April 2016 Prime Picks
New Age
Communing with
the Ancestors
Raven Grimassi
Weiser Books
9781578635931 $17.95
www.redwheelweiser.com
Raven Grimassi's Communing with the Ancestors: Your Spirit Guides,
Bloodline Allies, and the Cycle of Reincarnation shows how to
communicate and make contact with spirits, and discusses traditional
methods and adds folklore and superstition into the mix.
More than a focus on the usual séance methods, it also includes
information on offerings and altars, reviews of techniques and
equipment, the histories of ancient practices and new approaches, and
surveys of power places and portals, creating wide-ranging discussions
of reincarnation's many possibilities.
The result is a practical 'how to' application of concepts that will
prove interesting to any new age reader seeking an overall primer on
the subject.
The Witches' Almanac Ltd.
www.TheWitchesAlmanac.com
Charles Leland's The Witchcraft of Dame Darrel of York (9780982432334,
$65.00) is a 'must have' reference for any collection strong in Wiccan
history or culture, and gives a full account of Witchcraft practices in
medieval England as practiced by 'wise woman' Dame Darrell.
Darrell's account was originally a hand-written manuscript produced and
illustrated by folk scholar Charles Godfrey Leland, who enhances the
story of Darrell's life and times by adding further insights on her
witchcraft practices.
A section of full-page color reproductions of this handwritten
manuscript are accompanied by the typed manuscript in a second section,
making it easy to move between the original or its cleaner copy.
Charles Leland's ongoing fascination with magic and Witchcraft produces
a gorgeous piece here: the only surprise is that it hasn't appeared in
print before. Its importance will surely be recognized by any
collection with more than a casual interest in the subject.
David Conway's Magic: An Occult Primer (9781881098379, $24.95) at first
glance might seem to join many similar-sounding books on the market
already, but this classic first appeared in 1972 and its reprint here
indicates its ongoing importance as a foundation work, offering all
levels of reader insights defining magic, its premises, and how it
works.
From difficulties in handling the magic dimension to prophecies,
demons, the use of rituals, and understanding the symbols of magic,
this is a solid discussion which needs to be in any new age
collection.
Biography & Autobiography
Gordon Bennett
and the First Yacht Race Across the Atlantic
Sam Jefferson
Bloomsbury
9781462916730 $27.00
www.bloomsbury.com
Gordon Bennett
and the First Yacht Race Across the Atlantic
is a lively story covering the first offshore yacht race in general and
Gordon Bennett's life and influences in particular, and belongs in any
collection strong in either general biographies or nautical history and
events.
Bennett Jr. was the playboy son of a multimillionaire and was well
known for outrageous stunts, but he was also a serious boater whose
familiarity with his yacht led him to become the only owner captaining
his boat during the first transatlantic race.
Bennett's story and that of those who went along for the ride makes for
a colorful, revealing adventure that will delight any who want to know
more about either Bennett or yachting history.
James Dean: Tomorrow Never Comes
Darwin Porter & Danforth Prince
Blood Moon Productions
9781936003495 $28.95
www.bloodmoonproductions.com
James Dean:
Tomorrow Never Comes arrives on the 60th anniversary of the
violent death of a young star that became a legend, but if readers who
are prior fans of other James Dean biographies expect this to be
another rehash of information, they'd be happily mistaken.
Much of its information has never been published before, because it
offers new unauthorized details, uncensored information, and also
includes powerful, in-depth analysis of a supporting cast of
contemporaries. Insights from a closeted TV producer who first
discovered James Dean, and others who interacted with him and often
suffered from his mental swings and murky sexual explorations add to
and expand the existing popular literature on this icon.
From Dean's early TV career and his involvements with other actors and
actresses to the truths about his sexual liaisons, the parade of women
who marched into and out of his life, and his frustrations in the
industry, James Dean: Tomorrow Never Comes makes for a vivid read
especially recommended for prior fans of Dean's life and times.
Be forewarned: this audience shouldn't expect a light coverage. The
in-depth survey, with its amazingly large cast of contemporaries and
characters, myths refuted and realities explored, and high-octane drama
packs in over seven hundred pages of detail, which may look daunting,
but which offer a rollicking good read.
With so many facts and insights packing its pages, James Dean: Tomorrow
Never Comes is a highly recommended book for any who would uncover more
facets of the life and times of James Dean.
My Confection
Lisa Kotin
Beacon Press
9780807069257 $15.95
www.beacon.org
Think 'substance
abuse' and drugs and alcohol come to mind, with
caffeine as an added possibility - but author Lisa Kotin wasn't
addicted to any of these. Her cross to bear was sugar, and My
Confection pairs a memoir of her life with a survey of her ongoing
sugar addiction from childhood to adulthood and how this translated to
wider attitudes about life.
Embedded within this memoir are surveys of health facts, inconsistent
reports on the caloric and health effects of sugar, social and romantic
turmoil where sweetness plays a part, and the ironies and definition of
what makes food healthy.
From guilt and obsession to family patterns and dating, My Confection
moves between sugar and different kinds of addictive patterns,
providing a blend of pointed insights, humorous observation, and
serious assessment on how addiction works. Readers of memoirs in
general and food addiction in particular will find My Confection a
lively, engrossing survey.
Strange As It Seems
Chip Jacobs
Vireo/Rare Bird Lit
9781942600244 $15.95
www.rarebirdbooks.com
Strange As It Seems: The Impossible Life of Gordon Zahler offers an
amazing biography (told by his nephew, Chip Jacobs) of a man who was
initially not expected to live after a swimming accident in 1940
severed his spine at age 14.
Not only did Gordon Zahler survive, but he lived for over thirty years,
defying the limitations introduced by his quadriplegia to live a dream
life, traveling around the world, visiting dangerous places, and having
adventures.
Just how does the class clown face death-defying odds to embark on such
a life, making Hollywood productions and achieving a dizzying amount of
fame during the process of shooting films and even marrying?
Chip Jacobs captures the turbulent ups, downs, successes and failures
of a life well lived in a biography which is vivid, exciting, and
thoroughly engrossing.
Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements
Bob Mehr
Da Capo
9780306818790 $27.50
www.dacapopress.com
Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements belongs in any popular
rock music history collection, with its in-depth coverage of the band's
evolution which pairs band history with over seventy rare photos.
It's based on new interviews and was written with the help of the
band's key members, and reveals the forces which influenced the band's
development, its phenomenal success, and why (in its early years) it
almost failed.
The group rose to fame during the 1980s and its upward rise mirrors the
era's social and political changes. Their partnership with Warner's
Sire Records label and their move from an indie band to major label
status made them the first indie band to move up in the music business.
No rock music history collection should be without this definitive,
lively coverage.
The Computer Corner
C++ Without
Fear, 3rd Edition
Brian Overland
Prentice Hall
9780134314303 $34.99
www.informit.com/ph
The third
updated edition of C++ Without Fear covers all the basics of
installing and using not just the free Microsoft Visual C++ version,
but all versions of C++, and is a fine reference recommended even for
relative newcomers to programming.
Chapters include short examples and exercises, teach foundation skills
that can be used with other languages and programming efforts, and
offer tips, tricks, and insights into different C++ features.
The exercises focus on games and real-world applications and the entire
approach has been simplified to explain the basics in such a way as to
make C++ and programming both fun and useful.
Most C++ titles are directed to serious business applications, so it's
refreshing to see an approach that incorporates other interests and
includes the opportunity to learn the language for pleasure purposes as
well as professional pursuits.
Data Management for Researchers
Kristin Briney
Pelagic Publishing
9781784270117
www.pelagicpublishing.com
Data Management for Researchers: Organize, Maintain and Share Your Data
for Research Success joins others in the 'Research Skills' series with
an in-depth guide to data management and manipulation created
especially with the research community in mind.
As digital data sources and results translate to larger chunks of data
and databases available for research purposes, it becomes necessary to
develop different types of data management strategies that use a
researcher's structure and purposes to best advantage. Data
Management for Researchers is one of the few books on the market to
delve into such basics as documenting data, improving analytical
approaches, assuring security for sensitive data, and backing up work.
Examples and case histories pepper the approach, adding interest and
real-world examples to validate the importance of the data management
process in research circles. Without the proper protocols in place,
data may be compromised, corrupted, or even lost - along with the PhD
or study associated with it.
Any serious researcher working with data must make this book a priority
read.
The Scrum Field Guide
Mitch Lacey
Addison Wesley
9780133853629 $47.99
www.informit.com/aw
The Scrum Field Guide: Agile Advice for Your First Year and Beyond
appears in its second updated edition to offer advice based on the
latest Scrum best practices and tools, and is a recommendation for any
computer reference collection strong in software engineering, agile
practices, or Scrum guides.
This is no light revision: entire chapters have been extensively
revamped and include new topics such as collaborative estimation and
business adjustments, while the basics incorporate tips on working with
team members, handling daily scrums, managing risk in Scrum projects,
running retrospectives, and understanding when and how to document.
Chapters are packed with charts, graphs, and technical information that
includes the bigger picture of how to progress in a Scrum environment,
how to know when a project is done, and how to fine-tune it.
No business or software engineering collection should be without this
primer, which comes packed with real-world examples and
applications.
The
Culinary Corner
100 Million
Years of Food
Stephen Le
Picador
9781250050410 $26.00
www.picadorusa.com
College-level collections strong in culinary history and cooks and
foodies interested in a survey of the human diet from an
anthropological and biological perspective will relish 100 Million
Years of Food: What Our Ancestors Ate and Why it Matters Today.
While many college-level science holdings will acquire this for its
focus on science, 100 Million Years of Food is featured here because
any reader with more than a casual interest in food and nutrition will
find it an important examination that considers evolution's connections
to food habits and changing trends.
Stephen Le traveled the world to examine how different people grow,
raise, forage for and gather food, with an eye to profiling sustainable
practices.
Add a social and biological survey of how these habits changed over
eons for a thorough discussion of food trends, including questions
about health and morality and better insights into what foods are
popular today and why.
Afternoon Tea at Home
Will Torrent
Ryland and Peters
9781849757027 $24.95
www.rylandpeters.com
Afternoon Tea at Home pairs lovely full-page color photos by Matt
Russell with recipes for sandwiches, cakes, and small desserts and
savory dishes suitable for a mid-afternoon tea, and takes the British
tea tradition to new levels as it tells how to stock a basic pantry and
offers recipes anyone can duplicate successfully.
From a Red Wine Poached Pear, Stilton and Endive on Walnut Bread to Jam
and Coconut Cakes and Golden Ginger Custard Creams, this mostly-sweet
cookbook provides small batches and flavor combinations that lend to
small bites to be paired with tea.
There are other mid-day tea cookbooks on the market, but the colorful
photos and contemporary recipes create a standout in this title,
especially recommended for those who would reproduce the appeal of a
British tea with modern flair.
The Cookie Companion
Georganne Bell
Front Table Books/Cedar Fort
9781462116959 $21.99
www.cedarfort.com
The Cookie Companion: A Decorator's Guide isn't just another guide to
icing and decorating cookies: it provides color formulas and palettes
for producing unusual colors and tells how to create and decorate
mermaids, seahorses, palm trees, and more.
Recipes for cookies accompany step-by-step instructions on how to
decorate them, with chapters clarifying the process of creating a
cookie outline and painting it, using disposable icing bags, and using
meringue powder.
Step-by-step color photos clarify this information while cookie recipes
create basic templates for a variety of successfully decorated
creations.
Most cookie decorator competitors cover the basics of using materials;
but this one goes a step further in exploring how to create eye-popping
colors and cookie shapes that move well above the norm.
Kansas City: A Food Biography
Andrea Broomfield
Rowman & Littlefield
9781442232884 $38.00
www.rowman.com
Joining others (not seen by this reviewer) in the 'Big City Food
Biographies' series is a survey of dining and food in Kansas City, a
town well known for both its music and its barbecue.
Readers who plan a trip to Kansas City or who want to know more of its
culinary history will appreciate the focus on how its foods evolved and
how the town's growth led it to develop unique dishes and special
Midwestern flavors.
It should be noted that Kansas City: A Food Biography is no light
coverage: anticipate a college-level reader that includes discussions
of Kansas City's evolving culture, politics, social atmosphere, and
immigrant influences: all of which contributed to the region's culinary
heritage.
Savor
Ilona Oppenheim
Artisan
9781579656669 $29.95
www.artisan.com
Savor: Rustic Recipes Inspired by Forest, Field, and Farm comes from an
author who was born in Switzerland and who now lives in Aspen, and
pairs gorgeous full-page color photos of various foods with farm-fresh
recipes from farm and field, from Peach Tart and Pine Nut Cookies to
homemade Fruit Rolls and Rosemary-Flavored Popcorn.
The strong visuals are just one of the delights of this cookbook, which
focuses on recipes based on ingredients that can be either grown or
foraged.
Many common culinary challenges in this process are solved since the
author prefaces each recipe with tips for success, such as the
technique of burying beets in coarse sea salt before baking them to
achieve perfection for a Beet Salad, or learning how to locate
chanterelle mushrooms in the wild.
Highly recommended for any cook who wants not just recipes, but
insights on the process of gathering food and perfecting
dishes.
Sweet as Sin
Susan Benjamin
Prometheus Books
9781633881402 $18.00
www.prometheusbooks.com
Sweet as Sin: The Unwrapped Story of How Candy Became America's
Favorite Pleasure joins a number of other candy books on the market -
with a difference.
Most of its competitors are cookbooks and a few are histories, but
Sweet as Sin comes from a food historian and candy expert who moves
beyond American favorites to how candy was developed around the world,
how it came to America, and uniquely American innovations that led to
new developments.
There's also a focus on the individuals who contributed to the
evolution of candy, including Native Americans who created pemmican and
how stick candy and 'candy butchers' evolved.
With its lively insights and black and white illustrations throughout,
Sweet as Sin is recommended for any culinary history
collection.
A Year in Cheese
Alex and Leo Guarneri
Frances Lincoln Limited
9780711236417 $29.99
www.franceslincoln.com
A Year in
Cheese: A Seasonal Cheese Cookbook celebrates cheese by
providing over fifty recipes paired with full-page color photos, and
comes from an artisan cheesemonger who focuses on cheeses made using
sustainable methods with special attention given to animal grazing
cycles, optimal milking times, and the best aging process.
A seasonal approach offers cooks ideas for making homemade cheese (or
buying better cheeses) and then using them in a variety of appealing
creations, from a Chilled Tomato Soup with Ricotta and Basil Oil to a
Montgomery Cheddar and Pale Ale Rarebit with Cauliflower and a Baked
Camembert with Rosemary, Honey and Almonds.
With every recipe accompanied by a full-page facing color photo and
discussion of cheese handling and flavors, there's much to like in this
cookbook, which is highly recommended for those who want more than a
simple cheese recipe collection.
Reviewer's Choice
Alight
Scott Sigler
Del Rey
9780553393156 $18.00
www.randomhousebooks.com
Fans
of The Hunger Games who especially appreciate powerful female
protagonists in their sci-fi readings will relish the character of Em,
who awakens in a strange coffin alongside those holding other young
people who have no memory of their identities or their pasts.
Their first challenge is to find a way out of an underground warren of
tunnels and human remains.
Their second task is to find out who they are and why they are there.
And their third task is to survive a hidden enemy that demands they
fight to the death.
Alight is packed with intrigue, mystery, tension as it follows the
story of a girl who becomes an unwitting leader in a group of leaders
who face a dangerous adversary with few clues about their enemy or
their purpose.
Against a backdrop of hidden dangers and many questions, Alight will
delight readers with a chiller that heats up quickly and offers up many
heart-pounding moments.
The Art of Risk
Kayt Sukel
National Geographic
9781428214721 $26.00
www.nationalgeographic.com/
The Art of Risk: The New Science of Courage, Caution, & Chance
applies scientific analysis to a subject usually covered in business
books, considering the latest risk studies and research as it examines
how strategic risk-taking can contribute to success on many levels.
The biology, psychology, and environmental influences of risk-takers
and choices in the risk process are analyzed in chapters that include
case studies filled with statistical and scientific analysis.
Kayt Sukel's lively tone creates a discussion accessible by
general-interest, non-science audiences in a survey that crosses
traditional barriers between business, science, and daily life to
appeal to a much broader audience than is usual for a coverage of
risk.
Continental Divide
Maurice Isserman
W.W. Norton
9780393068504 $28.95
www.wwnorton.com
Continental Divide: A History of American Mountaineering follows the
evolution of mountaineering efforts starting at its earliest days, when
one Darby Field became the first mountaineer in America by climbing
Mount Washington.
In Darby's time (1642) mountains were viewed as dangerous places and
possible havens for beasts and monsters, but by the end of the
Revolutionary War, they were viewed quite differently.
One of the pleasures of Continental Divide lies in its ability to trace
these changes and their effects on the sport, science, and perceptions
of not just mountaineering, but American mountain history. History and
sports collections alike will appreciate this diverse
approach.
Cure Back Pain
Jean-Francois Harvey, BSc, DO
Robert Rose
9780778805311 $24.95
www.robertroseca
Cure Back Pain: 80 Personalized Easy Exercises for Spinal Training to
Improve Posture, Eliminate Tension & Reduce Stress takes a
variety of disciplines, from physical therapy routines to pilates and
yoga, and blends them into a program promoting a holistic approach to
exercises that build muscles and lend to healthier backs.
Step-by-step color photos (surprisingly, a number of them full-page)
compliment self-assessment guidelines to help readers determine which
routines will help their particular conditions.
Some may wish to improve their posture and others are looking for pain
relief; but the pleasure of this title lies in its ability to interest
both audiences by providing exercises that strengthen the back to
reduce or prevent pain.
Any who suffer from a bad back will welcome the many options provided
here and the clear discussions of each exercise and what conditions
they can help.
Half-Earth: Our Planet's Fight for Life
Edward O. Wilson
Liveright
9781631490828 $25.95
www.liveright.com
Half-Earth: Our Planet's Fight for Life discusses the 'sixth
extinction' in greater detail than Elizabeth Kolbert's prior book on
the subject, which won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of thousands
of species that have died off over the last century. It continues the
saga with a closer inspection of environmental analysis, telling how to
move forward with positive ways of supporting biodiversity and
reversing the impacts of climate change.
His idea is radical and involves setting aside half the planet 'in
reserve' (like a massive world park) to preserve ecosystems and
encourage the survival of species within them. These spots are
identified in Half-Earth, along with suggestions for different
approaches to be used in their preservation.
Edward O. Wilson argues that the game is not over, yet, for those with
the vision and resources to consider a very different possibility
promising a more positive outcome.
Heads: A Biography of Psychedelic America
Jesse Jarnow
DaCapo Press
9780306822551 $27.99
www.dacapopress.com
Heads: A Biography of Psychedelic America links the history and use of
recreational drugs with the development of psychedelic culture during
the 1960s, and is a fine "bigger picture" survey of how culture and
psychedelics are linked.
By providing a focus that links how drugs and different generations of
users changed one another, Heads offers a different approach that takes
the foundations of the culture of psychedelic counter-cultures and
considers their lasting effects.
While collections strong in American history and sociology will be the
most likely purchasers of Heads, general-interest libraries will also
welcome it for its lively presentation and involving discussions of how
the history of psychedelic use in America holds lasting effects
today.
The Soul Discovery Coloring Book
Janet Conner
Conari Press
9781573246859 $14.95
www.redwheelweiser.com
The Soul Discovery Coloring Book: Noodle, Doodle, and Scribble Your Way
to an Extraordinary Life provides a companion coloring book to Writing
Down Your Soul, and pairs some twenty questions designed to encourage
imaginative thinking with a book format that inspires scribbling and
coloring.
Unlike the traditional notion of a coloring book which is all about
providing outline structures for filling in, The Soul Discovery
Coloring Book juxtaposes blank page spaces and coloring pages to
encourage doodling and scribbling as well as fill-in coloring; all
these tied together with admonitions and thoughts designed to encourage
spiritual and psychological breakthroughs.
Adults who need some guidance to produce results based on accessing
subconscious feelings and self-guided learning will find this coloring
book's varied approach to be just the ticket to success.
Travelogues
Better Than
Fiction 2
Don George, Editor
Lonely Planet
9781743607497 $15.99
www.lonelyplanet.com
Armchair travel
reads traditionally contain a wealth of information for
anyone who wants to make their journeys from the comfort of a sofa or
who desire to plan a similar excursion; and for either audience, there
are many choices.
Few can equal the one-two punch of Better Than Fiction 2, a collection
of different real-world travel encounters whose destinations traverse
the world and whose approaches range from humorous to dead serious.
Take Fiona Kidman's 'The Road to Lost Places', for one example. Here
the author's journey to Vietnam in the 1990s leads her to explore a
wild, dangerous world where temples and tunnels still hold the
lingering effects of a devastating war.
Or read Suzanne Joinson's 'In a Caucasian Wonderland' for a road trip
to a very different world filled with its unexpected encounters -
despite careful planning.
One thing can be said about travel; and that's that it is an
eye-opening, awakening experience. One could do no better with an
armchair exploration of diverse approaches, places, settings, and
experiences than Better Than Fiction 2.
Selling the Serengeti
Benjamin Gardner
University of Georgia Press
9780820345086 $25.95
www.ugapress.org
Selling the Serengeti: The Cultural Politics of Safari Tourism focuses
on the Maasai people and how ecotourism and game hunting commercial
interests have affected their lives, considering the disparity between
tourist interests and cultural relationships and offering a
college-level study that places tourism interests within the wider
context of changing local social and economic trends.
Chapters are based on Benjamin Gardner's experiences in Tanzania since
1991, his relationship with the Maasai people (which has spanned some
twenty years), and his investigation into how tourism changes local
lives.
From the relationships between political forces and high-profile
international conservation efforts to fostering community-based
conservation practices, chapters draw clear connections between tourist
interests, conservation concerns, and local economics and politics.
Travel and social issues collections alike need this in-depth approach
to a subject which is usually given a much narrower inspection.
Children
and Teens
Children and
Young Adults
The 13th Continuum
Jennifer Brody
Turner Publishing
9781681622552 $14.95
www.turnerpublishing.com
Young adults who
relish dystopian stories of survival will love The
13th Continuum, which is set in a world a thousand years following an
extinction event that led humans to move deep below the oceans for
survival.
In this underwater refuge, teen Myra knows about "the Surface" and its
supposed magical properties; but she deems this to be myth, until she
discovers her colony is threatened and that the only way of preventing
the final extinction of mankind may lie in finding the one possibility
and route that everyone's banished to the realm of folklore.
The power of The 13th Continuum lies in both its powerful protagonists
and in its logical progression of events. Myra's quest for answers
expands her world not only to the Surface, but beyond, and it involves
a cooperative relationship with other factions and a blossoming
knowledge of the forces that could not just repress her colony, but
destroy it.
This gripping read is recommended not only for advanced teen readers,
but for adults who enjoy solid sci-fi dystopian settings.
Chuck and Woodchuck
Cece Bell
Candlewick Press
9780763675240 $15.99
www.candlewick.com
Chuck and Woodchuck tells of how Caroline's classmate Chuck brings a
fun woodchuck to show-and-tell: a creature so compelling that the
teacher wants the woodchuck to attend school daily.
Caroline is just as enthralled with the woodchuck as is the teacher;
especially since it treats her kindly and is always looking out for
her. But is it really the friendly woodchuck who is her best friend?
A fun tale evolves, narrated in the first-person, as Caroline makes
from discoveries about the real nature of their friendship.
Elphie and Dad Go On An Epic Adventure
Hagit R. Oron & Or Oron
Amazon Kindle
ASIN: B01BJ5Q576 $1.99
http://amzn.com/B01BJ5Q576
Elphie the elephant wants chocolate milk, but he doesn't want to go to
the shop with his father to get it; not until his father promises that
the visit will be an 'epic adventure'.
What could that mean? The young elephant decides to be ready for
anything, donning cape and sword to face the world.
But what does 'epic' really mean to a child?
As Elphie faces a host of possible definitions and explores his world,
he comes to realize the truth about what his place in it really is in a
gentle picture book story filled with appealing, colorful images and a
fun, involving discussion of what makes for an adventure, what makes an
adventure fun, and how a youngster can become more positive about his
prospects in life.
Holiday House
www.holidayhouse.com
Nicoletta
Costa's The Little Tree That Would Not Share (9780823435494,
$16.95) tells the gentle story of a tree that doesn't want to share
anything with the world around him; whether it be his lovely scent or
his shade.
Indeed, he's afraid to interact with the world for fear it'll take away
or demand too much of him - but the lessons learned from friendships
and give-and-take eventually provide some surprising revelations in a
simple, vibrant story kids will love.
Hans Wilhelm's A Hole in the Wall (9780823435357, $16.95) shows what
happens when a series of animals look into the same hole in the wall,
but each see something different.
They were friends until such differences in perception: now they are
angry with each other for observing different things. Can everybody be
wrong about what the hole truly reveals?
This very simple story, with its large-size, fun illustrations, invites
kids to both read and think.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
www.hmhco.com
These Houghton Mifflin Harcourt books for young adult and picture book
readers provide engrossing reads that stand out from the crowd, making
them top picks over competitors for any collection interested in
selecting top reads.
Advanced young adults who pick up Janet B. Taylor's Into the Dim
(9780544602007, $17.99) will find themselves pulled into an engrossing
saga about a homeschooled girl, Hope, whose many phobias about life
contrast with her eidetic memory and often place her at odds with her
adoptive father's family.
Her obvious conflicts with her world become more obvious when her
mother is killed in a disaster, causing the teen to become even more
reclusive until she's sent to Scotland to live with an aunt, there to
uncover a dangerous truth about her mother's death.
Time travel, secret worlds, and terrible truths confront a teen who has
spent her life in hiding, masking her real abilities - which in this
new world of medieval intrigue could mean the difference between life
and death. Into the Dim proves a darkly compelling time travel
historical fantasy.
Lois Lowry's A Summer to Die (9780544668416, $8.99) contrasts two very
different sisters: pretty, popular Molly, who holds a
positive perspective on life and is filled with goals, and sister Meg,
who is uncertain, often angry, and miserable about her very similar
life.
When Molly falls ill and the tables are turned, can Meg pick up the
ball and assume the sunny disposition and perspective Molly seems to
have lost, to help her family through crisis?
Once again Lowry has succeeded in creating a memorable tale of
families, survival, and heartache which will absorb advanced elementary
through middle school readers.
Justin Martin and Liza Charlesworth's Keep Curious and Carry a Banana
(9780544656482, $12.99) is a different kind of Curious George book and
is recommended for collections that look for humor and wisdom quotes
based on classic stories.
From "Grab a great seat. You don't want to miss a thing." to "Give free
hugs", this is a monkey's viewpoint on life, with color images from
Curious George and small bananas supplementing fun sayings.
Sy Montgomery's Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World's Strangest Parrot
(9780544668294, $9.99) achieved a Sibert medal in its hardcover
edition, and it's easy to see why. Gorgeous color photos throughout (by
Nic Bishop) accompany a natural history of the last ninety-one kakapo
parrots on earth, documenting some extraordinary efforts to keep this
flightless bird alive.
Grades 5 and up will find this a bright, compelling story of survival,
while many an adult will enjoy a rare look at an even rarer bird.
Tina Kügler's Snail & Worm (9780544494121, $16.99) offers three
easy-reading stories about two friends and is recommended for young
picture book readers, who will receive two or three sentences per
brightly colored page about the interactions between two very different
friends.
All are excellent, compelling picks.
Itchy Pig
Nicole Bruno Cox
Inkshares
9781941758571 $17.99
www.inkshares.com
Jesse Judge's fun drawings lend to an intriguing children's book
designed to help picture book readers absorb basic information about
allergies and how to handle them: especially useful reading
for this age group, since so many kids suffer from allergies.
A simple, fun rhyme follows a little pink pig into the world as he
decides to ignore his mother's advice and do as he pleases, despite his
allergic reactions.
Kids receive vibrant images and a message that's easy to understand and
apply to their lives as they follow Itchy Pig's choices and
problems.
Dial/Penguin Young Readers Group
www.penguin.com
Lita Judge's Hoot and Peep (9780525428374, $17.99) depicts Hoot the
owl, who is very wise and excited to share his knowledge with his
siblings - especially about the proper way an owl should hoot.
There's only one problem: little sister Peep has a mind of her own, and
doesn't want to conform to her older, wiser brother's instructions on
how a proper owl should act and hoot.
Can the two siblings come to terms with their different perspectives on
life?
Julie Falatko's Snappsy the Alligator (9780451469458, $16.99) excels in
whimsical drawings by Tim Miller as it portrays the dilemma of an
alligator who didn't even ask to be in this book.
Snappsy looks big, mean, and strange - but is he really all these
things? What happens when a narrator has a very different view of what
his main character is actually like?
The fun give-and-take between storyteller and character will attract
young picture book readers seeking something different.
Sleeping Bear Press
www.sleepingbearpress.com
Aimee Bissonette's Miss Colfax's Light (9781585369553, $16.99) receives
gorgeous drawing by Eileen Ryan Ewen as it explores the life of
Harriet, who in 1861, at nearly forty years of age, took on the
demanding job of being one of the first female lighthouse keepers in
America.
She was eighty when she gave up the position, keeping her lighthouse
going through the worst storms both in nature and in the technology
that threatened her job, and readers with good reading skills will love
this detailed picture book tale of her life and achievements.
Judy Young's Digger and Daisy Plant a Garden (9781585369317, $9.99) is
illustrated by Dana Sullivan and tells of sibling dogs who love to
explore and find new adventures in their world.
Young beginners in grades K-1 will delight in fun and warm story that
features good-size illustrations, simple, large-size sentences, and an
easy tale of sibling relationships.
William Meyer's The Secret of the Scarab Beetle (9781585368376, $16.99)
presents Book 1 in the 'Horace J. Edwards and the Time Keepers' series
for young adults as it tells of an eleven-year-old boy's move to
Michigan, where life begins to change.
His grandfather's sudden death results in the strange gift of a stone
scarab beetle, and as Horace investigates this oddity, he unlocks a
time-traveling ability that sends him back to ancient Egypt; there to
befriend the future King Tut.
Mystery and action permeate a fine read that is hard to put down and
packed with adventure.
Michael Shoulders' Crossing the Deadline: Stephen's Journey Through the
Civil War (9781585369515, $16.99) documents many of the realities of
the Civil War era as it tells of preteen Stephen, who enlists with his
brothers to fight for the North during the Civil War.
Stephen imagines what battle will be like; but nothing can really
prepare him for the truth as his role as a bugler leads him not only
into battle, but lands him in a Confederate prison camp and on a tragic
journey.
Kids in grades 6-8 will find Crossing the Deadline a moving, realistic
saga of Stephen's awakening.
Reference Shelf
A Field Guide to
Coastal Fishes from Alaska to California
Val Kells, Luiz A. Rocha & Larry G. Allen
Johns Hopkins University Press
9781421418322 $25.00
www.press.jhu.edu
A Field Guide to
Coastal Fishes from Alaska to California is an
invaluable reference for any collection interested in marine science or
fish identification, and offers a handbook packed with nearly a
thousand illustrations of adult and juvenile fishes and almost 700
species.
Naturalists, students, and field workers alike will find each fish
displayed in life-like detail, with notes on features, biology, and
habitat on the facing page of each color image.
Information is well organized for at-a-glance reference and covers the
Pacific U.S. and Canada, while the arrangement by orders and families
makes it easy to locate and identify the fish.
The result is a handy reference that can be used either in the
classroom or (preferably) in the field, whether that field be at the
seashore, on board a boat, or elsewhere.
Beyond Embarrassment
JoAnne Lake and Julia Parker
Triumph Media Press
9780996430548
www.triumphmediapress.com
Beyond Embarrassment: Reclaiming Your Life with Neurogenic Bladder and
Bowel is for any who suffer from incontinence due to a brain, spinal
cord or nerve condition - which translates to millions of Americans -
and comes from an author who was diagnosed in 2009 after years of
embarrassment and discomfort.
While one could call this health title an autobiography, Beyond
Embarrassment is more accurately described as a health memoir with
wider-ranging applications because it provides many insights to fellow
sufferers who struggle with the same condition.
Professional research and information from Biosleuth medical research
librarian Julia Parker compliments JoAnne Lake's story and
observations, providing a satisfying blend of personal account and
medical insights.
The neurogenic bladder condition evolved over time for Lake, and
involved a host of accompanying, often puzzling, symptoms. Her book
will prove a powerful answer to the questions other sufferers have
about this and related conditions, and offer many tips and solutions
that take the guesswork out of managing bladder problems - all this is
couched in a casual, informative, almost chatty style that makes
reading it a breeze.
Master of the Cinematic Universe
John Bucher & Jeremy Casper
Michael Wiese Productions
9781615932412 $14.95
www.mwp.com
Master of the Cinematic Universe: The Secret Code to Writing in the New
World of Media belongs in any film and video reference library
appealing to performing arts majors, and shows what it takes to become
a media artist by better understanding the finer art of storytelling.
Chapters are designed to appeal to filmmakers producing short-form
video content for all kinds of purposes, and display the basics of
improving one's storytelling focus to create better visuals.
From the goals and protagonists of narrative short films to selling
product through appealing commercial-oriented stories and better
understanding what 'webisodes' can and cannot do, different purposes
are matched with different structures and choices to supply artists
with specific approaches to different short video production goals.
No aspiring filmmaker should be without this invaluable
reference.
Wiley Blackwell
www.wiley.com/go/veterinary
Lillian R.
Aronson's Small Animal Surgical Emergencies (9781118413487)
provides practicing vets a fine reference to different kinds of
emergencies in small animal practice, and surveys emergency
stabilization and surgery procedures which include diagnostics,
operative care, complications and more.
Step-by-step discussions of emergency animal management blend case
studies, algorithms, assessments of basic diagnostic equipment and
applications, pairing color photos of surgeries with extensive
bibliographic references and detailed discussions of operative
procedures and post-operative care, including circumstances where
prognosis for recovery may be poor.
The result is a highly recommended technical reference that should be
on the shelves of any veterinary facility where surgical emergencies
are a common part of clinical approaches and animal management.
Dominique Griffon and Annick Hamaide's Complications in Small Animal
Surgery (9780470959626, $149.99) is a complete reference to surgical
complications in small animal practices, and includes tables, charts,
and statistical and mathematical information plus color photos of
different types of surgeries to accompany discussions of conditions,
risks, diagnosis, and outcomes.
Both general complications and those specific to different kinds of
surgical procedures are examined in a reference arranged by body system
and linked to further web information and support.
Discussions are in-depth and include all the physiological and medical
background needed for veterinary practitioners to make basic
assessments in clinical and emergency settings.
Also a top recommendation is MA Taylor, RL Coop and RL Wall's
Veterinary Parasitoloy (9780470671627, $229.99), which appears in its
4th edition to update a major classic long considered the definitive
veterinary reference in parasitology.
Expanded parasite descriptions, discussions of diagnosis and control
methods for domestic animals, and host resistance coverages are all
part of a weighty technical reference that packs in the latest research
for teachers and students, practicing vets, and any working in
parasitic disease control.
Filled with discussions of costs, immunology, clinical signs and
pathology, and good-quality color photos throughout, nothing currently
on the market even begins to approach Veterinary Parasitoloy in
thoroughness and coverage.
The book's categories and arrangement will lend to both at-a-glance
information for practicing vets and in-depth information for
researchers involved. Anyone involved in the field of domestic animal
diagnosis and treatment cannot be without this invaluable, key
reference.
John M. Williams and Jacqui D. Niles edit BSAVA Manual of Canine and
Feline Abdominal Surgery (9781905319626), which appears in an updated
second edition to cover both routine and emergency surgeries common in
small animal practices.
Chapters loaded with visuals include step-by-step coverage of operative
procedures and include notes about every step of the process, from
patient positioning and prep to postoperative care.
Drawings supplement the good-quality color photos throughout, as the
basic principles of abdominal surgery are outlined.
The result is a highly recommended, solid reference any small animal
clinic should keep at hand.
Wonderfully Wordless
William Patrick Martin
Rowman & Littlefield
9781442254770
www.rowman.com
Wonderfully Wordless: The 500 Most Recommended Graphic Novels and
Picture Books is the first in-depth study for wordless and
almost-wordless picture books, and gives teachers and parents a fine
resource for identifying and using these particular kinds of graphic
stories in classroom or home settings.
The age ranges move from babies to ESL adults, so there's a very wide
range of subjects and approaches included in discussions that have
narrowed databases of thousands of titles down to the 500 most highly
recommended.
Experts from the U.S. and abroad joined together for this project, so
Wonderfully Wordless doesn't reflect a singular approach or expert
opinion, but represents the combined wisdom of top literary experts.
Moreover, books are arranged by theme and each book receives a small
black and white cover photo, a synopsis, and indication of age range.
Other references are included in back of the book, making for an
important, key reference for any who regularly work with picture books
and their readers.