Xpress Reviews—First Look at New Books

-- Library Journal, 6/18/2008 2:17:00 PM

Week of June 17, 2008

Fiction | Nonfiction

Fiction

Brown, Janelle. All We Ever Wanted Was Everything. Spiegel & Grau. Jun. 2008. c.368p. ISBN 978-0-385-52401-8. $24.95. F
Verdict: Brown's first novel rates as one the most difficult-to-put-down books of the year. It is the quintessential summer read, except that description downplays Brown’s quirky, sharp-as-tacks characters, unbelievably real dialog, and helluva plot. For all libraries.
Background: Janice Miller has a perfect life in Silicon Valley until her pharmaceutical executive husband, Paul, serves her with divorce papers, and she discovers that he has been having an affair with her best friend. Things fall apart, and Janice’s daughters attempt to put it back together. Living in Los Angeles, Margaret, 26, is scraping by and attempting to launch her own feminist magazine. Lizzie, at 14, is still at home and calls Margaret back for reinforcement. Janice simply can’t cope and becomes addicted to crystal meth, which she scores from James, the pool boy. Janice doesn’t even know what meth is, but she sure enjoys the high it gives her and enables her to cook, clean, and organize her way out of the divorce doldrums. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 1/08; Brown was a featured speaker at BEA’s Random House/LJ breakfast; see LJ’s video interview with the author.—Ed.]—Beth Gibbs, Davidson, NC

Brundage, Elizabeth. Somebody Else's Daughter. Viking. Jul. 2008. 341p. ISBN 978-0-670-01900-7. $24.95. F
Verdict: Full of mystery and deception, Brundage’s second novel (after The Doctor’s Wife) is a terrific, fast-paced summer read. Brundage avoids stereotyping her eclectic characters, from an abused wife and creepy headmaster to a novice writer/teacher and an ex-porn star. Recommended for all libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 3/15/08.]
Background: This story starts with a drug-addled couple giving their baby up for adoption to a rich couple who lives in a college town in the Berkshires. Fast-forward 15 years, and that baby has grown into a beautiful teenager. Willa is surrounded by people with secrets to conceal, including her natural father, who has gone clean and gotten a job as a teacher at Willa’s school, and Willa’s adoptive parents. When these different characters interact and connect with one another, their secrets will be exposed. The big question is, how they will affect everyone and everything in the town?—Marianne Fitzgerald, Annapolis, MD

Tuccillo, Liz. How To Be Single. Atria: S. & S. Jun. 2008. c.354p. ISBN 978-1-4165-3412-9. $24.95. F
Verdict: As the coauthor of the popular self-help book He's Just Not That into You and a former story editor for Sex and the City, Tuccillo knows her audience and her companionable, just-between-us-girls writing style is appealing. Recommended for all popular fiction collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 2/15/08.]
Background: Thirty-eight-year-old Julie Jenson and her friends are handling their single status poorly. During a particularly crazy night, they end up in an emergency room enduring the pity of two Frenchwomen, who spur Julie’s curiosity about the global condition of unmarried women. Wrangling a book contract, she impulsively leaves New York to travel the world interviewing women. Meeting charming but married Thomas at her first stop in France adds another layer to her international visits, from Bali to Iceland. Initially, Julie was the only link among her friends, but while she is gone, they bond with one another. Their burgeoning friendships are the best parts of the book, as Julie’s adventures begin to feel like a nonfiction book on multicultural single women thinly disguised as a novel.—Lisa Davis-Craig, Canton P.L., MI

Nonfiction

Blaney, John. Beatles for Sale: How Everything They Touched Turned to Gold. Jawbone. Jun. 2008. 288p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-1-906002-09-1. pap. $19.95. MUSIC
Verdict: This inside look at the Fab Four's business machine over the last 40 years is essential for Beatles fans as well as anyone interested in the nuts and bolts of the music business. Recommended enthusiastically for all libraries.
Background: Beatles fan Blaney (Lennon & McCartney: Together Alone) provides an in-depth look at how the Beatles made it and made history, becoming the biggest superstars in the world through a combination of talent, luck, and knowing the right people at the right time. Chronicling with skill the business side of the band through their records, movies, and concerts in concise, entertaining chapters, he documents how the music business both made the band and broke them. The Beatles were the ones who made up the rules as necessary, as there was no precedent or model to which to refer. As a result, the Beatles themselves became the model, paving the way for bands that followed them.—Troy Reed, Southeast Regional Lib., Gilbert, AZ

Boyett, Joseph H. Won't Get Fooled Again: A Voter's Guide to Seeing Through the Lies, Getting Past the Propaganda, and Choosing the Best Leaders. AMACOM: American Management Assn. Jul. 2008. c.304p. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-8144-0931-2. $24. POL SCI
Verdict: Boyett has written a sophisticated, coherent guide to understanding and deciphering the complex psychological dynamics of the leader-follower relationship. This timely work also provides cogent strategies to help voters make more informed decisions. Recommended for all public libraries.
Background: Boyett, a Ph.D. in political science, fuses his wide-ranging political knowledge with his experience as an international leadership consultant to produce a weighty, well-researched book designed to help voters become better, more astute followers. He rigorously examines the personality traits and psychological makeup of leaders and provides useful insights into the development of their "vision," values, and other key leadership components. Perhaps most important, Boyett details how intelligent followers should employ a healthy skepticism and view all information with a critical, inquisitive eye. In one of the most helpful chapters, he demonstrates ways to brandish these heightened critical powers on opinion polls by instructing voters to consider how the questions were framed, who conducted the poll, and whether the "margin of error" is listed.—Dennis J. Seese, Jefferson-Madison Regional Lib., Charlottesville, VA

Hoffer, Peter Charles. The Treason Trials of Aaron Burr. Univ. Pr. of Kansas. (Landmark Law Cases & American Society). Aug. 2008. c.224p. index. ISBN 978-0-7006-1591-9. $35; pap. ISBN 978-0-7006-1592-6. $16.95. HIST
Verdict: Largely favorable to Burr, Hoffer’s book is well researched and an accessibly written account. Recommended for early American and legal history collections in large public and all academic libraries.
Background: Most people know Aaron Burr as the scoundrel who killed Alexander Hamilton in a duel. Hoffer (history, Univ. of Georgia; coauthor, The Supreme Court: An Essential History) examines another notorious—and historically significant—portion of this man’s long and complex life, his 1807 trial for treason. Hoffer devotes most of his efficiently written book to setting the stage for his titular focus, summarizing the work of other scholars as he does so. He provides a brief biography of Burr, a history of the law of treason and its enforcement in the Anglo-American tradition, and a perhaps unavoidably fuzzy history of Burr’s exploits in the West. No one to this day is 100 percent clear on Burr’s actual intentions in his adventures that provoked his trial and that of his compatriots Erick Bollman and Samuel Swartwout. The last quarter of the book hones in on the landmark case of U.S. v. Burr, considered one of the most important in U.S. history as it tested (and confirmed) the neutrality of the judicial branch in a highly politicized circumstance. The book ends with the author’s own best guess as to what Burr’s intentions were in his ventures to the West.—Robert Flatley, Kutztown Univ., PA

Kash, Peter Morgan & Jay Lombard with Tom Monte. Freedom from Disease: The Breakthrough Approach to Preventing Cancer, Heart Disease, Alzheimer's, and Depression. St. Martin's. Jun. 2008. c.288p. index. ISBN 978-0-312-35869-3. $24.95. HEALTH
Verdict: General audiences will appreciate this approach to a healthier lifestyle, especially those affected by chronic illnesses and seeking alternatives for wellness. While not a cure-all, the book does represent healthful choices and ways to eliminate unnecessary sugars and packaged foods. Recommended for public libraries. present a compelling case about insulin resistance and the effects on the body.
Background: Biotech financier Kash (Make Your Own Luck) and Lombard (chief of neurology, Bronx-Lebanon Hosp. Ctr.; The Brain Wellness Plan) present a compelling case about insulin resistance and the effects on the body. Referencing the latest research, they describe the connections between insulin, inflammation, and a host of diseases and disorders, including obesity, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, and cancer. To avoid these conditions, the authors offer alternatives to today’s conventional diet, complete recipes (low in sugars, high in whole foods, and great for vegetarians) and resources for ingredients. Readers will learn how to influence their own health through discipline in diet and exercise.—Sarah E. Myers, Red Feather Lakes Community Coll. Lib., CO

Keim, Norman O. with David Marc. Our Movie Houses: A History of Film & Cinematic Innovation in Central New York. Syracuse Univ. (Television & Popular Culture). Jul. 2008. c.220p. illus. ISBN 978-0-8156-0896-7. $24.95. FILM
Verdict: This valuable resource on regional theater will be of interest primarily to historians and Syracuse area devotees. Recommended for regional libraries’ local history collections as well as for libraries with theater history collections.
Background: Keim (founder/director, Syracuse Univ. Film Studies Ctr.) splits this survey into two parts, the first of which covers the beginnings of film in central New York State and the rise and demise of various movie theaters. The second section contains short biographical entries of "cinema figures" who have links to the region through birth, schooling, or career, for example. Viggo Mortensen is on the list (born in Jefferson County) as well as Tom Cruise (born in Syracuse). The book also offers appendixes with tables listing the theaters and their locations and, e.g., theater organs, chains, and drive-ins. Many photos accompany the text, and this creates a historical society–like experience; a map would have been helpful for those unfamiliar with the area.—Barbara Kundanis, Longmont P.L., CO

Nack, Adina. Damaged Goods?: Women Living with Incurable Sexually Transmitted Diseases. Temple Univ. Jun. 2008. c.248p. index. ISBN 978-1-59213-708-4. pap. $21.95. SOC SCI
Verdict: Nack’s book is relevant to researchers interested in the psychological effects of sexually transmitted diseases on women. Primarily research-based, it appears to be the first of its kind on the subject. Recommended for academic libraries serving that population as well as public health libraries.
Background: What began as Nack's (sociology, California Lutheran Univ.) doctoral dissertation evolved into this frank book on women living with the human papilloma virus (HPV) and/or genital herpes. The author interviewed 43 women of various ages, ethnicites, and backgrounds over several years, and she traces the disease process, from interviewees’ sexual education in school, to the "sexual invincibility" phase, through acceptance, touching on policy recommendations at the end. Using quotes from the actual women (using pseudonyms) brings home the personal effects of HPV/genital herpes. As the author points out, similar research on the effects of these diseases on men would make an excellent companion to Damaged Goods?.—Leigh Mihlrad, Albany Medical Coll. Lib., NY

Traig, Jennifer. Well Enough Alone: A Cultural History of My Hypochondria. Riverhead: Penguin Group (USA). Jul. 2008. c.272p. illus. ISBN 978-1-59448-991-4. $23.95. AUTOBIOG
Verdict: This follow-up to Devil in the Details: Scenes from an Obsessive Girlhood features loosely connected chapters/essays that are consistently amusing and at times hysterical as Traig discusses her medical obsessions. Her willingness to present herself in an often-unflattering light gives her writing bite and verve. While the book's episodic quality means that it is easy to put down, it is equally easy, and more satisfying, to pick it up again.
Background: Traig has experienced many medical problems and has self-diagnosed herself with an exponential number more. Those with a weak stomach may be alarmed at the glee and detail with which she writes about medical abnormalities of all shapes and sizes, but her enthusiasm is largely contagious. The balance among descriptions of her medical concerns, general anecdotes about her life, and historical information about diseases and treatments is nicely managed: just as the reader starts to tire of hearing about sores and boils, they may be treated to some juicy descriptions of sibling rivalry or her (accidental) summer in a drug den.—Amelia Brunskill, Dickinson Coll., Carlisle, PA

Vargas, Roberto. Family Activism: Empowering Your Community, Beginning with Family and Friends. Berrett-Koehler, dist. by Ingram. Jun. 2008. c.264p. photogs. index. ISBN 978-1-57675-480-1. pap. $17.95. SOC SCI
Verdict: Vargas covers little new ground, and his anecdotes (most of which are drawn from the author’s own experiences) do little to illustrate or inspire. That said, activists and community organizers seeking to integrate a sense of ceremony, tradition, and/or spirituality in their meetings may find this book helpful. There will be particular appeal among readers in Hispanic communities.
Background: Peaceful, friendly family conversation may often mean avoiding discussion of sensitive political and social topics. Even so, as a longtime activist and now motivational consultant, as well as a husband and a father, Vargas cannot help making activism a central part of his family’s life. Family meetings that seek to reinforce strong family bonds, the author argues, can lead to positive change in the community at large. While Native American spiritual customs provide the basis for most of the methods outlined here, there are also clear similarities to Stephen R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families.—Nick Franklin, Brooklyn P.L., NY

McWhorter, John. All About the Beat: Why Hip-Hop Can't Save Black America. Gotham: Penguin Group (USA). Jun. 2008. c.224p. index. ISBN 978-1-592-40374-5. $20. SOC SCI
Verdict: This tome can be summarized as an overlong email to Michael Eric Dyson (McWhorter mentions him in nearly all five chapters). While there is interesting commentary on the efficacy of welfare reform, No Child Left Behind, and other such policies, McWhorter adds little to the scholarly or political discourse on hip-hop. For academic collections where the author's other works (e.g., Losing the Race) are popular.
Background: Conservative think tanker McWhorter continues his diatribe against all things Michael Eric Dyson (see "How Hip Hop Holds Blacks Back") in this monotonous argument against hip-hop's political clout in the African American community. In many ways, it is an extended dissing of hip-hop scholars like Bakari Kitwana, Cheryl Keyes, and Dyson (over and over again). McWhorter provides hard-to-connect examples of why hip-hop does nothing to progress African Americans as a political body. After constant comparisons of hip-hop to the Civil Rights Movement, along with McWhorter's answers to Dyson-esque positions, one gets the feeling that this book is written for Dyson and no one else.—Vanessa J. Morris, Philadelphia

See last week's Xpress Reviews