Non-Fiction of Choice
Bryson, Bill. A Short History of Nearly Everything. Broadway Books, 2003. The title says it all. In Short History, Bryson turns his signature dry humor on daunting fields of science such as astronomy, cosmology, physics genetics, and chemistry and makes them not only accessible but also interesting and, at times, hilarious. In one instance, we are told of "a chemist named Pilatre de Rozier [who] tested the flammability of hydrogen by gulping a mouthful and blowing across an open flame, proving at a stroke that hydrogen is indeed explosively combustible and that eyebrows are not necessarily a permanent feature of one's face (p. 59)." Some readers may be put off by the intimidating length of the book—478 pages without the endnotes--but Bryson's style is so conversational and witty that this book is a much faster read than most would expect. Whether you loved or hated science in school, Short History will give you a perspective on it that you have probably never had before.
Davis, Paige. Paige by Paige: A Year of Trading Spaces. Meredith Books, 2003. Paige Davis serves as the host of the wildly popular TLC (The Learning Channel) program, Trading Spaces, where two sets of homeowners redecorate a room in each other’s home in two days, for $1000 each. In diary format, Paige offers her readers a glimpse into the inner workings of the show. She also shares her private life, including anecdotes about her marriage, hotels, restaurants, and life on the road in general. Its fun format and numerous pictures make this a must read for any Trading Spaces fan.
Edward, John. After Life: Answers From the Other Side. Princess Books, 2003. Internationally acclaimed psychic medium John Edward takes his talents to new countries in his fourth book, After Life: Answers from the Other Side. Join John and a documentary crew "Down Under" in Australia and across the United States, where he demonstrates once again that grief, healing, and hope are eternally intertwined and universal. John answers your most often-asked questions about how the mediumship process works on the "other side," while taking you on the inside of his own personal life as a husband and new father. He shares what he’s learned through his own recent, personal losses and demonstrates that you’re never too late to forgive—and never too far away to love. In After Life, as he does on his highly rated hit show, Crossing Over with John Edward, John will also connect you with celebrities both here and on the other side—because, as John happily notes, there are no red-velvet ropes or VIP sections over there!
Felix, Antonia.Condi: The Condoleezza Rice Story. Newmarket Press, 2002. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Condoleezza Rice currently serves as National Security Advisor to President George W. Bush. Felix chronicles Rice’s life from her days growing up in Titusville to her current position as one of the most powerful women in the Bush administration. The writing is simplistic, and the book reads more as a young adult biography than an adult biography. The author never interviewed Ms. Rice herself, although she spoke with numerous relatives and friends of the Rice family. Thus the reader is left wanting more detail about certain events, such as the September 11th aftermath, which Felix seems to skim over. Nevertheless, this is currently the only non-juvenile biography available on Ms. Rice, and it will suffice until a more complete, authorized biography is published.
Gehring, Wes. Carole Lombard: The Hoosier Tornado. Indiana Historical Society Press, 2003. Lombard (1908-1942) was the brightest star in screwball comedy's constellation, and her tragic death at 33 made her a Hollywood legend. Ball State film professor Gehring celebrates Lombard's many gifts in this valentine. Born in Fort Wayne, Ind., and raised in California, Lombard has a quintessentially American, star-is-born saga: she parlayed talent and timing into a stellar career and marriage to Clark Gable, the king of MGM. In fact, Lombard, who often doubled as an uncredited producer, loved all things cinematic. A keen intelligence and show-biz savvy defined her as much as her boundless energy. The screen siren was fiercely democratic and wildly generous. Her fame grew with the movie industry-from early Mack Sennett shorts to the deft comic genius of My Man Godfrey and Nothing Sacred-and she embraced all the 20th century had to offer: feminism, free love and fun. Possessing classic beauty yet renowned for her eccentricity and ability to swear like a sailor, Lombard was also a survivor. A car crash, when she was 17, nearly ruined her budding career, and only plastic surgery and, in her words, "determination and tenacity" kept her on film. Her undeniable charm bewitched many leading men of the 1930s, including George Raft and first husband William Powell. Lombard, who longed to flex her dramatic muscle, was killed in her prime. When she was heading home after a war bonds drive, her plane crashed. Gehring is clearly in love with his subject and details Lombard's life, times and some delicious backstage gossip with a historian's eye and a biographer's appetite for discovery. FYI: This is the first in the press's Indiana Biography Series, which pairs Indiana writers with Indiana subjects of note.
Golden, Eve. Platinum Girl: The Life & Legend of Jean Harlow. Abbeville Press, 1991. In his notorious Harlow: An Intimate Biography, Irving Shulman portrayed Harlow, the platinum blonde screen idol of the 1930s, as a drug-addled sex-fiend. Journalist Golden tries to salvage Harlow's reputation with this new biography, priding herself on good taste and careful research. Unfortunately, Golden's "nice" Harlow isn't anywhere near as interesting as Shulman's. Golden's portrait of the actress is a vague, colorless assemblage of data that doesn't quite add up. For instance, how does Harlow's avowed detestation of her sex-bomb image mesh with her passion for flashy diamonds and transparent dinner dresses? It's tempting to guess that the truth about Harlow falls somewhere between Shulman's Hollywood Babylon version and Golden's sanitized one.
Holmes, Anna (ed.). Hell Have No Fury: Women’s Letters From the End of the Affair. Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2002. Whether a two-line note, a brief e-mail, an expansive retelling of a romance or a lamenting farewell, each letter in journalist Holmes's first book offers a snapshot from the end of an affair. With anger, sorrow, wit, intelligence and whining, such authors as Sylvia Plath, Mary Wollstonecraft, Anne Boleyn, Charlotte Bronte, Virginia Woolf and countless lesser-known women analyze what went wrong, say good-bye and address the future, some more happily than others, some impulsively and others with great forethought. Chapters group similar letters (the "tell off," the "just friends," the "marriage refusal," the "unsent letter," etc.), mixing contemporary and historical compositions, so that Monica Lewinsky's 1997 e-mail to President Bill Clinton follows Aline Bernstein's 1930s' correspondence with Thomas Wolfe in the "silent treatment" chapter, and the letter from a young woman named Lois to serviceman Harry Leister during WWII follows Valley of the Dolls author Jacqueline Susann's 1942 missive to film producer Irving Mansfield in the "Dear John" chapter. Holmes's comprehensive collection includes letters from epistolary and narrative novels beginning with Ovid's Heroides; prescriptive letters culled from letter-writing manuals; and unsent letters from as recently as October 2001. The careful reader will appreciate the subtle differences between many of the letters, but will have to plow through a quantity of less interesting work before happening on a gem. Many of the letters cannot stand on their own and beg for greater context and additional details about the author and the relationship. Still, literary romantics will have fun thumbing through this unique assemblage of send off notes.
Humes, Edward. School of Dreams: Making the Grade at a Top American High School. Harcourt, 2003. School of Dreams is the chronicle of a year at one of the nation's top-ranked public high schools, Whitney High School in Cerritos, California. Whitney, though a public school, is selective; an entrance test is required and the school attracts students from throughout the world. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Humes spends the year advising the seniors on writing college application essays and interviewing the students on their future plans and on how they cope with the pressures of high school and the demands of their parents. Humes' book is an eye-opening look at the stressed-filled life of high school students and is recommended for anyone interested in education.
Kagan, Robert. Of Paradise and Power: America and Europe in the New World Order. Alfred A Knopf, 2003. This is a concise and credible explanation of the diverging views of America and the European countries on international politics and policies, as well as on the purposes and goals of government. Discussing the psychologies of power and weakness, Kagan points out how these perspectives have developed during the past century as world power structures have changed. Today European countries tend to prefer to devote their resources to achieving "paradise" on earth rather than building and exercising military power, and to look toward negotiation and cooperation to solve conflicts, whereas the United States, having developed great power during the Cold War years, tends to use its might to resolve conflicts. The author's understanding of the topic and his clarity in writing make this a really fascinating book to read, even for those who are not history or politics buffs.
Keller, Phillip. What Makes Life Worth Living. Kregal Publications, 2003. A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 was the first of Keller's book that brought an enlightened perspective to the psalms-now when reading about sheep and pastures, valleys and the Shepherd's care. What Makes Life Worth Living boils down the cares of daily living to what is most important. At the end of the day how do we feel about ourselves, who we are, how we related to others and what we did that day, that week or year? Keller has definite opinions and beliefs about all of this and he shares it with his readers. Whether you agree with him or not, he certainly aids one along the road to thoughtful contemplation.
King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion: the All-purpose Baking Cookbook. Countryman Press, 2003. Anyone who loves to bake (and eat) will find this book hard to put down. Recipes where collected by King Arthur Flour employee-owners and then tested and retested in the King Arthur Flour Kitchens. Many universal favorites along with some interesting new variations are included, and all recipes call for readily available ingredients. Instructions are clear, some accompanied by sketches. Nutritional information follow each recipe. Wonderful helpful hints on baking problems are in highlighted boxes through our, as well as helpful tips for individual recipes as indicated.. For example there is a discussion of the best way to knead bread, concluding, to my surprise, that kneading with a bread machine produces the best loaf. These features and the easy to read type will make this a great choice for the novice baker as well as those more advanced.
Kolata, Gina. Ultimate Fitness: The Quest for Truth About Exercise and Health. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2003. Kolata, a self-proclaimed skeptic conditioned by long years of science reporting, leads the reader though a fascinating examination of the science and myth that are woven through the field of fitness. The mixture of history, interviews, and personal anecdotes makes the book enjoyable to read, and Kolata's passion for her topic is evident. She relates the beginnings of the aerobics movement, the evolution of ideas concerning target heart rate, the Spinning phenomenon, the benefits of weight lifting, and the "business" of fitness and certification. She does not provide an exercise prescription, nor is her book likely to motivate a couch potato; it will however provide a good read for those interested in the field of fitness either from a personal or professional standpoint.
Krantz, Les (editor). Not Till the Fat Lady Sings: The Most Dramatic Sports Finishes of All Time. Triumph Books, 2003. Les Krantz has compiled accounts of fifty dramatic sports finishes and Dick McKay narrates the DVD in this entertaining package. Entries include: Doug Flutie's "Hail Mary" pass to Gerard Phelan in Boston College's win over Miami in 1984; Joe Frazier's unanimous decision victory over Muhammad Ali in 1971 to retain the heavyweight title; the Bobby Allison/Cale Yarborough fistfight that allowed Richard Petty to win the 1979 Daytona 500; and Franco Harris's "Immaculate Reception" from quarterback Terry Bradshaw in the Pittsburgh Steelers' win over Oakland in the 1972 AFC playoffs. Michael Jordan, Joe Montana, Jack Nicklaus and many others are participants in the other forty-six entries. It's fun to see which ones you remember and which ones you have at least heard about.
LaSalle, Mick. Complicated Women: Sex & Power in Pre-Code Hollywood. St. Martin Press, 2000. Between 1929 and 1934, Hollywood was governed by a voluntary code of decency. During this period, women characters were often tough-talking, sexually aggressive, and independent. Under pressure from church and state decency groups, a code with enforcement powers was implemented in 1934. The effect of the 1934 code (which remained in effect until the late 1960s) has been hotly debated recently. LaSalle, film critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, makes it clear what he thinks, blasting the code as a measure "to prevent women from having fun. It was designed to put the genie back in the bottle and the wife back in the kitchen." He calls the code, as enforced by Joseph Breen, "anti-art," anti-woman, and anti-Semitic. However, LaSalle's main purpose is to celebrate the short-lived era of "complicated women," as personified by the early films of Marlene Dietrich, Jean Harlow, Myrna Loy, and others. In particular, this book is an unabashed valentine to Greta Garbo and Norma Shearer. It features insights on significant scenes from pre-code films and evaluates some modern counterparts to the great ladies of the early 1930s.
Longman, Jere. Among the Heroes: United Flight 93 and the Passengers and Crew Who Fought Back. HarperCollins Publishers, 2002. Among the Heroes: United Flight 93 and the Passengers and Crew Who Fought Back is the moving account of the extraordinary passengers and crew aboard United Flight 93 which was the fourth plane hijacked on September 11, 2001. New York Times reporter Jere Longman details the remarkable lives of the passengers and crew of United Flight 93 set against the backdrop of the terrible events that unfolded during the airplane’s hijacking. Many of the passengers phoned their families after the hijacking occurred and learned of the other hijackings which had used commercial airplanes as suicide missions to attack the World Trade Center. This is the story of the heroic efforts of these passengers and crew to fight back against the terrorists, ultimately saving perhaps hundreds or thousands of lives. You will weep but also cheer with the heroes of United Flight 93 who inspired a nation with their courage.
Nichloli, Arman, Jr. The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud Debate God, Love, Sex and the Meaning of Life. The Free Press,2002. Using biographical information and excerpts from writings of Freud and Lewis, Nicholi sets up a virtual debate between thee two brilliant and influential twentieth century thinkers. The core question is the existence of God and the meaning of life, which encompasses the problem of suffering and death and other moral beliefs. The author's familiarity with this subject, which he has researched and taught for 25 years as a professor of psychiatry at Harvard, and his writing ability make this a clear and concise exposition of these questions which most readers will find fascinating.
Roeper, Richard. Ten Sure Signs a Movie Character is Doomed and Other Surprising Movie Lists. Hyperion, 2003. This is a compilation of very entertaining lists compiled by film critic Roeper, co-host of Ebert and Roeper that can be read at one sitting. You will agree with some and you may disagree with others, but you will enjoy reading all of them. So find out which 12 actors and actresses took off their clothes when they should have kept them on and what 10 bad songs were put to use in good movies and other irrelevant and often irreverent opinions are held by this critic.
Schwartz, Pepper. The Lifetime Love and Sex Quiz Book. Hyperion, 2002. Do you fight fair? Do you put your relationship first? Do you rate a second date? Who really has the power in your relationship? For a fun and provocative way to find the answers to these and other questions check out this small book and test your love I.Q. Section One- Dating: What you need to know about yourself - or about him - to find what you're looking for - and keep it. Section Two: Everything you need to know about the right love for you and how to maintain love in a relationship. Section Three: All about handling issues of possible conflict or momentous decisions. Section Four: What you need to know about building a great sex life.
Stenn, David. Bombshell: The Life & Death of Jean Harlow. Lightning Bug Press, 2000. Rather winning life of Jean Harlow, with some revisions on the tale offered by Samuel Marx and Joyce Vanderveen in Deadly Illusions (1990)--and many fresh interviews plus a handful of new folks speaking out who have kept silent until now. Stenn (the well-received Clara Bow, 1988) gives a sympathetic, well-rounded Harlow--one immensely superior to the Harlow (1965) by Irving Shulman and Arthur Landau that prompted two scurrilous film bios back in the mid-60's--but he doesn't actually add much to the Harlow we already know. Aside from massaging the boot blows by Shulman and Landau, and cleaning up the suicide of Harlow's second husband, producer Paul Bern, this is more a refresher course than a set of discoveries. The big, definitive life is yet to be written, although most of Harlow's intimates are dead and still fresher material than Stenn's is not likely. The best qualities here are Stenn's attention to his subject's acting and the growth of her talent, and Harlow's often physical presence on the page, especially in her wacky nude scenes with studio photographers and at parties, and in Stenn's capturing of her shyness, the modesty at the core of the woman, which her nude moments only enforce. Yes, Jean Harlow, aided by her mother, would ice her breasts to a tight firmness and play scenes braless--but this was "Jean Harlow'' the image and top moneymaker for MGM, not Harlean Carpenter, the towhead deep inside the image. The biggest villain in this bio is Mother Jean, "who had slave-driven her [daughter] to stardom, sabotaged her marriages, squandered her money, and sacrificed her happiness.'' Harlow, going by Stenn, was marked for early death when her mother, a Christian Scientist, didn't have Jean properly diagnosed at 15 for the nephritic infection that killed her at 26. Between takes, a platinum Venus sits firmly on your lap, knitting socks. (Sixty photos) Of the two biographies listed here, this is the more even handed and factual.
Shales, Tom and James Andrew Miller. Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live. Little, Brown and Company, 2002. [As told by its stars, writers and guests.] This is an oral history of Saturday Night Live from its inception in 1974 through 2002. If you have ever liked the show, you will enjoy this book. It is nearly 600 pages of informal talk about everyone by everyone involved with the show. You can pick and choose what you read or just read it straight through. I can almost guarantee that you will be interested and discover some things will surprise you as well as affirm some of your suspicions.
Wilkinson, Bruce. A Life God Rewards: Why Everything You Do Today Matters Forever. Multnomah, 2002. In easy to read, straight-forward language, Bruce Wilkinson discusses the reality of rewards that the faithful servants of Jesus will receive in heaven for obedient service to Him while on earth. According to Wilkinson, your belief or non-belief in Jesus Christ determines where you will spend eternity (Heaven or Hell). How you behave while on earth determines the amount of compensation or reward you will receive in heaven. Jesus, the faithful judge, will reward each individual accordingly and every action on earth has eternal consequences.
Winchester, Simon. Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded, August 27 1883. Harper-Collins, 2003. No catalogue of natural disasters would be complete without the explosion of the volcano Krakatoa in 1883. Horrific in its force, the final blast of the volcano (after several preliminary detonations) was heard thousands of miles away and the shock wave was recorded as having traveled around the earth seven times. Readers of Krakatoa will be fascinated by these details, but Winchester also devotes plenty of attention to the history and social conditions of the Indonesian archipelago in which the event took place and illustrates how the explosion of the volcano produced far-reaching social changes as well as geographical ones. Intricately crafted and absorbing, Krakatoa leaves you feeling as if you were present at the event—and very glad that you were not.
Recommended Reference Books
Eberhart, George. Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology. ABC-CLIO Inc., 2002. ISBN 1576072835. Features over a thousand entries on mysterious and legendary creatures. Has information about Loch Ness, Big Foot, and hundreds of others. It ha a geographical index, plus an index of water creatures, some even in Alabama. An excellent source for students on strange creatures.
Essential Histories Series. Osprey Publishing. An excellent series on military history and modern conflicts. Some of the series titles cover the American Civil War, Alexander the Great, the Persian Gulf War, and the Greek and Persian Wars, more than 71 titles in all. Each book has colored illustrations, maps, photographs, and more. This is a great resource for students and is easily affordable for all libraries.
Hiro, Dilip. The Essential Middle East. Carroll & Graf Publishers, 2003. ISBN 0786712694. Set in Dictionary Form, this book provides update information on Middle East History, from ancient time up to modern times. This is a must have for any reference collection.
Lightfoot, Neil. How We Got The Bible, 3rd Ed. Baker Books, 2003. ISBN 080101252X. An excellent book for patrons interested in Bible history.
Morton, Lisa. The Halloween Encyclopedia. McFarland & Co., 2003. ISBN 078641524X. An excellent resource for information about Halloween and other Halloween festivals around the world. This is the first reference work to dwell solely to Halloween. Provides information about Halloween history, traditions, and hundreds of other entries.
Public Records Online, 4th Ed. Facts on Demand Press, 2003. ISBN 1889150371. A thorough resource for finding government information and records on the Internet. Provides searching hints for the novice searcher.
October 8, 2003
