Xpress Reviews—First Look at New Books

-- Library Journal, 3/4/2008 2:27:00 PM

Week of March 4, 2008

Fiction | Nonfiction

Fiction

Armstrong, Kelley. Personal Demon. Bantam. (Women of the Otherworld, Bk. 8). Mar. 2008. c.371p. ISBN 978-0-553-80661-8. $20. FANTASY
Verdict: Armstrong displays her mastery of suspense with a breathtaking chase scene that runs for almost 100 pages. Her ability to keep the reader guessing with surprise twists makes for an engrossing read. With rough language and explicit sexual encounters. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 12/07.]
Background: In her eighth entry of the "Women of the Otherworld" series (Bitten; Industrial Magic), Armstrong introduces us to Hope Adams, a 28-year-old half Expisco demon who can sense chaos, both current and past. Here, she shares narrative duties with Lucas Cortez, the sorcerer husband of witch Paige from Industrial Magic. Lucas’s father, who is the don of the supernatural equivalent of the mafia, has recruited Hope for an assignment. While deep undercover, Hope is strongly attracted to Jaz, a young magician, but series fans will also be thrilled at the return of Karl, the jewel thief werewolf from Armstrong’s novella Chaotic (published in the anthology Dates from Hell).—Crystal Renfro, Georgia Inst. of Technology Lib., Atlanta

Köenings, N.S. Theft. Back Bay: Little, Brown. 2008. c.272p. ISBN 978-0-316-00186-1. pap. $13.99. F
Verdict: Köenings is a gifted storyteller whose work, reminiscent of Jean Rhys at her best, deserves a wide audience in both public and academic libraries.
Background: In these five longish stories, Köenings (The Blue Taxi) places the reader in a variety of foreign settings—from a remote island in the Indian Ocean to a middle-class suburb of London—without the help of a Fodor’s guide. The initial disorientation may challenge some readers, but it keeps the senses sharp, making the stories all the more memorable. The same can be said of Köenings’s characters. In "Wondrous Strange," for instance, the members of the Thursday Club seem at first like visitors from an Evelyn Waugh novel with too much time on their hands and a silly interest in the paranormal. But just when we are ready to laugh at their foibles, the story takes a surprising turn that calls into question our too-easy response.—Sue Russell, Bryn Mawr, PA

Nonfiction

Carson, Rick. A Master Class in Gremlin-Taming®: Freeing Yourself from the Monster of the Mind. Collins: HarperCollins. Mar. 2008. c.208p. illus. ISBN 978-0-06-114840-8. pap. $14.95. PSYCH
Verdict: Carson’s strategies refuse to dwell on the past and free us to live in the moment: to breathe, to enjoy, and to be true to our heart. Fans of positive psychology will find a friend in this thought-provoking book.
Background: In this sequel to his classic Taming Your Gremlins, Carson provides advanced techniques for learning to deal with the titular gremlin, that saboteur of the mind. After 25 years as the director of the Gremlin-Taming Institute, he wanted to introduce his methods to a new generation and share improved techniques. The I CREATE method, for instance, takes readers through the seven steps of recognizing and dealing with thoughts and feelings that keep them from reaching their full potential. People have a choice to fight or be overcome by their gremlin; to choose to redirect their awareness to something more positive.—Cynde Suite, Bartow Cty. P.L. Syst., Cartersville, GA

Lambert, Kelly. Lifting Depression: A Neuroscientist’s Hands-On Approach to Activating Your Brain's Healing Power. Basic Civitas: Perseus. Apr. 2008. c.288p. index. ISBN 978-0-465-03772-8. $26. PSYCH
Verdict: The author’s attempt to present a multidisciplinary, research-based theory on depression in a popular format is largely successful. This fairly technical work would be a useful addition for large public libraries and undergraduate college collections.
Background: Behavioral neuroscientist Lambert (chair of psychology, Randolph-Macon Coll) has synthesized an enormous array of research with only occasional missteps. The text addresses two large questions: why is our society evidencing increasing rates of depression? And why do strictly drug-oriented treatments of depression fail in a large number of cases? Drawing from fields as diverse as evolutionary psychology, child development, neurobiology, and psychopharmacology, the author creates a compelling case for her theory of the effort-driven rewards circuit in the brain as the central explanatory mechanism. The chemical, behavioral, and emotional correlates of depression are simply too complex to be explained as a deficit in one or two neurotransmitters, and Lambert postulates that having to work, physically, for meaningful outcomes is essential to building and sustaining resilience to depression. She offers evidence for treatment suggestions based on her theory. —Paula McMillen, Oregon State Univ. Libs., Corvallis

Hemingway, Ernest & A.E. Hotchner. The Good Life According to Hemingway. Ecco: HarperCollins. May 2008. c.144p. ISBN 978-0-06-144489-0. $22.95. BIOG
Verdict: Scholars and armchair aficionados will delight in this volume—any new material is always welcome—and while academic lit collections will want it (it’s Hemingway after all), it’s a marginal public library purchase.
Background: Hotchner, Hemingway’s longtime pal/toadie/biographer, offers a collection of quotes gleaned from numerous conversations with the famed writer during their extended years of globetrotting. Divided by subject (writing, war, sports, hunting, women, etc.), the observations—from short, single sentences to lengthy paragraphs—reflect Hemingway’s Jekyll/Hyde personalities: there’s Ernest, the private, sincere, intelligent artist; and Papa, the loud, public blowhard spouting nonsense about Paris, bullfights, boozing, and other signature good-for-book-sales trappings. Hemingway was a brilliant, worldly man, and many of his credos are truly insightful, while others reek of fortune-cookie philosophy or downright malarkey. And Nobel laureate or not, it’s arguably unwise to put credence in the beliefs of a depressed, alcoholic suicide. Nonetheless, they provide a window into the multifaceted mind of a literary giant. A tasty bonus is roughly 150 mostly rare pix, many as much a treat for fans as Ernesto’s musings.—Mike Rogers, Library Journal

Smith, Pamela Wartian, M.D. What You Must Know About Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs & More: Choosing the Nutrients That Are Right for You. Square One, dist. by Ingram. Apr. 2008. c.448p. index. ISBN 978-0-7570-0233-5. pap. $15.95. HEALTH
Verdict: Smith deserves credit for providing references and advocating the use of pharmaceutical-grade supplements, but readers would be better served by James A. Balch and Phyllis Balch’s Prescription for Nutritional Healing, the seminal guide that seems to have inspired Smith’s work.
Background: Arguing that supplements are necessary to combat free radicals and compensate for a nutrient-deprived food supply, Smith aims to educate readers in their use. After clearly outlining the applications, recommended dosages, side effects, and food sources of common supplements, she presents supplement regimens for treating specific conditions and for maintaining the health of targeted groups, such as dieters and oral-contraceptive users. The author definitely delivers on her promise of "a concise guide to better health and longevity"; while she lists almost every conceivable cause of nutrient deficiency, Smith, however, sometimes fails to include adequate supplement selection guidance and omits commonly prescribed supplements in her therapeutic suggestions. For example, the section on calcium does not address elemental calcium, and neither bromelian nor any other digestive enzyme is recommended for the treatment of either osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis.—Blanche Angelo, Livermore P.L., CA

Transue, Emily R., M.D. Patient by Patient: Lessons in Love, Loss, Hope, and Healing from a Doctor’s Practice. St. Martin’s. Apr. 2008. c.272p. ISBN 978-0-312-37278-1. $23.95. MED
Verdict: Parts of Transue’s book get bogged down in detail about her family background. Yet fans of her first book will probably enjoy reading about her evolution as a doctor and as a human being. Buy where demand warrants.
Background: Transue follows her first memoir, On Call, about her residency at the University of Washington in Seatte, with this narrative of her experiences as a general internist at a multispecialty practice in downtown Seattle. While dealing with patients’ devastating illnesses and loss, Transue must also work through losing her father and then her grandmother, to whom she was very close.—Dana Ladd, Community Health Education Ctr., Virginia Commonwealth Univ. Libs. & Virginia Commonwealth Univ. Health Syst., Richmond

Williams, Bruce with Donnell Alexander. Rollin’ with Dre: The Unauthorized Account; An Insider’s Tale of the Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of West Coast Hip Hop. One World: Ballantine. Mar. 2008. c.256p. ISBN 978-0-345-49822-9. $23.95. MUSIC
Verdict: This insider’s account from a former employee and friend of Dr. Dre is a good addition to recent books about the hip-hop mogul, including Ronin Ro’s Dr. Dre: The Biography and Verna Griffin’s Long Road Outta Compton: Dr. Dre’s Mom on Family, Fame and Terrible Tragedy.
Background: Dr. Dre has been making music since the 1980s; he is known for commercially successful music, production, and collaborations and has been credited with creating a new West Coast flavor of hip-hop and gangsta rap. In this part-autobiographical, part-tell-all book, Williams, who worked closely with Dre for almost two decades, exhibits his resentments and admiration of Dre. Included are some keen insights into the music and rap industries and insider stories like watching Tupac Shakur improvise his part to the song "California Love" and meeting Snoop Dogg as a lanky teenager.—L.P. Smith, Oakland

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