volume includes the story that earned Lynn Johnston a Pulitzer Prize nomination. The '90s
start with a bang for the Pattersons when Elly finds out she is pregnant! Follow April Patterson as
she grows from a toddler to a three year old, all in this single volume, but that isn't all the
excitement in the house, especially when there is a teenager around. Michael gets his first
summer job, a steady girlfriend, and a driver's license--if he passes the test. Adolescence is just as
challenging for Elizabeth, who navigates middle school, learns to cope with the stigma of
wearing glasses, and is peer-pressured into smoking a cigarette! Meanwhile, John succumbs to
his (first) mid-life crisis when he buys his first model train.
The highlight of this collection, however, is Lawrence's coming out story, a tender and
compassionate tale of gender identity and acceptance for which Lynn was deservedly nominated
for the newspaper industry's top honor. Includes every comic strip from December 10, 1989 to
April 24, 1993.
Each volume also contains a number of annotations by Lynn Johnston detailing motivations for
certain strips, funny anecdotes, observations about the reaction from fans, and much more!
Critique: The Complete Library edition of For Better for Worse is the ultimate, definitive way for
newspaper comic strip connoisseurs to enjoy this long-running, heartwarming series of the joys,
trials, and travails of the Patterson family. Every strip is represented; all Sunday strips are in full
color. Volume 4 gathers more than 1,200 sequential daily and Sunday strips from December 10,
1989 to April 24, 1993. Special highlights of volume 4 include Elly discovering that she's
pregnant, and Lawrence's coming out story. The Complete Library edition of For Better for
Worse is highly recommended, for both personal and public library collections! It should be
noted for personal reading lists that volume 4 is also available in a Kindle edition ($29.92).
The Audiobook Shelf
The Puritans: A Transatlantic History
David D. Hall, author
Narrated by Jason Culp
Recorded Books, LLC
www.recordedbooks.com
9781980061656 $TBA
Synopsis: This book is a sweeping transatlantic history of Puritanism from its emergence out of
the religious tumult of Elizabethan England to its founding role in the story of America.
Shedding critical new light on the diverse forms of Puritan belief and practice in England,
Scotland, and New England, David Hall provides a multifaceted account of a cultural movement
that judged the Protestant reforms of Elizabeth's reign to be unfinished. Hall's vivid and
wide-ranging narrative describes the movement's deeply ambiguous triumph under Oliver
Cromwell, its political demise with the Restoration of the English monarchy in 1660, and its
perilous migration across the Atlantic to establish a "perfect reformation" in the New World.
A breathtaking work of scholarship by an eminent historian, The Puritans examines the
tribulations and doctrinal dilemmas that led to the fragmentation and eventual decline of
Puritanism. It presents a compelling portrait of a religious and political movement that was
divided virtually from the start. In England, some wanted to dismantle the Church of England
entirely and others were more cautious, while Puritans in Scotland were divided between those
willing to work with a troublesome king and others insisting on the independence of the state
church. This monumental book traces how Puritanism was a catalyst for profound cultural
changes in the early modern Atlantic world, opening the door for other dissenter groups such as
the Baptists and the Quakers, and leaving its enduring mark on what counted as true religion in
America.
Critique: The Puritans: A Transatlantic History is the unabridged audiobook rendition of an in-
depth work of scholarship by historian David D. Hall (professor emeritus of American religious
history at Harvard Divinity School). Why were the Puritans so influential in both British and
American culture, a legacy that continues even to the present day, when few or any modern-day
people would describe themselves as following all the religious tenets the Puritans in?
Enlightening, fascinating, and exhaustively researched, The Puritans: A Transatlantic History is
highly recommended especially for public, college library, and personal audiobook collections.
17 CDs, 21.25 hours.
Escape from Rome
Walter Schneider, author
Daniel Henning, narrator
Recorded Books, LLC
270 Skip Jack Road, Prince Frederick, MD 20678
www.recordedbooks.com
9781980062377, $TBA, CD, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The fall of the Roman Empire has long been considered one of the greatest disasters in
history. But in this groundbreaking audio book written by Walter Scheidel and narrated by Daniel
Heming, argues that Rome's dramatic collapse was actually the best thing that ever happened in
that it cleared the path for Europe's economic rise and the creation of the modern age. Ranging
across the entire premodern world, "Escape from Rome: The Failure of Empire and the Road to
Prosperity" offers new answers to some of the biggest questions in history: Why did the Roman
Empire appear? Why did nothing like it ever return to Europe? And, above all, why did
Europeans come to dominate the world?
In an absorbing narrative that begins with ancient Rome but stretches far beyond it, from
Byzantium to China and from Genghis Khan to Napoleon, Scheidel shows how the demise of
Rome and the enduring failure of empire-building on European soil ensured competitive
fragmentation between and within states.
It was this rich diversity that encouraged and made possible the political, economic, scientific,
and technological breakthroughs that allowed Europe to surge ahead while other parts of the
world lagged behind, burdened as they were by traditional empires and predatory regimes that
lived by conquest. It wasn't until Europe "escaped" from Rome that it launched an economic
transformation that changed the continent and ultimately the world.
Critique: An inherently fascinating and impressively informative history, this complete and
unabridged audio book edition of "Escape from Rome: The Failure of Empire and the Road to
Prosperity" is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, community,
college, and university library audio book collections in general, and Roman History/Economic
History supplemental curriculum studies lists. (18 discs: 21.5 Hours).
Behind the Sheet
Charly Evon Simpson
L.A. Theatre Works
681 Venice Boulevard, Venice, CA 90291
www.latw.org
9781682661178 $29.95
Synopsis: An important medical breakthrough has a shameful history. In 1840's Alabama, a
slave-owning doctor performs medical experiments on involuntary subjects - enslaved women -
in an effort to solve the problem of fistulas, a post-childbirth anomaly. As the experiments
proceed, and he gets close to a solution, the women try to survive and even find dignity in the
face of inhuman treatment.
Includes conversations with playwright Charly Evon Simpson and Dr. Deirdre Cooper Owens,
author of Medical Bondage: Race, Gender and the Origins of American Gynecology.
Recorded at The Invisible Studios, West Hollywood, in August 2019.
Behind the Sheet is part of L.A. Theatre Works' Relativity Series featuring science-themed plays.
Lead funding for the Relativity Series is provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, bridging
science and the arts in the modern world.
Critique: Behind the Sheet is an audiobook of a full-cast play about a shocking and controversial
part of modern medical history. In the 1840's, a slave-owning doctor performed medical
experiments on involuntary subjects - enslaved women - while trying to solve the post-childbirth
problem of fistulas. These experiments were painful and dangerous. An intense story about
racism, ruthlessness in the name of medicine, and the efforts of the enslaved subjects to find
dignity, Behind the Sheet is unforgettable and highly recommended especially for public library
audiobook collections. 2 CDs, 2 hours 8 min.
The Library CD Shelf
Within Earth
Apollo Chamber Players
apollochamberplayers.org
Nayona Records
$14.99 CD / $8.99 MP3 amazon.com
Apollo Chamber Players presents Within Earth, a multicultural album that celebrates diversity.
There are tracks written by a variety of different creators, assembled by Apollog Chamber
Players as part of the 20x2020 project (meant to commission 20 new multicultural works by the
end of the decade). The tracks include commissions by Afro-Cuban/Afro-Brazilian guitar
composer Leo Brouwer; Christopher Walczak's musical rendition of the cultural creation myth,
crafted with inspiration from Australian aboriginal concepts; Vietnamese musician Vanessa Vo's
piece combining traditional instruments with classic Western stringed instruments; and more.
Within Earth is a treasure for both personal and public library collections, highly recommended.
The tracks are "Introduction", "Preambulo", "Sonata", "The Dream of the Sun, Moon, and Stars",
"The Dreams of the Statue and the Tree", "The Dream of the Ladder", "May [Cloud]", and
"Within Earth, Wood Grows".
Fire in the Clouds
Eric Bikales
www.EricBikales.com
Privately Published
$9.98 CD / $8.99 MP3 amazon.com
Fire in the Clouds is solo piano album, inspired by the striking beauty of cloudy, sunset skies.
The songs have a sweeping, majestic quality that stirs the imagination and quickens the spirit.
Fire in the Clouds is an exceptional listening experience for connoisseurs of the genre and public
library collections, highly recommended. The tracks are "Yellow Bird", "Cebu Sunrise", "Journey
Within" "Fire in the Clouds", "Now This", "Khai", "And Then", "Setting Sun", "Reasoning with
the Wind", and "Kansas Wind". 31 min., 18 sec.
The Library DVD Shelf
Discoveries... Costa Rica: Olive Ridley Sea Turtles
Bennett-Watt Entertainment, Inc.
www.Bennett-Watt.com
9781604902983 $24.95
Discoveries... Costa Rica: Olive Ridley Sea Turtles is an extraordinary, beautifully filmed video
documentary about the life cycle of sea turtles in Costa Rica. Here is spectacularly captured
footage of turtles digging nests, laying eggs, hatching, emerging, and struggling to reach the sea
before predators take their lives. As educational as it is entertaining, Discoveries... Costa Rica:
Olive Ridley Sea Turtles is highly recommended for both school and public library DVD
collections. 90 minutes.
Discoveries... America National Parks: Alaska
Bennett-Watt Entertainment, Inc.
www.Bennett-Watt.com
9781604902174 $24.95
The thirty-sixth program in the "Discoveries... America National Parks" DVD series,
Discoveries... America National Parks: Alaska a superb, high quality DVD video essay
showcasing the breathtaking scenery and wildlife of Alaska's parks. The next best thing to
visiting Alaska in person, Discoveries... America National Parks: Alaska takes the viewer on an
extensive tour of the Alaska Highway, Kenai Fjords National Park, Wrangell-St. Elias National
Park & Preserve, Seward National Scenic byway - All American Road, and much more.
Discoveries... America National Parks: Alaska is highly recommended both for public library and
personal documentary collections. 51 min.
The Gardening Shelf
You Bet Your Garden Guide to Growing Great Tomatoes, second edition
Mike McGrath
Fox Chapel Publishing Company
1970 Broad Street N., East Petersburg, PA 17520
www.FoxChapelPublishing.com
9781497100756, $14.99, PB, 120pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Now in a fully updated and expanded second edition, "You Bet Your Garden Guide to
Growing Great Tomatoes" by organic gardening expert Mike McGrath (who is the host of the
nationally syndicated public radio show hit You Bet Your Garden), will teach even the most
novice of recreational gardeners everything they will need to know in order to grow tomatoes like
a pro. From choosing tomato varieties, seeding, germination, planting, staking, caging, food,
water, lighting, maintenance and nurturing, to controlling pests and dealing with disease, and
harvesting, McGrath shows gardeners of all skill levels how to grow a wide variety of
great-tasting homegrown tomatoes anywhere you have a place to plant seeds!
Critique: Profusely illustrated throughout, "You Bet Your Garden Guide to Growing Great
Tomatoes" is impressively 'user friendly' and comprehensive in organization and presentation,
making "You Bet Your Garden Guide to Growing Great Tomatoes" an especially and
unreservedly recommended addition to personal and community library Gardening instructional
reference guides and DIY manuals for the growing of delicious, nutritious tomatoes.
Shrubs and Hedges
Eva Monheim
Cool Springs Press
c/o Quarto Publishing Group USA
400 First Avenue North, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55401-1722
www.quartoknows.com
9780760366844, $30.00, PB, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Whether they're flowering shrubs or evergreen hedges, these long-lived plants fill a lot
of space in our landscapes; yet they don't capture as much attention as perennials, annuals, and
even trees. The front doors and picture windows of millions of houses world-wide are adorned by
shrubs. Despite their ubiquity, selecting and maintaining shrubs remains a mystery to many.
Shrubs are all-too-often inappropriately pruned into "meatball" shapes, or alternatively, left to
become an overgrown tangle of branches. But as aspiring home gardeners will discover in the
pages of "Shrubs and Hedges: Discover, Grow, and Care for the World's Most Popular Plants",
that when cared for properly, these workhorse plants have much to offer. They mask foundations,
delineate property lines, increase privacy, stabilize soils, provide food for wildlife, and add
beauty and interest to the landscape. It's time for shrubs to take center stage.
"Shrubs & Hedges" includes: Advice on how to pick the best shrubs for your growing conditions;
Plant profiles of both dependable classic shrubs and new rising stars; Step-by-step propagation
instructions for making more shrubs -- for free!; Shrub identification tips; A lesson on the value
of hedges and hedgerows; The best shrubs for pollinators and other wildlife; Pruning illustrations
and tips to maximize shrub performance and health; Tips for designing with shrubs
Critique: Profusely illustrated with full color photography throughout, and unreservedly
recommended for personal, professional, and community library collections, "Shrubs and
Hedges: Discover, Grow, and Care for the World's Most Popular Plants" is the ideal and
comprehensive introduction and instructional guide for the aspiring home gardener to growing
shrubs and hedges.
Editorial Note: A horticulturist, certified arborist, master floral designer, artist, and writer, Eva
Monheim is the co-founder of Verdant Earth Educators (VEE), a horticulture education and
consulting firm. Eva is also an instructor at the world-famous Longwood Gardens in their
Professional Horticulture Program where she teaches woody plants and arboriculture. A faculty
member at The Barnes Arboretum of St. Joseph University where she teaches Landscape
Management, Eva was an assistant professor at Temple University in the Department of
Landscape Architecture and Horticulture for over twelve years where she taught undergraduate
and graduate-level courses. Eva's articles, designs, and photographs have appeared in national,
regional, and local magazines and newspapers, including a column in the Philadelphia
Inquirer.
The Business Shelf
International Management: A Stakeholder Approach
Peter Stanwick & Sarah Stanwick
Edward Elgar Publishing
9 Dewey Court, Northampton, MA 01060-3815
www.e-elgar.com
9781788112727, $215.00, HC, 544pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "International Management: A Stakeholder Approach"is an innovative textbook that
applies a practical and engaging approach to the rapidly evolving field of international
management. Business students will learn the many complexities that managers must address
when making decisions in the global marketplace. "International Management: A Stakeholder
Approach" covers a range of leadership challenges, including environmental change, social
responsibility, global strategies, communication organizational change and human
resources.
International Management identifies the responsibilities and obligations of managers in the age of
globalization and includes: Critical chapters on global corporate governance, corporate
compliance and global environmental issues, which invite students to consider some of the ways
in which global businesses affect the world around us; Thirteen global case studies exploring the
mechanisms of some of the world's leading business performers, including Patek Philippe,
Nestle, Adidas, Bombardier and the BBC, giving students the opportunity to further their
understanding by identifying theory in practice; Comprehensive opening vignettes framing each
case study to facilitate classroom discussion.
An ideal core textbook for use in undergraduate international management courses as well as an
introductory text at postgraduate level, "International Management: A Stakeholder Approach"
also offers supplementary reading for strategic management or general management classes.
Critique: Collaboratively written by Peter Stanwick and Sarah Stanwick, (both of whome are
professors on the facultury of the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business, Aburn University,
USA) and Sarah Stanwick), each chapter comprising "International Management: A Stakeholder
Approach" includes Chapter Objectives, a Chapter Summary, and Questions for Discussion.
While unreservedly recommended for college and university library International Business
Management collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists, it should be noted for
students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that
"International Management: A Stakeholder Approach" is also available in a paperback edition
(9781788112741, $63.46, www.amazon.com)
High-Growth Women's Entrepreneurship
Amanda Bullough, et al.
Edward Elgar Publishing
9 Dewey Court, Northampton, MA 01060-3815
www.e-elgar.com
9781788118705, $130.00, HC, 224pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Women's entrepreneurship is vital for economic and social development, yet female
entrepreneurs worldwide are consistently found to have weaker sales and employment growth,
fewer jobs, and lower profitability. "High-Growth Women's Entrepreneurship: Programs,
Policies and Practices" was published to specifically and collectively address this reality and
focuses on the high-growth potential of women entrepreneurs.
The scholars contributing to "High-Growth Women's Entrepreneurship" conducted qualitative as
well as quantitative research in contexts around the world, including Eswatini (Swaziland),
Australia, China, Slovenia, Peru, and one global study of 43 countries. Chapters are organized
according to three key themes: the practice of building networks, programs and the support
environment, and policies and regulations. Topics addressed within these themes include the
interconnected and mutually reinforcing features of a fruitful entrepreneurial culture, including
financial and human capital advancement and readiness, new opportunities for expansion and an
assortment of institutional and infrastructural provisions for innovation and business growth.
"High-growth Women's Entrepreneurship" will have a special value to public and private sector
managers, policy makers and politicians who want to promote a culture and ecosystem that
supports women's growth-oriented business potential -- as well as educators and program
designers who want to help women grow their businesses, and scholars who want to explore
further research will find the information invaluable.
The contributors include: N. Birdthistle, C.J. Boudreaux, Z. Brixiova, C.G. Brush, A. Bullough,
D. Cetindamar, M. Cordova, L.F. Edelman, R. Eversole, B. Freser, V. Godinho, D. Hechavarria,
F. Huaman, E. James, T. Kangoye, T. Lammers, Y. Li, S. Muhammad, B. Nikolaev, A. Pearce,
K. Sirec, E. Sullivan, P. Tominc, M. Walo, J. Wu
Critique: Comprised of nine informative articles, "High-growth Women's Entrepreneurship:
Programs, Policies and Practices" is further enhanced for academia with the inclusion of figures,
tables, a complete listing of the contributors and their credentials, and a nine page index, making
it an unreservedly recommended addition to professional, corporate, college, and university
library Business Management collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.
Editorial Note: Amanda Bullough is an Associate Professor of Management and Co-Director and
Co-Founder of the Women's Leadership Initiative, University of Delaware. Diana M.
Hechavarria is an Assistant Professor in the Center for Entrepreneurship, Muma College of
Business, University of South Florida. Candida G. Brush holds the Franklin W. Olin
Distinguished Chair of Entrepreneurship and is Vice Provost of Global Entrepreneurial
Leadership, Babson College. Linda F. Edelman is Professor of Management, Bentley University,
US.
The Cookbook Shelf
Celiac Disease Cookbook for the Newly Diagnosed
Rebecca Toutant, RD, LDN, CDE
Rockridge Press
9781646114740, $15.99, PB, 166pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Written specifically for anyone needing to coming to terms with diagnosis of celiac
disease and who might feel like they can't eat all the things the used to, "Celiac Disease
Cookbook for the Newly Diagnosed: Guidance and Recipes for an Easy Transition to the
Gluten-Free Diet" aims to help them eat what they want, with as few restrictions as possible. In
"Celiac for the Newly Diagnosed" are to be found the tools needed to understand celiac disease
and thrive with a gluten-free dining lifestyle.
"Celiac Disease Cookbook for the Newly Diagnosed" begins with learning about a celiac disease
diagnosis and how it affects the body. Then presents the 7-day meal plan help make the first
gluten-free week a success. The 75 delectable recipes (plus tips on how to involve a support
network, setup a kitchen, and get started on shopping) are the perfect foundation for feeling great
while eating nutritious and delicious foods.
Critique; The ideal combination of recipes and basic information for those having to deal with a
celiac disease diagnosis, "Celiac Disease Cookbook for the Newly Diagnosed: Guidance and
Recipes for an Easy Transition to the Gluten-Free Diet" fully lives up to the promise of its
subtitle and is unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, and community library
cookbook collections. Thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and presentation, it should be
noted for personal reading lists that the "Celiac Disease Cookbook for the Newly Diagnosed" is
also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99).
Editorial Note: Rebecca Toutant is a registered dietitian, personal trainer, and certified diabetes
educator working in Boston area. Her background is as eclectic as her practice, working as a
researcher, marketer, and counselor helping people of all ages navigate celiac disease, eating
disorders, diabetes, autism, and endurance sports while leading full, nourishing lives. She began
her career by exploring and publishing research with the experts at Beth Israel Deaconess
Medical Center Celiac Center surrounding the challenges young adults with celiac disease
experience in their transition to college. She completed her undergraduate degree in Dietetics at
the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her graduate degree in Health Communication from
Emerson College and Tufts University School of Medicine. She can be found online at
www.NourishingBitsandBites.com.
The Best of New Orleans Cookbook
Ryan Boudreaux
Rockridge Press
9781646114337, $15.99, PB, 130pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: Ryan Boudreaux was born in Lafayette, Louisiana, and raised in Algiers on the West
Bank of New Orleans. He has more than 36 years of professional culinary experience in and
around the New Orleans area. In "The Best of New Orleans Cookbook" he draws upon his years
of experience and expertise with th New Orleans melting pot of cultures and flavors to showcase
a vibrant cuisine that is as unique as the city itself.
More than just a culinary compendium of decadent recipes, "The Best of New Oreleans
Cookbook" also features profiles of iconic culinary landmarks like Cafe du Monde, insights as to
where to find the ingredients that define its cooking, like andouille, crawfish, and Louisiana hot
sauce. That are also DIY recipes for the libations that New Orleans is famous for.
Critique: A delight to plan menus with, and featuring thoroughly 'kitchen cook friendly' recipes
for breakfast, lunch, and dinners, cocktails and appetizers, main course and deserts, and a whole
section dedicated to rice dishes, "The Best of New Orleans Cookbook: 50 Classic Cajun and
Creole Recipes from the Big Easy", which is also available in a digital book format (Kindle,
$6.99), will prove to be an immediate and enduringly popular addition to family, personal,
professional, and community library cookbook collections.
Ultimate Soup Maker
Joy Skipper
Hamlyn
c/o Octopus Books
236 Park Avenue, New York NY 10017
www.octopusbooksusa.com
9780600636410, $14.99, PB, 128pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: "Ultimate Soup Maker" is a beautifully illustrated compendium of 100 simple,
nutritious recipes to make in your Soup maker. These are thoroughly 'user friendly' recipes that
will save time in the kitchen, cut costs and create delicious, nourishing bowls of soup at
home.
From light lunches to something more substantial, soups can be healthy, comforting, hearty and
nourishing, as well as easy to incorporate into your daily diet. All of the recipes comprising
"Ultimate Soup Maker" can be made from beginning to end in soup makers featuring a saute
function or otherwise prepared in a pan before transferring to a soup maker. Each recipe serves
four people and includes suggestions for additional garnishes.
Critique: An inspiring delight to simply browse through and ideal for planning menus with,
"Ultimate Soup Maker" will prove to be an enduringly popular addition to personal, professional,
and community library cookbook collections. It should be noted that "Ultimate Soup Maker" is
also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $6.99).
Editorial Note: Joy Skipper is a qualified nutritional therapist specialising in Sports Nutrition.
She has a BSc (Hons) in Nutritional Therapy from The Centre of Nutrition Education and
Lifestyle Management, following her graduation from the world-renowned Institute of Optimum
Nutrition in 2009. She writes extensively on healthy food for a number of magazines, including
Waitrose Kitchen, Delicious Magazine, Weight Watchers Magazine and BBC Good Food and
has authored several books.
The Native American Studies Shelf
American Indians of the Ohio Country in the 18th Century
Paul R. Misencik & Sally E. Misencik
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
https://mcfarlandbooks.com
9781476679976, $45.00, PB, 292pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: In the mid-17th century, the Iroquois Confederacy launched a war for control of the
burgeoning fur trade industry. These conflicts, known as the Beaver Wars, were among the
bloodiest in North American history, and the resulting defeat of the Erie nation led to present-day
Ohio's becoming devoid of significant, permanent Indian inhabitants. Only in the first quarter of
the 18th century did tribes begin to tentatively resettle the area.
"American Indians of the Ohio Country in the 18th Century" by Paul and Sally Misencik details
the story of the Beaver Wars, the subsequent Indian migrations into present Ohio, the locations
and descriptions of documented Indian trails and settlements, the Moravian Indian mission
communities in Ohio, and the Indians' forlorn struggles to preserve an Ohio homeland,
culminating in their expulsion by Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Act in 1830.
Critique: Enhanced for academia with the inclusion of a five page Bibliography, nine pages of
Notes, and an eleven page Index, "American Indians of the Ohio Country in the 18th Century" is
an inherently fascinating and impressively informative history that is unreservedly recommended
for personal, community, college and university library Native American Studies collections and
supplemental curriculum reading lists.
The Art Shelf
Tomoko Fuse's Origami Art
David Brill and Hideto Fuse
Tuttle
www.tuttlepublishing.com
9784805315552 $29.99 hc / $16.19 Kindle amazon.com
Synopsis: Tomoko Fuse has been one of the world's premier origami artists for more than 35
years. This beautifully photographed book examines the three-dimensional geometric designs she
is famous for.
Fuse, often referred to as "the queen of origami," discovered the art of folding paper at just seven
years old. She has come a long way since then, having had her work highlighted in exhibitions
around the world, including Paris Origami (Carrousel du Louvre, 1998), On Paper (Crafts
Council London, 2002) and her solo show Yorokobi (Bauhaus Dessau, 2004).
In addition to teaching, folding and writing, she also collaborated with designer Denis Guidone
for Milan Design Week 2018 and was a featured artist in Nova's episode "The Origami
Revolution" (February, 2017).
An artistic anthology of her most impressive work, Tomoko Fuse's Origami Art can serve
multiple purposes: as inspiration for an experienced origami folder; as a truly impressive coffee
table book for the artistically-minded; or as a push for intermediate folders to try their hand at
modular origami models.
Critique: Showcasing full-color photography of Tomoko Fuse's elaborately folded, papercraft
artworks on every page, Tomoko Fuse's Origami Art: Works by a Modern Master is an
extraordinary showcase of the three-dimensional geometric designs that have made Fuse world-
famous. A small amount of text is also present, including descriptions of some of the types of
folds used in this artworks. These descriptions are paired with meticulous instructions and
diagrams that advanced origami practitioners can use to experiment with Fuse's paper-folding
techniques. Tomoko Fuse's Origami Art is a treasure for artbook collections and origami
enthusiasts, highly recommended. It should be noted that Tomoko Fuse's Origami Art is also
available in a Kindle edition ($16.19).
The Gaming Shelf
Planning the Defense
Barbara Seagram & David Bird
Master Point Press
www.masterpointpress.com
9781771400534, $19.95, PB, 173pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: A resident of Toronto, Canada, Barbara Seagram travels the world teaching bridge.
She is author or co-author of more than a dozen well-known books, the most popular being 25
Bridge Conventions You Should Know.
A UK resident, David Bird is perhaps the most prolific bridge author of all time having more
than 130 titles to his credit. He is the holder of a record seven ABTA Book of the Year
awards.
Ten years after their collaboratively written and award-winning volume "Planning the Play of a
Bridge Hand", now with the publication of "Planning the Defense" Seagram and Bird now tackle
the hardest part of the game using the same step-by-step approach as they guide the aspiring
bridge player through the minefield of signaling, making a defensive plan and, above all,
counting points, tricks and distribution.
Critique: Simply stated, all aspiring or even experienced bridge players will substantially benefit
from a close and careful reading of Barbara Seagram and David Bird's "Planning the Defense".
An expertly written, organized and presented instruction guide and manual, "Planning the
Defense" is an especially and unreservedly recommended addition for personal, community, and
academic library Bridge card gaming collections.
The Holocaust Studies Shelf
Holocaust: The Nazis' Wartime Jewish Atrocities
Stephen Wynn
Pen & Sword Books
c/o Casemate (distribution)
www.casematepublishers.com
https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
9781526728210, $32.95, HC, 168pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: The Holocaust is without doubt one of the most abhorrent and despicable events not
only of the Second World War, but of the twentieth century. What makes it even more staggering
is that it was not perpetrated by just one individual, but by thousands of men and women who
had become part of the Nazi ideology and belief that Jews were responsible for all of their
woes.
"Holocaust: The Nazis' Wartime Jewish Atrocities" by Stephen Wynn begins by looking at the
build up to the Second World War, from the time of Hitler's appointment as Chancellor of
Germany in January 1933, as the Nazi Party rose to power in a country that was still struggling to
recover politically, socially and financially from the aftermath of the First World War, whilst at
the same time, through the enactment of a number of laws, making life extremely difficult for
German Jews. Some saw the dangers ahead for Jews in Germany and did their best to get out,
some managed to do so, but millions more did not.
"Holocaust: The Nazis' Wartime Jewish Atrocities" then moves on to look at a wartime Nazi
Germany and how the dislike of the Jews had gone from painting the star of David on shop
windows, to their mass murder in the thousands of concentration camps that were scattered
throughout Germany. As well as the camps, it looks at some of those who were culpable for the
atrocities that were carried out in the name of Nazism. Not all those who were murdered lost
their lives in concentration camps. Some were killed in massacres, some in ghettos and some by
the feared and hated Einsatzgruppen.
Critique: At a time when the generation that experience the Holocaust personally is passing from
this world, historical studies like "Holocaust: The Nazis' Wartime Jewish Atrocities" are
increasingly necessary to remind present and future generations of what can happen when the
forces of bigotry and racially motivated hatred goes unchecked in even the most civilized of
nations. Given the present rise of anti-Semitism in Europe and the United States, "Holocaust:
The Nazis' Wartime Jewish Atrocities" is an absolutely and unreservedly recommended addition
to all community, college, and university library Holocaust collections and supplemental
curriculum studies lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general
readers with an interest in the subject that "Holocaust: The Nazis' Wartime Jewish Atrocities" is
also readily available in a digital book format (Kindle, $12.99).
Editorial Note: Stephen Wynn is a retired police officer having served with Essex Police as a
constable for thirty years between 1983 and 2013. His two sons served five tours of Afghanistan
between 2008 and 2013 and both were injured. This led to the publication of his first book, Two
Sons in a Warzone - Afghanistan: The True Story of a Father's Conflict, published in October
2010 by Clairview Books. Both Stephen's grandfathers served in and survived the First World
War, one with the Royal Irish Rifles, the other in the Mercantile Marine, whilst his father was a
member of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps during the Second World War. He is also the author
of a number of military and history books published by Pen & Sword Books.
999
Heather Dune Macadam
Citadel Press
c/o Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street, Floor 21, New York, NY 10018-2522
www.kensingtonbooks.com
9780806539362, $28.00, HC, 480pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: On March 25, 1942, nearly a thousand young, unmarried Jewish women boarded a
train in Poprad, Slovakia. Filled with a sense of adventure and national pride, they left their
parents' homes wearing their best clothes and confidently waving good-bye. Believing they were
going to work in a factory for a few months, they were eager to report for government service.
Instead, the young women (many of them teenagers) were sent to Auschwitz. Their government
paid 500 Reich Marks (about $200) apiece for the Nazis to take them as slave labor. Of those 999
innocent deportees, only a few would survive.
The facts of the first official Jewish transport to Auschwitz are little known, yet profoundly
relevant today. These were not resistance fighters or prisoners of war. There were no men among
them. Sent to almost certain death, the young women were powerless and insignificant not only
because they were Jewish -- but also because they were female. Now in "999: The Extraordinary
Young Women of the First Official Jewish Transport to Auschwitz" author Heather Dune
Macadam reveals their poignant stories, drawing on extensive interviews with survivors, and
consulting with historians, witnesses, and relatives of those first deportees to create an important
addition to Holocaust literature and women's history.
Critique: All the more valued because the last of their generation is now passing from the world
even as we are seeing a dramatic rise in anti-Semitism throughout Europe and the United States,
"999: The Extraordinary Young Women of the First Official Jewish Transport to Auschwitz" is a
critically important and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, community, college,
and university library Holocaust History collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.
Exceptionally well written, impressively informative, expertly organized and presented, "999:
The Extraordinary Young Women of the First Official Jewish Transport to Auschwitz" is also
readily available for personal reading lists in a digital book format (Kindle, $13.99) and as a
complete and unabridged audio book (Tantor Audio, 9781494539788, $29.99, CD).
Editorial Note: Heather Dune Macadam's first book (which was co-authored with Rena
Kornreich Gelissen), was Rena's Promise: A Story of Sisters in Auschwitz. The Director of the
Rena's Promise Foundation, Macadam also sits on the advisory board of the Cities of Peace
Auschwitz and is the producer/director of the documentary film 999: The Extraordinary Young
Women of the First Official Jewish Transport to Auschwitz. Her work has been recognized by
Yad Vashem in the U.K., the USC Shoah Foundation, the National Museum of Jewish History in
Bratislava, Slovakia, and the Memorial Museum of Auschwitz in Oswiecim, Poland. Her writing
has been featured in National Geographic, The New York Times, The Guardian, on NPR, and in
other major media outlets. She divides her time between New York and Herefordshire, England.
Those interested can visit 999thefirstwomeninauschwitz on Facebook, @heatherdune on Twitter,
or www.999themovie.com.
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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