Brazil. ABC-CLIO. (Latin America in Focus). Dec. 2015. 414p. ed. by Antonio Luciano de Andrade Tosta & Eduardo F. Coutinho. photos. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781610692571. $89; ebk. ISBN 9781610692588. REF

Citing “Brazilian studies” as a growing field of inquiry, this second entry (following Venezuela) in the series consists of seven chapters offering scholarly analysis and an interdisciplinary tour through what is frequently referred to as “the country of the future,” given its rich supply of natural resources and relatively young population. This reference from Tosta (Brazilian literature & culture, Univ. of Kansas) and Coutinho (comparative literature, Federal Univ. of Rio de Janeiro) covers Brazilian history from 1500s to the present, with the country’s increased presence on the world stage owing to hosting the 2014 World Cup and soon-to-come 2016 Summer Olympics discussed (although there is no mention of the concerning issue of the Zika virus). VERDICT This work provides insightful background on a complex, emerging nation.

Cohen, Lisa J. The Handy Psychology Answer Book. 2d ed. Visible Ink. (Handy Answer Book). Mar. 2016. 527p. illus. index. ISBN 9781578595082. pap. $21.95; ebk. ISBN 9781578595990. REF

It boggles most boomers’ minds, but a typical teen may send 1,000 text messages a day from their mobile device. Cohen (psychiatry, Mt. Sinai Beth Israel) addresses the impact of immersive technology on adolescents, the latest revisions to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, and more in this update to her 2011 inaugural edition, which was praised by LJ as a “solid, affordable supplement to introductory psychology texts.” This second edition sticks to the same formula of offering answers, generally a few paragraphs each, to a host of questions (“What did Freud mean by the oral stage?”) set within topical chapters, with Cohen’s discussion of the brain now extended into two chapters. An expanded group of black-and-white photos and a further reading list (still for the entire guide only, not for each chapter) are also included. VERDICT This well-named reference offers pithy peeks into the many facets of the human psyche.

Kelly, Evelyn B. The 101 Most Unusual Diseases and Disorders. Greenwood. Nov. 2015. 287p. index. ISBN 9781610696753. $89; ebk. ISBN 9781610696760. REF

What the dickens is Pickwickian syndrome? Prolific medical writer Kelly (Alzheimer’s Disease) defines this breathing problem, which is related to obesity (so named since a character in Charles Dickens’s The Pickwick Papers demonstrates its symptoms), as well as 100 other conditions that the author deems “most unusual” in this new compendium. The book is organized into five sections: genetic disorders, mental health disorders, environmental disorders, infectious diseases, and conditions with other or unexplained origins. For each entry, Kelly discusses the ailment’s prevalence (Pickwickian syndrome, for example, is on the rise), diagnosis, and treatment (if any) and provides some case-study sidebars (including Elizabeth Smart for Stockholm syndrome). Each entry features a further reading list, aligning with Kelly’s plea to “please remember these diseases are real and affect real people, and should never be taken cavalierly.” VERDICT Kelly presents a solid starter roundup of uncommon conditions.

Miracles: An Encyclopedia of People, Places, and Supernatural Events from Antiquity to the Present. ABC-CLIO. Jan. 2016. 478p. ed. by Patrick J. Hayes. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781610695985. $89; ebk. ISBN 9781610695992. REF

Believe them or not, reports of miracles have cultural significance. In this new book, editor Hayes (archivist, the Redemptorists of the Baltimore Province, PA; The Making of Modern Immigration) and many other scholars provide A–Z essays on a host of people, places, and things (C.S. Lewis, Caribbean voodoo, amulet) connected to supernatural claims throughout history. Each entry provides recommended readings, with Hayes noting, “It has been well over a century since the last attempt of assembling a similar volume,” citing E. Cobham Brewer’s A Dictionary of Miracles: Imitative, Realistic and Dogmatic as this volume’s precursor. VERDICT An illuminating survey course in world miracles.

Moore, Jennifer Grayer. Fashion Fads Through American History: Fitting Clothes into Context. Greenwood. Dec. 2015. 325p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781610699013. $89; ebk. ISBN 9781610699020. REF

In 1990, Vogue magazine featured that most glamorous fashion accessory: the fanny pack. In this new reference, art and design historian Moore traces the trajectory of 95 style crazes that have captivated the country, from paisley shawls (1840–1960) to rainbow-colored hair (a four-year “thing” now in fade-out, Moore says, as of last year). She organizes her discussion into thematic chapters, exploring the hip-hop world’s defiant “One Pant Leg Rolled Up (1995–96),” for example, within “Self-Styled, Reworked and Re-imagined: Consumers in Control of Fashion Fads,” then covers the trends within chapters chronologically. VERDICT Entertaining, insightful fashion scholarship for all readers.

The Princeton Handbook of Poetic Terms. 448p. pap. ISBN 9780691170435. The Princeton Handbook of World Poetries. 608p. pap. ISBN 9780691170510.

ea. vol: 3d. ed. Princeton Univ. May 2016. ed. by Roland Greene & Stephen Cushman. bibliog. index. $35. REF

As has been done with past editions, two additional references have been drawn from the latest update of The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics, edited by Greene (English & comparative literature, Sch. of Humanities & Sciences, Stanford Univ.) and Cushman (English, Univ. of Virginia). These include the latest edition of The Princeton Handbook of Poetic Terms, with descriptions of 226 terms and concepts, from accent to zeugma, and The Princeton Handbook of World Poetries, whose most recent predecessor was 1996’s The Princeton Handbook of Multicultural Poetries, and consists of 165 entries about more than 100 regional, national, and disaporic language traditions throughout the world. VERDICT Helpful spin-offs from an acclaimed “mother” volume.—Judy Quinn, formerly with Library Journal