August 2017 Prime Picks
The Arts
Art
Collecting Today
Doug Woodham
Allworth Press
9781621535737 $24.99
www.allworth.com
Art Collecting Today: Market Insights for Everyone Passionate About Art informs aspiring collectors and sellers on how to understand and navigate the art market, whether they're buying pieces or marketing them, and is a 'must' not only for collectors, but for artists who would better understand what makes art valuable.
This comes from an industry expert well versed in collecting, buying, and selling art; but it also adds insights into the wider fine-art market and strategies of top collectors, providing novices and intermediate collectors alike with insights into art market demand, how auction houses and galleries work, and how to understand and predict art trends.
Anyone interested in the making, buying, or selling of art should have this book at hand for an in-depth review of the latest market forces affecting its sale and value.
Innovative
Architecture Strategies
Simos Vamvakidis
BIS Publishers
9789063694562
$17.00
www.bispublishers.com
Innovative Architecture Strategies may be a paperback-sized, 160-page, short-stature coverage in appearance, but its pages pack in a surprising amount of detail on modern, innovative design strategies reflected in a variety of projects, making for a succinct but powerful discussion that reviews different design approaches for mixed-use structures.
The idea is to juxtapose inspirational new approaches to design with tested formulas that encourage innovation while addressing concerns about not just artistic representation, but function and efficiency.
Ten chapters present different projects and how innovative architectural approaches contributed to their engineering and design approaches.
No architecture or engineering collection should be without this important guide.
Smoke
Over Oklahoma
Augustus J. Veenendaal Jr.
University of Oklahoma Press
9780806155685
$29.95
www.oupress.com
Smoke Over Oklahoma: The Railroad Photographs of Preston George tells of a Depression-era amateur photographer who acquired a cheap Kodak folding camera and began his lifetime career photographing steam trains.
As the years passed and war entered his world, Preston George graduated to taking superior pictures with better cameras, and this celebration of his works in black and white offers both an artistic collection of his images and a documentary of steam railroading history in the American Southwest.
These action shots, unusual for his times, capture a bygone era of rail history but are featured here for their notable photographic prowess, as well, in a title packed with images and information about George and the rails of his times, recommended for arts, history, and railroading history holdings alike.
Write!
Shoot! Edit!
Deborah S. Patz
Michael Wiese Productions
9781615932641 $23.95
www.mwp.com
Write! Shoot! Edit!: A Complete Guide for Teen Filmmakers is for any teen who loves filmmaking but lacks the guidelines beginners need to get up and running on a budget, and provides this audience with an illustrated guide to help teens hone the basic storytelling skills of writing, shooting, and editing.
These three paths to filmmaking success are clearly separated and delineated so that aspiring young filmmakers have a good understanding of how they work in film both separately and together, so they can pursue these three different paths as needed: either as a unit or independently.
A chatty tone invites interest while practical discussions of off-center framing, implied scenes, using juxtaposition to maximum benefit, and reading scripts with movie directing in mind covers filmmaking basics and incorporates technical information in such a manner that novices with little experience can readily absorb the foundation rules of the industry.
Write! Shoot! Edit! is thus an outstanding and unique, specific set of directions intended to be user-friendly for those who have much aspiration but only the bare minimum of filmmaking savvy.
Reviewer's Choice
1001
Nascar Facts
John Close
CarTech
9781613253106 $24.95
www.cartechbooks.com
1001 Nascar Facts: Cars, Tracks, Milestones, Personalities covers a wide range of NASCAR auto races from the early 20th century to modern times in a lively format that lends to both study and leisure browsing, with its vintage black and white photos and numbered facts throughout.
This chronological arrangement allows readers to follow the evolution of the sport's drivers, cars, and technology and events, moving from the era before NASCAR to changing modern times and trends affecting the sport.
Any prior fan of NASCAR auto racing who wants a digestible synthesis of its history will find 1001 Nascar Facts a fun collection, perfect for browsing, gift-giving, and historical reference.
Adlard
Coles Nautical/Bloomsbury
www.adlardcoles.com
Two nautical history titles from Adlard Coles are highly recommended both for nautical history collections and any reader who enjoys engrossing true stories about the sea.
The Cape Horner's Club by Adrian Flanagan (9781472912527, $27.00) surveys Cape Horn mariners and the voyages which entered them into a relatively small class of survivors of the experience, providing a host of different biographical sketches of contemporary sailors who rounded the Horn, from individualist Sir Alec Rose who achieved success in 1968 in a 36-foot wooden ketch to Argentinean Vito Dumas, who succeeded in his journey in 1943.
The sailors shared a restless taste for adventure and challenge, but their approaches to their feats were different and their experiences varied.
Storms, dangerous seas, and Cape Horn ordeals make for a collection hard to put down, which will appeal fellow mariners and adventure readers alike.
The Frozen Frontier: Polar Bound Through the Northwest Passage by Jane Maufe (9781472935717, $28.00) charts another dangerous nautical passage notorious for disaster: this one the sea route connecting the Atlantic to the Pacific through the Arctic.
Only one person successfully navigated all seven possible routes, and The Frozen Frontier documents these achievements from the pen of crewmember Jane Maufe, who captures in fine detail the challenges and nautical prowess of The Polar Bound ship and its crew as it made history.
Add a collection of color photos at several points mid-book for a thrilling read that no armchair adventurer will want to put down.
The
Age of the Horse
Susanna Forrest
Atlantic Publishing
9780802126511
$27.00
www.groveatlantic.com
The Age of the Horse: An Equine Journey Through Human History traces the horse's importance in human affairs and documents how it has evolved from ancient to modern times.
Anthropology, archaeology, biology and history intersect in an account that adds personal anecdotes from Susanna Forrest's globe-trotting field work to make for a lively coverage that documents how the horse's evolution has mirrored that of humans.
The result is a lovely, compelling, cross-disciplinary approach designed to appeal to equine enthusiasts, history buffs, and science audiences alike, making it a strong recommendation for both general interest and college-level collections.
Integrating
the US Military
Douglas Walter Bristol Jr. and Heather Marine Stur
Johns Hopkins University Press
9781421422473
$29.95
www.press.jhu.edu
Integrating the US Military: Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation Since World War II is recommended for both military history and civil rights collections and gathers the experiences of Afro-Americans, Japanese Americans, women, and gay men and lesbians in the armed forces in modern times.
While the politics and effects of the dismantling of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is one of the topics, these essays consider the process and effects of social changes at all levels and discusses how these changes affect ideas about power and leadership as a whole.
It's the first in-depth study of these minority groups in the armed forces to provide a history documenting their struggles, and is a 'must' for collections interested in both civil rights issues and military structural changes.
Jessica
Kingsley Publishers
www.jkp.com
Briana MacWilliam edits Complicated Grief, Attachment, & Art Therapy (9781785927386, $35.95), which provides art therapists with a formula for creating an effective therapy plan and features 14 protocols which can be quickly and easily used in the process.
Therapists working on 4-8 week programs will find this book includes popular new approaches based on behavior therapy and mindfulness, among others, and will find it an important pairing of client case studies and first-person experiences from fellow art therapists.
The result is a powerful and highly recommended collection of procedures and approaches based on a combination of real-world clinical applications and the latest research.
Daniel Thomas and Vicky Abad edit The Economics of Therapy: Caring for Clients, Colleagues, Commissioners and Cash-Flow in the Creative Arts Therapies (9781849056281, $37.95), which blends business models and examples with discussions of how to provide affordable services for all, making it recommended reading for therapists interested in a range of economic issues.
From setting fees for private practice and valuing different kinds of therapy approaches to developing and marketing creative arts therapies, this book draws important connections between cash flow, affordability, and value, and is especially recommended for students newly entering the therapeutic profession.
Anthea Hendry and Joy Hasler's Creative Therapies for Complex Trauma: Helping Children and Families in Foster Care, Kinship Care or Adoption (9781785920059, $29.95) gathers writings by contributors who work with a wide range of play therapy approaches for children, and considers how these therapies have helped traumatized kids in foster care or adopted homes.
It provides an overview of therapy approaches, assesses their effectiveness, considers the foundations of developmental trauma and its lasting effect children and those who care for them, and addresses the many difficulties parents and caregivers face both at home and in school and therapeutic environments.
The result is a set of assessments, guidelines, and discussions of alternative intervention processes that will interest anyone working with children who uses creative therapies as a foundation for change.
My
Hurricane Andrew Story
Bryan Norcross
Bryan Norcross Corporation, Publisher
9780998992211
$14.99
www.MyHurricaneAndrewStory.com
My Hurricane Andrew Story is recommended reading for two audiences: those who are interested in hurricane science and Florida's Hurricane Andrew in particular, and followers of journalistic reporting who want a "you are there" account of how a TV meteorologist covered the most dangerous hurricane in South Florida's history, Hurricane Andrew, and whose reporting choices and efforts changed how hurricanes are perceived and documented.
Readers needn't have a prior familiarity with weather science, the events surrounding Hurricane Andrew, or reporting methods in order to appreciate Bryan Norcross's story. All that's needed is an appreciation for events that changed people's lives and an interest in the history of emergency plans, institutions, and efforts to keep people safe during disasters.
From evacuation efforts to communities ripped apart by the storm, Norcross provides a clear inspection of events, surveying popular myths, realities, charges of government plots, and other clashes that followed in the aftermath of Andrew's impact and changed both meteorological science and disaster response systems.
The moment-by-moment coverage comes to life in My Hurricane Andrew Story, highly recommended for any general-interest collection.
A
Perfectly Good Guitar
Chuck Holley
University of Texas Press
9781477312575
$34.95
www.utexaspress.com
A Perfectly Good Guitar: Musicians on Their Favorite Instruments comes from a professional photographer and writer who has long listened to guitarists talk about their instruments and their music collections, and who captures some of these moments in a visual and written exploration pairing photos with discussions.
Other books on guitars have focused on particular genres of music or guitar styles; but one of the special pleasures here is its wide range of performers, from country music artists to studio musicians.
Stories of dream guitars, guitars lost and found, special achievements accomplished with particular guitars, and the fine art of making exceptional music with extraordinary instruments documents the love affair between guitarists and their equipment in a vivid and evocative celebration all musicians will relish.
Potted
Annette Goliti Gutierrez & Mary Gray
Timber Press
9781604696974
$19.95
www.timberpress.com
Potted: Make Your Own Stylish Garden Containers is recommended for two audiences: gardeners who want to create their own affordable pots and containers, and crafts workers looking for gift ideas for gardeners. These audiences will find Potted's discussion comes from the owners of a garden boutique in Los Angeles who pair crafts designs reflective of practical art pieces with gardening containers that add to the home while containing plants in a range of styles, from hanging planters to small garden and wall planters.
Step-by-step, good-sized color photos cover tools, materials, and construction methods as they survey the basics of not only making containers, but attaching them wherever they need to go.
It should be cautioned that the supplies needed vary immensely from project to project, from pipes and brackets to driveway pavers, clean paint cans, or plastic garbage cans and stencils. There is no 'one supply list fits all', and so these are varied styles and approaches which will delight plant potters looking for something different.
Science, Nature & Technology
Camping
Out
Terence Young
Cornell University Press
9780801454028 $35.00
www.cornellpress.cornell.edu
Camping Out: A History of American Camping surveys American family relationships with nature and the outdoors. It considers how camping became part of American culture, providing an unusual account of how an industry sprang up from city dwellers who wanted to escape their urban environments.
As chapters follow key events, influences on the concept and nature of camping, the man who (in 1869) fostered the idea of camping, and those who came after him as parks and recreation ideas evolved, they also delve into social and political changes affecting American leisure choices and perceptions.
From different types of shelters and ideas of what constituted a 'camping experience' to advancements in technology and the expansion of recreation areas, Camping Out considers the extent of how American camping was encouraged and how it changed over the years. It's highly recommended not only for social history classes, but anyone interested in the changing relationship between Americans and the outdoors.
Clinical
Signs in Small Animal Medicine
Michael Schaer
CRC Press
9781498766845
$79.95
www.crcpress.com
Clinical Signs in Small Animal Medicine appears in its second updated edition to provide some 800 new color photos that assist veterinary clinics in diagnosing and treating a wide range of small animal conditions, from gastrointestinal disorders and hemostatis problems to various cancers.
The book is organized into chapters by body system, which lends to systematic student pursuit as well as quick clinical reference, and pairs color photos of real-world cases with discussions of treatment options and cautions about complications.
The result is a reference that will be consulted by clinicians and veterinary students alike.
Koi:
A Modern Folktale
Margery gray Harnick and Matt Harnick
Beaufort Books
9780825308413 $24.95
www.beaufortbooks.com
Koi: A Modern Folktale is a lovely gathering of oversized color photos presented in a coffee table picture book paired with writings by Sheldon Harnick, and pairs these lovely photos of koi with an exploration of their natural history and legends.
While the poetic pieces and attention to creating a modern 'legend' of the koi and the gods is part of this creation, its stunning color photos take center stage, and are beautifully, artistically done.
Any who wonder how art, literature, and natural history can coalesce must look at Koi: its visuals are unparalleled and even those who profess to have only light interest in koi will find these beautifully wrought celebrations that inspire an appreciation of nature and art alike.
Snakes
of the Eastern United States
Whit Gibbons
University of Georgia Press
9780820349701 $32.95
www.ugapress.org
Snakes of the Eastern United States packs in nearly four hundred color photos and includes geographic maps and discussions of native and invasive snakes alike as it covers some sixty species of snakes of the Eastern U.S.
Whit Gibbons is an expert herpetologist whose provides a comprehensive survey of regional snake biology that doubles as an identification handbook.
As chapters cover conservation issues and general snake behavior, readers are treated to a reference packed with information for those with a special interest in snakes of this region, offering its data in a format that lends to either in-depth research and review or quick reference browsing.
Snooze:
The Lost Art of Sleep
Michael McGirr
Pegasus Books
9781581774190 $26.95
www.pegasusbooks.com
Snooze: The Lost Art of Sleep at first glance seems to join the myriad of other discussions about lack of sleep and how to alleviate the problem; but this book delves further into the impact of lack of sleep than most, eschews advice on how to better sleep in favor of considering sleep's deeper effects on quality of life, and explores the role of sleep in history and cultures around the world.
It's a more lively treatment than one might anticipate and crosses disciplines from science to health, examining the social implications of sleep deprivation and the business impacts of sleep patterns and choices.
Philosophy, neuroscience, parenting and health issues all enter into a discussion which may find its way into science and health holdings, but which holds added attraction for readers who want more than a singular approach to the discussion of sleep.
The Computer Corner
The
Python 3 Standard Library By Example
Doug Hellmann
Addison-Wesley
9780134291055
$59.99
www.informit.com/devlibrary
The Python 3 Standard Library By Example packs in hundreds of references and lessons for accessing and applying the Python 3.x library system through source code and output examples, and documents all the different features in a reference that shows programmers how to move between different incarnations of the program and how to manipulate data, text, algorithms, and code across these versions.
The author is a Senior Principal Software Engineer at Red Hat and has contributed to the OpenStack cloud computing project, which was written almost entire in Python. As project lead, his technical expertise lends authority and experience across platforms and is reflected in this weighty reference's many examples and listings.
From concurrency tools and cross-platform server protocols to priorities and best practices, The Python 3 Standard Library By Example is a 'must' desk reference for any serious Python programmer at any level of expertise.
The Culinary Corner
Fiery
Ferments
Kristen K. Shockey and Christopher Shockey
Storey
9781612127286 $24.95
www.storey.com
Plenty of books about hot and spicy foods and cooking with peppers of all kinds permeate the cookbook shelves these days; but with a new, blossoming attention to fermented foods comes the inevitable: a focus on hot fermented condiments.
Fiery Ferments: 75 Stimulating Recipes for Hot Sauces, Spicy Chutneys, Kimchis with Kick, and other Blazing Fermented Condiments is an outstanding kickoff to this trend, gathering recipes for everything from Siracha Sauce to a Hot Cinnamon Quince Ferment.
Heat
indexes included for each dish alert readers as to what they are
getting into
by following the recipe, while an international focus offers dishes
from
Southeast Asia, Latin America, and more. Many feature variations, all
include
portion yields, and color photos liberally pepper the recipes in a
'must have'
title for any who love spicy fermented foods and tested recipes
contributed by
a range of culinary fermentation artists.
History
Jersey
Gold
Margaret Casterline Bowen and Gwendolyn Joslin Hiles
University of Oklahoma Press
9780806157146
$34.95
www.oupress.com
Jersey Gold: The Newark Overland Company's Trek to California, 1849 follows a cross-country trek undertaken in 1849 when gold fever prompted a physician and president of the New Jersey Railroad to assemble some thirty men to travel to California.
Many gold rush stories focus on experiences within California; but this book's focus on how the group journeyed via rail, stagecoach, and riverboat (and how they faced the wilderness in various manners) uses source material and the travelers' own words, adding maps, photos and drawings one of them produced along the way.
This lends an immediacy and intimacy to an experience that documents information, motives, costly situations and confusion, cultural and social encounters, and mining operations alike.
The story's unexpectedly lively tone and wide range of topics makes for a highly recommended account that pairs well with Gold Rush era stories, highly recommended for California and American history holdings alike.
Left
Americana
Paul Le Blanc
Haymarket Books
9781608466825
$22.00
www.haymarketbooks.org
Left Americana: The Radical Heart of U.S. History presents essays from a range of left-oriented thinkers in this country, from Marxists to the Occupy Wall Street movement, and covers the figures and events of both the Socialist and Communists as well as Maoists and other activists in the 1960s and 70s.
This approach blends history with ideology as it explores the roots of ideas, movements, and the people and events that propelled them to become part of American history and culture. It offers candid insights key to not just understanding the various ideas of different left-leaning groups and their effects on America, but to assembling debate and discussion materials from their stories.
From labor vanguards in the 1930s and working-class radicals to notions of socialism and the forces working for and against it, this powerful collection of discussions should be in any collection strong in American political history in general and left-leaning ideological examinations in particular.
Unshackling
America
Willard Sterne Randall
St. Martin's Press
9781250111838
$29.99
www.stmartins.com
Unshackling America: How the War of 1812 Truly Ended the American Revolution comes from a historian who retells the events of the American Revolution, the longer drawn-out battle for real freedom, and myths surrounding the event; and is a 'must have' acquisition recommended for any general-interest to college-level history holding looking for a lively documentation of America's struggle for independence.
This was a fifty-year struggle that involved economics, international trade, free trade issues, and ongoing efforts by the British to control American rights and processes, and Willard Sterne Randall charts a long, drawn-out process of slowly lifting the shackles of this relationship.
From Naval and American politics and politician involvements to battles, troop encounters, and communications between seaboard states and war zones, this process is well-detailed in chapters which build upon one another as they survey a range of influences on American/British connections.
Students of American history will find Unshackling America an excellent juxtaposition to traditional approaches, while teachers will find it holds not only much food for thought, but fodder for classroom discussion and debate.
Young Adult/ Children
Clarion/Houghton
Mifflin Harcourt
www.hmhco.com
Three books from this publisher's new arrivals stand out as exceptional reads worthy of ongoing library lending and classroom discussion.
Emily Bain Murphy's The Disappearances (9780544879362, $17.99) tells of Aila Quinn's mother's close-held mystery, which goes with her to the grave, leaving Aila and her younger brother to move to a rural town where her mother grew up. But Sterling is no ordinary town: Aila discovers that it's a place where everything vanishes every seven years - and where the townspeople have apparently long suspected her mother of causing the problem. The next Disappearance is on the horizon when Aila discovers a series of clues that could either solve the problem or make the situation much worse.
This
engrossing story will have young adult readers on the edges of their
seats as
it explores a family puzzle, a challenging heritage, and the efforts of
a
daughter to uncover special traits and dangers in the world around her
before
its too late.
Carol Brendler's The Pickwicks' Picnic: A Counting Adventure (9780544839588, $16.99) provides a fun counting story centered on a family get-away. Young readers follow - and count - the traffic as the family journeys, until a problem keeps them from their goal. Can Pip and Peach's innovative action plan solve a back-up at the bridge?
Renée Kurilla's colorful, fun drawings of vehicles and animals contribute to a light-hearted and whimsical tale perfect for teaching elementary numbers.
Meg McLaren's Pigeon P.I. (9781328715616, $16.99) presents young mystery fans with a puzzling case as famous Pigeon P.I. Murray MacMurray faces a host of missing birds and few reasons as to why they are going astray.
This P.I. may be famous, but he prefers his business slow and his cases easy - but even a famous P.I. can't turn down a little client who seeks his help when she and her friends come to the city for adventure only to find danger. Can Vee convince the lazy once-professional to return to the fold and fly in the face of danger? A fun tale evolves which will provide picture book read-aloud parents with something fun and different.
Flying
Eye Books
www.flyingeyebooks.com
Three outstanding new picture book presentations are highly recommended
picks
for young readers, standing out from the crowd with fresh, original
subjects
and drawings.
Pippa Goodhart and Rebecca Crane's My Very Own Space (9781911171126, $16.95) tells of rabbit Jack, who wants to read a book without distraction; but who finds the world way too busy (and interesting) a place to allow him time to read.
The solution may lie in creating a space that is just for him - but even when he literally draws a line, the world keeps intruding. What is a book-loving bunny to do when faced with a too-noisy world?
A fun story evolves, with very simple words perfect for new young readers.
Owen Davey's Crazy About Cats (9781911171164, $19.95) is recommended for picture book readers with good reading skills who like facts about all kinds of cats, both domestic and wild.
From ocelots and snow leopards to how cats hunt, hide, jump and even roar, this light and fun read succeeds in both educating kids about cats and pairing details on specific species with fun surveys of overall cat attributes.
Dieter Braun's Wild Animals of the South (9781909263970, $35.00) is a lovely picture-packed book recommended for grades 4-6, whose more developed reading skills and attention spans will pair well with a bit over a hundred pages of colorful detail about mandrills, sloths, tapirs, lizards and more. The full-page and bright color illustrations which provide an exceptionally artistic examination of each of these creatures as text explores their natural histories.
All are gorgeously illustrated and recommended standouts for young readers.
Haunt
Me
Liz Kessler
Candlewick Press
9780763691622
$17.99
www.candlewick.com
Haunt Me relates an engrossing young story of a family that moves into a haunted house, where teen Erin begins to learn about the spirit of the teenage boy whose family just moved away from the house.
Erin didn't expect romance or ghostly encounters from her new home; much less a conflict between two brothers, one living, one dead, who couldn't be less alike. Now she faces choices that are spectacularly puzzling, and which will change her life no matter which way she turns.
This engrossing saga is highly recommended reading for teens who like romance, supernatural elements, and a protagonist's conundrum that will keep them guessing to the end.
Simon
and Schuster
www.simonandschuster.com
Two teen novels and two picture books are each exceptional, recommended picks from this publisher, offering readers something different.
Rachele Alpine's A Void the Size of the World (9781481485715, $17.99) tells of Rhylee's dilemma when she kisses her sister's boyfriend. When Abby catches them together, runs into the woods, and never returns, Rhylee hides the secret of her involvement even when Tommy, Abby's boyfriend, becomes the prime suspect.
Though everyone holds out hope that Abby will return safely, Rhylee finds herself drawn into a dangerous realization that involves truth, lies, and more than a few consequences of her betrayal and secret.
Cindy Pon's Want (9781481489225, $18.99) is recommended for teens that enjoy complex sci-fi reads and is set in a future society where the rich can buy longevity for themselves. They are protected from the world's illnesses and pollution, but those who can't afford the special environmental protective suits die early.
Zhou's mother is one of those who have died, and Zhou becomes determined to change his society by destroying the corporation that keeps the rich safe.
What he finds when he infiltrates the organization he so hates casts doubts on everything he's presumed and known in this fast-paced and moving saga.
Denys Gazet's Bob and Tom (9781481461405, $17.99) tells of turkeys who may not be too smart, but who do know how to be happy friends.
Ages 4-8 will appreciate their story of happiness and an attitude which takes adversity (from getting wet in the rain to falling into a pond) and turns it into a positive experience.
William Joyce's The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs (9781481489553, $17.99) has some unlikely heroes in the form of brave bugs who try to save the day, only to find a dangerous enemy that seems to require the additional task of calling upon the Leaf Men to save the day.
The Leaf Men are a kind of gardener nobody has seen before: they carry with them a kind of magic that accompanies a very special mission.
Parents might think this story will be about gardening, but it's more about magic and an old woman's life wrapped into a gentle tale that is recommended as a read-aloud for the young - and even more so for their adult readers, who will find the gentle account captivating and special.
Sleeping
Bear Press
www.sleepingbearpress.com
These three fine picture books are recommended picks for collections looking for lasting lending value and appealing pictures and stories.
Erin Dealey's K is for Kindergarten (9781585369959, $16.99) is illustrated by Joseph Cowman and provides an A-Z primer of a child's kindergarten experiences.
But this is more than an A-Z of events: it includes a 'kinder countdown' and a 'kinder challenge' with each alphabet letter to encourage additional insights into what kindergarten and school means, and is especially effective when parents choose it for reading aloud.
Denise Brennan-Nelson's Good Night, Reindeer (9781585363704, $16.99) is illustrated by Marco Bucci and offers a fun survey for the holidays as it tells of a reindeer team who needs to go to sleep before the big event - all but one little reindeer, who won't turn off his light.
Everything is bid goodnight, from hooves and shoes to Santa's workshop and his elves - but still that one little reindeer refuses to go to sleep.
Any child who has lain awake in anticipation of Christmas will heavily relate to this fun story.
Stephanie Shaw's Piece by Piece (9781585369997, $16.99) is illustrated by Sylvie Daigneault and is recommended for ages 6-9 as it tells of a weaver who creates a dress to help her care for her family, only to be told the dress isn't salable when she tries to market it.
So, she decides to go back and work with it piece by piece - and a new kind of magic evolves.
Any child interested in patchwork and how quilts are created will find this a gentle, fun story of fabrics and how magic can be woven into life itself.
All are excellent, beautifully-written and presented picture books designed to attract parents and kids alike.
Tundra
Books
www.penguinrandomhouse.ca
Two fine stories offer young readers fun tales they will likely turn to more than once for entertainment and reflection.
Kyo Maclear's The Fog (9781770494923, $16.99) includes easy drawings by Kenard Pak as it tells of the sudden arrival of fog and how it affects a tiny bird and a small girl.
This special bird, Warbler, is a dedicated human watcher who carefully charts individual differences and is happy just observing people, until one day a heavy fog's arrival changes everything.
As it lingers, Warbler wonders if it's in his power to change things - and he receives some unexpected answers when he moves outside his comfort zone of observation.
Tim Beiser and Bill Slavin's There, There (9781770497528, $16.99) tells of crabby Rabbit, who hates being stuck indoors when it rains outside. But rain is not his only problem - everything seems to go wrong, causing him to be even grumpier.
Bear's had enough of listening to his whining: it's time for a change. But can Bear teach Rabbit a lesson about a better approach to life?
Both are fun stories about change, learning, and growth that kids and their read-aloud parents will appreciate.
Waldorf
Publishing
www.waldorfpublishing.com
Three fun new picture books are highly recommended reads that are colorful and inviting standouts for all ages.
Barbara Terry, Beth Ann Stifflemire and Vladimir Kirichenko's Mr. Waldorf Travels to Montana, Big Sky Country (9781684192588, $12.95) provides another bright addition to the Mr. Waldorf series of adventures.
This time the cheerful dog is on his way to Montana when he loses his glasses and makes new friends in his quest to recover them. In the process of his hunt he learns about the gold rush, ski slopes, fishing, and takes a seaplane, bringing young readers along for an adventure filled with easy reading experiences and especially lively, colorful drawings.
Phillip D. Cortez's Pancakes for Dinner! (9781945174209, $12.95) tells of two little girls who manage to convince their father that dinner can involve pancakes.
They can be crusty or golden, topped with marshmallows, or smothered in berries, and various methods of cooking and eating pancakes are explored in a lively story of culinary riches.
Jonna Amato Ocampo's On My Way to the Lilikoi Tree (9781945176647, $14.95) is illustrated by Rich Olson and is a silver medal winner of the Moonbeam Children's Picture ebook Award, appearing here in a durable hardcover suitable for library lending.
Kids with good reading skills will be captivated by Olson's fun drawings of animals who explore a tropical paradise complete with bananas, rowboats, and a quest for happiness.
All are excellent stories that young picture book readers will relish.
Audiobooks
Fallout
Sara Paretsky
HarperCollins
9780062657435
$44.99
www.harperaudio.com
Sara Paretsky's Fallout, another fine addition to the V.I. Warshawski investigative series, is brought to life by veteran narrator Susan Ericksen, whose smooth and evocative voice perfectly captures this nineteenth book in the series.
Here investigator V.I.'s first case out of Chicago becomes mired in conflict and confusion as she tracks a pair of missing film students to Kansas and a small town replete with racial strife.
What at first seems a straightforward case becomes a complicated mishmash of murders that reach beyond university boundaries and into a series of subplots to keep listeners guessing right up to the story's surprising, tense conclusion.
Sara Paretsky in audio is not to be missed; especially when paired with Susan Ericksen's involving and engrossing treatment, which lends the story an immediacy and drama that makes it difficult to stop listening.
Highbridge
Audio
www.highbridgeaudio.com
Six new audios are particularly well suited to library lending, appearing in unabridged productions with durable, solid cases and readers and topics designed to appeal to a broad audience.
Seabury Quinn's The Complete Tales of Jules de Grandin Volume One: The Horror on the Links (9781681686370, $54.99) is narrated by Paul Woodson, who imparts an excellent, clear, and vivid voice to these short stories, which were featured in over half of the pulp magazine Weird Tales' original titles.
His main character, supernatural French detective Dr. Jules de Grandin, specializes in monsters, serial killers, and supernatural influences: so think a combination of Sherlock Holmes' investigative style with more than a light touch of the eerie when considering this wealth of mysteries which excels in both problem-solving strategies and supernatural influences.
Fiona Maazel's A Little More Human (9781681683898, $34.99) is narrated by Eric Michael Summerer, whose voice and approach bring to life this novel of a new father and biotech facility nursing assistant whose life is falling apart around him.
Nothing is easy: his wife has betrayed him, his job holds nasty moral and ethical dilemmas, and his father is struggling with dementia. Phil also harbors his own closely-held secret (he is a mind reader); but when a blackout results in an accusation he can't defend himself from, his life becomes even more complicated.
Can he mind-read his way to the truth? A powerful, twisting story evolves, with no clear course of resolution, which will delight listeners looking for satisfying twists of plot.
Laura Lee Huttenbach's Running with Raven (9781681685632, $29.99) is read by Allyson Ryan and tells of a man's daily running ritual and how it succeeded in bringing together many strangers.
Dozens of people began running with him - a disparate group from all fifty states and dozens of countries, and from all age groups - and this tells of their connections, Raven's legendary achievements, and how his journey succeeded in bringing them all together in the course of running towards a shared goal.
Kate Moore's The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women (9781681684215, $44.99) receives a fine narration by Angela Brazil as it reveals the history young American women hired to paint luminous clock and military dials with radium in 1917. It was an easy, fun job, often leaving the women shining in the dark, as they were covered in dust from the paint.
Later, these 'radium girls' began to suffer from mysterious illnesses. Their work was killing them and they were being poisoned; yet their employers denied there were any problems. And so they became involved in a battle for justice that would take all their lives to bring to public attention.
Previously unpublished diaries, letters, and court documents contribute to their full story here, which captures their experiences and struggles and brings them to light in a way no other account has done.
Lisa Ko's The Leavers (9781681685083, $39.99) is read by Emily Woo Zeller and is enhanced by her clear and passionate voice as it tells of an undocumented Chinese immigrant who vanishes on the way to her job at a nail salon. She's gone without a trace, leaving behind a preteen who is eventually adopted by two white college professors who move him, rename him, and make a new life for him.
But at age eleven, Deming (now Daniel) isn't ready to give up his heritage and his past, and he struggles with both his mother's disappearance and his new family.
The Leavers is about more than family connections: its about ethnic and community ties and how one young boy comes to terms with his new world when everything changes, making for a vivid audio story that's hard to stop listening to.
Robert Goddard's The Ends of the Earth (9781681686356, $39.95) is read by Derek Perkins, who provides a vivid experience to listeners who are attracted to thrillers. This story takes place just after World War I and tells of Max's return from an investigation into his father's death: a trip which probes German spies, government agents, and more.
Charged with taking down a spy network in the course of solving the mystery of his father's murder, Max finds himself on a dangerous course that leads him straight into danger in Japan in a gripping saga of lies, subterfuge, politics and a deadly truth.
All are solid audiobooks, captivating and powerful, and are highly recommended for discriminating listeners.
Requiem
for the American Dream
Noam Chomsky
Recorded Books
9781501939198
www.recordedbooks.com
In
book format, Requiem
for the American Dream:
the 10 Principles of Concentration of Wealth & Power
holds
powerful impact because Chomsky, one of the most literary and
philosophical
thinkers of modern times, is able to craft powerful arguments and
reflections
for any of the subjects he tackles.
But this presentation in unabridged audio, narrated by Donald Corren, offers a bonus in bringing Chomsky's social and political ideas to life in a vigorous manner that print can't quite touch.
Perhaps this is because Corren's extensive background on and off Broadway, on TV, and in regional theater productions lends a dramatic edge to his voice that succeeds in precisely and passionately bringing the written word to life.
Chomsky's flair for pinpointing the roots of inequality in a wealthy society, threats to and the demise of the American dream, and his flare for identifying the consequences of injustice pair perfectly with narrator Corren's attention to detail and embellishments.
The result is an audio work that is based on four years of interviews with Chomsky by editors Peter Hutchison, Kelly Nyks and Jared P. Scott, with the entire effort receiving the kind of narrative quality usually limited to multi-voice theatrical productions.
Packaged in a sturdy plastic case suitable for library lending, Chomsky's Requiem for the American Dream could receive no better formula for widespread attention and success.