Return to home
page Book Reviews, Book Lover Resources, Advice for Writers and Publishers
Home / Library Bookwatch

Library Bookwatch

Volume 12, Number 1 January 2017 Home | LBW Index

Table of Contents

Reviewer's Choice Civil War Shelf American History Shelf
World History Shelf Literary Studies Shelf Education Shelf
Mythology Shelf Art Shelf Fiction Shelf
Library Science Shelf Poetry Shelf Technology Shelf
Mystery/Suspense Shelf Cookbook Shelf Writing/Publishing Shelf
Health/Medicine Shelf Fantasy/SciFi Shelf Political Science Shelf
Reference Shelf Economic Studies Shelf Biography Shelf
Agriculture Shelf Pets/Wildlife Shelf Nautical Shelf
Graphic Novel Shelf Audiobook Shelf Library CD Shelf
Library DVD Shelf Military Shelf Language Studies Shelf
Theatre/Cinema Shelf Homeowner's Shelf Philosophy Shelf
Holocaust Studies Shelf    


Reviewer's Choice

The Lost Amazon, second edition
Text by Wade Davis
Photographs by Richard Evans Schultes
Insight Editions
PO Box 3088, San Rafael, CA 94912
www.insighteditions.com
9781608876549 $24.99 hc amazon.com

Now in an updated second edition, The Lost Amazon: The Pioneering Expeditions of Richard Evans Schultes is the extraordinary, true-life chronicle of explorer and botanist Richard Evans Schultes (1911-2001) in the depths of the Amazon jungle. In 1941, Schultes left Harvard for a journey he originally expected to last one semester. Instead, he spent twelve years living among local tribes, mapping unknown rivers, conducting secret research for the U.S. government during World War II, and discovering over 300 new plant species. Schultes' black-and-white photography is featured throughout this extraordinary chronicle of his journey, ideal for historians and armchair travelers alike. As engrossing as it is educational, The Lost Amazon is especially recommended for public and college library collections.

Wonder Women
Sam Maggs, author
Sophia Foster-Dimino, illustrator
Quirk Books
215 Church Street, Philadelphia PA 19106
www.quirkbooks.com
9781594749254 $16.99 hc / $12.99 Kindle amazon.com

Wonder Women: 25 Innovators, Inventors, and Trailblazers Who Changed History is an anthology of short biographies of truly brilliant, brave, and outstanding women whose achievements changed history. From notable women of science such as Ada Lovelace (British Mathematician and Programmer, 1815-1852), to women of medicine like Marie Equi (American doctor and birth control advocate, 1872-1952), to women of espionage, innovation, and adventure, these are incredible and inspirational true stories of women who dared to dream in a man's world. Additional, briefer vignettes of other notable and accomplished women round out this fascinating, educational "must-have" for both school and public library collections.

The Fighting Sullivans
Bruce Kuklick
University Press of Kansas
2501 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66049
www.kansaspress.ku.edu
9780700623549 $27.95 hc / $15.99 Kindle amazon.com

The Fighting Sullivans: How Hollywood and the Military Make Heroes is the true story behind the making of a twentieth-century fable. In November of 1942, the five Sullivan brothers of Waterloo, Iowa, were killed when a Japanese torpedo sank their ship in the South Pacific. The family's loss was lionized in the 1944 Hollywood film "The Fighting Sullivans". But this flurry of publicity deliberately obscured more unsavory truths about the situation. The navy had committed a catastrophe of errors by failing to rescue the survivors after the Sullivans' ship sank, and the brothers themselves were hardly regarded as heroic prior to their untimely deaths - if anything, they used to be disliked in their home town. The Fighting Sullivans deconstructs the process of mythmaking step by step, revealing invaluable lessons about how human perceptions of real-life events can be clouded on a grand scale. The Fighting Sullivans is fascinating, insightful, and highly recommended especially for public and university library collections.


The Civil War Shelf

The Union Sixth Corps in the Shenandoah Valley, June-October 1864
Jack H. Lepa
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
9781476666297, $35.00, PB, 228pp, www.amazon.com

During the summer and fall of 1864, Virginia's Shenandoah Valley was one of the most contested regions of the South. Federal armies invaded the Valley three times -- and twice they were repulsed by Confederate forces. "The Union Sixth Corps in the Shenandoah Valley, June-October 1864" by Civil War historian Jack H. Lepa describes the third campaign, the supreme achievement of the Army of the Potomac's Sixth Corps. One of the most respected units in the Federal Army, the Sixth Corps formed the nucleus of the Federal force that spent several months competing for control of the Valley with a desperate Confederate army, resulting in some of the toughest fighting of the war. Following victories at Winchester and Fisher's Hill the Sixth Corps campaign culminated with a remarkable stand that stopped the attacking enemy and turned what began as a disastrous defeat into a spectacular victory at Cedar Creek. Exceptionally well researched, organized and presented, "The Union Sixth Corps in the Shenandoah Valley, June-October 1864" is enhanced for academia with the inclusion of nine pages of Notes, a nine page Bibliography, and a four page Index. An outstanding contribution to the growing library of Civil War literature and very highly recommended for both community, college, and university Civil War History collections and supplemental studies reading lists, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of Civil War buffs that "The Union Sixth Corps in the Shenandoah Valley, June-October 1864" is also available in a Kindle format ($19.99).


The American History Shelf

Muslims and the Making of America
Amir Hussain
Baylor University Press
One Bear Place, #97363, Waco, TX 76798-7363
www.baylorpress.com
9781481306225, $24.95, HC, 142pp, www.amazon.com

Memories of 9/11 and the rise of global terrorism continue to fuel concerns about American Muslims. The fear of American Muslims in part stems from the stereotype that all followers of Islam are violent extremists who want to overturn the American way of life. Inherent to this stereotype is the popular misconception that Islam is a new religion to America. "In Muslims and the Making of America" Amir Hussain ( Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles) directly addresses both of these stereotypes. Far from undermining America, Islam and American Muslims have been, and continue to be, important threads in the fabric of American life. Professor Hussain chronicles the history of Islam in America to underscore the valuable cultural influence of Muslims on American life. He then rivets attention on music, sports, and culture as key areas in which Muslims have shaped and transformed American identity. America, Professor Hussain concludes, would not exist as it does today without the essential contributions made by its Muslim citizens. An extraordinary and much needed historical study and an impressive example of impeccable scholarship, "Muslims and the Making of America" is thoroughly 'reader friendly' in organization and presentation, making it very strongly recommended, especially for community, college, and university library American History collections and supplemental studies lists. For the personal reading lists of students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject, it should be noted that "Muslims and the Making of America" is also available in a Kindle format ($23.70).

Lynched
Angela D. Sims
Baylor University Press
One Bear Place, #97363, Waco, TX 76798-7363
www.baylorpress.com
9781602582668 $29.95 hc / $28.45 Kindle amazon.com

Lynched: The Power of Memory in a Culture of Terror is an unflinching, historical study of an instrument of murder and terrorism in America. Chapters examine lynching as the product of a culture of violence, domination, and fear. Author Angela D. Sims (Dean of Academic Programs, Saint Paul School of Theology) draws heavily upon oral histories and testimony to study the relationship between lynching and the religious self-understanding of a community. The possibility for hope and justice shines like a distant beacon, but what is the path to reach that faraway star? "Memories of lynching and a culture of lynching are not the stories of fairy tales. One too many persons in the United States are reluctant to acknowledge this dark side of our national history. To cultivate a climate of blind obedience in the twenty-first century is to create police forces that are symbolic lynching trees. As a prerequisite to healing, lynching must be named as a national sin." Lynched shines a spotlight on an evil part of American history, and is highly recommended especially for public and college library collections.

Peck's Beach, third edition
Tim Cain
Down the Shore Publishing
PO Box 100, West Creek, NJ 08092
www.down-the-shore.com
9780945582045, $17.95, HC, 128pp, www.amazon.com

Now in a revised third edition, "Peck's Beach: A Pictorial History of Ocean City, New Jersey" by the late Tim Cain has become a classic book about the New Jersey community of Ocean City's founding and history is now available. Featuring a visual wealth of period photography enhancing the historical text and commentary, "Peck's Beach" reveals the roots of this unique seaside community through 21 chapters of anecdotal stories. This informed and informative examination of Ocean City's past, ranging from the religious founding of the town; to the Boardwalk, to the Music Pier; as well as the resort's glamorous royal family (Princess Grace and the Kelly family), the lifeguarding tradition, shipwrecks, coastal storms, and the Sindia. An informed and informative history "Peck's Beach" is a veritable compendium of Ocean City's famous moments, firsts, and facts, and so much more. While highly recommended, especially for community and academic library American Regional History collections, "Peck's Beach" should be considered a 'must read' for all residents and visitors to one of New Jersey's most iconic communities.


The World History Shelf

A History of the Modern Middle East, sixth edition
William L. Cleveland & Martin Bunton
Westview Press
c/o Perseus Book Group
250 W. 57th St., Suite 1500, New York, NY 10107
www.westviewpress.com
9780813349800, $55.00, PB, 624pp, www.amazon.com

Now in an newly expanded and fully updated sixth addition, "A History of the Modern Middle East" by the late William L. Cleveland (Professor of History, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada) and Martin Bunton (Professor of History, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada) examines the profound and often dramatic transformations of the region in the past two centuries, from the Ottoman and Egyptian reforms, through the challenge of Western imperialism, to the impact of US foreign policies. Built around a framework of political history, while also carefully integrating social, cultural, and economic developments, this expertly crafted account provides readers with the most comprehensive, balanced and penetrating analysis of the modern Middle East. This new edition provides a thorough account of the major developments since 2012, including the tumultuous aftermath of the Arab uprisings, the sectarian conflict in Iraq and civil war in Syria that led to the rise of ISIS, the crises in Libya and Yemen, and the United States' nuclear talks with Iran. With brand-new time lines in each part, an updated section of select bibliographies, and an expanded online instructor resources, "A History of the Modern Middle East" remains the quintessential textbook for curriculum courses on Middle East history. While unreservedly recommended for community and academic library Middle Eastern History collections and supplemental studies lists, it should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "A History of the Modern Middle East" is also available in a Kindle format ($35.99).

Handbook of the Irish Revival
Declan Kiberd & P. J. Mathews, editor
University of Notre Dame Press
310 Flanner Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556
www.undpress.nd.edu
9780268101305, $100.00, HC, 512pp, www.amazon.com

The Irish Revival of 1891 to 1922 was an extraordinary era of literary achievement and political ferment. This period generated not only a remarkable crop of poets and writers but also a range of innovative political thinkers and activists. The contributors to this period exchanged ideas and opinions about what Ireland was and could become, yet much of this discourse remains out of print, some of these voices almost forgotten. In "Handbook of the Irish Revival: An Anthology of Irish Cultural and Political Writings 1891 - 1922" Declan Kiberd (Donald and Marilyn Keough Professor of Irish Studies and Professor of English and Irish Language and Literature at the University of Notre Dame) collects for the first time many of the essays, articles, and letters by renowned figures such as James Joyce, Maud Gonne, W. B. Yeats, George Bernard Shaw, Sean O'Casey, and J. M. Synge, among others. This anthology also contains pieces by less well-known individuals such as Stopford A. Brooke, Mary Colum, and Helena Molony. Many of the lesser known texts contextualize the social, political, and cultural lives, values, and aspirations of those involved in and on the periphery of the Revivalist movement. The introduction and commentary by Declan Kiberd and P. J. Mathews convey the ideas of a brilliant generation that, in spite of difficulty and demoralization, audaciously shaped a modern Ireland. Divided into sixteen sections covering issues as diverse as literature, religion, drama, education, women's rights, and the 1916 Rising, "Handbook of the Irish Revival" is the ultimate reference book for anyone with an interest in Irish literature and history. A truly extraordinary anthology, the "Handbook of the Irish Revival" is unreservedly recommended as an essential, core addition to community, college, and university Irish History reference collections and supplemental studies lists. It should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that the "Handbook of the Irish Revival" is also available in a paperback edition (9780268101312, $25.00).


The Literary Studies Shelf

Konundrum: Selected Prose of Franz Kafka
Franz Kafka, author
Selected and translated by Peter Wortsman
Archipelago Books
232 Third Street #A111, Brooklyn, NY 11215
www.archipelagobooks.org
c/o Penguin Random House (dist.)
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
9780914671510 $18.00 pbk / $14.99 Kindle amazon.com

Selected and expertly translated from the original German by Peter Wortsman, Konundrum: Selected Prose of Franz Kafka collects prose writings from the classic German-Jewish author, especially known for settings in which hapless humans struggle against the unfathomable machinations of Byzantine bureaucracies (foreshadowing everyday life in the twenty-first century). The writings chosen for Konundrum include short fiction, black comedy parables, fairy tales, reflections, even posthumously published letters. The bite-sized offerings and fluid translation make Konundrum a particularly excellent introduction to Kafka for literary students and aspiring scholars. Konundrum is especially recommended for public and college library literary studies shelves.

Lost Profiles: Memoirs of Cubism, Dada, and Surrealism
Philippe Soupault, author
Alan Bernheimer, translator
City Lights Publishers
261 Columbus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94133
9780872867277 $13.95 www.citylights.com

Superbly translated from the original French by poet Alan Bernheimer, Lost Profiles: Memoirs of Cubism, Dada, and Surrealism is both memoir and retrospective by the co-founder of the Surrealist Movement. Chapters reminisce about the international Dada movement that arose as a negative response to the horrors of World War I, and how Dada transformed into the beginning of surrealism, then discuss the literary contributions of great authors. Joyce, Proust, Apollinaire, Cendrars, and more are vividly and intimately portrayed. Lost Profiles is a preserved treasure of literary history in the making, highly recommended especially for public and college library collections.

Toni Morrison For Beginners
Ron David
For Beginners LLC
155 Main Street, Suite 211, Danbury, CT 06810
www.forbeginnersbooks.com
9781939994547, $15.95, PB, 176pp, www.amazon.com

Toni Morrison is an American novelist, editor, and Professor Emeritus at Princeton University. Her novels are known for their epic themes, vivid dialogue, and richly detailed characters. Many people consider her novels difficult to read. Most of her readers have at least one book on their shelves that they couldn't finish or, when they did finish one, just scratched their heads in confusion. And when we think we are sure we know what she's writing about, it turns out we are half wrong or only getting the tip of the iceberg instead of the whole, beautiful, brooding thing. "Toni Morrison For Beginners" is about the woman, her books, her mission, her word music, and all that subtext in her writings. Morrison's books are like the ocean: the surface is beautiful but everything that gives them life lies beneath. She's the kind of writer who can change your life and "Toni Morrison For Beginners" is here to help you navigate the words and the woman. While very highly recommended for community and academic library Contemporary American Literary Studies collections in general, and Toni Morrison supplemental studies reading lists in particular, it should be noted that "Toni Morrison For Beginners" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).

The Gospel in George MacDonald
George MacDonald, author
Marianne Wright, editor
Plough Publishing House
151 Bowne Drive, PO Box 398, Walden, NY 12586 USA
www.plough.com
9780874867664, $17.60, PB, 358pp, www.amazon.com

Compiled and edited by Marianne Wright, "The Gospel in George MacDonald" is a superb introduction to the novels of George MacDonald, a the great Scottish storyteller who is credited with inspiring C. S. Lewis, G. K. Chesterton, Mark Twain, W. H. Auden, and J. R. R. Tolkien. This outstanding anthology of selections drawn from MacDonald's novels, fairy tales, and sermons reveal the profound and hopeful Christian vision that infuses his fantasy worlds and other fiction. Those previously unfamiliarly with McDonald will find in these pages a rich, accessible sampling, while MacDonald enthusiasts will be pleased to find some of the writer's most compelling stories and wisdom in one volume. Drawn from books including Sir Gibbie, The Princess and the Goblin, Lilith, and At the Back of the North Wind, the selections are followed by appreciations by G. K. Chesterton and C. S. Lewis and accompanied by classic illustrations by Arthur Hughes. While highly recommended for community, college, and university library Literature Studies collections in general, and George MacDonald supplemental studies lists in particular, it should be noted that "The Gospel in George MacDonald" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).

The Unknown Judith Wright
Georgina Arnott
UWA Publishing
c/o International Specialized Book Services
920 Northeast 58th Avenue, Suite 300, Portland, OR, 97213
www.isbs.com
9781742588216, $29.99, PB, 304pp, www.amazon.com

Judith Wright (1915-2000) remains a giant figure within Australian art, culture, and politics. Her 1946 collection of poetry, "The Moving Image", revolutionized Australian poetry. She helped to establish the modern Australian environmental movement and was a key player in early campaigns for Aboriginal land rights. A friend and confidante of artists, writers, scholars, activists, and policy makers, she remains an inspiration to many. And yet, as Georgina Arnott is able to show in the pages of her definitive study "The Unknown Judith Wright", the biographical picture we have had of this renowned poet-activist has been very much a partial one. This seminal work presents a more human figure than we have previously seen, and concentrates on Wright's younger years. New material allows us to hear - directly, thrillingly - the feisty voice of a young Judith Wright, and forces us to reconsider the woman we thought we knew. Thoroughly 'reader friendly' in organization and presentation, "The Unknown Judith Wright" is unreservedly recommended for community and academic library Literary Studies collections in general, and supplemental studies reading lists in the subject areas of: Australian History, Art, Poetry, Gender Studies, Literary Criticism, and Biographies.


The Education Shelf

Twenty Writing Assignments in Context
Melissa Bender & Karma Waltonen
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com
9781476665092, $35.00, PB, 288pp, www.amazon.com

Compiled by Melissa Bender (a Lecturer in the University Writing Program and the Assistant Director of the Writing Across the Curriculum Program at the University of California, Davis), "Twenty Writing Assignments in Context: An Instructor's Resource for the Composition Classroom" is comprised of twenty original, classroom-tested by composition experts presenting assignments designed to teach aspiring writers the basics of composition. This innovative and diverse collection of college writing assignments deftly explores the practical applications of each lesson. Drawing upon current best practices, each individual chapter includes a discussion of the rationale behind the assignment, along with supplemental elements such as guidelines for evaluation, pre-writing exercises and tips for avoiding common pitfalls. The assignments are designed for a range of courses, from first-year composition to upper-division writing in various disciplines. Of special note are Dalyn Luedtke's 'The Discipline Resource Guide Website' and Gwendolynne Reid's 'Critical Analysis of a Wikipedia Entry'. While unreservedly recommended for college and university library collections, it should be noted that "Twenty Writing Assignments in Context" is also available in a Kindle format ($14.99).

Engaging & Challenging Gifted Students
Jenny Grant Rankin
ASCD
1703 North Beauregard Street, Alexandria, VA 22311-1714
www.ascd.org
9781416623342, $12.95, PB, 64pp, www.amazon.com

Specializing in School Improvement Leadership, Jenny Grant Rankin teaches the Post Doc Masterclass at the University of Cambridge. In the pages of "Engaging & Challenging Gifted Students: Tips for Supporting Extraordinary Minds in Your Classroom", she draws upon her years of experience and expertise to share with classroom teachers how they can learn how to: Recognize the challenges of each child; Identify the five unexpected traits of exceptional learners; Adjust their teaching to meet the needs of all learners. Filled with useful, practical, effective strategies and poignant personal accounts, "Engaging & Challenging Gifted Students" gives succinct essence of what is needed to prevent those gifted students who need to be challenged and engaged from slipping through the cracks and falling short of their academic potential. While unreservedly recommended for college and university library Teacher Education collections and supplemental studies lists, it should be noted for teacher students, classroom instructors, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Engaging & Challenging Gifted Students" is also available in a Kindle format ($6.99).


The Mythology Shelf

The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt
Richard H. Wilkinson
Thames & Hudson, Inc.
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110-0017
www.thamesandhudsonusa.com
9780500051207, $39.95, HC, 256pp, www.amazon.com

The lives of pharaohs and commoners alike were dominated by the need to honor, worship, and pacify the huge pantheon of deities. From lavish tomb paintings and imposing temple reliefs to humble household shrines, countless tributes throughout Egypt reflect the richness and complexity of their mythology. An absolute 'must' for students of Egyptology, "The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt" by Richard H. Wilkinson (Professor and Director of the University of Arizona Egyptian Expedition) examines the evolution, worship, and eventual decline of the numerous gods and goddesses ranging from minor household figures such as Bes and Taweret, to the all-powerful deities Amun and Rethat made Egypt the most completely theocratic society of the ancient world. With 400 illustrations (including 170 in color) and specially commissioned drawings, "The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt" is a comprehensive and authoritative guide to the deities that lay at the heart of Egyptian religion and society. While emphatically and unreservedly recommended for community and academic library Egyptology collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt" is also available in a trade paperback edition (9780500284247, $26.95).


The Art Shelf

Yakuglas' Legacy
Ronald W. Hawker
University of Toronto Press
10 St. Mary Street, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M4Y 2W8
www.utppublishing.com
9781442649408, $85.00, HC, 264pp, www.amazon.com

Charlie James (1867 - 1937) was a premier carver and painter from the Kwakwaka'wakw First Nation of British Columbia. Also known by his ceremonial name Yakuglas, he was hawker a prolific artist and activist during a period of severe oppression for First Nations people in Canada. "Yakuglas' Legacy: The Art and Times of Charlie James" by Ronald W. Hawker (formerly Associate Chair of the School of Critical and Creative Studies at the Alberta College of Art and Design and an associate professor in the Department of Art and Design at Zayed University) deftly examines the life of Charlie James. During the early part of his career James created works primarily for ritual use within Kwakwaka'wakw society. However, in the 1920s, his art found a broader audience as he produced more miniatures and paintings. Through a balanced reading of the historical period and James' artistic production, Professor Hawker argues that James' shift to contemporary art forms allowed the artist to make a critical statement about the vitality of Kwakwaka'wakw culture. "Yakuglas' Legacy", enhanced with the inclusion of 123 full color illustrations, is at once a beautiful and poignant study of the impact of the Canadian project on Aboriginal people and their artistic response. An exceptional scholarly study, "Yakuglas' Legacy" is unreservedly recommended for community and academic library Canadian Art History collections and supplemental studies reading lists. It should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Yakuglas' Legacy" is also available in a paperback edition (9781442626751, $34.95).

Nordic Painting: The Rise of Modernity
Katharina Alsen & Annika Landmann
Prestel Publishing
900 Broadway, Suite 603, New York, NY 10003
www.prestel.com
9783791381312, $75.00, HC, 272pp, www.amazon.com

The collaborative work of art historians Katharina Alsen and Annika Landmann, "Nordic Painting: The Rise of Modernity" is large-format, lavishly illustrated study that offers a comprehensive survey of the fin-de-siecle and modernist painting of Scandinavia. "Nordic Painting" features an impressive and extensive variety of Scandinavian artists and their works that explore the impact of Nordic geography, history, social mores, and national identities on the region's painters. Focusing on the "core" countries (Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Iceland) as well as the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and the Danish-German border region, "Nordic Painting" presents a thematically organized overview of Nordic art between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Drawing from the most recent scholarship, "Nordic Painting" considers the prevalent themes and subjects, such as landscapes, genre scenes, portraits, interiors, modern city life, and abstraction, and analyzes various works by artists such as Edvard Munch, Vilhelm Hammershoi, Helene Schjerfbeck, Johannes S. Kjarval, and Sigrid Hjerten. "Nordic Painting" relates the rise of modernism in Nordic art and discusses the artistic interaction between North and Central Europe. Of special note is a final chapter is devoted to the significance of Nordic painting today. Comprehensive and authoritative, this beautifully illustrated compendium will prove to be the standard instructional reference volume on Nordic art and is especially recommended for personal, community, college, and university library Art History collections in general, and Nordic Art supplemental studies reading lists in particular.

Klimt and the Women of Vienna's Golden Age, 1900 - 1918
Tobias Natter
Prestel Publishing
900 Broadway, Suite 603, New York, NY 10003
www.prestel.com
9783791355825, $60.00, HC, 320pp, www.amazon.com

Gustav Klimt (July 14, 1862 - February 6, 1918) was an Austrian symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. Klimt is noted for his paintings, murals, sketches, and other objets d'art. Klimt's primary subject was the female body, and his works are marked by a frank eroticism. "Klimt and the Women of Vienna's Golden Age, 1900 - 1918" by noted scholar on Austrian Expressionism Tobias Natter is authoritative and generously illustrated comprehensive study that highlights Gustav Klimt's portrayals of women in his work. Klimt was a central figure in Vienna at the turn of the twentieth century, and a crucial link between nineteenth-century Symbolism and Modernism. His sensual portrayals of women are among his most celebrated works and the focus of this book. Highlights of this informed and informative study include Klimt's most important society portraits, such as Serena Lederer (1899); Gertrud Loew (1902); Adele Bloch-Bauer I (1907); Ma da Primavesi (1913); Elisabeth Lederer (1914 - 16); and Ria Munk III (1917). These works cover the gamut of Klimt's portrait style, from his early ethereal works influenced by Symbolism and the Pre-Raphaelite movement to his so-called "golden style," as well as his almost Fauvist depictions. These art works are complemented by preparatory Klimt sketches and decorative arts from the Wiener Werkstatte.. "Klimt and the Women of Vienna's Golden Age, 1900 - 1918" is an impressively organized and presented coffee-table formatted volume that is unreservedly recommended for personal, community, and academic library Art History collections in general, and Gustave Klimt supplemental studies reading lists in particular.


The Fiction Shelf

The Devil's Marshal
I. J. Parnham
Ulverscroft Large Print (USA), Inc.
PO Box 1230, West Seneca, NY 14224-1230
www.ulverscroftusa.com
9781444826463, $22.98, PB, Large Print, 240pp, www.amazon.com

When Lucinda Latimer is accused of murdering Archibald Harper, her bounty hunter brother Brodie is convinced of her innocence. Vowing to find the culprit, he turns up a witness in the form of drunken varmint Wilfred Clay - who, minutes after admitting to seeing the real killer, is shot to death on his own front porch. All the clues point to the murderer being Derrick Shelby - the man known as 'the devil's marshal'. The only trouble is, Derrick died a year ago. I. J. Parnham's "The Devil's Marshal" is another riveting western action/adventure read by a true master of the genre. Hurtling from one cliff hanger to another, right down to the final page, "The Devil's Marshal" is unreservedly recommended to the attention of all western novel buffs and this large print edition will prove to be an enduringly popular addition to community library Western Fiction collections.

Wild Things
Jaimee Wriston Colbert
BkMk Press
University of Missouri-Kansas City
University House, Room 224, 5100 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, MO 64110-2446
www.umkc.edu/bkmk
9781943491056, $15.95, PB, 249pp, www.amazon.com

"Wild Things" by Jaimee Wriston Colbert is impressive collection of fourteen "linked, rural-noir" stories that depict endangered humans in endangered environments. This is a short story anthology for modern times. Colbert's human characters face displacement, just like the tropical alligator who appears in New York's Susquehanna River. They face sheer desperation, like that of an ohia tree clinging to solid lava on a Hawaiian volcano. In an environment where good-paying factory jobs are an endangered species, Colbert's protagonists confront such post- industrial predations as meth, homelessness, and the ghosts of lost dreams. Their survival is their triumph. Exceptionally well written and a consistently compelling read from cover to cover, "Wild Things" is very highly recommended for personal reading lists as well as both community and academic library General Fiction collections.

Renato After Alba
Eugene Mirabelli
McPherson & Company, Publishers
PO Box 1126, Kingston, NY 12402
www.mcphersonco.com
9781620540268, $24.00, HC, 188pp, www.amazon.com

"Renato After Alba" is the sequel to author Eugene Mirabelli's "Renato, The Painter" (9780929701967, $25.00) and continues ten years after the conclusion of Renato Stillamare's defiant confessions to Alba, his beloved wife of fifty years who dies without warning, leaving him in pieces. When he resumes his narrative, this larger-than-life artist has been reduced to a gray existence of messy confusion broken belief, crazy hope, desperate philosophy. A man of fragments but still an artist, he assembles a collage of scenes of life with and without Alba, recollections of his eccentric Sicilian-American family, encounters with well-meaning friends, daily attempts at resuming his former life, and metaphysical railings against any deity capable of destroying what it has created. In "Renato After Alba", the deepest sorrow is not merely lacerating, outrageous, heart-rending, and tragic, but also, for someone so completely human as the enduring Renato, touchingly comic. And miraculously beautiful in its astonishment. A literary masterpiece by a novelist with an impressive flair for deftly crafting memorable characters and construction consistently compelling storylines, "Renato After Alba" is especially recommended for community and academic library Literary Fiction collections -- and is a 'must' for anyone who has read and appreciated "Renato, The Painter".

Waiting for Lipchitz at Chateau Marmont
Aris Janigian
Rare Bird Books
453 South Spring Street, Suite 302, Los Angeles, CA 90013
www.rarebirdlit.com
9781942600190, $20.00, HC, 176pp, www.amazon.com

Set in two iconic locales (Hollywood's legendary Chateau Marmont and Fresno's amazing Forestiere's Underground Garden) "Waiting for Lipchitz at Chateau Marmont" by Aris Janigian is a bold and colorful critique of the California Dream through the perspective of screenwriter who has gone from riches to rags. A kind of Hollywood version of Waiting for Godot, Janigian's Lipchitz is a stunningly original take on the absent protagonist and what is illuminated in the void. A consistently engaging and deftly crafted novel from beginning to end, "Waiting for Lipchitz at Chateau Marmont" is an especially recommended addition to community, college, and university library Contemporary Literary Fiction collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Waiting for Lipchitz at Chateau Marmont" is also available in a Kindle format ($8.69).

The Lesser Blessed
Richard Van Camp
Douglas & McIntyre
c/o Harbour Publishing
PO Box 219, Madeira Park, BC, Canada, V0N 2H0
www.douglas-mcintyre.com
9781771621137, $16.95, PB, 128pp, www.amazon.com

Larry is a Dogrib Indian growing up in the small northern town of Fort Simmer. His tongue, his hallucinations and his fantasies are hotter than the center of the sun. At sixteen, he loves Iron Maiden, the North and Juliet Hope, the high school "tramp." In this powerful and very funny debut novel, author Richard Van Camp gives us one of the most original teenage characters in Canadian fiction. Skinny as spaghetti, nervy and self-deprecating, Larry is an appealing mixture of bravado and vulnerability. His past holds many terrors: an abusive father, blackouts from sniffing gasoline, an accident that killed several of his cousins, and he's now being hunted and haunted by a pack of blue monkeys. But through his new friendship with Johnny, a Metis who just moved to town, he's now ready to face his memories -- and his future. "The Lesser Blessed" is an eye-opening depiction of what it is to be a young Dogrib man in the age of AIDS, disillusionment with Catholicism, and a growing world consciousness. This 20th anniversary edition of a true Canadian literary classic from Douglas & McIntyre is unreservedly recommended, especially for community, college, and university library General Fiction collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "The Lesser Blessed" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.59).


The Library Science Shelf

Developing Digital Scholarship
Alison Mackenzie & Lindsey Martin, editors
Facet Publishing
www.facetpublishing.co.uk
9781783301102, $70.00, PB, 192pp, www.amazon.com

Collaboratively compiled and co-edited by Alison Mackenzie (Dean of Learning Services at Edge Hill University) and Lindsey Martin (Assistant Head of learning Services at Edge Hill University), "Developing Digital Scholarship: Emerging Practices in Academic Libraries" provides strategic insights drawn from professional librarians who are successfully meeting the challenge of digital scholarship, utilizing the latest technologies and creating new knowledge in partnership with researchers, scholars, colleagues and students. This edited collection spans a wide range of contrasting perspectives, contexts, insights and case studies, which explore the relationships between digital scholarship, contemporary academic libraries and professional practice. The contributors to "Developing Digital Scholarship" demonstrate that there are opportunities to be bold, remodel, trial new approaches and reposition the library as a key partner in the process of digital scholarship. "Developing Digital Scholarship" covers such issues as: The impact of digital scholarship on organizational strategies; Developing digital capable librarians; Social networking with the scholarly community; Digital scholarship centers; New approaches to service delivery; Re-visioning of space, physical and virtual. "Developing Digital Scholarship" is an essential guide for librarians and information professionals involved in digital scholarship and communication, and are interested in extending their awareness of emerging practices, as well as library administrators and students studying library and information science. While unreservedly recommended for college and university Library Science curriculum's and collections, it should be noted that "Developing Digital Scholarship " is a critically important read for all members of private, corporate, governmental, community and academic libraries who are charged with developing and/or upgrading digital elements of their library systems for the benefit of their patrons.


The Poetry Shelf

Daughter, Daedalus
Alison D. Moncrief Bromage
Truman State University Press
100 East Normal Street, Kirksville, MO 63501-4221
http://tsup.truman.edu
9781612481838, $18.00, PB, 80pp, www.amazon.com

"Daughter, Daedalus" is a compendium of free verse poetry by Alison D. Moncrief Bromage that is composed of loss and beauty. Bromage uses detailed themes of mothering and barrenness so wonderfully interwoven that her readers will feel the pain and want as seeming simultaneously just out of reach and attached to the soul. In her collection of apostrophes and open letters to the mythic inventor Daedalus and her daughter, Bromage hauntingly presents intersections between the natural laws of the physical world and the powers of mystery, creation, and myth. "Daughter, Daedalus" is an especially recommended addition to community and academic library Contemporary American Poetry collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Daughter, Daedalus" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99). 'Daughter; The cold will come': The cold will come to deliver you / as a body surrounded by another. / If you must take hold of me here, / I will meet you / north as we are. / There are no islands in winter.


The Technology Shelf

Guide to Wireless Communications, fourth edition
Jorge L. Olenewa
Cengage Learning, Inc.
20 Channel Center Street, Boston, MA 02210
www.cengageptr.com
9781305958531, $208.95, PB, 528pp, www.amazon.com

Now in a fully updated and expanded fourth edition, "Guide to Wireless Communications " by Jorge L. Olenewa (an instructor at George Brown College for more than 15 years, where he continues to teach and assist in the creation and implementation of several programs of study related to networking and wireless technologies.) is a complete and comprehensive instructional textbook about the most popular wireless data communications technologies in use today including Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi, cellular and satellite communications, as well as providing a broad industry perspective. "Guide to Wireless Communications" provides a solid base of knowledge in Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs), Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMANs), and Wireless Wide Area Networks (WWANs) and offers a better understand the most popular wireless communications available today. "Guide to Wireless Communications" presents a comprehensive approach to wireless communication technology providing the solid background needed to prepare for a future career in today's information and communications technology field. Enhanced with an extensive sixteen page Glossary and a thirteen page Index, "Guide to Wireless Communications" is unreservedly recommended as a curriculum textbook and an essential core addition to technical school, college and university library Communications Technology collections and supplemental studies lists. It should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Guide to Wireless Communications" is also available in a Kindle format ($124.49) -- and can be rented $83.58 PB / $84.34 Kindle.


The Mystery/Suspense Shelf

Edgar Allan Poe and the London Monster
Karen Lee Street
Pegasus Books
80 Broad Street, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10004
www.pegasusbooks.com
9781681772202, $25.95, HC, 384pp, www.amazon.com

In the summer of 1840, Edgar Allan Poe sails from Philadelphia to London to meet his friend C. Auguste Dupin, with the hope that the great detective will help him solve a family mystery. For Poe has inherited a mahogany box containing a collection of letters allegedly written by his grandparents, Elizabeth and Henry Arnold. The Arnolds were actors who struggled to make a living on the London stage, but the mysterious letters suggest that the couple has a more clandestine and nefarious lifestyle, stalking well-to-do young women at night, to slice their clothing and derrieres. Poe hopes to prove the missives forgeries; Dupin wonders if perhaps they are real, but their content fantasy. Soon Poe is being stalked by someone who knows far more about his grandparents and their crimes than he does. And then he remembers disturbing attacks made upon him as a child in London -- could the perpetrators be connected? An inherently riveting read from cover to cover, "Edgar Allan Poe and the London Monster" showcases author Karen Lee Street as an impressively gifted novelist with a genuine flair for crafting memorable characters and constructing a riveting storyline of unexpected twists and turns. While very highly recommended, especially for community library Mystery/Suspense collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Edgar Allan Poe and the London Monster" is also available in a Kindle format ($12.99).


The Cookbook Shelf

Soup for Syria
Barbara Abedeni Massaad, editor
Interlink Publishing Group
46 Crosby Street, Northampton, MA 01060-1804
www.interlinkbooks.com
9781566560894, $30.00, HC, 208pp, www.amazon.com

Because of the plight of the Syrian people, acclaimed chefs and cookbook authors the world over have come together to help food relief efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian refugees. Each professional chef has contributed a recipe to this beautifully illustrated cookbook of delicious soups from around the world. The culinary contributors to "Soup for Syria: Recipes to Celebrate our Shared Humanity" include: Yotam Ottolenghi, Sami Tamimi, Anthony Bourdain, Alice Waters, Paula Wolfert, Claudia Roden, Chef Greg Malouf, Chef Alexis Coquelet, Chef Chris Borunda, Chef Alexandra Stratou, Necibe Dogru, Aglaia Kremenzi, and many others. The recipes themselves range from Greg Malouf's Fennel Soup with Lemon and Cinnamon; to Sally Butcher's Iranian Pomegranate Soup; to Fernando Gomez's Red Pepper Soup; to Oumayma Nadar's Spicy Sweet Potato Soup. All these outstanding soup recipes are made with 'no-fuss' ingredients easily found in any local supermarket. "Soup for Syria: Recipes to Celebrate our Shared Humanity" is enthusiastically and unreservedly recommended for personal, family, professional, and community library cookbook collections.

The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook
America's Test Kitchen Editors
America's Test Kitchen
17 Station Street, Brookline, MA 02445
www.americastestkitchen.com
9781940352640, $29.95, PB, 440pp, www.amazon.com

Compiled by the editorial staff of America's Test Kitchen, "The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook" beautifully showcases some five hundred authentic Mediterranean recipes suitable for any and all dining occasions. Of special note are the informative Introduction, the section on 'Nutritional Information for Our Recipes', a chart of 'Conversions and Equivalents', and a recipe Index. The dishes themselves range from a Tricolor Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette; Warm Farro with Lemon and Herbs; Hearty Tuscan Bean Stew; and Sauteed Zucchini Ribbons; to Grilled Swordfish with Eggplant, Tomato, and Chickpea Salad; Flank Steak Peperonata; Potato, Swiss Chard, and Lamb Hash with Poached Eggs; Whole-Wheat Pizza with Feat, Figs, and Honey; and Olive Oil-Yogurt Cake. Each recipe comes with an introduction, listing of ingredients, thoroughly 'kitchen cook friendly', step-by-step instructions, as well as the number of servings. A delight to browse through, and inspiring to plan menus with, "The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook" is unreservedly recommended for family and community library cookbook collections. It should be noted that "The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook" is also available in a Kindle format ($28.99).

Not My Mother's Kitchen
Rob Chirico
Imagine Publishing
c/o Charlesbridge Publishing
85 Main Street, Watertown, MA 02472
www.imaginebks.com
9781623545017, $24.95, HC, 240pp, www.amazon.com

Rob Chirico is a freelance writer and artist whose work has appeared in the food journal Gastronomica. Rob first learned to cook as a defense against his Italian-American mother's awful meals. After discovering that there was more to real food than canned ravioli and frozen vegetables, he decided to try his hand in the kitchen. "Not My Mother's Kitchen: Rediscovering Italian-American Cooking Through Stories and Recipes" is his personal memoir and presents recipes, cooking techniques, and tips that he has cultivated over the decades. Blendin expert kitchen-based experience with an engaging and humorous narrative on growing up with suspect meals, "Not My Mother's Kitchen" is a compelling and informative read from beginning to end, and offers a wealth of culinary inspiration for menu planning with dishes that range from Frittata with Grape Tomatoes, Mushrooms, and Prosciutto; to Pears Stuffed with Gorgonzola; to Twice-Cooked Green Beans and Potatoes with Tomato Sauce; to Meatloaf with Wild Mushrooms, and so many more! Also available in a Kindle format ($11.99), "Not My Mother's Kitchen" will prove to be an enduringly popular and unusual addition to personal, family, and community library cookbook collections.

Our Best Bites
Sara Wells & Kate Jones
Shadow Mountain Publishing
P.O. Box 30178, Salt Lake City, Utah 84130-0178
www.shadowmountain.com
9781629722634, $21.99, PB, 272pp, www.amazon.com

The collaborate effort of award winning food bloggers Sara Wells and Kate Jones, "Our Best Bites" beautifully showcases some150 palate pleasing, appetite satisfying, kitchen cook friendly recipes (some of which are intermingled with favorite blog requests). Of special note are the illustrated, step-by-step tutorials; ideas for using leftove4r ingredients; shortcuts and tips for cooking; and serving suggestions. These culinarily impressive dishes range from a Mango Coconut Smoothie; Overnight Sausage and Egg Casserole; Cranberry-Orange Chicken Salad; and Chipotle Beef Taquitos; to Indian-Spiced Pork Skewers; Grilled Potatoes and Onions; Fire-Roasted Artichokes; and Strawberry Cheesecake Bars. Of special note are the delicious, mouth-watering recipes for Stovetop Kettle Corn and Cinnamon Bun Caramel Corn! Certain to be an enduringly popular addition to personal, family, and community cookbook collections, "Our Best Bites" is unreservedly and enthusiastically recommended!

Indian for Everyone
Anupy Singla
Agate Surrey
c/o Agate Publishing
1328 Greenleaf Street, Evanston, IL 60202
www.agatepublishing.com
9781572841628, $35.00, HC, 288pp, www.amazon.com

Anupy Singla is an acknowledged authority on Indian home cooking, and her expertise with delicious, healthful recipes has endeared her to fans everywhere. In "Indian for Everyone: The Home Cook's Guide to Traditional Favorites" she has compiled authentic recipes that opens up the true simplicity and flavor of Indian food for anyone, regardless of any dietary restrictions or previous familiarity. Singla's recipes feature popular favorites, regional specialties, and (unlike any other ethnic Indian cookbook) provides alternative preparation styles for every recipe. Included are quick-and-easy adaptations for making a meal vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free, or even in the slow cooker. Beginners appreciate the Singla's step-by-step instructions, while veteran home cooks now have a reference point for family favorites, including little-known instructions and standard cook times. The beautifully illustrated dishes range from Angoor Chaat (Tangy Grape Salad); Masala Bharwan Bhindi (Stuffed Okra); Imlee Lobhia (Black-Eyed peas in Tamarind-Coconut Curry); and Lamb Kabobs; to Sambhar (Spiced South Indian Stew); Makki ki Roti (Indian corn Bread); Kheer (Rice Pudding); and Kulfi (Indian Ice Cream). While a truly extraordinary and highly recommended addition to personal, family, and community library collection, it should be noted that "Indian for Everyone" is also available in a paperback edition (9781572841970, $22.95) and in a Kindle format ($18.70).

Portuguese Homestyle Cooking
Ana Patuleia Ortins
Interlink Publishing Group
46 Crosby Street, Northampton, MA 01060-1804
www.interlinkbooks.com
9781566567268, $35.99, HC, 240pp, www.amazon.com

While Mediterranean food is widely popular, not many kitchen cooks are familiar with genuine Portuguese cooking, a cuisine that is a melange of Mediterranean, mountain, and Atlantic coast influences. Portuguese cooking is especially notable for the abundant use of legumes and leafy greens in hearty soups and stews; unusual combinations of meat and shellfish; wine and garlic marinated casseroles; simple seafood preparations; luscious egg-sweet desserts; and fresh herb bread. It's all part of the rich and tasty tapestry that Ana Ortins, a passionate Portuguese cook, dishes up in the pages of "Portuguese Homestyle Cooking". Nicely illustrated throughout, the palate pleasing, appetite satisfying dishes range from Chickpea Soup with Spinach; Peel-and-Eat Shrimp Portuguese-Style; Marinated Beefsteaks; and Portuguese Potato Fries; to Fried Flat Bread; Pasta Pudding; Squash Fritters; and Custard Cream Pasties. Of special note is the chapter devoted to the wines of Portugal. While unreservedly recommended for family and community library ethnic cookbook collections, it should be noted that "Portuguese Homestyle Cooking" is also available in a paperback edition (9781566564083, $24.95) and in a Kindle format ($21.20).

One-Pan Wonders
Cook's Country, editor
America's Test Kitchen
17 Station Street, Brookline, MA 02445
www.americastestkitchen.com
9781940352848, $27.95, PB, 336pp, www.amazon.com

Compiled and edited by Cook's Country, "One-Pan Wonders: Fuss-Free Meals for Your Sheet Pan, Dutch Oven, Skillet, Roasting Pan, Casserole, and Slow Cooker" beautifully illustrates and showcases some 130 meticulously tested recipes that deliver fresh, fuss-free meals from a single vessel. These are recipes that have been specifically tailored to highlight each vessel's strengths, from imparting a deep, flavorful sear on chicken breasts to roasting a turkey breast above bread stuffing to turning out supremely tender slow-cooked beef. And each individual recipe is engineered to ensure every component of the meals turns out perfectly cooked and ready to eat at the same time. The result is an authoritative resource that will allow even the most novice of kitchen cooks to prepare simple yet satisfying meals for any and all dining occasions with recipes ranging from Parmesan Chicken with Warm Arugula, Radicchio, and Fennel Salad; Flank Steak Tacos with Charred Corn Salsa; Meatloaf with Sour Cream and Chive smashed Potatoes; to Simple Pot Roast with Root Vegetables; Spicy Shrimp with Cheesy Grits; Peruvian Roast Chicken with Swiss Chard and Sweet Potatoes; Spiced Pork Tenderloin with Couscous; and Beef and Three-Bean Chile. Simply stated, "One-Pan Wonders" will prove to be an ideal and treasured addition to any and all personal, family, and community library cookbook collections. It should be noted that "One-Pan Wonders: Fuss-Free Meals for Your Sheet Pan, Dutch Oven, Skillet, Roasting Pan, Casserole, and Slow Cooker" is also available in a Kindle format ($25.99).

The American Cancer Society New Healthy Eating Cookbook
Jeanne Besser
American Cancer Society
250 Williams Street NW, Atlanta, GA 30303-2002
www.cancer.org
9781604432374, $22.95, PB, 232pp, www.amazon.com

Jeanne Besser is a former food columnist for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and author of numerous cookbooks, including the American Cancer Society's "The Great American Eat-Right Cookbook" and "What to Eat During Cancer Treatment". In "The American Cancer Society New Healthy Eating Cookbook " Besser features more than 100 simple and delicious dishes that will turn healthy eating into a celebration of good food for anyone undergoing cancer treatments. "The American Cancer Society New Healthy Eating Cookbook " is enhanced with the inclusion of healthy substitutions, simple tips in the kitchen, smart shopping ideas, and notes on how to judge portion sizes. There is new material on how to shop in a healthy way, how to set up a pantry for healthy meals, and even guidelines for physical activity. With the latest research, revisions to recipes, and updated recommendations for healthy eating, "The American Cancer Society New Healthy Eating Cookbook" makes it fun and easy to eat well with dishes that range from Maple Mustard Salmon; Lentil Salad with Tahini Dressing; and Banana-Yogurt Muffins; to Carrot-Apple-Ginger Juice; Roasted Carrot Hummus; and Roasted Pineapple with Toasted Coconut. Featuring full color photography of completed dishes, "The American Cancer Society New Healthy Eating Cookbook" is very highly recommended, especially for personal, family, and community library cookbook collections.


The Writing/Publishing Shelf

Freefall into Fiction: Finding Form
Barbara Turner-Vesselago
www.freefallwriting.com
Jessica Kingsley Publishers, Inc.
400 Market Street, Suite 400, Philadelphia, PA 19106
www.jkp.com
9781785921728, $18.95, PB, 152pp, www.amazon.com

Barbara Turner-Vesselago is a published author who teaches Freefall Writing Workships (www.freefallwriting.com). Her first book, "Writing Without a Parachute: The Art of Freefall" (9781908363046, $9.99 Kindle), showed writers how to fall in love with writing. With "Freefall into Fiction: Finding Form" Barbara builds on her first 'how to' instructional guide and encourages writers to pursue their work with intention and without inhibition. "Freefall into Fiction: Finding Form" is specifically designed to help writers, step-by-step, to create publishable short stories, novels and memoirs by finding their own unique balance between the exploration offered by Freefall Writing and the requirements of each particular genre. "Freefall into Fiction: Finding Form" penetrates deep inside the writing process where that balancing act takes place. While unreservedly recommended for personal, community, and academic library collections, it should be noted for the personal reading lists for aspiring authors seeking to improve their skills that "Freefall into Fiction: Finding Form" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).


The Health/Medicine Shelf

Gender Medicine
Marek Glezerman, M. D.
The Overlook Press
141 Wooster Street, New York, NY 10012
www.overlookpress.com
9781468313185, $29.95, HC, 288pp, www.amazon.com

Over millions of years, male and female bodies developed crucial physiological differences to improve the chances for human survival. These differences have become culturally obsolete with the overturning of traditional gender roles. But they are nevertheless very real, and they go well beyond the obvious sexual and reproductive variances: men and women differ in terms of digestion, which affects the way medications are absorbed. Sensitivity to pain is dependent on gender. Even the symptoms of a heart attack manifest differently in a man than in a woman. And yet the medical establishment largely treats male and female patients as though their needs are identical. In fact, medical research is still done predominately on men, and the results are then applied to the treatment of women. This is clearly problematic and calls for a paradigm change. That is the clarion message of "Gender Medicine: The Groundbreaking New Science of Gender- and Sex-Based Diagnosis and Treatment" by Dr. Marek Glezerman (Professor Emeritus Chairman of Gender Medicine, and Chairman of the Ethics Committee at the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University). As informed and informative as it is thoughtful and thought-provoking, "Gender Medicine" is an especially recommended addition to community and academic library Health/Medicine collections. For the personal reading lists of medical students and non-specialists general readers with an interest in the subject, it should be noted that "Gender Medicine " is also available in a paperback edition (9781468314977, $17.95) and in a Kindle format ($14.16).


The Fantasy/SciFi Shelf

The Apothecary's Curse
Barbara Barnett
Pyr
c/o Prometheus Books
59 John Glenn Drive, Amherst, NY 14228-2197
www.prometheusbooks.com
9781633882331, $17.00, PB, 340pp, www.amazon.com

In Victorian London, the fates of physician Simon Bell and apothecary Gaelan Erceldoune entwine when Simon gives his wife an elixir created by Gaelan from an ancient manuscript. Meant to cure her cancer, it kills her. Suicidal, Simon swallows the remainder--only to find he cannot die. Five years later, hearing rumors of a Bedlam inmate with regenerative powers like his own, Simon is shocked to discover it's Gaelan. The two men conceal their immortality, but the only hope of reversing their condition rests with Gaelan's missing manuscript. When modern-day pharmaceutical company Transdiff Genomics unearths diaries describing the torture of Bedlam inmates, the company's scientists suspect a link between Gaelan and an unnamed inmate. Gaelan and Transdiff Genomics geneticist Anne Shawe are powerfully drawn to each other, and her family connection to his manuscript leads to a stunning revelation. Will it bring ruin or redemption? A uniquely compelling read from cover to cover, "The Apothecary's Curse" clearly showcases author Barbara Barnett's impressively storytelling skills and abilities to craft memorable characters and a story that will linger in the mind and memory long after the book has been finished and set back upon the shelf. While unreservedly recommended, especially for community library Science Fiction & Fantasy collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "The Apothecary's Curse" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).


The Political Science Shelf

Crossroads for Liberty
William J. Watkins, Jr.
The Independent Institute
100 Swan Way, Oakland, CA 94621-1428
www.independent.org
9781598132793, $32.95, HC, 336pp, www.amazon.com

What did the American Founders actually intend for the country, and does it even matter today? If America began as an idea, then what kind of idea? In a time of increasing turmoil over American history, politics, and society, "Crossroads for Liberty: Recovering the Anti-Federalist Values of America's First Constitution" by William J. Watkins, Jr. (a Research Fellow at the Independent Institute) takes a surprising and thought-provoking look at the American Revolution, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution, and asks what we can learn from them. Informed and informative, "Crossroads for Liberty" is a critically important study of American political life, and a much needed reexamination of the American Founding that presents a significant contribution to the story of America. Readers will come away with a greater understanding of current political and constitutional issues, as well as a new perspective on American history. While very highly recommended, especially for community, college, and university library Political Science collections and supplemental studies lists, it should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Crossroads for Liberty" is also available in an eTextbook format ($9.99).


The Reference Shelf

The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2017
Sarah Janssen
World Almanac
c/o Infobase Learning
132 West 31st Street, New York, NY 10001
http://www.worldalmanac.com/world-almanac.aspx
9781600572067, $34.95, HC, 1008pp, www.amazon.com

Thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and presentation, "The World Almanac and Book of Facts" is compendium of information that reviews the events of 2016 and will be a primary go-to source for questions on any topic. Informed and informative, the features include: Top 10 News Topics: The editors of The World Almanac(R) list the top stories that held the world's attention in 2016; Year in Sports: Hundreds of pages of trivia and statistics that are essential for any sports fan, featuring complete coverage of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, the 2016 World Series, and much more; Year in Pictures: Striking full-color images from around the world in 2016, covering news, entertainment, science, and sports; Offbeat News Stories: The World Almanac(R) editors found some of the strangest news stories of the year; World Almanac (R) Editors' Picks: Time Capsule: The World Almanac(R) lists the items that most came to symbolize the year 2016, from news and sports to pop culture; Election Results: The World Almanac(R) provides a comprehensive look at the entire 2016 election process, from the roller coaster of the early primaries to state and county presidential voting results and coverage of House, Senate, and gubernatorial races; The World at a Glance: This annual feature of The World Almanac(R) provides a quick look at the surprising stats and curious facts that define the changing world; World Almanac (R) Editors' Picks: The Best Teams That Never Won It All: In light of Golden State's unprecedented regular season success and eventual downfall in the NBA Finals, The World Almanac(R) takes a look back into sports history for the best teams that fell just short of championship glory; Statistical Spotlight: A brand-new feature highlights statistics relevant to the biggest stories of the year. These data provide context to give readers a fresh perspective on important issues; Other New Highlights: Newly available statistics on sexuality, student loans, overdose deaths, state minimum wages, and much more. While unreservedly recommended, especially for school and community library collections, it should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subjects covered that "The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2017" is also available in a paperback edition (9781600572050, $14.99) and in a Kindle format ($10.99).


The Economic Studies Shelf

SUPERHUBS
Sandra Navidi
Nicholas Brealey Publishing
20 Park Plaza, Suite 610, Boston, MA 02116
www.nicholasbrealey.com
9781857886641, $29.95, PB, 310pp, www.amazon.com

"SUPERHUBS: How the Financial Elite and their Networks Rule Our World" by Sandra Navidi (the Founder and CEO of BeyondGlobal, a consulting firm, where she renders macroeconomic and strategic positioning advice) is a rare, behind-the-scenes look at how the world's most powerful titans, the "superhubs" pull the levers of our global financial system. Combining an insider's knowledge with principles of network science, Navidi offers a startling new perspective on how superhubs build their powerful networks and how their decisions impact all our lives. "SUPERHUBS" reveals what happens at the exclusive, invitation-only platforms such as: The World Economic Forum in Davos, the meetings of the International Monetary Fund, think-tank gatherings and exclusive galas. "SUPERHUBS" is the most vivid portrait to date of the global elite including: bank CEOs, fund managers, billionaire financiers and the politicians who, through their interlocking relationships and collective influence are transforming our increasingly fragile financial system, economy and society. Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "SUPERHUBS" is a critically important and highly recommended addition to community and academic library Political Science & Economics collections. It should be noted for students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "SUPERHUBS" is also available in a Kindle format ($15.99).


The Biography Shelf

Vanished Hero
Jay A. Stout
Casemate
1940 Lawrence Road, Havertown, PA 19083
www.casematepublishers.com
9781612003955 $32.95 hc / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com

Vanished Hero: The Life, War and Mysterious Disappearance of America's World War II Strafing King is the fascinating biography of a little known yet courageous (and outrageous) commander from World War II. Elwyn G. Righetti led the England-based 55th Fighter Group against the Nazis during the final months of the war. He was a bold aviator and scored 27 strafing victories, more than any other Eighth Air Force pilot. His reckless behavior heralded his end - when his aircraft was hit, he performed one more firing pass with his heavily damaged fighter before making a crash landing. He radioed his men with a message that he was fine, asking them to reassure his family - and was never heard from again. Enhanced with a wealth of vintage black- and-white photographs, notes, a bibliography, and an index, Vanished Hero is a welcome addition to military biography collections, and highly recommended for both public library collections and personal reading lists.

Bust Hell Wide Open
Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr.
Regnery Publishing, Inc.
300 New Jersey Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001
www.regnery.com
9781621575931 $29.99 hc / $17.00 Kindle amazon.com

Bust Hell Wide Open: The Life of Nathan Bedford Forrest is a biography of the charismatic, controversial, and larger-than-life Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest (1821-1877), a ferocious figure of the American Civil War. Forrest was a gigantic man, who killed no less than thirty people in combat. Controversy surrounds his life; he was a wealthy slave trader before the war (though he became impoverished by the end of his life); during the war he was allegedly responsible for the massacre of surrendered soldiers, especially black soldiers, at Fort Pillow; and he was the first elected leader of the Ku Klux Klan, a group he later sought to disband and disavow. Enhanced with notes and an index, Bust Hell Wide Open is a scholarly biography that seeks to understand all the complexities of the proud and defiant General Forrest, and highly recommended especially for public and college library collections.

John Aubrey, My Own Life
Edited by Ruth Scurr
New York Review of Books
435 Hudson Street, Suite 300, New York, NY 10014
www.nybooks.com
9781681370422 $35.00 hc / $17.99 Kindle amazon.com

John Aubrey, My Own Life is the portrait of an extraordinary man, and a pioneer of the art of biographical writing, in his own words. John Aubrey (1626-1697) was a talented writer who is best for writing "Brief Lives", a collection of short biographies, his groundbreaking work in the field of archaeology, and his devotion to facts and truth. Historian and literary critic Ruth Scurr has collated Aubrey's own words from countless manuscripts, letters, and books, arranged them in chronological order, updated words and spellings to modern-day English, and further enhanced them with scholarly notes for clarity. A bibliography and an index round out this unique, enlightening, and highly recommended contribution to public and college library biography shelves.

Kierkegaard: A Single Life
Stephen Backhouse
Zondervan Publishing House
5300 Patterson Avenue, S.E., Grand Rapids, MI 49530
www.zondervan.com
9780310520887, $24.99, HC, 304pp, www.amazon.com

Soren Aabye Kierkegaard (5 May 1813 - 11 November 1855) was a Danish philosopher, theologian, poet, social critic and religious author who is widely considered to be the first existentialist philosopher. Kierkegaard, like Einstein and Freud, is one of those geniuses whose ideas permeate the culture and shape our world even when relatively few people have read their works. That lack of familiarity with the real Kierkegaard is about to change with the publication of a "Kierkegaard: A Single Life", a lucid new biography by scholar Stephen Backhouse that presents the genius as well as the acutely sensitive man behind the brilliant books. Scholarly and accessible, "Kierkegaard: A Single Life" introduces his many guises (the thinker, the lover, the recluse, the writer, the controversialist) in a deftly written biography that reads like a novel. Of special note is the chapter examining Kierkegaard's influence on such greatest cultural icons as Kafka, Barth, Bonhoeffer, Camus, and Martin Luther King Jr., to name only a few. A useful appendix presents an overview of each of Kierkegaard's works, for the scholar and the non-specialist general reader. Impressively informed and informative, "Kierkegaard: A Single Life" is unreservedly recommended for community, college, and university library biography collections. For personal reading lists it should be noted that "Kierkegaard: A Single Life" is also available in a Kindle format ($12.99).

Underground Ranger
Doug Thompson
www.parkrangerdoug.com
University of New Mexico Press
MSC05 3185
1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM 87131-0001
www.unmpress.com
9780826357502, $24.95, PB, 272pp, www.amazon.com

For six exciting years Doug Thompson worked as a park ranger at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. In "Underground Ranger: Adventures in Carlsbad Caverns National Park and Other Remarkable Places" he passes along the essence of what he learned on this unusual job and in his related adventures exploring the surrounding Chihuahuan Desert. He overcame his fear of tight spaces and heights, learned to climb rope, and went on to explore many of the deep vertical caves in the Guadalupe Mountains of western Texas and southeastern New Mexico -- including Lechuguilla Cave, one of the most spectacular underground wonders of the world. He even became a member of the park's technical rescue team and made a fifty-story rappel into one of the deepest underground pits in the United States. In visceral detail, Thompson shares the physical and mythical stories of caves and shows what it's like to experience the extravagant beauty of nature's underground realm. After retiring from the National Park Service, Doug Thompson moved to the juniper-pinon hills of Capitan, New Mexico. Readers are encouraged to visit his Underground Ranger website at www.parkrangerdoug.com. While very highly recommended for both community and academic library Contemporary American Biography collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Underground Ranger" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.99).


The Agriculture Shelf

Compendium of Blueberry, Cranberry, and Lingonberry Diseases and Pests, second edition
James J. Polashock, et al.
APS Press
3340 Pilot Knob Road, St. Paul, MN 55121
www.shopapspress.org
9780890545362, $149.00, PB, 231pp, www.amazon.com

Now in a newly revised, updated, and expanded second edition, "Compendium of Blueberry, Cranberry, and Lingonberry Diseases and Pests" is comprehensive new diagnostic and management guide is the largest, most comprehensive APS compendium published to date. Nearly triple the thickness of the first edition, it collectively covers nearly 150 diseases, pests, and disorders of blueberry, cranberry, and lingonberry crops. It is ideal for large and small commercial growing operations, nurseries, as well as the advisors that serve them, including universities, extension offices, independent consultants, and diagnostic labs. Profusely illustrated in full color, "Compendium of Blueberry, Cranberry, and Lingonberry Diseases and Pests" is a critically important contribution to personal, professional, community, and academic library Agricultural Science collections in general, and Blueberry, Cranberry, and Ligonberry supplemental studies reading lists in particular.


The Pets/Wildlife Shelf

Inside an Osprey's Nest
Teena Ruark Gorrow & Criag A. Koppie
Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310
www.schifferbooks.com
9780764352003, $24.99, HC, 144pp, www.amazon.com

Teena Ruark Gorrow is a Professor of Teacher Education at Salisbury University, who lives on Maryland's Eastern Shore with her family. Craig A. Koppie is a raptor biologist with the US Fish & Wildlife Service. Together the have collaborated to take their readers on a photographic journey through nesting season with a newly mated osprey pair. In this true raptor adventure, the ospreys prepare a nest and mate, but their eggs do not hatch. Through an unlikely twist of events, the unviable eggs are swapped by biologists with hatchlings from an ill-fated nest. Readers will read a photographically illustrated and heartwarming account as the adults become foster parents and care for the young, including a nest interloper. Readers will witness the helpless chicks grow into fledglings and experience first flight. "Inside an Osprey's Nest: A Photographic Journey through Nesting Season" is enhanced with the inclusion of resources that include the osprey's current plight, tips for helping injured ospreys, and a glossary of terms. This informed and informatively illustrated compilation of comprehensive information featuring some 380 photographs in the ospreys' natural habitat makes it a highly recommended contribution to community and academic library Pets/Wildlife collections, and an ideal addition to the personal reading lists of raptor enthusiasts, webcam viewers, nature and wildlife lovers, conservationists, teachers, children, and wildlife photographers.


The Nautical Shelf

Taliesin's Tales: Sailing Towards the Southern Cross
Lin and Larry Pardey, authors
Paradise Cay Publications
PO Box 29, Arcata, CA 95518
L & L Pardee Publications
120 Monda Way, Bluelake, CA 95525
www.paracay.com
9781929214112, $18.95 PB, $ 9.95 Kindle, 189pp, www.amazon.com

"Taliesin's Tales" is a fascinating account of a series of maiden ship voyages of a beautiful ocean cruising boat designed to replace the earlier vessel owned by the Pardeys, the Seraffyn. Their ocean tale of Taliesin's voyages began off southern California and the Sea of Cortez and continued on toe French Polynesia, the Cook Islands, Tonga, and New Zealand. Filled with color photos of the famous nautical couple on their exciting marine adventure, "Taliesin's Tales" is a very exciting book with elements of human interest, marine adventure, practical sailing advice, and threads of danger laced with mind enhancing moments of soul-seeking clarity. In their journey the sailing couple encounter hospitality, surprises, beauty, sordid knavery and thieving, and natural obstacles and challenges. They also found a quality of precious joy in their long sea voyage together alone. Many friends became a part of "Taliesin's Tales," as evidenced in both the photos and narrative. Traced on a series of maritime maps, their voyages wends its way towards the Southern Cross. Paradise can be dangerous, but the sailing experiences of the Pardeys is certainly inspirational to armchair voyagers and real life sailors as well. This complex narrative is enhanced by beautiful color photographs of island natives, the Taliesin under sail, marine life, and beautiful sailing scenes. "Taliesin's Tales" is a great narrative for all marine travel lovers, sailors and landlubbers who dream of voyaging to paradise.


The Graphic Novel Shelf

Manga Classics: Jane Eyre
Charlotte Bronte, author
Story Adaptation by Crystal S. Chan
Art by SunNeko Lee
Udon Entertainment
www.udonentertainment.com
www.mangaclassics.com
9781927925652 $19.99 pbk / $10.78 Kindle amazon.com

Part of the Manga Classics series of black-and-white graphic novels adapting great novels with artwork reminiscent of the style used by Japanese comics ("manga"), Manga Classics: Jane Eyre presents the timeless tale by Charlotte Bronte in an accessible, reader-friendly format for readers of all ages. Manga Classics: Jane Eyre does not take any liberties with the original novel about an independent young woman in Victorian England, who values listening to her conscience even if doing so may break her heart. Manga Classics: Jane Eyre is especially ideal for high school and public library collections, as an excellent way to encourage teenagers and adults alike to experience Bronte's masterpiece! Highly recommended.

The Complete Chi's Sweet Home Part 4
Konami Kanata
Vertical, Inc.
451 Park Avenue South, 7th floor, New York, NY 10016
www.vertical-inc.com
9781942993575 $24.95 amazon.com

The Complete Chi's Sweet Home Part 4 is the full-color manga (Japanese comics) conclusion to the story of Chi, an innocent kitten adopted by a loving family. Part 4 contains volumes 10, 11, and 12 of the original manga, including extras (such as cutouts and comments from creator Konami Kanata) and a bonus cat comic. The story takes a dramatic turn when Chi's family stumbles across a "lost kitten" poster that looks extraordinarily similar to Chi. Chi herself must grapple with the shocking idea that she is a cat - and therefore very different from the humans she loves so much! The simple art is the perfect complement for this heartwarming story, ideal for cat lovers of all ages as well as public library graphic novel collections.

Seeking Refuge
Irene N. Watts, author
Illustrations by Kathryn E. Shoemaker
Tradewind Books
202-1807 Maritime Mews, Vancouver, BC Canada V6H 3W7
www.tradewindbooks.com
9781926890029 $15.95 US / $18.95 CAD amazon.com

Seeking Refuge is a black-and-white graphic novel about Marianne, a young refugee girl who flees Nazi Germany on the kindertransporte to relative safety in Britain. Although Marianne is fortunate to escape the Nazi death camps, she is lonely in her new home. Learning to speak English is difficult, and she dearly misses her real family. Although Seeking Refuge is fictional, the story is directly based on the real-life experiences of almost 10,000 children from Germany, Austria, and Czechoslovakia, including author Irene N. Watts. Seeking Refuge is highly recommended for all ages and public library as well as personal graphic novel collections, as is the preceding graphic novel "Goodbye Marianne".


The Audiobook Shelf

Classic Ghost Stories
Charles Dickens and M.R. James
Read by Stephen Critchlow
Naxos of America, Inc.
1810 Columbia Avenue, Suite 28, Franklin, TN 37064
www.naxosaudiobooks.com
9789626344590 $17.98 amazon.com

Superbly performed by theater, television, film, and BBC Radio Drama actor Stephen Critchlow, Classic Ghost Stories is an audiobook anthology of terrifying supernatural tales by timeless authors Charles Dickens and M.R. James. These spine-tingling stories have terrified generations - listen to them in the dead of night strictly at your own risk! The paranormal stories are "The Signal-Man", "Oh, Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad", "The Mezzotint", "To Be Taken With a Grain of Salt", and "Rats". Highly recommended, especially for personal and public library audiobook collections. 2CDs, 2 hours 30 min. 51 sec.

Holding Nothing Back
Mark Nepo
Sounds True Audio
413 South Arthur Avenue, Louisville, CO 80027
www.soundstrue.com
9781604076745 $19.95 amazon.com

Poet, philosopher, and bestselling author Mark Nepo presents Holding Nothing Back: Essentials for an Authentic Life, a spiritual self-help guide designed to help listeners live more fully in the moment, engage in true-self expression, and better understand paradoxes of life such as how humans need both solitude and community. Enlightening and eye-opening, Holding Nothing Back is an inspiration for listeners from all walks of life. Highly recommended. 2 CDs, 2 hours 27 min.

Operation Happiness
Kristi Ling
Blackstone Audiobooks
31 Mistletoe Road, Ashland, OR 97520
www.BlackstoneAudio.com
9781441798190 $29.95 amazon.com

Read by author Kristi Ling, Operation Happiness: The 3-Step Plan to Creating a Life of Lasting Joy, Abundant Energy, and Radical Bliss is based upon a simple yet profound revelation: happiness isn't something you feel, it's something you do. Ling covers the three foundational principles to transform one's viewpoint and take greater pleasure in everyday life. Blending elements of memoir and self-help guide, Operation Happiness outlines straightforward steps that anyone can take to permanently improve their outlook. Highly recommended! 7 CDs, 8 hours.


The Library CD Shelf

Sanctuary for the Soul
Janice Lacy Project
www.janicelacymusic.com
Shore Light Records
$15.25 CD / $9.49 MP3 amazon.com

Sanctuary for the Soul is the instrumental debut album of Los Angeles-based pianist and composer Janice Lacy, in collaboration with pianist and keyboardist Rob Mullins, cellist Jeness, bassist Larry Antonio, and drummer and percussionist Tony Braunagel. All tracks were composed by Lacy and range from solo piano to piano-cello duets to a mellifluous melding of bass, drums, and percussion or synthesizer. Gentle jazz stylings send the listener's imagination on a world- spanning journey, in this soundscape treasure created to refresh and rejuvenate the spirit. Highly recommended! The tracks are "Sanctuary for the Soul" (3:52), "Take Care of My Heart" (2:56), "Everything's Alright" (3:56), "Lovers' Flight" (3:33), "Refuge" (3:34), "Sunrise Dance" (4:19), "Through the Shadows" (2:49), "Shimmering Ocean" (2:23), "December Goodbye" (3:12), "Jim's Waltz" (2:58), "Crystal Harbor" (1:45), "Full Moon" (3:33), "Prayer" (3:49), and "Tell You That I Love You" (4:45).

The Recognition
Art Patience
www.artpatience.com
Heart Dance Records
www.heartdancerecords.com
$14.99 CD / $7.99 MP3 amazon.com

The Recognition is a full-length New Age album featuring the compositions, harmonica, and guitar music of Art Patience (with additional guitar contributions by Dan Mahoney). The soothing, instrumental stylings encourage relaxation and thoughtful contemplation, with a binding theme reflecting the nuances of an enlightening journey through transformative natural landscapes. The Recognition is a treasure for connoisseurs that redefines the limits of the humble yet beloved harmonica, and highly recommended for both personal and public library music collections. The tracks are "Compassion" (5:49), "The Wishing Well" (6:22), "Memorial Day" (5:15), "Flight of the Butterfly" (4:23), "The Treehouse" (6:05), "Spirit of the Woods" (5:53), "Safe Journeys" (5:27), "Winds of Change" (7:03), and "The Recognition" (5:56). 53 min. 44 sec.

Mystic's Nine
Dyan Garris
DyanGarrisMusic.com
Privately Published
$12.98 CD / $9.49 MP3 amazon.com

Mystic's Nine is a captivating CD New Age album that beautifully demonstrates composer Dyan Garris' keyboarding talent. Two songs have vocal tracks (with lyrics printed on the album's case); the rest are instrumental. A soundscape that soothes the quiescent soul, Mystic's Nine is highly recommended for both personal and public library ambient music collections. The tracks are "Mystic's 9" (4:25), "Mystic Sea" (4:28), "Muse's Gift" (3:21), "Mystical" (5:25), "Mystic Kiss" (3:49), "Heaven's Gate" (3:53), "Cloud 9" (2:47), "The Mist" (4:11), "East on 9th" (3:54), "Aquamarine" (3:46), and "Water for the Soul" (2:52). 43 min.

Openings
Nick DeCesare
https://nickdecesaremusic.com
Privately Published
$15.98 CD / $9.49 MP3 amazon.com

Acoustic pianist Nick DeCesare presents Openings, a captivating solo piano album featuring music to gently lift the heart and soothe the soul. The peaceful, mind-expanding stylings encourage meditation, reflection, or simple rest in the listener. Openings is a treasure for new age piano connoisseurs, highly recommended for both personal and public library collections. The tracks are "Prologue Anthem", "Grace Rapids", "Joy", "Morning", "Farewell", "Ocean Waltz", "Rainy Day", "Lullabye", "In Love", "Moonlit Cathedral", "Visit", "Sanctuary", and "Epilogue: Return".

Resonance
Peter Kater
New Earth Records
www.NewEarthRecords.com
c/o Sounds True
413 South Arthur Avenue, Louisville, CO 80027
www.soundstrue.com
$16.98 CD / $9.49 download amazon.com

Resonance is an instrumental soundscape that embodies the essence of New Age music - healing, mindfulness, spiritual awakening. Peter Kater's tender piano playing is enriched with synthesizers, gongs, chimes, and melodic strings. A joy to experience, especially when unwinding after a hard day, Resonance is highly recommended for both personal and public library collections. The tracks are Resonance (5:17), "Twilight Star" (6:37), "Echo Inside" (9:00), "Night's Cavern" (9:47), "One Flame" (6:21), "Venus in Pisces" (9:11), "Rebirth" (9:57) and "Resonance (Reprise)" (3:55). 60 min., 5 sec.


The Library DVD Shelf

Britain's Bloody Crown
Athena Learning
c/o Acorn Media
c/o RLJ Entertainment
www.us.RLJEntertainment.com
www.acornonline.com
$39.99 amazon.com

Historian and journalist Dan Jones presents Britain's Bloody Crown, an exciting, four-part historical documentary about the Wars of the Roses, a series of vicious wars fought between the House of Lancaster and the House of York for control of the throne of England during the latter half of the 1400's. Thousands of people perished, and the crown changed hands seven times in three decades, in a ruthless saga of battle and betrayal, brought to life with scripted re-enactments. It should be noted that the cruelties of Britain's history are not for the faint of heart; Britain's Bloody Crown contains violence and sexual situations. Britain's Bloody Crown is utterly fascinating, highly recommended for both personal and public library DVD collections. 4 episodes on 2 DVDs, 188 min., widescreen, SDH subtitles.


The Military Shelf

Under a Blood Red Sun
John J. Domagalski
Casemate
1940 Lawrence Road, Havertown, PA 19083
www.casematepublishers.com
9781612004075 $32.95 hc / $9.99 Kindle amazon.com

Under a Blood Red Sun: The Remarkable Story of PT Boats in the Philippines and the Rescue of General MacArthur is the true story of the American sailors who manned small wooden torpedo (PT) boats in the Pacific theatre of World War II. Led by the heroic Lieutenant John D. Bulkeley, they battled the navy and air power of Imperial Japan. When America's defense of the Philippines fared poorly for US forces, the unit earned fame and a place in history by successfully evacuating General Douglas MacArthur from the front. The squadron battled until all six of its torpedo boats were destroyed under fire. The blockbuster 1945 movie "They Were Expendable" starring John Wayne and Robert Montgomery was based on their sacrifice. Under a Blood Red Sun balances scholarly research with accessible storytelling to preserve and illuminate the story of Lieutenant Bulkeley and his men, enriched with maps, appendices, notes, a bibliography, and an index. Highly recommended, especially for public and college library military history collections.


The Language Studies Shelf

Medieval Mosaic, second edition
A.W. Godfrey
Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers
1570 Baskin Road, Mundelein, IL 60060
www.bolchazy.com
9780865168411 $39.00 amazon.com

Now in a second edition with seven new selections (mostly from women writers), Medieval Mosaic: A Book of Medieval Latin Readings is a selection of brief, vocabulary and comprehension-building Latin writings that show the theology, culture, history, and spiritual lives of people living in the fourth through fifteenth centuries C.E., a span covering the rise of early Christianity and the Renaissance. Occasional black-and-white reproductions of classical artwork and Latin vocabulary notes enrich this excellent pick for intermediate Latin students, college course reading lists, and college library Latin Studies shelves.


The Theatre/Cinema Shelf

The Best Ten-Minute Plays 2016
Lawrence Harbison
Smith & Kraus Publishers
177 Lyme Road, Lyme NH 03755-6610
www.smithandkraus.com
9781575259055, $24.95, PB, 570pp, www.amazon.com

Compiled by Lawrence Harbison (who for more than 30 years was in charge of new play acquisitions for Samuel French, Inc.), "The Best Ten-Minute Plays 2016" is comprised of fifty terrific new ten-minute plays all successfully produced during the 2015-2016 theatrical season. They are written in a variety of styles. Some realistic plays, some are not, some comic, some are dramatic. Included is a comprehensive list of theatres which do ten-minute plays. The plays range from Before or After (Christopher Lockheardt); Best Lei'd Plans (Kelly Younger); Broken (James McLindon), and Family of Flechner (Gregory Fletcher); to Foodies (Jenny Lyn Bader); The Great Gaffe (Jennifer O'Grady); Heartland (Andrea Fleck Clardy); Here Comes the Drone (Arlene Hutton); and LaRuta (Mayank Keshaviah). A theatrical landmark publication, "The Best Ten-Minute Plays 2016" is an essential, core addition to personal, professional, community theatre, community library, and academic library collections.


The Homeowner's Shelf

Plumbing
Steve Cory
The Taunton Press
63 South Main Street, Newtown, CT 06470
www.taunton.com
9781631861628, $24.95, PB, 256pp, www.amazon.com

Stanley's "Plumbing: A Homeowner's Guide" by Steve Cory is a comprehensive, visual handbook packed with step-by-step photographs and authoritative, reliable, detailed information. Eventually, every homeowner needs be able to repair, replace, or upgrade a plumbing fixture because doing it yourself will save a great deal of money. With today's materials and installation methods, almost any plumbing project is DIY-doable with a modest set of tools and basic skills. Whether it's a faucet repair or installing plumbing for a new bathroom, all the projects from the simple to the complex are thoroughly explained and illustrated. Thoroughly 'user friendly' in organization and presentation, every home and every community library should have a copy of Stanley's "Plumbing: A Homeowner's Guide".


The Philosophy Shelf

Red Rising and Philosophy
Courtland Lewis & Kevin McCain, editors
Open Court Publishing Company
70 East Lake Street, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60601
www.opencourtbooks.com
9780812699470, $19.95, PB, 288pp, www.amazon.com

Collaborative compiled and co-edited by Courtland Lewis (an Instructor of Philosophy at Owensboro Community and Technical College, Kentucky) and Kevin McCain (Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Alabama at Birmingham) "Red Rising and Philosophy" is comprised of contributions by a crew of the wisest Helldivers philosophy can offer address such questions as: Could humanity's love of physical enhancements cause its extinction? Do people doom humanity by trying to all be the same? Can a person love someone, while at the same time wanting that person destroyed? Is equality always the best principle on which to organize society? What is evil, and how does it exist in contemporary life? Does one remain the same person, even after changing every physical aspect of one's body? Is it moral to sell oneself into slavery, whether it's through sex or manual labor? Is it ethical to sell one's children into slavery, on the promise that their children will live in peace and tranquility? These questions and more are what make Pierce Brown's "Red Rising" trilogy such an resonating story. Brown pulls no punches, and philosophy works best in such an environment. While highly recommended for personal, community, and academic library Popular Culture & Philosophy collections, it should be noted that "Red Rising and Philosophy" is not for the timid or the faint at heart. But reading it could be a life-changing experience!


The Holocaust Studies Shelf

Remembering for the Future
Michael Berenbaum, Richard Libowitz, Marcia Sachs Littell, eds.
Paragon House
3600 Labore Road, Suite 1, St. Paul, MN 55110-4144
www.paragonhouse.com
9781557789235, $24.95, PB, 308pp, www.amazon.com

Collaboratively compiled and co-edited by the team of Michael Berenbaum, Richard Libowitz, Marcia Sachs Littell, "Remembering for the Future: Armenia, Auschwitz, and Beyond" is an anthology of new and original research by genocide and holocaust scholars and commemorates a series of significant anniversaries, such as: 100 years since the beginning of the Armenian Genocide; 80 years since the Barmen Declaration; 75 years since the beginning of World War II; 70 years since the uprising at Auschwitz. Other topics under discussion include: Holocaust Education for Future Generations, Personal Experiences, as well as New Forms of antisemitism. The seventeen original and seminal articles comprising "Remembering for the Future" are enhanced with the inclusion of a memorial tribute to Dr. Elisabeth Maxwell z"l, a six page listing of the contributors and their credentials, and a twenty-one page index. An absolutely essential addition to community, college, and university library Genocide/Holocaust collections and supplemental studies lists, it should be noted for the personal reading lists of students and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that "Remembering for the Future" is also available in a Kindle format ($9.95).


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


Copyright ©2001

Site design by Williams Writing, Editing & Design