Social Sciences

The revised edition of this title, originally published in 1996, continues the tradition of addressing “not only good manners that are universal but also unique African American observances and the delicate art of being both polite and assertive in response to unacceptable treatment or thoughtless remarks.” Now updated a decade later, Basic Black includes a nod to technology with its advice on the proper protocol for the use of electronic devices such as cell phones, camera phones, handheld devices, and even online shopping. A unique and timely inclusion not usually found in standard etiquette guides is the new chapter on adjusting to life post-9/11, e.g., how to explain terrorism to children and coping with racial profiling. Highly recommended for public libraries; this will appeal not just to African American audiences but also to trenchant observers of human social behavior everywhere.—Deborah M. Ebster, Univ. of Central Florida Libs., Orlando

What makes a location sacred to a particular group of people? Nabokov (American Indian studies, World Arts and Cultures, UCLA; A Forest of Time: American Indian Ways of History) probes the depths of this question in his sensitive examination of the relationship between Native American spirituality and physical geography. Nabokov provides profiles of 16 distinct American Indian holy places in different areas of the United States. His skilled narrative explores the wide diversity of Native American beliefs concerning the earth, the land, and special locations in each unique environment. The profiles are grouped into four sections, each of which has as its theme a relatively recent United States court case in which American Indian rights to certain sacred places were removed or limited. Some of these cases involved the construction of dams that completely destroyed important Native American sacred sites. Nabokov does a masterly job of exploring the numinous balance between the American Indian sense of place and sense of the sacred while being careful not to intrude upon aspects of Native American spirituality that should remain private. His work is thought-provoking, poignant, and evocative. Highly recommended for anthropology and American Indian studies collections in academic and large public libraries.—Elizabeth Salt, Otterbein Coll. Lib., Westerville, OH

Barnes (executive editor, the Weekly Standard) argues for the greatness of George W. Bush. Less biography than hagiography, this work is an unabashed love letter to the current president, with its author revealing that he shares Bush's inability to identify any mistakes that the president has made. Barnes notes an interview with Bush, but otherwise no sourcing is given for the book, which could pass for the regurgitated Republican National Committee talking points that one might hear on Barnes's own show on the Fox News Channel. A third of the text defends Bush's Middle East policy; the rest praises his faith and his impact on domestic politics, but the “new majority” Barnes hails is shaky at best, with new fissures opening weekly, while the “new conservatism” is a complete repudiation of traditional conservatism. As for Bush's “rebel” status, it apparently consists of refusing to wear tuxedos or to socialize with the Washington press corps. This book will be demanded by that new conservative choir that enjoys being preached to, but Ronald Kessler's similar, albeit gossipy A Matter of Character: Inside the White House of George W. Bush is more comprehensive and contains actual reporting. Purchase only where there is demand.—Michael O. Eshleman, Kings Mills, OH

This new book on Lincoln is defined by its author as a study of Lincoln's political career by a British historian able to view the 16th president with more emotional neutrality than Americans can maintain. Carwardine (American history, Oxford Univ.; Evangelicals and Politics in Antebellum America) traces Lincoln's political struggles and machinations from his early days as an Illinois state legislator through his final days in the presidency. He describes Lincoln as believing in the United States as a meritocracy where each person might rise in society based on his own intellect, skills, and hard work (as Lincoln himself had done). Lincoln's belief that slavery was morally wrong, coupled with his conviction that a house divided against itself couldn't stand, solidified his antislavery position. Throughout his narrative, Carwardine recounts the maturing of Lincoln's political philosophies while introducing the people on whom Lincoln depended to shape his thought and advance his political career. The result is a detailed political account that explores Lincoln's moral relationship with power in a style best suited for academic audiences. Large public libraries that collect Lincoln monographs extensively may also wish to consider.—Grant A. Fredericksen, Illinois Prairie Dist. P.L., Metamora

In 1971, pursuing the story of her dying grandmother's black mother and white father who came together in post–Civil War Mississippi, the poet, playwright, novelist, and journalist Davis entered on a journey to her own identity. This book traces her travels along a family tree that branched into places she feared to look or never imagined. She discovered not only her black roots in muddy Mississippi's cotton slave hands but also in whites riding to war to save slavery. She discovered sometimes imperceptible lines between black and white, friend and foe, slaveholder and slave. She reached kinfolk in the Caribbean and in Africa itself, locating tribal Temne forebears in Sierra Leone. Retracing the steps of her people with anecdotal particulars, Davis details an epic that moves from African Middle Passage in the 1700s to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Her very personal story opens poignant perspectives on an American past where identity was both more and less than black-and-white. Recommended for collections on autobiography and African American, Southern, and U.S. history.—Thomas J. Davis, Arizona State Univ., Tempe

Hoping to get out of a dating rut, twentysomething transplanted New Yorker and NYU student Headley embarked on a year of saying “yes” to anyone who asked her out, with exceptions for the drunk or obviously dangerous. Why this method resulted in months of misadventures, confusion, and heartbreak is puzzling only to herself. As a playwright, Headley's storytelling skills and ear for dialog do enliven some funny anecdotes, such as her “date” with a street mime. She clearly revels in the sheer excitement, as well as the sleaziness, of her life in New York City, dating mishaps and all. However, the story has a rambling, breathless quality as it becomes overtaken by literary references, roommate troubles, unrequited crushes, and long descriptions of hanging out with friends. With the author torturing herself with the gamut of New York City's available men, and even after she connects with her future husband, the entire zany quest seems hollow and tragic, especially for the reader. Recommended for large public libraries only.—Elizabeth Morris, Illinois Fire Svce. Inst. Lib., Champaign

With authors Keith and Kent Zimmerman (Sing My Way Home: Voices of the New American Roots Rock), former Black Panther Party (BPP) chief of staff Hilliard (This Side of Glory, with Lewis Cole) presents an authorized biography of political activist Huey P. Newton. Hilliard knew Newton from childhood, both growing up poor in Oakland, CA. He reminisces about these early years and about Newton's becoming a petty criminal prior to his politicization and his foundation of the BPP in 1966 with Bobby Seale. The book does an excellent job of discussing the inner workings of the BPP and provides a detailed picture of Newton's relationship with Eldridge Cleaver until the two split in 1971. It also covers Newton's frequent run-ins with the law. Newton skipped bail on criminal charges in 1974 and fled to Cuba with the woman who became his first wife, returning to the United States in 1977. The book includes a penultimate chapter narrated by Newton's second wife, Fredrika, who describes her husband's descent into drug abuse, which led to his murder in 1989. The book gives an interesting personal perspective, but for more thorough critical examinations, see Hugh Pearson's The Shadow of the Panther: Huey Newton and the Price of Black Power in America and Judson L. Jeffries's Huey P. Newton: The Radical Theorist. Recommended for academic and public libraries.—Stephen L. Hupp, West Virginia Univ. Lib., Parkersburg

Kazin (history, Georgetown Univ.; The Populist Persuasion: An American History) places the “Great Commoner” squarely in the context of his times. Bryan (1860–1925) was both a religious man and a very political man, at home teaching Bible classes or railing against tariffs. His Christianity stressed charity and social justice, and his campaigns were always more crusades than mere political contests. Bryan changed presidential politics by barnstorming in his own three presidential campaigns as well as for later Democratic nominees. His reformist ideas turned the Democrats toward progressivism and reform, which culminated in such measures as the popular election of U.S. senators and votes for women as well as many other hallmarks of the presidencies of Wilson and FDR. Kazin pulls no punches: Bryan defended Jim Crow laws passed by Democrats in the South and used gunboat diplomacy when he was secretary of state under Wilson. Though Bryan was quick to invoke religion in his causes and, as a fundamentalist, aided the prosecution in the 1925 Scopes trial, he was nothing like the champion of Babbitry that historians and Hollywood have heretofore made him out to be. Strongly recommended for public and academic libraries.—Duncan Stewart, Univ. of Iowa, Iowa City

In this memoir, Linton (Claiming Disability: Knowledge and Identity) recounts her experiences as a disabled woman after a 1971 car accident that killed her husband and best friend and left her wheelchair-bound. Linton takes readers through rehabilitation and the decades that followed, emphasizing her growing awareness of how the community of disabled people is “hidden” from mainstream society. She intertwines her story with those of disabled people who inspired her, such as Glenn, who showed her that dancing need not be restricted to those who can walk. Her memoir culminates with her leaving her career as a professor of psychology in order to lecture and consult in the field of disability studies full time. Although at times the author's mixing of her own story with those of others can cause confusion, Linton successfully argues that disabled people should be mainstreamed into all aspects of society, including classrooms, public transportation, housing and recreational activities—and disability activism. Required for both public and academic libraries, especially those with psychology or education collections.—Leigh Mihlrad, Albert Einstein Coll. of Medicine Lib., Bronx, NY

This is a splendid visual presentation of South African leader Nelson Mandela's 27 years in prison in South Africa. The book functions as a catalog, with additional background and interpretive text, of an exhibit mounted by the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory and Consciousness in 2004, documenting the apartheid regime's control of their prisoner 466/64. It includes photographs and, most compellingly, facsimiles of letters, journals, notes, and calendar notations written by Mandela while he was incarcerated. The collection paints the portrait of a man absolutely determined to achieve justice for the black majority in South Africa. His meticulous and prodigious writings, especially his attempts to win concessions for himself and his fellow political prisoners, bear witness to his dedication. This work is ultimately a testimony to the human spirit and to a remarkable man who believes firmly that “memory…is the fabric of identity” for any society and that the memory of the struggle against apartheid, as embodied in archival records such as those shown here, must be saved and cherished. This beautifully produced, moving work belongs in every library in the United States.— A.O. Edmonds, Ball State Univ., Muncie, IN

Journalist and biographer Morgan (“Ted Morgan” is an anagram derived from his original name, Sanche de Gramont) was a French citizen and graduate of Yale, working in the United States as a newspaper reporter in the mid-1950s when he was called up for conscription by the French army, which was ratcheting up for a major colonial war in Algeria. After officer training, Morgan was sent to Algeria, where, as a writer of an army propaganda sheet, he observed the behavior of the Arabs and the French colons and ultimately became involved in the desperate fighting. The French army decisively won the Battle of Algiers, using torture brutally and effectively. However, the response from France, international condemnation, and increasing Arab resistance caused Algeria to win its war for independence and brought about the collapse of France's Fourth Republic along with an abortive uprising by army officers. Morgan here draws some parallels between Algeria and Iraq. He asserts that the basic tools of modern urban insurgencies (with the exception of suicide bombing) were invented in Algeria, where a campaign of assassinations and popular resistance eventually drove Europeans out. While the use of torture was very effective in breaking organizations of resistance, in the end it did more harm to the French than to the Arab cause. Including a generous helping of history, this absorbing personal narrative will capture readers. Highly recommended for subject collections on France, the Middle East, and the Iraq war.—Edwin B. Burgess, Director, U.S. Army Combined Arms Research Lib., Fort Leavenworth, KS

Smith, author of the Poppy Rice series of mystery books (She's Not There), grew up in 1950s Hartford, CT, a place where people don't lock their doors. She had an autistic older brother and a mother perpetually on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Her story, a distinctly unsentimental view of life in a post–World War II working-class family, is interspersed with the story of Bob Malm, a serial pedophile who brutally murdered a fifth-grade classmate of hers in December 1953. The neighborhood children were forbidden to discuss this girl, Irene, who disappeared from their lives as if she had simply never existed; Smith literally forgot an entire year and a half of her own existence. Then an essay she wrote for the literary magazine of the Hartford Courant jogged her memory, prompting her to follow up on the trial and the murderer, reclaiming her lost time. The chapters on Malm cast a sinister shadow over other parts of the book, accentuating Smith's own lack of control over her odd upbringing. But the peace she finds in reconnecting with this local tragedy spills over into the rest of her life. This poignant memoir belongs in all collections.—Deirdre Bray Root, Middletown P.L., OH

“I did not go through the holocaust, the holocaust went through me” is just one of the memorable lines that Stadner offers up in this mostly well written, entirely heartfelt autobiography. She contends that her struggles as a young adult—which involved drug addiction, eating disorders, doomed relationships, and agoraphobia, to name a few issues—stemmed from being raised by parents “too traumatized to have children.” She was abused and neglected and continually reminded that no matter how bad she felt, her parents had it much, much worse. Television was a constant source of inspiration and solace during her childhood, which prompted her to move from Canada to Los Angeles in her early twenties to pursue an acting career. Through it all, Stadner's sense of humor (although sometimes a bit forced) clearly survived intact. The book breezes along at a fast pace, with the standout sections dealing with Stadner's harrowing drug addiction and eventual recovery; as the story progresses, what shines is her insightful wit, comparable to that of Tama Janowitz or A.M. Homes. Her honesty (which includes discussing numerous sexual entanglements) and willingness to be vulnerable makes her a very sympathetic character. Recommended for all public libraries, especially those serving Jewish communities, though more conservative readers may not be comfortable with this book.—Jennifer Zarr, NYPL

In this economic history of the 20th century, Frieden (government, Harvard Univ.) concentrates on the role played by international trade in economic development. He describes the pre-1914 period as one in which free trade reigned supreme, without regard for social disruption, under the umbrella of the gold standard. He shows that various 20th-century attempts at sealing off national economies, from Nazi Germany to Communist China, generally ended disastrously. While Frieden concedes that problems exist with the current trend toward globalization, he argues that it is the best hope for worldwide economic improvement. Considering the century's various experiments with capitalism, socialism, fascism, and their variants, Frieden concludes persuasively that national economies work best when they are open to the world and that open economies work best when national governments address social and other sources of dissatisfaction with globalization. This historical work on international trade is most welcome in the debate over globalization. The length and depth of this book recommends it to academic and larger public libraries.—Lawrence R. Maxted, Gannon Univ., Erie, PA

Greenblatt is renowned for his spectacular business prowess; among his many accomplishments are averaging returns of 40 percent or better for more than a decade; starting his own lucrative private investment firm, Gotham Capital; and currently serving as an adjunct professor at Columbia Business School. Here he shares his stock selection wisdom with the novice investor. His writing is never condescending or beyond comprehension. In fact, he takes great joy in explaining ideas in simple terms and using arithmetic that he claims even his young children can understand. He also delights in sharing with readers his “magic formula” of finding quality bargain stocks. Lighthearted, witty, and humorous, the overall presentation is a great start for learning about investing and can be used as an alternative to comparable titles in the Dummies series. Recommended for public libraries as well as undergraduate collections for a non-textbook understanding of investing principles; readers who like Greenblatt's style may then continue with his earlier and more advanced work, You Can Be a Stock Market Genius.—C. Geck, Kean Univ., Union, N.J.

Journalist Kamenetz is a 24-year-old Yale graduate who has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for her reporting. But her credentials belie the fact that she's actually a freelancer who can't land a full-time job with benefits. That makes her living proof of the book's thesis—that the economic outlook for today's twentysomethings is far different from that of their baby-boomer parents. Although today's young adults are more likely to be college grads than their parents, that means significantly less in terms of career success or economic stability. With cutbacks in grant funding for college, students are increasingly taking on student loans as well as credit card debt to finance their education. And the shadowy side of the new economy, with its low-wage jobs, unpaid internships, permanent temp assignments, and lack of benefits, offers little to its youthful workers. What keeps Kamenetz's book from devolving into a whiny, angst-ridden rant are the frightening facts about the changing labor market, higher education funding, the federal deficit, and the burden of incurring massive debts to stay afloat in college or launch a career. Interviews with dozens of young workers and students further drive home the point that Gen Y isn't exactly living large. Recommended for public and academic library business collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 10/1/05.]— Carol J. Elsen, Univ. of Wisconsin, Whitewater

Web entrepreneur Nissanoff expresses his belief that eBay has profoundly transformed our consumer culture, moving us from an “accumulation nation” into an “auction culture.” Is this a good thing? Nissanoff thinks so: consumers will continue to find it liberating to clean out their closets to make room for the purchase of further goods. Perhaps the greatest impact of eBay has been the creation of a “new ecosystem” that benefits from the eBay buying and selling craze. PayPal, the online payment system, is a good example. While there is no disputing that greater numbers of people are embracing online auctions, this is not exactly breaking news. Furthermore, much as the section on buying “counterfeit” goods seems illuminating, it remains rather tangential to the subject of the book. Additionally, the data Nissanoff uses to justify some of his conclusions are questionable. Finally, while promoting even more online auction activity, the author doesn't really address the excessive addictive behavior of many eBay users. Two other recent books that have more convincingly charted the success of eBay and the rise of its ancillary businesses are Scot Wingo's eBay Strategies: 10 Proven Methods To Maximize Your eBay Business and Marsha Collier's eBay Business All-in-One Desk Reference for Dummies. The advice for any would-be eBayer is caveat emptor—“let the buyer beware.” The same could be said about this book. Not recommended.—Richard Drezen, Washington Post News Research, New York

This appropriately titled financial planning primer offers both saving and investment strategies designed more for their ease of use than for maximum financial return. Financial strategist Quinn (Making the Most of Your Money) here targets those too busy or too disinterested to devote much time to their financial affairs. Each chapter provides suggestions for tackling issues such as personal budgeting, retirement and college-fund saving, purchasing insurance, creating a diversified investing plan, and purchasing a home. Quinn focuses on providing clear definitions and a “No Worry” system for utilizing IRA accounts, mortgage terms, investment portfolios, and insurance. Her suggestions, including listing goals, filing records logically, and budgeting by systematically depositing money into savings accounts, are all engagingly offered in the style of Suze Orman but with fewer of the sometimes intimidating details. The book includes numerous examples, helpful sidebars, easy formulas for buying insurance, and an appendix about making a Ballpark Estimate® of your retirement needs. There are few bells and whistles here; neophyte investors will find much solid information they can use, while slightly more experienced investors probably won't find much they don't already know. Recommended for all public libraries.—Sarah Cords, Madison P.L., WI

One of the top research analysts in the country, Dan Reingold (project director, Telecom Finance, Inst. for Tele-Information, Columbia Business Sch.) was employed by Wall Street firms Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, and Credit Suisse First Boston from 1989 to 2003. Now, with Jennifer Reingold (Fast Company magazine; coauthor, with Barbara Ley Toffler, Final Accounting: Ambition, Greed, and the Fall of Arthur Andersen), he takes a probing look back at the burgeoning telecom industry of that period, during which he was earning more money than he ever dreamed possible. It's a terrific memoir filled with funny anecdotes and sagas of unethical behavior and staggering corporate losses. The cast of characters includes Bernie Ebbers, Frank Quattrone, and Jack Grubman, who all soared through the Wall Street sky only to crash and burn. While there have been other recent Wall Street insider accounts of the rarified lives of analysts, notably Andy Kessler's Wall Street Meat, Reingold is especially knowledgeable about the nuts and bolts of being a research analyst, as well as the “telecom bubble” and his role in it. His closing suggestions on how best to reform the practice of research analysis on Wall Street bears closer scrutiny; his claims that the regulators (notably the SEC) were basically asleep at the wheel, allowing criminal activity to happen, is damning. This honest and irreverent behind-the-scenes account of life on Wall Street is highly recommended for public libraries and larger business collections.—Richard Drezen, Washington Post/New York City Bureau, New York

Scoble, a video blogger for Microsoft, and technology guru Israel have put together a bible for business bloggers. Drawn from their own experiences, as well as from numerous comments posted to their blog (http://redcouch.typepad.com/), they have produced a book with the conversational style of blogs. Starting with a brief history of “Word-of-Mouth” products such as the ICQ global instant messaging service and web browser Firefox, and placing blogging firmly in this context, they state that blogs are “Word-of-Mouth on Steroids.” Included are interviews with company bloggers from the technology industry, of course, but also from various other businesses. Scoble and Israel outline the right and the wrong ways to blog in a business context (e.g., don't say anything you wouldn't say directly to a client or the company VP) and provide basic advice on blogging generally and on related emerging technologies. The key points of the book are that blogs are better than traditional one-way marketing because they allow instant two-way communication with customers, developing a loyalty unmatched by other marketing endeavors. In fact, if a business doesn't blog, its customers will abandon that company in favor of one that does. This book should be in all public libraries and academic business collections.—Robert Harbison, Western Kentucky Univ. Lib., Bowling Green

This is definitely not your average admission guide—it “untangles” so much more! Covered here is everything one needs to know about the eight Ivy League institutions—Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania, and Yale, from urban legends to athletics, from each institution's history to the attractiveness of its students. And Zawell obtains his information from the inside, including from current and former undergraduates, a former Yale admissions officer, and the executive director of the Council of Ivy Group Presidents. The first two sections cover the history of the Ivy League as an athletic group and an intellectual force. The third section covers practical admission advice, including analyses of affirmative action and legacy admissions. Finally, the majority of this work is devoted to grading each school on over 20 aspects of campus life ranging from the traditional (academics) to the practical (off-campus housing, computers, security) to the social (guys, girls, nightlife). Potential graduate students, along with undergraduate hopefuls, could find this section of interest. Although the prose could be much more polished, the many charts, pull-out quotes, and grade summaries for each school, within so many categories of evaluation, make skimming a viable option for readers in a hurry. Recommended especially for public and high school libraries.—Erica L. Foley, Flint P.L., MI

Arsenault (history, Univ. of South Florida; Jacksonville: The Consolidation Story, from Civil Rights to the Jaguars) deftly weaves an intricate narrative of the 1961 Freedom Rides, the civil rights effort by black and white volunteers to enforce the integration of interstate buses and travel facilities throughout the Deep South. Narrating the origins, the violent and turbulent rides themselves, the litigation, and the legacy, this work is similar, in its skillful crafting, to James M. McPherson's Battle Cry of Freedom on the Civil War. Arsenault recounts the dynamics of the civil rights organizations that eventually banded together to sustain the Freedom Rides, as well as the individual riders who suffered mob beatings and prison sentences. The interplay of the riders with municipal and state leaders, as well as with the Kennedys and the FBI at the federal level, is skillfully portrayed. The 500 pages are justified when one considers the near inexhaustible courage of the freedom riders and the significance of the national crisis they forced. For a more concise, thesis-driven history of the Freedom Rides, consider David Niven's The Politics of Injustice: The Kennedys, the Freedom Rides, and the Electoral Consequences of a Moral Compromise. Freedom Riders will find avid readership among patrons of academic collections.—Jim Hahn, Harper Coll. Lib., Palatine, IL

The 1970s used to be considered either the decade when “nothing happened” or the inward-looking “Me Decade.” Of course, a lot did happen during the 1970s, as such recent books as Stephanie A. Slocum-Schaffer's America in the Seventies and Bruce J. Schulman's The Seventies: The Great Shift in American Culture, Society and Politics have shown. Now Berkowitz (history, public policy & administration, George Washington Univ.; Robert Ball and the Politics of Social Security) may have written the best of the lot. Borrowing his title from Joseph Heller's long-awaited second novel, Berkowitz defines the Seventies as the period from 1973 to 1981, a time that he sees as both transitional and truly transformational in U.S. history. He focuses chiefly on the political and economic events that fed into the rise of Reaganomics and social conservatism, but he also addresses the popular culture of the time, including the movies and television programming (which he calls the “reassurance of the familiar”). While readers will be familiar with the litany of problems and crises in the 1970s—Watergate, gasoline shortages, abortion politics, Three Mile Island, and the hostages in Iran—Berkowitz links these and other events to Americans' loss of faith in politicians and to a crisis of competence on the part of the government (reflected in both the Ford and Carter administrations). Further, he believes that the decade marked the end of individual and national self-confidence, both of which President Reagan partially restored in the 1980s. An illuminating chapter addresses the impact of feminism and the “rights revolution” on American society. An ambitious study that is still concisely focused and very readable, this will stand as the definitive book on the 1970s for some time to come. Highly recommended.—Thomas A. Karel, Franklin & Marshall Coll. Lib., Lancaster, PA

As in his magisterial biography, Mussolini, Bosworth (history, Univ. of Western Australia) combines prodigious research with a clear writing style that will appeal to all readers interested in the Italy of Il Duce. According to Bosworth, Fascist Italy was governed by ideological passions that persistently clashed with the traditional values and mores of this emerging nation. From the very outset, Mussolini had strutted onto the scene as the purveyor of a new mode of governing. He promised a revolutionary state that would be the embodiment of modernity and serve as a model for all nations seeking greatness. Indeed, Hitler embraced the Italian totalitarian model, but the Italian people did not. The Fascists may have bullied their way into power, but sustaining their grip on Italian society was another story. Through the skillful use of police reports and obscure local primary documents, Bosworth reveals that the populace found myriad methods for circumventing Mussolini's pontifical edicts. There is no historian better qualified to undertake this long-needed in-depth analysis of a critical period in Italian history. Some budget-stretched libraries that already own John Whittam's brief Fascist Italy may overlook Bosworth's definitive work, but any library that seeks to maintain a solid 20th-century history collection should purchase it.—Jim Doyle, Reference Dept., Sara Hightower Regional Lib., Rome, GA

The Soviet Union lost far more men in World War II than any other power, Allied or Axis. Yet for all the ink spilled over the Red Army's role in defeating the Nazis, very little has dribbled onto the Soviet soldiers themselves—onto the everyman combatant dubbed “Ivan”—owing in no small part to the secrecy and myth in which the Soviet system enshrouded them. Merridale (history, Univ. of London; Night of Stone: Death and Memory in Twentieth-Century Russia) seeks here to unravel the riddle of how they lived and why they fought, especially for a regime that notoriously devoured its children. The reasons that emerge are legion: Ivan fought out of fear and necessity, pride and patriotism, because he believed his cause was just, because he knew nothing else. Ultimately, while no one picture emerges, Merridale has effectively captured the lives of these ordinary, and extraordinary, soldiers as they face bitter defeat in Hitler's surprise Operation Barbarossa attack and victory at Stalingrad, reap vengeance in Berlin and return home, forever altered. What this engaged study sometimes lacks in narrative thrust it makes up for in spades with its harrowing and deeply compassionate portrait of the individual Ivans. Recommended for public and academic libraries; essential for all Soviet and World War II collections.—Tania Barnes, Library Journal

In this spirited and engaging first book, Schiff, daughter of former Vice President Al Gore and Tipper Gore, profiles nine women who helped change the course of history by overcoming injustice in their own lives. Selected because they resonated with Schiff personally, these stories show how “political movements are built from the ground up, often by people who never receive credit for their eventual successes.” The book is well researched and illustrated with black-and-white photographs throughout. Biographical details are placed in historical context, resulting in rich portraits that illustrate each woman's impact upon specific conditions of her day. For example, Schiff describes the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in her essay on Frances Perkins, FDR's secretary of labor, and explains the yellow fever epidemic of 1878 that orphaned Ida B. Wells, who became an antilynching activist and journalist. Schiff's other past and present women include the greater and lesser known: Mother Jones, Alice Hamilton, Virginia Durr, Septima Poinsette Clark, Dolores Huerta, Helen Rodriguez-Trias, and Gretchen Buchenholz, who founded the child advocacy organization where Schiff works. A prominent display of the dates of each woman's life would have helped general readers get oriented. Recommended for public libraries.—Donna L. Davey, Tamiment Lib., NYU

The true victims of any war are children. Using archival sources and a vast bibliography, Stargardt (history, Magdelen Coll., Oxford) chronicles life under Nazi rule, which left over 13 million abandoned and orphaned children after the war. Stargardt divides this work into chapters following the rise, escalation, and defeat of Nazism, concentrating on how children (Jews, patients at mental hospitals, inmates in juvenile homes, “regular” Germans, and conquered nationalities) coped with this existence. He details the survival tactics used by children, including playing games, drawing, keeping diaries, and trading on the black market. He also convincingly disputes the idea that the German public was unaware of the abuses going on around them. This work extends Dorothy Macardle's Children of Europe: A Study of the Children of Liberated Countries by examining how these child survivors are coping with their memories in later life. Although other works discuss this issue, particularly Dan Bar-On's Legacy of Silence and Gerald Posner's Hitler's Children, Stargardt is the first to offer a comprehensive overview of this topic. Owing to the subject, the content of this book is frequently disturbing to read. Therefore specialists on this topic may be best prepared for it. The book is recommended for academic and large public libraries.—Maria C. Bagshaw, Lake Erie Coll., Painesville, OH

Small wonder that Manhunt has been optioned as a major motion picture. In this fast-paced, hour-by-hour account of the 12 days following Lincoln's assassination at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865, Swanson (coauthor, with Daniel R. Weinberg, of Lincoln's Assassins: Their Trial and Execution) allows the reader to ride along with the Union cavalry and federal agents through the streets of the nation's capital and the wilds of Maryland and Virginia in pursuit of John Wilkes Booth, his coconspirators, and the host of rebel enablers who constituted a viable Confederate underground railroad. Swanson's eye for detail and his excellent thumbnail sketches of the figures involved bring the chronicle alive. There was the simultaneous assassination attempt on Secretary of State William Seward, and Secretary of War Stanton's pivotal role in keeping the nation together during the unrest, stoked by an irresponsible press, following Lincoln's death. Swanson details the conditions endured by Booth while on the run and the foolish mistakes committed by him and his pursuers during the long chase until the last stand at a farm near Port Royal, VA, on April 26. Swanson concludes with discussions of the trial and execution of the four secondary conspirators, the subsequent squabbling over reward money, and the unfolding of the post-assassination lives of the drama's major personalities. Ably researched and seamlessly written, this engrossing book is recommended for all Civil War and Lincoln collections—and all libraries.—John Carver Edwards, Univ. of Georgia Libs., Cleveland

This work is a well-documented history of deadly chemical agents and their use. Tucker (chemical & biological weapons specialist, Ctr. for Nonproliferation Studies, Monterey Inst. of International Studies, CA: Scourge: The Once and Future Threat of Smallpox) gives less attention to the two world wars and more to the huge programs and policy actions of the dangerous Cold War era, when there was widespread development and massive stockpiling of toxic nerve agents owing to fears of what the other side might have. With his access to declassified archival records, and through interviews with people involved in chemical weapons programs (both Soviet and anti-Soviet), the author is able to provide many details about the secret activities of important government agencies. What is most worrisome now are the efforts by terrorists to acquire these weapons (Tucker himself was a UN biological weapons expert in Iraq). We should all be prepared for the possibility of terrorist chemical warfare unless a complete abolition of the materials can be accomplished. General readers will have no problem with Tucker's writing, but the contents are probably of most interest to advanced students and specialists. With 54 photos, a glossary, and numerous endnotes—Daniel K. Blewett, Coll. of DuPage Lib., Glen Ellyn, IL

Ken Burns's Civil War documentary in 1990 thrust the war deep into the American heart. An especially powerful moment was the narration of a farewell love letter from Maj. Sullivan Ballou, a Rhode Island soldier, to his wife, which she received after his death early in the war. The letter occasioned much interest in Ballou's life and in the story of his love. Young picks up the trail of Ballou's letters and other accounts to give the man his due in an engrossing life-and-times biography of him, his family, his community, his regiment, and the war. Young offers no new insights on why and how soldiers fought, the character of the northern homefront, of battle, or other current concerns of Civil War scholars, but she does make the war real by following Ballou, a lawyer and aspiring public figure, from his decision to join the fight, to his adjustment to the military, through the first battle of Bull Run (Manassas), to his hospital time and his death as well as the recovery and reburial of his body, as a war hero, in Rhode Island. The result is Young's own love letter to a man and a time that demands we not forget the individual costs paid out in a war that took over 600,000 lives. Recommended for large public and academic libraries.—Randall M. Miller, Saint Joseph's Univ., Philadelphia

Afficionados of historic crime will find much of interest in Davies's tale of two related mid-19th-century British trials. Farmer William Dove, of Leeds, poisoned his wife with strychnine, a substance he mistakenly thought was undetectable, based on a newspaper story he had heard read aloud one night in a local pub. In 1856, he was tried and executed for his crime. The man who had read the piece to him was Henry Harrison, a folk magician and healer, later charged with crimes of rape, fraud, and bigamy. Tracing the intersecting lives of these two men through newspapers, letters, and other period sources, Davies (history, Univ. of Hertfordshire, UK; Cunning Folk: Popular Magic in English History) provides fascinating perspectives on mental illness and magic. Apparently Harrison's prediction that Dove would remarry a woman of wealth and beauty impelled Dove to do away with his first wife: was his belief in Harrison's wizardry a symptom of insanity? Davies also reckons with religion, the press, criminal justice, and medicine in the Victorian age. Given the wide range of these topics, some readers may regret the cursory look at their own particular field of interest. Nonetheless, the book's copious references are a great aid for those who wish to learn more about any of these subjects and the story is well told. Recommended for academic and large public libraries.—Dan Harms, Memorial Lib., SUNY Cortland

Bennis (fellow, Inst. for Policy Studies; Before & After: U.S. Foreign Policy and the War on Terrorism) has been an activist for peace and social justice for many years. Taking as her starting point the February 15, 2003, protest demonstrations around the world against the imminent war in Iraq, she traces the rise of what has been called the “second superpower” in the world today: global public opinion. She describes how that force produced antiglobalization demonstrations around the world, opposition in the UN to resolutions authorizing war, and the formation of an umbrella group, United for Peace and Justice (UfPJ). She also discusses in detail how the current U.S. administration attempted to circumvent or to ignore these pressures. She directs criticism at previous U.S. administration policies toward Israel and the Palestinians, as well as free trade and globalization, international financial institutions, and the income disparities between rich and poor nations. Yet despite present policies and many setbacks, her picture is hopeful and optimistic, not perpetually gloomy. Her longest chapter covers the formation and coordination of UfPJ and the multiple demonstrations against the Iraq war. Shorter chapters cover U.S. relations with other states and with the UN. Thoroughly researched and well told, this is appropriate for larger collections.—Marcia L. Sprules, Council on Foreign Relations Lib., New York

Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, Osama bin Laden, the mastermind and leader of al Qaeda, has become a household name. Yet few people know many facts about this elusive figure. Bergen (terrorism analyst, CNN; Holy War, Inc.: Inside the Secret World of Osama bin Laden) has reported on al Qaeda for more than a decade. In his latest book, by means of transcribed recollections of numerous people whose lives have intersected with bin Laden's, Bergen provides an authoritative, accessible, and fascinating account of the man for Western audiences. Those defining him through their memories include bin Laden's relatives, close friends, and associates. Bergen has written an introduction as well as connecting text presenting the various “speakers” who contribute details to the portrait. The reader comes away understanding the genesis and development of al Qaeda's philosophy and with new insights into bin Laden's life, such as the early manifestations of his religious fervor and the actual minutes of his founding meeting of al Qaeda in 1988. The book's attention to the post-9/11 period is especially useful. Bergen correctly concludes that although 9/11 may have been a tactical victory for al Qaeda, it has now turned into a strategic defeat for that organization. It is the Iraq war that has given al Qaeda new life. Highly recommended for all public and academic libraries.—Nader Entessar, Spring Hill Coll., Mobile, AL

The 81-year-old Pulitzer Prize–winning Norman Mailer and his 27-year-old son self-indulge in banal banter—the title is a more fitting reference to the book's content than to corporate America, the reference intended by the elder Mailer. The younger Mailer lobs softball questions to his father, who expounds on the dated issue of John Kerry's chances in the 2004 presidential election and expresses his rage at the Bush administration without offering any new insights. Each dialog is a separate chapter, the majority only two or three pages long. One, a monolog by the elder Mailer, turns out to be a speech he gave about a year ago. Throughout, John Buffalo Mailer limits his comments but does inform us that he likes the card game Texas Hold 'em because “I find the balance between luck, skill, and bluffing a useful metaphor for life.” There are enough “F--- you's” sprinkled throughout to give the book the feel of a frat-house bull session. The only good piece in the book is the one on boxing, and that was first published elsewhere (as were a few of the other dialogs). Included here, it's still not enough to stop this book from being TKO'd. Not recommended.—Karl Helicher, Upper Merion Twp. Lib., King of Prussia, PA

In his moving foreword, former Sen. Bob Dole stresses that servicemen and women returning from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars must have the courage to take care of themselves so they can reintegrate themselves into society. To help those veterans and their families and friends move forward, Armstrong, Suzanne Best, and Paula Domenici—all mental health professionals affiliated with the University of California, San Francisco—have written a compassionate and accessible guide. Chapters clearly address specific aspects of wartime trauma (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression) and available treatments (e.g., psychotherapy, techniques for sleeping better). There is also advice on how to rejoin the workforce and reconnect with one's children. Although the authors have compiled mostly tried-and-true coping mechanisms, readers will appreciate the book's easy-to-follow format and the acknowledgment that our veterans have made a tremendous sacrifice in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. A necessary addition to all public libraries and a suggested purchase for behavioral science collections and special collections with a focus on the military.—Melody Ballard, Washoe Cty. Lib. Syst., Reno, NV

Previously, Rosalind Wiseman's Queen Bees and Wannabees: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and Other Realities of Adolescence and Rachel Simmons's Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls assessed the burgeoning physical and relational aggression in girls. Garbarino (chair, humanistic psychology, Loyola Univ.; Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them) continues that work here but goes beyond those previous books in elucidating the cultural underpinnings. His research includes interviews with female students at Cornell University who relate chilling stories of childhood bullying and abuse that confound the stereotypes of feminine behavior. Garbarino attributes these behavioral shifts to increased participation in sports, escalating media depictions of violence, and general societal shifts toward rewarding aggression. His solution is to provide education to inculcate prosocial assertiveness rather than destructive violence. Ironically, he depicts the problem so powerfully that his reasonable solution pales by comparison. Recommended for all public and academic libraries.—Lynne F. Maxwell, Villanova Law Sch. Lib., PA

Psychologist Haidt (Univ. of Virginia) studies morality across cultures and historical periods, bringing prophets and philosophers together with contemporary science to forge a fresh, serious, elevating guide to living everyday life better. Integrating research from Harry Harlow's monkeys and John Bowlby's toddlers and the positive psychology of A.H. Maslow, Martin Seligman, and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi with his own, Haidt proves to be a teacher who brings psychology to a new level of relevance for general readers. Finding common ground among cultures and diversity within them, he advocates for balance, empathy, and respect—and against naïve realism as in the myth of pure evil. “Gossip is a policeman and a teacher. Without it there would be chaos and ignorance” sums up several typical pages of discussion girded with apt studies. Happiness comes from relationships, he concludes, but this oversimplifies his method, which presents deep learning enriched with creative thinking, feeling, life experience, and a touch of self-disclosure that makes the reader want to know him. Along with Gregory Berns's Satisfaction and Philip Cushman's Constructing the Self, Constructing America, this makes a trio of great books on self, society, and the sacred for public and academic libraries.— E. James Lieberman, George Washington Univ. Sch. of Medicine, Washington, DC

Following his brother-in-law's suicide, Hunt, an English teacher at a Connecticut boarding school, sought to understand such self-destruction by visiting a place where suicide is not just a personal tragedy but a daily part of life. In this unusual exploration of the motives and meanings of suicide, the author visits a community that harbors the world's third-most-used suicide venue (after San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge and Japan's Aokigahara forest)—a series of beautiful cliffs on the south coast of England called Beachy Head. In nearby pubs, offices, and homes, Hunt meets an array of locals, from cabbies who talk down potential suicides to a man who attempted suicide but survived to volunteers who risk their own safety to retrieve the bodies of suicide victims. He questions whether suicide owing to mental pain is always irrational or whether it might, under certain circumstances, be rational or even heroic. Some may regard serious attention to such an idea as irresponsible, but Hunt brings it to brilliant light in his understated writing, revealing the complexity of a terrible phenomenon. Highly recommended for all libraries, if not for all readers.—Susan Pease, Univ. of Massachusetts Lib., Amherst

Prolific psychologist McAdams (psychology & human development, social policy, Northwestern Univ.; The Stories We Live By: Personal Myths and the Making of the Self) takes his interest in narrative psychology to a new plane in this noteworthy contribution to cultural scholarship, arguing that Americans are unique in relying on personal narratives of redemption to explain their lives. He and his team spent ten years interviewing subjects who garnered exceptionally high and low scores on surveys assessing “generativity,” or concern for nurturing society and future generations. Exceedingly generative people, it was found, are likely to rely on narrations featuring happy endings; thus, they extract benefit from even the most negative experiences—e.g., childhood abuse, poverty—explaining these as productive, character-building adversities rather than pernicious obstacles to personal success. Like Robert Bellah's Habits of the Heart, Erich Fromm's Escape from Freedom, and Louis Menand's The Metaphysical Club, this book crosses disciplinary boundaries to incorporate the best elements of psychological, philosophical, and historical analysis into its pages. Highly recommended for all academic collections and for large public libraries.—Lynne Maxwell, Villanova Univ. Sch. of Law Lib., PA

A clinical psychologist who specializes in couples therapy, Reibstein (Staying Alive: A Family Memoir) provides a refreshing alternative to the countless titles that address problem relationships. Here, she takes readers behind the scenes of successful partnerships and reveals their secrets. As part of her research, Reibstein conducted in-depth interviews with 200 couples in lasting partnerships (married and unmarried, gay and heterosexual) and selected 12 of these couples to represent her “Golden Rules.” Focusing on the positive, sharing responsibilities, maintaining fidelity, managing conflict, living with differences, and sharing their lives without losing their own identities count among them. What helps set this title apart from the litany of similar works are the candid, verbatim remarks from the selected couples, which will connect with readers. Reibstein's book provides more personal revelations than Peter Post's Essential Manners for Couples, covers more ground than Matthew Kelly's The Seven Levels of Intimacy, and beautifully supplements Foster and Hermie Cline's Marriage: Love and Logic. Highly recommended for academic libraries supporting the helping professions and larger public libraries.—Dale Farris, Groves, TX

Hoping to get to the heart of what she identifies as a romantic crisis facing Gen Xers, Straus, a television producer who worked for eight years on The Oprah Winfrey Show, interviewed 100 heterosexual single men and women living in six U.S. cities. What she found is an almost universal desire for true love and commitment despite repeated failures at sustaining relationships. Using her single people's stories and frank tales from her own dating life as evidence, Straus blames the “Seven Evil Influences” of contemporary culture, from an extreme focus on careers to cell phones. The book ends with a few anecdotes of successful dating and a list of the five “keys” to finding true love. At times, the continual references to the “Evil Influences” grate, placing the self-help aspect of the material self-consciously front and center; the sociological aspect of the book, though somewhat unscientific, is ultimately the most intriguing. Considering the popularity of Liz Tuccillo and Greg Behrendt's recent He's Just Not That into You, this will most likely prove an in-demand read. Recommended for large public libraries and specialized collections.—Amanda Glasbrenner, New York

Clinical psychologist Wolf takes some of the principles from his previous books on parenting (“Mom, Jason's Breathing on Me!”) and applies them to adult relationships. According to Wolf, everyone has a “baby self” who is stubborn, “self-centered, piggy and clueless”; lives in the present; holds grudges from past wronged behavior; and fears aloneness. This baby self wreaks havoc on close relationships by refusing to give up until the other person acknowledges and accepts the spoiled person's point of view and sense of justice. This baby self is not bad—it provides pleasure and spontaneity—but it must be kept in check by the “mature self,” who takes satisfaction in working toward long-term goals and harmonious relationships. Wolf presents strategies for identifying the baby self as well as both useful and nonuseful ways of communicating, arguing, and responding to differences and difficulties. As with his other works, this book is mainly made up of illustrative dialog that reinforces the author's ideas. Wolf's simple approach may not be approved or applauded by everyone, but his guidelines are thought-provoking and insightful. Recommended for public libraries and popular psychology collections.—Lucille M. Boone, San Jose P.L., CA

Though the world has changed in many ways for gay men, it is still not safe to be an out gay man while an active player in the four major professional sports of football, baseball, basketball, and hockey. It's striking how similar these two books on this subject are. Tuaolo, with journalist Rosengren (Blades of Glory) and Simmons, with Dimarco (Tower Stories: The Autobiography of September 11, 2001), have written heartfelt memoirs of their lives in the NFL and their experience of being gay in such a homophobic environment. Both came from very impoverished backgrounds, were found to have athletic talent at a young age, and made significant contributions to their teams. Tuaolo is of Samoan ancestry and Simmons is African American. While playing ball, they each had to manage what to them was a shameful secret; they were constantly profoundly afraid of discovery. Both stories are captivating, and most readers won't be able to put these books down. Though co-written with others, they have a conversational style that captures the individual voices of the men as they tell their own stories. Simmons is particularly harrowing in relating his descent into the grimy life of drug addiction. Eventually, with the help of some incredibly loyal friends, he overcame those horrors, even appearing on the Phil Donahue Show, only to go back to his addiction. He writes movingly of his reconnections with his family, even as he reports that his struggle has not ended. Though he, too, had a demon in alcohol, Tuaolo's story ends with him happily attached to a mate and adopted children. Readers interested in sports or gay biography will get their money's worth.—David Azzolina, Univ. of Pennsylvania Libs., Philadelphia

Vincent, formerly a Los Angeles Times syndicated columnist, has written a spellbinding, eyeopening personal narrative of 18 months spent “passing” as a man. She assumed the identity of “Ned,” hiding her body within male clothing. Ned joined a men's bowling league, accompanied male acquaintances to strip joints, dated women, worked in a high-pressure male-dominated sales job, and participated in a ritual-laden men's sensitivity group. Late in the experiment, Ned moved to a monastery to experience a male environment without women. With intelligence and sensitivity, Vincent relates her experiences and surprising discoveries about the secrets and rites of male society and the daily fears and desires of individual men. She analyzes the dating scene from the male perspective, emphasizing the need for males to be able to deal with rejection 90 percent of the time and describing the toll this takes on the male ego. She highlights over and over again the communication disconnect between men and women and how their preconceived notions affect how they act toward one another. One of the big surprises of Vincent's account is that, after she revealed her identity to the men she had fraternized with and the women she had “dated,” the people readily accepted her. An often humorous, incisive, and fascinating account that validates the conclusions of Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus; for most public and academic libraries.—Jack Forman, San Diego Mesa Coll. Lib.

An interest in the human condition is the common thread that ties together Gilbert's diverse body of work, ranging from a collection of short stories (Pilgrim) to a novel discussing the outdoor lifestyle of Eustace Conway (The Last American Man). In her new work, she continues her exploration of the human psyche through a very personal journey of self-discovery in three countries: Italy, India, and Indonesia. In Italy, her first escape, she devours the food and the melodic language with equal gusto. In India, she decamps to an ashram to learn the intense discipline prayer and spiritual pilgrimage require, in the process revealing the depths to be found in reflection, meditation, and historical teachings. In Indonesia, she generates strong friendships and gains insight into homeopathic medicines, healing, and the complexities of different cultures. Throughout, she candidly shares her observations and emotions as she grows from a woman shattered, lost, and confused to one rejuvenated, confident, and in love. A probing, thoughtful title with a free and easy style, this work seamlessly blends history and travel for a very enjoyable read. Highly recommended. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 10/15/05.]—Jo-Anne Mary Benson, Osgoode, Ont.

The first journey journalist Hill describes in his adventure travelog is a trek through India, Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey that involved corrupt border officials, fleabag hotels, threats of attacks by bandits, and miserable roadways. The second journey, which he undertook atop a new Harley and which spanned all of Rte. 66, from Chicago to L.A., was as different from the first as night and day. Instead of bandits, he discovered fruit pies; crooked cops were replaced by the colorful characters who live along “America's Highway”; and instead of seedy hotels, he found clean, inexpensive lodgings overlooked by drivers whizzing by on the more accessible interstates. What was missing on the second trip, he writes, was the excitement he'd discovered on the first, the sense of adventure that came from never knowing what would happen next. While all readers will enjoy Hill's delightful Irish humor, insight, and narrative skills, fellow motorcyclists will especially understand the freedom and joy he found along every bend in the road. Recommended.—Joseph L. Carlson, Allan Hancock Coll., Lompoc, CA

Mayes's first travel memoir since Bella Tuscany (which followed the best-selling Under the Tuscan Sun) takes her further afield in her beloved Italy and beyond. The title is somewhat of a misnomer—these journeys were actually conducted over a five-year period—but they are arranged in calendar order, beginning with a January visit to Andalucía and concluding with a year-end trip to Mantova, Italy. In the months between, Mayes takes a sweltering trip to Greece, reunites with friends in Scotland, and journeys to Fez, Naples, Sicily, Burgundy, Portugal, and more. Her motif throughout is the concept of “home”; she stays long enough in each place to experience everyday life there as a dweller, not a tourist. Fans of her previous books may be somewhat disappointed with this peripatetic approach, which doesn't include as much discourse on domestic topics like home restoration, gardening, and cooking (although there is plenty of food and flora discussion throughout). Indeed, this book could have used more judicious editing—at 420 pages, it's a bit too long, and some pieces meander into the pedantic. Still, Mayes writes beautifully and there will certainly be demand. Recommended for all public libraries; academic libraries may also wish to consider. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 11/1/05.]—Rita Simmons, Sterling Heights P.L., MI

In 1893, Katherine Lee Bates stood at the summit of Pikes Peak, CO, and was so entranced by the vista stretching before her that she wrote “America the Beautiful.” Today, the wide open spaces of the nation's midsection can still be enjoyed in the national forests ranging from Colorado to Minnesota. Here Mohlenbrock, a distinguished professor emeritus at Southern Illinois University, details each forest's natural attractions in a personal, entertaining, and informative style that belies his academic credentials. Place names such as Horsethief Springs, Goodwater Gulch, and Slumgullion Slide recall the area's pioneer history as Mohlenbrock lists ghost towns, abandoned home sites, and weed-covered cemeteries. Color photographs add a professional touch while the many maps, black-and-white photos, and drawings add value. Without preaching, Mohlenbrock distills the essence of each unique forest as he reminds us of our obligation to be stewards of the land. Part of a three-volume series (volumes on Western and Eastern forests are in production), this work is an essential resource for all recreation, natural history, and environmental protection collections. Highly recommended.—Joseph L. Carlson, Allan Hancock Coll., Lompoc, CA

Over 250 splendid color photographs here reveal 25 of the most beautiful country towns in England. Palmer, who has contributed other volumes in the rewarding “Most Beautiful” series (including The Most Beautiful Villages of England), does a remarkable job of turning what could be tired views of oft-photographed towns into distinctive and appealing images. This is the England that American anglophiles dream of: picture perfect and redolent of history. The oversize format allows the many full-page photographs (of the magnificent west front of the Minster at Beverly, the expansive view of the harbor at St. Ives, and the double hammer-beam ceiling of a 15th-century church in Swaffham, in close-up) to shine. Palmer's text is limited to brief descriptions of the photographs and an introduction to each town, as well as a short traveler's guide listing places to stay and eat. Highly recommended for larger public libraries.—Linda M. Kaufmann, Massachusetts Coll. of Liberal Arts Lib., North Adams

After exotic journeys to India, Africa, and South America, English travel writer Shah decided to settle down with his family in Casablanca in a century-old mansion known as “Dar Khalifa.” But Shah's adventurous life was far from over: he soon began receiving threats from his gangster neighbor, became involved in black-market dealings, and founds himself caught up in a demonic ritual. This is nothing, though, compared with the trouble he found himself in when he began major renovations to his house. Welcome to the Moroccan world of chaos! Unsure whether to laugh or cry, Shah discovered that Moroccan workers are haunted by a deep-seated fear of the underworld and have what could best be described as an eccentric work ethic. Admirably, Shah displays considerable tolerance and respect for Moroccan traditions, even as they come in conflict with his English upbringing. Following in the footsteps of Bill Bryson and Peter Mayle, Shah recollects his real-life experiences with candor and humor. While at times his adventures seem almost too bizarre to be true, the colorful people Shah encounters will certainly entertain armchair travelers. Recommended for public libraries.—Victor Or, Vancouver & Surrey P.L., B.C.

This companion to a BBC2 television series offers a tour of the coastal areas of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, divided by region and covering the many towns therein. The Wild West section, for example, includes Torquay, Plymouth, Falmouth, Penzance, Isles of Scilly, Newquay, Bude, Ifracombe, Weston-super-Mare, and the so-called English Riviera, where the surfing, surprisingly, packs a punch. “In the Wild West it's better to dream and speculate than to dig for that most boring of commodities: hard fact,” writes Somerville (Images of Rural Britain), whose way with language shows that he is a published poet as well as a travel writer. Some 200 breathtaking photographs, both dramatic and tranquil, illustrate the areas' many attributes. This guide also includes a practical gazetteer, a region-by-region reference of information on getting there, activities, fees, hours, facilities, phone numbers, web addresses, and famous people and history associated with each place. Libraries that have in-depth travel collections or a maritime emphasis should consider adding this worthwhile book.—Susan G. Baird, Chicago

France is ideally suited to walking explorations with its extensive French Path System, 110,000 miles of off-road foot paths created and maintained by France's national organization, Fédération Française de la Randonnée Pédestre (FFRP), to promote walking. In their latest walking travel book, authors Gillian and John Souter (Classic Walks in Western Europe) detail numerous city, daylong, and multiday walks around France in cities like Paris and Toulouse and country areas such as Brittany, the Pyrenees, and Corsica. The authors' walking narratives include historical and architectural information complemented with lovely photographs and notes regarding difficulty levels, distances, and time estimates. The only real drawback here is a lack of extensive accommodation and dining information and more detailed maps. Still, this work is well organized and well sized for carrying along and consulting. Recommended for all libraries with European travel collections.—Louise Feldmann, Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins

Readers won't find any Hiltons or Holiday Inns among the hotels covered in this large-format book. While there are a few hotels with price tags that qualify as affordable, most of globetrotting author and photographer Ypma's selections are for the affluent. Dividing the text into six parts by region, he begins with 25 hotels in Europe, including several villas and castles; the most unusual is the Ice Hotel in Sweden, which melts each year sometime in April to be rebuilt the following December. Asia follows Europe with 21 hotels that range from the thrifty Apsara in Laos ($55 a night) to a spendthrift Indonesian retreat priced at $650 a night. Many of the hotels listed for North America are actually in the Caribbean. Australia claims only two, while Africa and South America boast nine each. For each hotel, Ypma offers a brief history along with regional notes of interest and contact information (rates included). His 1100-plus color photographs and illustrations set the mood and make each establishment look magnificent. But this beautiful book, alas, is really better suited to coffee tables. It is too big (about 9” x 12”) and too heavy (weighing more than 7 pounds) to hold (or shelve) comfortably. Not an essential purchase; those in search of a less sumptuous guide may want to consider the individual books in Ypma's “Hip Hotels” series (not seen).—Janet Ross, formerly with Sparks Branch Lib., NV