Social Sciences

McMillin (rhetoric, composition, & religion, Oberlin Coll.) has crafted a probing and enlightening study that combines local history and family lore with archaeology and sociology. She explores the prehistoric Native American archaeological sites of her hometown of Trempealeau, WI, particularly a group of flat-topped platform mounds that have become a source of local controversy; many of the town's leaders have opposed archaeological study of the mounds or attempts at preservation by outside groups. While providing excellent archaeological background information on these mounds, McMillin focuses on the attitudes of the townspeople toward the site and toward Native American history in general, delving into town and family histories to understand the origins of their viewpoint. In so doing, she offers an intimate glimpse into the lives and traditions of one small Wisconsin town. McMillin's findings concerning non-Native values and attitudes toward Native American history and preservation have broad implications that go far beyond Trempealeau. Interesting photographs enhance this smooth and engaging narrative, and extensive endnotes are included. Recommended for archaeology, sociology, and history collections in academic and larger public libraries, especially those in the Midwest.—Elizabeth Salt, Otterbein Coll. Lib., Westerville, OH

This spring marks the centennial of the publication of Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, an anniversary being noted with the publication of two new biographies of the prolific journalist, novelist, socialist, and politician. Both Mattson (contemporary history, Ohio Univ., Athens) and Arthur (literature, California State Univ., Northridge) make excellent use of previous scholarship and primary sources to examine the life of this muckraker and Pulitzer Prize–winning author, who became an icon of the Progressive Era. Yet they provide readers with two distinct perspectives on the man's life and times. Mattson seamlessly weaves the social, cultural, economic, and political events into his engaging biography, which expands on Floyd Dell's 1927 biography, Upton Sinclair: A Study in Social Protest, as well as the autobiography Sinclair published in 1962. Arthur's book, on the other hand, focuses primarily on how Sinclair used political and personal events to develop his literary projects; Sinclair's writings, along with his political activism, were driven by the Progressive Era's ideals of improving life for ordinary Americans. Arthur's well-written book uses Sinclair's writing to provide a detailed and enlightening chronicle of his life. Both books enrich our knowledge of the life and times of Upton Sinclair and will do much to spur renewed interest in his literary works. Mattson's book is suitable for both academic and public libraries, while Arthur's book would be particularly welcome in academic collections.—Diane Fulkerson, Univ. of West Georgia, Carrollton

When looking back on childhood, one may remember not so much specific events as overall feelings or impressions. Here, however, Gordon touches upon some ground in minute detail but leaves other, larger issues unexplored as to the impact on her psyche. Further, her account does not stick to a straight time line, making it hard to follow her through her childhood years. Perhaps that's a metaphor for the freedom she had to explore the fields, campuses, and neighborhoods of the East Coast college towns where she grew up. This is a prequel, if you will, to Gordon's first book, Mockingbird Years: A Life In and Out of Therapy. But while Mockingbird (a New York Times Notable Book) was deeply affecting, this new work lacks the same impact. Though the poetic insights remain, Gordon seems to want to attribute most of them to her younger self, but it's hard to believe that such discerning thoughts belong to an elementary school–aged child. Recommended for public libraries with large budgets. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 11/1/05.]—Jamie Engle, Richardson, TX

Isabella Mayson Beeton was the household name for the British Victorian middle class. Beeton's Book of Household Management (BOHM), first published in 1861, went into numerous editions over many decades, long outlasting Mrs. Beeton herself, who died at age 28. Oxford World Classics now includes an abridged Beeton's, and “Mrs. Beeton” remains a trademarked brand name in England. The original woman, married to ambitious young publisher Samuel Beeton, was his full partner—a novel female presence in the daily commute to Fleet Street—in pulling together the Englishwoman's Domestic Magazine and BOHM. She did not author BOHM and never claimed to, instead compiling its guidance on everything from cookery (devising the recipe format we are used to today) to the management of servants and no-nonsense lessons on animals butchered for meat. Hughes (George Elliot: The Last Victorian), a gifted scholar, approaches her subject with gusto, as interested in revealing the realities of mid-19th-century English urban life as she is in studying Mrs. Beeton. She had access to many primary sources and offers new analysis of Isabella's early death. This book will be welcomed by lovers of Masterpiece Theater, Daniel Pool's What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew, and Liza Picard's Victorian London. It should be obtained by public and academic libraries.—Margaret Heilbrun, Library Journal

In this lush and lyrical memoir, Kann recaptures her sometimes idyllic, mostly difficult childhood in colonial African Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) of the 1960s and 1970s. Kann left Africa as a young woman, but after her sister's sudden and tragic death in an automobile accident there in 1999, she returned to their childhood home. Struggling to deal with the loss, she uses the memoir form to reexamine her own life, which has included residence on three continents and been marked alternatively by privilege and hardship. Though at times self-conscious and chronologically confusing, Kann's debut is brave, brutally honest, and highly readable. Her prose is poignant and elegant; it especially comes alive when she is describing the land and people of Africa. Through her eyes, we also see America from another perspective and are reminded not only of the differences but also of the commonalities between us. Managing to make the memories of her family and past accessible to the reader, Kann has penned a beautiful and engaging memoir suitable for public and academic libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 1/06.]—Mary Grace Flaherty, Sidney Memorial P.L., NY

In October 1972, Uruguayan rugby player Parrado awoke bewildered, freezing, and wracked with pain, finding himself stranded high in the Andes, one of numerous survivors of the crash of the airplane that had been carrying his rugby team to Chile. With little food or warm clothing, suffering from a head injury, and grieving the deaths of family members and friends, Parrado, with the other survivors, was plunged into a harrowing life-or-death struggle. Over 30 years later, he explains that he found the means to persevere through his deep love for his father, which enabled him to endure subzero temperatures, deadly avalanches, and the gruesome necessity of cannibalism. Contemplative yet unflinching, this thought-provoking work is both a gripping survival story and a sensitive examination of the sustaining power of religious faith, friendship, love, and family ties. More introspective than Piers Paul Read's journalistic account, Alive, published soon after the ordeal, Parrado presents both the jaw-dropping realities of the 16 survivors' story and the life-altering lessons he learned from the experience. With its universal themes of courage and determination and its broad appeal to true-adventure fans, this work is recommended for all public libraries.—Ingrid Levin, Florida Atlantic Univ., Jupiter

Growing up “different” (read: gay) in the Missouri Ozarks during the 1970s could not have been easy for Rouse. On page one, we meet him dressed in his grandma Rouse's red high heels, his mother's black-and-white bikini, gold earrings, a tinfoil crown with glued-on red checkers, and a cardboard sash that says “Miss Sugar Creek” in red magic marker. He's five, he's got attitude, and he has the reader laughing and worrying at the same time. Rouse writes tenderly, hilariously, and without bitterness about his unusual family, life as a closeted gay teen, the death of his brother, a misunderstanding with his father, his coming out, and love with his partner, Gary. His family supports, infuriates, and surprises him—after all those years of trying to hide his sexual identity, Rouse eventually discovers that those closest to him always knew he was gay. This is Rouse's first book, and it's a winner. Highly recommended for all public and academic libraries.—Susan L. Peters, Univ. of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston

This is the story of Microsoft's Beijing computing research lab, Microsoft Research Asia (MSRA). Since its inception in 1998, MSRA has generated hundreds of high-tech innovations, increasing Microsoft's bottom line and grooming many Chinese men and women for future leadership positions in the company's global operations. Buderi (Engines of Tomorrow) and Huang (senior writer, Technology Review) show how Microsoft's initial strategy did not involve penetrating Chinese markets. Instead, Microsoft first partnered with the Chinese government to show how the lab would benefit the country. Microsoft donated large amounts of money and recruited the best talent from prestigious Chinese universities. These activities created excitement in scientific and economic circles, and Microsoft kept the momentum going by continually sponsoring summits, conferences, and retreats in various Chinese cities, reaffirming Microsoft's long-term commitment. Guanxi can be translated from the Chinese as the art of relationships but may be better explained by stating Microsoft's own mission: to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential. The authors include a short list of titles consulted, including Buderi's earlier work. This enlightening title can be used as a nontextbook introduction to the management of scientific enterprises and is suitable for public library business collections.—Caroline Geck, Kean Univ., Union, NJ

Reporter, novelist (The Big V), and former director of executive communications at General Motors, Pelfrey has written a compelling account of the early years of the storied company, which is currently verging on bankruptcy. GM founder William “Billy” Durant, a high school dropout and impetuous schemer, was the opposite of aloof and meticulous company vice president and board member Alfred Sloan. Pelfrey's skillful use of primary and secondary sources lends authenticity to his retelling of Durant and Sloan's divergent views in running GM—views so opposed that in 1920 Durant resigned his presidency of the company that he had pieced together through audacious buyouts of competing companies. Two years later Sloan became GM's president, and GM emerged as America's preeminent industrial powerhouse, beating out Ford in sales for the first time in 1927. Also integrated into this history of the early U.S. automobile industry are other major players, most notably the irascible Henry Ford, as well as men named Olds and Chevrolet. In 1963, Sloan published My Years with General Motors, now a business classic. Though Pelfrey's work is not of that stature, it is a worthy acquisition for public and academic libraries.—Peter R. Latusek, Stanford Graduate Sch. of Business, CA

According to his publisher, Bowden (Black Hawk Down) took five years to write this book. It wasn't long enough. His account of the Iran Hostage Crisis is overwritten, sloppy in detail, and seemingly endless. He begins with prose not unlike that of the pulp novels that Garrison Keillor's “Guy Noir” satirizes, and by the time his writing becomes less turgid the reader realizes with horror that there still remains an arduous 500-page slog ahead. Bowden faults the media for failing to explain Iranian hatred of America, but beyond the briefest description of the 1953 CIA-backed coup, he does no better—unlike David Harris in his excellent The Crisis: The President, The Prophet, and the Shah—1979 and the Coming of Militant Islam, a lucid and comprehensive exploration of the tensions in Iran. Already, there is a shelf of books on this topic, many by insiders such as the American chargé, the leader of the failed rescue mission, and President Carter's chief of staff. The need for another book is unclear. Though it is a quarter-century old, Robert D. McFadden's No Hiding Place: The New York Times Inside Report on the Hostage Crisis is concise, readable, and far better. Not recommended. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 1/06.]—Michael O. Eshleman, Kings Mills, OH

Within two generations in the 15th century, the Paston family rose from obscurity as farmers to the heights of England's landed gentry. Yet they are remarkable to us not so much for who they were but for what they left behind: roughly 1000 letters written over the course of more than 70 years. First published in the 18th century, the Paston letters touch not only on all aspects of the family's life—from business dealings to personal matters—during their rise in society, but also on the Wars of the Roses (1455–85) between the houses of York and Lancaster. The wars may have torn England apart (those years saw four different kings upon the throne), but the disrupted society allowed the Pastons (quiet Yorkists) to consolidate a place for themselves. Castor (fellow, Cambridge Univ.) has brought the Paston family to life in an accessible and fluid narrative, encompassing topics both familiar (reminders to a husband of what to buy in London, a father's feeling that his son is simply lazing around at home) and unfamiliar (building a manor house, the abduction of a neighbor into a forced marriage). This is a definite purchase for public libraries and all medieval collections.—Robert Harbison, Western Kentucky Univ. Lib., Bowling Green

Cesarani (history, London Univ.) has written the most detailed, complete, and balanced biography of Eichmann in 40 years. Most works have concentrated solely on Eichmann's capture, trial, and execution during 1960–62; however, Cesarani also focuses on his childhood, Nazi Party days, and exile in Argentina. The greatest strength of the book is the analysis refuting previous attempts to categorize Eichmann as an ordinary “desk clerk” just following orders. Cesarani states that “each generation has seen what it wanted to see in Eichmann”: to the Israelis, he was the personification of the evils of the Nazi system; to others, a victim of the totalitarian state, as in Hannah Arendt's Eichmann in Jerusalem, or a mere robot, as in Harry Mulisch's Criminal Case 40/61. In Cesarani's view, Eichmann was not predisposed to genocide; nor was he a blameless “cog” in the wheel of the Holocaust. Rather, he taught himself morally to accept and execute a genocidal plan. In the context of recent genocides (Darfur, Rwanda, Bosnia), Eichmann can be seen as neither unique nor banal but as a warning that anyone can become a génocidaire. Recommended for academic libraries and Holocaust collections.—Maria C. Bagshaw, Lake Erie Coll., Painesville, OH

Ethnic Russians occupied a unique place within the Soviet Union—as Hosking's title succinctly puts it, as both its “rulers and victims.” Hosking (history, University Coll. London; Russia: People and Empire, 1552–1917) traces the impact of Soviet experience on Russian identity and makes a compelling argument that centers on the concept of Messianism—the belief that Russians were a chosen people, meant to cure the world of its ills. The character and catastrophe of the Russian experience in the 20th century was a product, he argues, of the clash between two strains of this Russian Messianism (one Orthodox, the other socialist) on the one hand and the conflict, on the other, between the temporarily triumphant socialist version and the Russian people, for whom neither Messianic incarnation wholly fit. This “crisis” of Messianism resulted in a paradox: Russians occupied pride of place within the Soviet Union as “first among equals,” but they paid for this position with their national identity. Indeed, Hosking successfully reveals how the Soviet “modernizing” project hamstrung the creation of a Russian national identity, illuminating the identity crisis that Russia is experiencing today. This challenging, rigorously academic study is highly recommended in particular for academic libraries; large public libraries will also want to consider.—Tania Barnes, Library Journal

Rife with romance, violence, power, and betrayal, the legend of the Hope Diamond reads like a sensational pulp novel. And as Kurin (director, national programs, Smithsonian Inst.) points out, the legend bears another similarity to the pulp genre in that it is, for the most part, guiltily entertaining fiction. Though the history of this diamond has been written before, Kurin succeeds in separating the facts from the fiction of the legendary curse, which, as it turns out, is largely a 20th-century invention. By following the diamond's travels through history, readers will learn about its relationship with the religion, politics, fashion, and social mores of the times. Kurin's style may be a bit academic at points, but his is still an engaging narrative that illuminates the centuries of the gem's history and proves them every bit as colorful and dramatic as the famous curse. Based on more than a decade of research, this title is both a fine reference tool and an enjoyable leisure read. Recommended for all libraries.—Tessa L.H. Minchew, Georgia Perimeter Coll., Clarkston

Lukacs, a prolific writer whose best seller, Five Days in London, May 1940, received additional attention after Rudy Giuliani famously turned to it for inspiration after 9/11, has attempted to debunk several myths and perceptions concerning Hitler and Stalin on the eve of Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union. Among the inaccuracies that Lukacs points to is that Hitler's generals had dark forebodings about invading Russia; Lukacs's evidence suggests that it was Hitler himself who was deeply apprehensive. Lukacs also rejects the notion that Hitler invaded the Soviet Union out of hatred for Stalin, finding that Hitler respected Stalin and invaded so that the resulting enlarged Third Reich would be a force to defeat England, led by Churchill, whom Hitler indeed loathed. The writing is somewhat quirky. Lukacs uses the first chapter to impart elementary history with some rather tortured sentence structures, which may now be part of the author's mystique. His short volume is an interesting read that imparts little new to our knowledge of World War II. It is, however, a thought-provoking missive that deserves a look. Recommended for public libraries.—Harry Willems, Southeast Kansas Lib. Syst., Iola

Martines, Lauro. Fire in the City: Savonarola and the Struggle for Renaissance Florence. Oxford Univ. Apr. 2006. c.352p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 0-19-517748-7 [ISBN 978-0-19-517748-0]. $28. HIST

In this “biography of a time and place,” Martines (European history, emeritus, UCLA; April Blood: Florence and the Plot Against the Medici) continues his investigation of the tumultuous political life of late 15th-century Florence. His focus is the short-lived Florentine republic (1494–98), when the dominant voice belonged to a charismatic Dominican friar, Girolamo Savonarola. Savonarola eventually fell from grace: Florentines could not long resist papal pressure to oust him once he was excommunicated in 1497. He was executed for heresy in 1498. However, for four years the notoriously worldly Florentines had embraced his radical message of individual and civic purification. For a short while, Savonarola provided the rallying point against the Medici. His stature was bolstered by the Florentine piety that lay behind the city's thin façade of Renaissance rationalism. Martines makes a convincing case that history treated Savonarola unfairly: he was an eloquent preacher and a sagacious political advisor to the city. As in his other books, Martines writes like an angel, and his judgments are nuanced and humane. This book will be read with profit by both professional scholars and general readers. Highly recommended.—David Keymer, Modesto, CA

The development and denouement of Third Reich German culture continues to be a vital area of interest for historians and history readers alike. In a huge literature, some books stand out as particularly intriguing, and this is one of them. Petropoulos (European history, Claremont McKenna Coll.; The Faustian Bargain: The Art World in Nazi Germany) examines the German aristocracy and its relations with Nazi Germany. Focusing on the princely Von Hessen family, he unpacks what he describes as “myths and taboos” surrounding aristocratic involvement in the Nazi regime. In the Von Hessen family, active support of the regime and participation in its bureaucracy and programs culminated in a falling out with Hitler that led to imprisonment of princely family leaders in German concentration camps and, in the postwar period, to trials and further imprisonment. Petropoulos has accessed an impressive archive of documents and interviewed key figures to create a thoughtful, readable, and balanced assessment of why and how aristocratic Germans became involved with the Nazi regime and of the impact that era had on today's German aristocracy. For all academic libraries and for public libraries with interested readers.—Barbara Walden, Univ. of Wisconsin Lib., Madison

In 1943, 36 healthy young men, conscientious objectors all, agreed to participate in a yearlong experiment aimed at helping the anticipated starving populations of Europe. The volunteers had been doing mindless make-work in rural camps and were eager to contribute something concrete to the war effort (their beliefs would not allow them to bear arms). Tucker shows how Dr. Ancel Keys, inventor of K-rations, ran the experiment in the stadium of the University of Minnesota, first measuring the men's normal intake, then gradually reducing their servings to the point of starvation while maintaining meticulous records of their physical and psychological health. Most came through the experiment intact; some did not, and Tucker describes what happened to them. Because this book covers an obscure part of World War II history, it is probably not destined to be widely read. But much useful background on conscientious objection, alternative service, and the Peace Churches movement is included, and, as such, it would make a valuable addition to collections on the war, peace movements, and nutrition.—Edwin B. Burgess, U.S. Army Combined Arms Research Lib., Fort Leavenworth, KS

Woodrow Wilson, as noted here by editor DiNunzio (history, Providence Coll.; American Democracy and the Authoritarian Tradition of the West), is the only professional scholar to have reached the White House. (He held professorships in history, political economy, and jurisprudence before becoming president of Princeton University.) Here DiNunzio has selected and briefly annotated 49 of Wilson's writings, presenting them with a 40-page introduction, a chronology, a short bibliography, and a handful of photographs. The book's eight sections include essays by Wilson on religion, education, and political science; his biographical sketches of Benjamin Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, and others; and his speeches as New Jersey politician and governor, presidential candidate, and, finally, President of the United States. While some material, particularly from the White House years, duplicates the content of prior collections, such as Ronald J. Pestritto's Woodrow Wilson: The Essential Political Writings, DiNunzio has weighted his selections toward Wilson's prepresidential career, making much of the book unique. An optional choice for academic and large public libraries.—Robert F. Nardini, Chichester, NH

Connelly (The Lincoln Lawyer), one of the more literary of the neonoir novelists, got his start as a crime beat reporter in Los Angeles and Florida. Here he reprints the stories that inspired his award-winning crime fiction. From the body found in a trunk, which he used in his novel Trunk Music, to the insights on cops and killers that would inform The Poet and the character of detective Harry Bosch, these collected articles show that the truth can be as strange—and even stranger than—fiction and every bit as compelling. Through it all, Connelly displays the discerning eye and compassion that characterize his best work. The one problem with the format is that the stories and their follow-ups are printed verbatim; as a result, there is much repetition among articles on the same crime. This is a distracting but minor point in a book that is otherwise a treat. For all public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 1/06.]—Deirdre Root, Middletown P.L., OH

Dufresne here shares what he considers his most memorable and significant psychic consultations and provides readers with exercises and instructions to bring out their own innate psychic abilities. As the son of psychic Sylvia Browne, with a long family history of spiritualism and 20 years under his own belt as a psychic, he should have a great many fascinating stories to tell. Unfortunately, his book seems to be more of an apology for how boring the text is and how little, in fact, there is to share. Each potentially interesting anecdote ends up going nowhere, and we ultimately learn very little. As for helping readers develop their own psychic abilities, Dufresne's tips are as basic as trusting your first impressions, trying automatic writing, and finding a partner with whom to practice transmitting information. Unless your library caters to people who simply must read everything published about Sylvia Browne, skip this book.—Mary E. Jones, Los Angeles P.L.

Saudi Arabia is a major factor in developments in the Middle East and in the War on Terror. These books provide a thorough analysis of the country and of America's relationship with it. In the Balance is a collection of essays from an early 2004 conference in the Netherlands. Editors Aarts (international relations, Univ. of Amsterdam, the Netherlands) and Nonneman (international relations & Middle East politics, Univ. of Lancaster; Analyzing Middle East Foreign Policies: The Relationship with Europe) have organized the essays to complement one another in tone and content and to highlight both empirical and theoretical approaches to four main topics: ideology and change, political economy, regime and opposition politics, and external relations. Bronson (Middle East studies, Council on Foreign Relations) focuses on foreign policy, particularly the long and strong ties between Saudi Arabia and the United States. She argues that American leaders need to do more careful analysis to define common interests and work toward mutually beneficial goals. Like Aarts and Nonneman, Bronson points out the need for gradual reform in Saudi Arabia to prevent the collapse of the current regime. Both of these scholarly and balanced books address topics of vital interest and are useful for readers seeking to understand the complexities of Saudi society and U.S. interests. In the Balance is more academic and denser in tone than Thicker Than Oil, which is more accessible but equally well founded on extensive research and strong judgment on American policy and the relevant literature. Both are recommended for libraries with serious specialized and lay readers.—Elizabeth Hayford, Associated Colls. of the Midwest, Chicago

It's the disease, the climate, the corruption, the brutal dictators, the tribal factions, the European colonization, the slavery—you name it, everyone has a reason for Africa's continuing collapse. Here, an adroit former World Bank official suggests that the misfortunes are more self-imposed. Calderisi places the responsibility squarely on the shoulders of the Africans themselves, also blaming the continent's various leaders. With few exceptions, he writes, the economies have all declined since independence in the 1970s. Botswana, one of the exceptions, has a strong economy and a higher standard of living than nearly all other African countries, and yet 37 percent of its adult population carries the HIV virus, and the life expectancy has plummeted to 34 years. Many hopeful stories from the 1970s and 1980s have disappeared with the loss, through mismanagement, of markets to Asia and Latin America. Wealth for the continent's people has declined since 1970, and the immediate future looks grim. Calderisi proposes ten workable solutions to the problems, such as that funding for Africa be contingent upon democratic rule, making this book one that should be in every academic library in this country—and every library in Africa.—Jim Thorsen, Madison Cty. Schs., Weaverville, NC

Digna Ochoa, a Mexican human rights lawyer, died of a gunshot wound to the back of her head on October 19, 2001. The investigation into her death was reopened in 2005 after initially being ruled a suicide. Diebel (winner of the Amnesty International Media Award) writes that there is no doubt that Ochoa was murdered for defending those tortured and harassed by the Mexican army. She also believes that this murder is indicative of both the impunity with which the army operates and President Vicente Fox's inability to rein in its alliance with powerful landowners and their illegal drug and business interests. Diebel's book draws on interviews with Ochoa's colleagues and family, her own reports for the Toronto Star, and official documents from the murder investigation, including a bizarre “psychological” profile of Ochoa that Diebel perfectly situates within her complex first-person narrative of betrayal. Progressing with impassioned precision and forcing upon the reader a hunger for justice, this work is a more extensive work on the life of Ochoa than Kerry Kennedy Cuomo's chapter on her in Speak Truth to Power: Human Rights Defenders Who Are Changing Our World. Recommended for public and academic libraries.—Jim Hahn, Harper Coll. Lib., Palatine, IL

Beijing correspondent for The New Yorker, Hessler has lived in China for the last nine years. He is deeply informed and writes with exceptional lucidity, choosing vivid, specific local topics whose broad significance he expertly shows. His memoir of his Peace Corps teaching experience, River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze, is a minor classic. His new book is a lovely take on a larger topic, the interaction of China with the West, told through craftily interwoven vignettes with cultural, political, and social resonance. In one series of vignettes, he follows former students from his Peace Corps days. Some are working in foreign-owned factories, while others are moving up the social ladder. In another series, he encapsulates the history of Chinese-American relations through the story of Chen Mengjia, China's leading scholar on the ancient oracle bones, which are over 3000 years old and revealed the earliest form of Chinese writing. Chen came to the Art Institute of Chicago in the 1940s, returned to China to be politically ostracized as a rightist, and was only recently rehabilitated, many years after his suicide. Along the way, Hessler introduces debates on the nature of the Chinese language and the scholars who have carried on the debate. Recommended for all libraries with medium or larger collections on China.—Charles W. Hayford, Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL

Prize-winning author Steele (research fellow, Hoover Inst., Stanford Univ.; A Dream Deferred: The Second Betrayal of Black Freedom in America) mixes reminiscences with observations on race relations since the 1950s to argue that America has tragically veered from a quest for civil rights to the defining of blacks as victims, an approach that does not treat them as equals. The United States, he says, has abandoned the moral authority that had cast the faulty ideological truth of white supremacy with that of legal racial segregation as disgraceful conditions both at home and abroad. A failure to face redistributed responsibilities has reenslaved blacks and the nation in manipulated political identities lacking any authority, Steele argues. White guilt, white blindness, black self-destruction, and dissociation have eroded the moral authority at America's core. Consequently, minorities have fallen into a vacuum as social morality battles to reestablish its ascendancy in a deepening culture war. As a means of reimagining black-white relations, collections on contemporary U.S. society or race relations may find Steele's essay on personal and national moral evolution a thought-provoking contrast to Manning Marable's recommended Living Black History. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 1/06.]— Thomas J. Davis, Arizona State Univ., Tempe

Poet, novelist, songwriter, playwright, and now memoirist Cameron (The Artists's Way) details her life as the leader of the “creative unblocking” movement. The beginning of the book is peppered with anecdotes about her early career as a “hip” twentysomething journalist for Rolling Stone and the New York Post and—in what is in many ways the liveliest part of the book—her Hollywood “glamour” years with first husband Martin Scorsese (years during which she was, in fact, addled with drugs and alcohol). A recovering alcoholic, follower of New Age mysticism, and survivor of mental breakdowns, Cameron somewhat bogs down the book's second half with in-depth trials of the heart rather than the pen, though her struggle to write her musical is given a good share of space, an emphasis that could result from her self-proclaimed discomfort at being seen “only” as the globe-hopping teacher of The Artist's Way books and not a creative person in her own right. Despite all the ground covered, readers may close the book with pressing questions. What is the connection between Cameron's personal and writing lives? How does staying sober and staying on her medication affect her work? Nonetheless, this is an engrossing account that will be snapped up by her many fans. For all public libraries.—Elizabeth Brinkley, Seattle

Coleman, Penny. Flashback: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Suicide, and the Lessons of War. Beacon, dist. by Houghton. May 2006. c.224p. bibliog. index. ISBN 0-8070-5040-7. $23.95. PSYCH

A Vietnam War widow whose late husband suffered from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and eventually committed suicide, Coleman (photojournalism/photography, International Ctr. for Photography & New Jersey City Univ.; Village Elders) wrote this book to remind people that soldiers often face internal conflicts once they return home—many suffer horrible mental breakdowns and become “casualties of war.” She interviewed women whose husbands survived battles but succumbed to the effects of war, researched instances of PTSD dating back to the Civil War, and compiled statistical information pertaining to American soldiers serving in the Middle East. The prevalence of PTSD among veterans of the Iraq war and the high suicide rate among military personnel in Iraq are also examined. By sharing women's stories of suicide and loss, Coleman hopes both to provide a means of healing for the present and to issue a warning for the future. Similar to Keith Armstrong's Courage After Fire: Coping Strategies for Troops Returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and Their Families, this is a well- researched and well-documented publication with a uniquely human touch. An essential part of any public library collection.—Melody Ballard, Washoe Cty. Lib. Syst., Reno, NV

Husband-and-wife clinical psychologists John Gottman (The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work) and Julie Schwartz Gottman observe spouses at their famed Seattle “Love Lab” to predict which might be divorce-bound and why. Each of the ten couples profiled here illustrates a principle that the authors believe can strengthen a marriage that is suffering from such factors as overwork, affairs, and preoccupation with children. Completing each chapter are quizzes and exercises that will help readers apply the principle to their own lives. The authors' advice, though basic, is thoroughly thought out. Of course, no single book can provide truly in-depth information on such a complicated topic, but couples can start to examine their own relationships with the Gottmans' guidance. (See also their appearance in Malcolm Gladwell's Blink.) Written in a conversational style, this book will certainly find a readership in public libraries.—Kay Brodie, Chesapeake Coll., Wye Mills, MD

A good Catholic boy and West Point cadet who became the guru of LSD and other mind-altering drugs, Timothy Leary (1920–96) is a dream subject for biographers. Wives, scandals, suicides, drug busts, a spectacular prison escape, and encounters with just about everybody of note in the mid-20th century littered his life. His own autobiography, Flashbacks (1983), outlines this juicy tale in a very readable, albeit self-serving, form. Then there's Greenfield (Dark Star: An Oral Biography of Jerry Garcia), who seems determined to present Leary in the worst possible light, although the basic story is the same, if more detailed in many respects. This debunking mode of biography is certainly appropriate for many subjects, but it assumes that readers have some idea of the subject's place in history. Leary, however, isn't that well known these days. Clearly, he had charm and charisma, but Greenfield doesn't convey why we should care at all about him. For large public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 2/1/06.]—Mary Ann Hughes, Neill P.L., Pullman, WA

This once-over-lightly manual uses as its launching point The Kama Sutra's “honest and open” coverage of lesbian and gay sex. British journalist Harding touches on numerous topics: the history of lesbian sexuality, self-esteem, sexual anatomy and response, seduction and foreplay, sexual communication, sexual techniques and positions, coming out, lesbian relationships, and sexual healthcare issues like menopause, pregnancy, and safer sex. The technique sections are the best developed; elsewhere, the information tends to be rather broad-brush. The striking color reproductions—most showing women with intimate connections or implications as depicted by male artists from the 1500s to the early 20th century—don't really illustrate anything in the text, so they feel disconnected. However, the sex techniques and positions are illustrated with attractive drawings by a contemporary male artist. Curiously, there are no drawings of female reproductive anatomy and the G-spot; the same goes for drawings of older women in sexual encounters. The bibliography is brief but strong on techniques. Optional for gay and lesbian collections.—Martha Cornog, Philadelphia

Add this to the growing list of books in the Malcolm Gladwell (Blink) observations-of-pop-culture genre. Niedzviecki, a novelist (The Program), 'zine founder (Broken Pencil), and social critic (We Want Some Too: Underground Desire and the Reinvention of Mass Culture) addresses “who we are” in a slightly rambling, albeit witty discussion of how being true to ourselves is not necessarily a good thing. (One is reminded of the song from the long-lived musical The Fantastics, in which the heroine begs “Please, God, please: Don't let me be normal!”) In our longing to be different, and our insistence on being accepted as we (supposedly) march to a different drummer, more often than not we are actually in lockstep with one another, suggests Niedzviecki, sometimes to the point of our own detriment (e.g., it's okay to be obese, as long as you have self-esteem). Where Gladwell is bemused, fellow Canadian Niedzviecki is curmudgeonly as he points out the rampant hypocrisy reflected in New Age religion, celebrity worship, and current perceptions of community. Although there is an index and lists of references for each chapter, this book is, like its subject, an artifact of pop culture and, as such, it is recommended for public and undergraduate libraries.—Ellen D. Gilbert, Princeton, NJ

Sidel, Ruth. Unsung Heroines: Single Mothers and the American Dream. Univ. of California. Apr. 2006. c.244p. bibliog. index. ISBN 0-520-23826-5. $45; pap. ISBN 0-520-24772-8. $17.95. SOC SCI

By sharing the stories of 50 single mothers from all walks of life, this groundbreaking study shatters the negative stereotypes of and misconceptions about these “unsung heroines.” Giving voice to the people President Reagan dubbed “welfare queens,” Sidel (sociology, Hunter Coll., Keeping Women and Children Last) shows that “rather than being a negative force in American society, millions of single mothers actually embody the finest American values: … determination, commitment to others, and independence of spirit.” She picks up where Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed leaves off and writes of the many women who never intended to raise children alone and are struggling to make ends meet in a society that devalues the contribution of mothers and allows America's fathers to escape accountability and responsibility for their children. This work becomes a call for what all families need in order to succeed: decent jobs at a living wage, comprehensive healthcare, and adequate child care. It is an eye-opening education that should be required reading for every elected official and policymaker prior to enacting any welfare-reform legislation or reduction in social services. Highly recommended.—Wendy Wendt, Marshall-Lyon Cty. Lib, MN

Slow Food is a global organization that promotes a better food system though programs and education addressing such topics as valuing food, maintaining food traditions, and sustainability and biodiversity. This title by Slow Food members Brackett, Sue Moore, and Wendy Downing, the third in a series of alternate food guides to North American cities that includes guides to Chicago and New York City, lists more than 500 restaurants, food shops, markets, and bars throughout the San Francisco Bay Area that Slow Food considers reflective of the movement. Organized by cuisine type and indexed by neighborhood and city, the book offers succinct and lively descriptions that vary in length from just a paragraph to a page but provide insight into each establishment's ambience, identify specialties of the house, and even offer tips, such as where it's best to sit. A snail icon, the Slow Food mascot, accompanies establishments that show exceptional support for sustainability and biodiversity. Many long-term and well-known establishments are included in addition to newer ones. Recommended for public libraries in Northern California and public libraries with large travel sections.—Louise Feldmann, Colorado State Univ. Lib., Fort Collins

Arizonian and college French major Espinasse followed her lifelong love of all things French, married a handsome Frenchman, had two children, and settled into domesticity in the lavender-scented hills of Provence. There, her interest in the French language prompted her to start a blog where she regularly posted a new word she had learned and an accompanying commentary. Collected here are many of these charming short essays on French life. They exude a warm familiarity and include situations familiar to families and travelers everywhere: mom continually embarrasses herself by using the wrong French word, still feels like an outsider after more than ten years in France, and struggles to keep her children just a little bit American. Each story is peppered with French words, which are translated at the end; Francophiles are sure to envy Espinasse's seemingly idyllic life. Readers who become fans will be happy to know that Espinasse continues to post new words and commentary on her blog at french-word-a-day.com. For large public library travel collections.—Linda M. Kaufmann, Massachusetts Coll. of Liberal Arts Lib., North Adams

Mentzel (European & Near Eastern history, Utah State Univ.) has written a concise but highly readable book delving into Venice's rich history. This archipelago city's location has bridged Western and Eastern cultures from the barbarian invasions to modern times. Mentzel mines this special history to tell some compelling stories, including those about the legendary Giovanni Casanova, the city's imperial rise and episodic flooding, the four bronze horses captured from the Hippodrome in Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade and brought to Venice, and the return of St. Mark the Evangelist's body from Alexandria. Other highlights include a chronology of major historical events, a list of doges (government leaders) from the seventh through the 18th centuries, and descriptions of churches, synagogues, historic buildings, museums, bridges, and outer islands. Black-and-white maps and Peter Geissler's elegant line drawings illustrate the book. Recommended for larger travel collections and libraries that already own other titles in the “Traveller's History” series.—Elizabeth Connor, The Citadel, Military Coll. of South Carolina Lib., Charleston

Montgomery, Charles. The Shark God: Encounters with Ghosts and Ancestors in the South Pacific. HarperCollins. Jul. 2006. c.384p. bibliog. ISBN 0-06-076516-X [ISBN 978-0-06-076516-3]. $24.95. TRAV

This is much more than a travel memoir to the South Pacific Islands. Montgomery, an award-winning travel writer, explores the religion, faith, myths, and cults of the Melanesian Islands of the South Pacific. Following the path described by his great grandfather (the region's Anglican bishop) H.H. Montgomery in The Light of Melanesia: A Record of Thirty-Five Years Mission Work in The South Seas (1896), Montgomery travels to some of the most remote island villages in the world. He encounters tribal chiefs, Christian missionaries, government bureaucrats, and pagan rituals as he learns that in the South Pacific, traditional pagan beliefs mingle with Christianity. His observations on these conflicting and complementary faiths are as insightful as his adventures are breathtaking. This beautifully written snapshot of cultures struggling to exist in the modern world as they both overcome and adapt to outside influences is recommended for all public and academic libraries.—Joel Jones, Kansas City P.L., MO

There are many ways a Westerner can travel to new lands and experience new cultures. One way is to fly in comfort and stay in luxury hotels. Then there is the old-fashioned way, as experienced by Stewart (The Prince of the Marshes), the author of this engaging and eminently readable book. A Scotsman who has written for periodicals on both sides of the Atlantic, he decided to explore Afghanistan by walking across the country. This book is the resulting narrative of what turned out to be a 20-month trek from Herat to Afghanistan's capital, Kabul, a journey that Stewart began in January 2002 after he had spent 16 months walking across Iran, Pakistan, India, and Nepal. Stewart has done a masterly job of relating stories of many of the villages and villagers that he encountered, receiving shelter and food and kindness from strangers. He successfully conveys the intricacies of Afghanistan's culture and tradition. Highly recommended for all public libraries.—Nader Entessar, Spring Hill Coll., Mobile, AL