Xpress Reviews—First Look at New Books
-- Library Journal, 8/5/2008 10:51:00 AM
Week of August 5, 2008
Fiction | Nonfiction
Fiction
Adrian, Chris. A Better Angel. Farrar. 2008. c.192p. ISBN 978-0-374-28990-4. $22. F
Verdict: Adrian's characters speak and act naturally; the stories show no signs of seams, despite their often fantas
tical wanderings and surrealist moments (there are angels in here, but not what you’d expect—another great accomplishment). Recommended for all public libraries.
Background: Adrian, author of the novels Gob’s Grief and The Children’s Hospital, is a pediatrician in Boston and a student at Harvard Divinity School—perfect credentials for his newest collection, which explores faith, health, and mourning. "Stab" is the story of a girl who kills the neighborhood animals with the help of her mute friend on whom she eventually turns the knife. The title story follows a doctor who returns home at the urging of his sisters in order to help his estranged father become more comfortable in his decline. "A Child’s Book of Sickness and Death" is about a girl with a chronic illness who spends most of her time in the hospital and who possesses a unique outlook on mortality. And there are six more, all equally clever and original explorations of the same dark themes.—Stephen Morrow, Athens, OH
Banks, Iain. The Crow Road. MacAdam/Cage. 2008. c.500p. ISBN 978-1-59692-306-5. $25. F
Verdict: Bank’s beefy bildungsroman is slowgoing at first but develops into a full-blown universe of Scottish multigenerational shenanigans. Despite certain elements of Scottish culture and language that non
-British readers might find slightly perplexing, this novel is a monument to fiction. Recommended for all libraries.
Background: In another break from his usual sf output, Banks (The Steep Approach to Garbadale) artistically shifts voice, perspective, and time, forming both a mild mystery and an existential examination. Banks’s habit of teasing readers with an inkling of important information, and then taking a roundabout path to providing the payoff, is a particularly insidious way of keeping one interested and turning pages. The main character, Prentice, with his wicked sarcasm and uncanny ability to distinguish women’s perfume brands by smell alone, is wholly sympathetic. As he rollicks between heavy substance abuse and hangovers, he slowly comes to realize the key to the mystery about his beloved missing uncle. The depictions of sibling relationships are particularly successful.—Henry Bankhead, Los Gatos P.L., CA
Gortner, C.W. The Last Queen. Ballantine. 2008. c.384p. ISBN 978-0-345-50184-4. $25. F
Verdict: Well researched, passionately written, and thoroughly enjoyable, this historical novel adds to the popu
lar genre of royal fiction. Recommended for all popular fiction collections.
Background: As a young girl growing up in Spain, Juana of Castile was never expected to become queen. The daughter of Isabella and Ferdinand (and sister of Catherine of Aragon), she was married in a strategic alliance to the Hapsburg prince, Philip, Archduke of Flanders. Young and passionate, they had a happy marriage filled with love, children, and a vibrant court. But when Juana’s family died out, she was left as the last living heir to the Spanish throne. Her husband, greedy for power, began a wicked struggle with Juana for the throne. As their marriage deteriorated, so allegedly did Juana’s grip on reality. For centuries she has been called "Juana la Loca" (Juana the Mad), but Gortner (The Secret Lion) gives us a fresh take on an old story. His interpretation of events suggests that Juana was perfectly sane but the victim of an abusive marriage and an ambitious husband who would stop at nothing to rule Spain.—Anna Nelson, Naples Regional Lib., FL
Peixoto, José Luís. The Implacable Order of Things. Nan A. Talese: Doubleday. 2008. c.224p. tr. from Portuguese by Richard Zenith. ISBN 978-0-385-52446-9. $22.95. F
Verdict: Hailing from the worlds of the theater and poetry, award-winning Portuguese novelist Peixoto (b. 1974) writes straightforward prose that, with its incantatory cadence, brings readers to new 
heights of realization. Recommended.
Background: Peixoto’s fiction challenges the old notion that the lives of the rich best engage us in fiction. The two generations of poor people who narrate these pages live in a mythical timelessness, where their actions reveal quasibiblical truths; the author’s mischievous sense of absurdity adds another dimension to the bleakness of their lives. Old Gabriel is 120 years old and going strong. José, a herdsman, is waylaid and beaten to a pulp by a giant, and at the general store where José has a glass or two of wine, he is taunted by "the devil," the only person in the place who wears an ironed shirt and does not have sun-darkened skin. Moises and Elias are 70-year-old Siamese twins utterly dependent on each other—until Moises marries the local cook, who is famous for creating lifelike figures from her food and who at the age of 70 gives birth to a daughter.—Jack Shreve, Allegany Coll. of Maryland, Cumberland
Pinter, Jason. The Stolen. Mira: Harlequin. Aug. 2008. c.352p. ISBN 978-0-7783-2572-7. pap. $7.99. F
Verd
ict: An intriguing mystery plagues reporter Henry Parker, who risks his career to find the truth in Pinter’s third series entry (after The Mark and The Guilty). This thriller proves truly scary as it explores every parent’s worst nightmare. It’s also great to see favorite characters back in action; the next book can’t come fast enough. For all fiction collections.
Background: Young Daniel Linwood vanished five years ago and was believed to be dead. Now he has returned home and can’t remember any details of his abduction. When Parker uncovers a young female kidnap victim with the exact same memory loss, he knows he can’t let the case rest until he solves the crimes. But the police don’t want his help, so he has to break the rules and ask his ex-girlfriend, Amanda, to help get the evidence he needs to stop the kidnappers.—Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L.
Winger, Anna. This Must Be the Place. Riverhead: Penguin Group (USA). Aug. 2008. c.320p. ISBN 978-1-59448-997-6. $24.95. F
Verdict: Professional photographer and NPR producer (Berlin Stories) Winger’s debut novel is a skillful examination of (inter)nationality, history, and place in the lives of compelling characters. Recommende
d for all fiction collections.
Background: Berlin actor Walter Baum has been providing German voice-overs for Tom Cruise’s films for over 15 years—from Top Gun to Vanilla Sky. In between films, Walter rarely leaves his neighborhood. Hope and Dave, an American couple living in Berlin while economist Dave studies the Polish system, live in the same apartment building and enjoy the post-9/11 sympathy of Berliners as former New Yorkers. Hope and Walter soon become friends as their relationships unravel. Walter begins to imagine a new life for the two of them in Hollywood, his career revived, and his American maternal grandparents reconciled with him. Hope, at emotional loose ends after a miscarriage, discovers that Dave’s work in Poland involves a more liberal interpretation of economic stimulus than she had ever imagined and begins to reevaluate her marriage.—Jenn B. Stidham, Houston Community Coll.–Northeast, Houston, TX
Zurawski, Magdalena. The Bruise. Univ. of Alabama. Aug. 2008. c.152p. ISBN 978-1-57366-144-7. pap. $16.95. F
Verdict: Readers who enjoy experimental fiction will relish Zurawski’s dense prose and subtle humor, while tho
se who appreciate eroticism will savor the uneasy tension that accompanies M. through her tentative romance with a classmate. Style mavens will appreciate Zurawski’s labyrinthine sentences, which manage both to entice and to mystify all at once. Recommended for larger public libraries and academic collections that focus on contemporary fiction and literature.
Background: Zurawski’s tour of an aspiring writer’s excessively orderly mind explores the human passions while gently poking fun at the ways we construct reality, both in and out of academe. The Bruise, a winner of the Ronald Sukenick Innovative Fiction Prize, revolves around a writing student called M., who sustains a bruise during an encounter with what she suspects is an angel. The visitation, and the bruise’s stubborn refusal to recede, prompt a flood of stream-of-consciousness ruminations on M.’s current life and possible future. Mundane activities such as attending classes, doing homework, and visiting the library are illuminated by M.’s thoughts on the structure of her days and habits.—Leigh Anne Vrabel, Carnegie Lib. of Pittsburgh
Nonfiction
Austin, Paul. Something for the Pain: One Doctor's Account of Life and Death in the ER. Norton. Sept. 2008. c.256p. ISBN 978-0-393-06560-2. $24.95. MED
Verdict: This vivid memoir of an ER doctor will make readers by turns cry and cringe. A definite page-t
urner and a riveting debut; highly recommended to public, hospital, and medical school and health sciences libraries.
Background: Austin was a college dropout who worked as a firefighter and a nursing assistant before going to medical school. Most of his narrative focuses on his stressful work in the critical care ward. Being so close to pain and death leads him to become detached from his own family. Why would anyone want to become an ER doctor, vulnerable and open to pain every minute? Austin says he keeps working because he likes the people he works with. He can dispense his patients "something for the pain."—Shin Freedman, Framingham State Coll. Lib., MA
Burke-Galloway, Linda, M.D. The Smart Mother’s Guide to a Better Pregnancy: How To Minimize Risks, Avoid Complications, and Have a Healthy Baby. Red Flags. Sept. 2008. c.320p. index. ISBN 978-0-9790162-0-2. pap. $15.95. HEALTH
Verdict: Although timely and up-to-date, this book is probably best suited for hospital libraries and readers rece
ntly diagnosed with problems or who have previously had pregnancy complications.
Background: Burke-Galloway, a medical malpractice consultant for the federal government, has more than 20 years of experience working with high-risk pregnancy patients, and her goal here is to educate women on getting the best prenatal care, stage by stage. Her information is accurate without question, but readers should know in advance how small a percentage of pregnancies is affected by the conditions covered (including preeclampsia, diabetes management, genetic abnormalities, premature labor, and postpartum issues)—six to eight in 2007, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Also, the author’s examples are at times extreme, which gives the book a cautionary-tale feel. A number of chapters could be useful for all pregnant women (e.g., "Selecting the Right Healthcare Provider" and "Preparing for the Hospital"), and every chapter has a bulleted summary of key points at the end (e.g., "What Every Smart Mother Needs To Know"). There is also a highly useful and thorough resources contact list. —Elizabeth J. Eastwood, Los Alamos Cty. Lib., NM
Chollet, Derek & James Goldgeier. America Between the Wars: From 11/9 to 9/11. PublicAffairs: Perseus. 2008. c.432p. photogs. index. ISBN 978-1-58648-496-5. $27.95. POL SCI
Verdict: This is an excellent volume on an era that is still overlooked by historians and political scientists, a circumstance that Chollet and Goldgeiger use to their advantage in their own quest for unders
tanding of this period. Recommended for academic libraries.
Background: Chollet (senior fellow, Ctr. for a New American Security), a former Clinton administration State Department official, and Goldgeiger (political science & international affairs, Georgetown Univ.) cover "the misunderstood decade between the end of the cold war and the start of the war on terror." This period, though detailed in other volumes, is rarely viewed as its own historical period, when the United States sought to refine its place within a world no longer dominated by the Cold War. In chronicling these 12 years, the authors use an abundance of sources, including government documents and their own interviews with insiders, as they track the workings of the world’s sole superpower as it sought to redefine its place, diplomatically and politically, in the world. The author’s look at U.S. foreign policy through the eyes of those who were at the forefront of creating it and redefining America’s role is compelling, enabling readers to understand a society wishing to focus on domestic issues but while working to redefine the defensive and globalization issues so pertinent to the decade that then led to 9/11. Thus was America’s role in global affairs permanently changed.—Jenny Emanuel, Univ. of Illinois Lib., Urbana
Freedman, Rory & Kim Barnouin. Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven. Running Pr. Sept. 2008. c.336p. ISBN 978-0-7624-3105-2. pap. $14.95. HEALTH
Verdict: A sassy look at what not to eat when pregnant, this would make a great, humorous gift for pregnant friends an
d even a safe choice for larger public libraries.
Background: Freedman and Barnouin, best known for their best-selling Skinny Bitch, here extend their brand in a book specifically for pregnant women. Writing in a style that is meant to be funny and sarcastic with a bit of drill sergeant thrown in, the authors offer some good advice on what to eat and especially what not to eat when pregnant. They subtly build up to advocating a vegan lifestyle, supplying numerous research studies and statistics to back up their claims. Surprisingly, there is a lot of good advice on thinking critically about what is considered good nutrition and what is not. However, thinking critically about the food pyramid is exactly what readers should do while reading this work. In other words, a case can be made to include in one's diet the dairy, beef, and chicken that Freedman and Barnouin advocate cutting out. As Gary Taubes points out in his recent Good Calories, Bad Calories, much of the scientific research on what constitutes a healthy diet is either biased or flawed.—Susan E. Thomas, Indiana Univ. Lib., South Bend
Glover, Lorri & Daniel Blake Smith. Eden's Castaways: The Shipwreck That Made America. Macrae Bks.: Holt. Aug. 2008. c.304p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-8050-8654-6. $26. HIST
Verdict: This is a thoroughly engaging narrative, with all the requisite drama, suspense, adventure, and violence. Despite drawing heavily on firsthand accounts by castaways William Strachey and Silvester 
Jurdain, the work adds little to the existing literature. An entertaining but unnecessary read for informed lay readers, this is recommended only for large public libraries aiming for bountiful early American history collections.
Background: One of the most familiar and overanalyzed episodes in the history of England’s first permanent American colony gets reexamined by Glover (early American history, Univ. of Tennesee, Knoxville) and Smith (colonial American history, Univ. of Kentucky) on the eve of its quadric-centennial. With England’s Jamestown experiment floundering, the Virginia Company sent a rescue fleet, led by the Sea Venture, across the Atlantic in 1609 to revitalize the tragically mismanaged colony. Thrown off-course by a hurricane, the ship ran aground in Bermuda, miraculously unscathed. There, the castaways, led by Thomas Gates, Christopher Newport, and William Somers, discovered that the presumably haunted and uninhabitable "Isle of Devils" was, in fact, a safe, salubrious land. In their ten months in Bermuda, the castaways withstood four failed mutinies and built two ships that transported them safely to Jamestown. After the Sea Venture’s surprising success and Gates’s triumphant return to his homeland, England never again questioned its commitment to colonizing America.—Douglas King, Univ. of South Carolina Lib., Columbia
Letwin, David & others. The Architecture of Drama: Plot, Character, Theme, Genre, and Style. Scarecrow. Sept. 2008. c.192p. index. ISBN 978-0-8108-6129-9. pap. $40. THEATER
Verdict: Enhanced by a comprehensible yet never patronizing style, this title on the technique of drama is reco
mmended to update collections in college and university libraries as well as larger public libraries. Theater instructors should consider this for course adoption.
Background: This guide’s old-school broadcasting style of "Tell ‘em what you’re gonna tell ‘em. Tell ‘em. Then tell ‘em what you told ‘em" will aid engagement for the student and casual reader. Letwin (theater arts, Rutgers Univ.), Joe Stockdale (emeritus, theater arts, SUNY, Purchase), and journalist Robin Stockdale begin each chapter with an overview with general examples, then present a dissection of the topic at hand, and, finally, offer a summarization. They cover the Aristotelian ground of the subtitle deeply and broadly, using examples from 20th-century film and theater. The examination of the structure of a play’s plot takes up about one-fourth of the total text, and the authors use this opportunity to describe in detail the integral components of plot, each component possessing a structural metaphor. The same holds true for character, theme, genre, and style, and each element is dissected and explained in a thorough and thoughtful way.—Larry Schwartz, Minnesota State Univ. Lib., Moorhead
Newman, Sarah (text) & Jeanie Mellersh (illus.). Small Steps Forward: Using Games and Activities To Help Your Pre-School Child with Special Needs. 2d ed. Jessica Kingsley. Sept. 2008. c.272p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 978-1-84310-693-7. pap. $19.95. CHILD REARING
Verdict: Although this book is detailed and helpful, the British slant is a problem, going beyond the use of British spelling and terms such as nappies. More of a concern are the references to Makaton signing, the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice, and the British Society for Music Therapy (UK-specific). Consequently, this work may be useful in specific special-needs collections in public and academic libraries, but it is not a necessary purchase for libraries in this country.
Background: Newman, a former administrator and fund-raiser in British higher education, is also the mother of a child who was diagnosed first as developmentally delayed, then as autistic. As with the award-winning first edition of this book, the author here attempts to offer information on special needs that she herself needed but hadn’t been able to find. The text, not designed to be read in one sitting, is clearly divided into the following chapters: "How To Survive," "What Everyone Needs To Know," "Cognitive Development," "Language Development," "Physical Development," "Sensory Development," "Social Development," "Emotional Development," "Everyday Living—Behaviour, Sleep and Toileting," "The Support Your Child Should Expect," and Resources.—Elizabeth Safford, Nevins Memorial Lib., Methuen, MA
Rodgers, Rick (text) & Ben Fink (photogs.). Summer Gatherings: Casual Food To Enjoy with Family and Friends. Morrow. 2008. 164p. photogs. index. ISBN 978-0-06-143850-9. $17.95. COOKERY
Verdict: This is a cookbook that will fly off the shelves of a public library display area, not only for the vibrant photos but also for the simply elegant food selections.
Background: The smell of grilled corn, fragrant, sweet basil from the garden, and chilled gazpacho are some of the senses you will experience in this cookbook that blends easy entertaining with the bounty of summer produce. Rodgers (Dip It!), acclaimed author of over 30 cookbooks, selects more than 50 recipes refined to simple splendor, such as Potato Salad with Green Beans and Pesto, including an ingredient list, step-by-step directions, and photographs that will leave your mouth watering and tummy rumbling, all spread out in a modern graphic design. Other refreshing dishes include Watermelon, Tomato, and Mint Salad and an elegant but not too fussy Grilled Chicken with Rosemary White Barbecue Sauce. Rodgers even includes helpful hints on how to select the best peaches for Sour Cream Peach Pie.—Kristen Mastel, MINITEX Lib. Information Network, Minneapolis
Scarf, Maggie. September Songs: The Bonus Years of Marriage. Riverhead: Penguin Group (USA). Sept. 2008. c.256p. bibliog. ISBN 978-1-59448-850-4. $24.95. PSYCH
Verdict: Throughout, Scarf inserts her own reflections as a contemporary in the age bracket of 50 to 75. The result is 
a chatty yet well-researched treatise on the state of marriage in this young-old group. For public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 5/1/08.]
Background: Journalist Scarf has written an upbeat sequel of sorts to her best-selling Intimate Partners: Patterns in Love and Marriage, published some 20 years ago. In this group of interviews, she revisits some of the couples with whom she had spoken in the late 1980s. Consulting with scholars, she devised a set of questions that she put to each of the couples; each was interviewed as a pair and then separately. The intent was not a statistical catalog of their answers but rather a feel for how couples are experiencing the later part of their lives together; on the whole, everyone seemed to be enjoying it. Scarf notes the large increase in life span for Americans and offers detailed explanations of how this has changed the ways in which people look at their activities, health, wealth, and retirement. A chapter is devoted to the narrative of a couple’s life, then follows a discussion of an issue the particular couple has faced.—Margaret Cardwell, Christian Brothers Univ. Lib., Memphis
Sharlet, Jeff. The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. Harper: HarperCollins. 2008. c.464p. index. ISBN 978-0-06-055979-3. $25.95. REL
Verdict: Sharlet’s storytelling is elegant, and his evocation of the mood of theologian Jonathan Edwards’s work is one of the most compelling this reviewer has ever read. Further, his analysis of what such seemin
gly mundane details as the wording of prayers reveal about the mindset of his subjects is perceptive. Highly recommended for public and academic libraries.
Background: Sharlet (editor & founder, www.killingthebuddha.com) has unearthed an occurrence that is all the more startling for its being hidden in plain view: the transformation of Jesus’s teachings by a widespread network of powerful elites in American government, military, and industry into a gospel of laissez-faire capitalism, American imperialism, and control of the masses. In 2002, Sharlet infiltrated this elite fundamentalist network, known as The Family, and lived for weeks with several of its members. Here, he draws on that experience as well as on archival sources and interviews to trace the roots of fundamentalism, follow the mid-20th-century development of The Family by way of cell groups and prayer breakfasts, and explore the populist conversion of these concepts in the present-day setting of the Colorado Springs church of superpastor Ted Haggard.—Nancy E. Adams, Harrisburg Area Community Coll., PA
Steele, Jae. Get It Ripe: A Fresh Take on Vegan Cooking and Living. Arsenal Pulp, dist. by Consortium. 2008. 271p. photogs. index. ISBN 978-1-55152-234-0. pap. $23.95. COOKERY
Verdict: This is a comprehensive guide to veganism as it relates to cuisine, health, and politics. It is essential for public libra
ries and would be a great first purchase if you don’t have any books on vegan cookery.
Background: Doubling as a vegan handbook and cookbook, this spiral-bound volume does an excellent job on both fronts. Steele, a registered holistic nutritionist, describes all the foods she never tried until she became vegan, which might inspire those who think vegan food is boring or severely restricted. The handy "Substitutions" section suggests alternatives to dairy and eggs while mentioning labor and animal-cruelty issues that are worth pondering as you make your choices at the grocery store. There is also a chapter on digestion and nutrients explaining exactly what happens to a carrot after you eat it. The book's second half focuses on recipes. In addition to standard vegan fare, you’ll find tantalizing ideas like Red Star Sauce (mock cheese sauce made with nutritional yeast) and Chocolate Pudding with Chipotle. Back matter includes a section on detoxing your body, a resource list, and an index.—Daisy Porter, West Valley Lib., San José, CA
Trevor-Roper, Hugh. The Invention of Scotland: History and Myth. Yale Univ. 2008. c.304p. illus. index. ISBN 978-0-300-13686-9. $30. HIST
Verdict: Trevor-Roper’s rough manuscript was put into publishable form by a protégé, Jeremy J. Carter, but it lacks a concluding chapter and has some grating repetitiveness. Carter himself points out that several studies exist on the history of Scotland’s self-image. Yet Trevor-Roper’s rendition is unique and deserving of publication. A good addition to all Scottish history collections.
Background: Trevor-Roper (d. 2003), the prolific British historian (The Last Days of Hitler), never backed away from controversy. This posthumously published book is in keeping with his iconoclastic reputation. Written (but never finished) in the late 1970s when there was a strong separatist movement afoot in Scotland and the myths of a unique Scottish legacy were in ascendancy, Trevor-Roper sought to separate the myths from actual historical evidence. He examined the writings of two Scotsmen who played loose with facts in order to give Scotland an aura of legitimacy and grandeur. George Buchanan (1506–82) and James Macpherson (1736–96) wanted to give Scotland a political and literary heritage indigenous to the Highlands when in fact the primitive Scottish clans had no such thing. The men’s efforts bordered on the fraudulent, but they were largely successful in creating a mythical Scottish past that still resonates. After debunking their writings, Trevor Roper takes on the Scottish kilt. He concludes that this venerated garb was the invention of 18th-century British Quaker industrialist Thomas Rawlinson and not the proud uniform of Highland warriors.—Jim Doyle, Rome, GA
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