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Donovan's Bookshelf

December  2020 Prime Picks

 
Reviewer's Choice
Science Nature and Technology
Young Adult / Children
 

Science, Nature & Technology 

The Cougar Conundrum
Mark Elbroch
Island Press
9781610919982             $30.00
www.islandpress.org

The Cougar Conundrum: Sharing the World With a Successful Predator belongs in any nature collection strong in conservation and animal protection, discussing the rise of mountain lions in human areas and why they should be considered a positive force. 

More importantly, this book addresses how humans and cougars can peacefully share the same environment, offering insights on the value of perceiving them as more than a danger or a pest. 

Chapters cover everything from sharing prey with a mountain lion to understanding how hunting increases support for mountain lions among houndsmen and houndswomen. 

Reports about the characteristics of hunters and prey, different approaches to mountain lion and habitat management, and the process of humans coexisting with mountain lions provide a combination of insight, theory, and tested efforts against a backdrop of history and ecological facts. 

The result is a powerful survey especially recommended for those who live in areas where cougars are making a comeback. 


Monarchs of the Sea
Dana Staaf
The Experiment
9781615197408             $15.95
www.theexperimentpublishing.com 

Monarchs of the Sea: The Extraordinary 500-Million-Year History of Cephalopods is an ecological history of a class of sea creature that includes squid, octopuses, and nautiluses, among others. 

It comes from a marine biologist who provides an overview of known facts about their evolution and their connections to paleontological history and modern man. Monarchs of the Sea contrasts the creative theories that have evolved, along with them, about their natural history, considering how they have impacted human researchers and lives alike. 

Dana Staaf's writing style is not the dry scientific approach one might anticipate from such a journey. Her lively review of cephalopods is tantalizing, whether she's surveying their shared characteristics, their mystery, or their remarkable abilities. 

No other book covers the heyday of their rule as 'monarchs of the sea', setting this survey apart from others and adding a delightful, lively note to the literature about them. 


Reviewer's Choice 

Chile Peppers: A Global History
Dave DeWitt
University of New Mexico Press
9780826361806             $29.95
www.unmpress.com 

Chile Peppers: A Global History: A Worldwide Culinary Tour & Cookbook differs from any other chile pepper book by blending a travelogue and a cookbook under one cover, adding a healthy dose of historical and literary inspection for added flavor. 

It hops around the world, exploring different cuisines and how they have incorporated the chile pepper into their dishes, from Texas to Hungary and Africa. It also assumes a lively investigative tone as it considers the presence and impact of the chile even in countries that normally aren't associated with fiery food, such as France. 

Color photos and recipes pepper the history and culinary review, from a Trinidad Johnny's Food Haven Pepper Sauce to a South African Cape Malay traditional beef dish called Babotie. 

The color-coded pages make it a snap to locate just the recipes, for cooks seeking only a cookbook—but it would be a shame to use this as a cookbook alone. Much history is embedded in the production, and should not be passed over, making Chile Peppers: A Global History an outstanding addition not just for cookbook collections, but anyone interested in culinary history, travelogues, and lively writing. 


Dark, Salt, Clear
Lamorna Ash
Bloomsbury Publishing
9781635576153             $27.00
www.bloomsbury.com 

Dark, Salt, Clear: The Life of a Fishing Town blends a memoir with a study of changing fishing town culture and life, creating a captivating story of a changing Cornish fishing community and a woman's attempts to join a fishing expedition, traditionally a male occupation. 

Lamorna Ash was told that no fisherman wanted women along for the journey. She persisted, gained a job on a fishing trawler, and observed not only commercial fishing, but the threats to its continuation. 

She captures these experiences and the personal, social, and political transformations facing the world fishing community as a whole in a powerful story that contains personal insights from fellow fishermen, along with her own story and the community's evolution: "For fishermen, this sense of an endless rebounding between work and respite is brought into even sharper focus by their oscillation between the sea and the land." 

This lovely chronicle deserves a place in any natural history or sports collection, as well as many a women's biography collection, for its astute observations of a number of issues relating to women's changing roles and the fisherman's changing place in the world. 


Epic Mexico
Terry Rugeley
University of Oklahoma Press
9780806167077             $24.95
www.oupress.com 

Epic Mexico: A History from Earliest Times reviews Mexico's history from prehistory to modern times, providing the foundation for better understanding the country's evolution, growth, social and political processes, and modern incarnation today. 

The key to enjoying Epic Mexico also lies in acknowledging the word 'epic' in the title. This is no dry review of facts and statistics, but a lively portrait of Mexico's peoples and history which injects a passionate voice into its survey: "Change hurts. Diaz and his supporters understood perfectly that their reforms would disrupt the lives of a broad stretch of Mexican society. Moreover, they feared a repeat of the instability and political violence that had so marred the early national years. To answer such fears, they developed methods of administration and policing to contain unrest." 

The result is a compelling read that delves into not just facts, but the evolution of Mexican culture as a whole and its many influences along the way. 


In Bohemia
Katie Swenson
Schiffer Publishing
9780764359972             $24.99
www.schifferbooks.com 

In Bohemia: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Kindness should be part of any collection strong in stories of loss and grief. It documents a journey that began the day after Katie Swenson's fiancé Tommy Niles died suddenly of a heart attack. 

Her response was to write this book. She retreated to their loft home ("Bohemia") to write, producing a blend of testimony to his life, their lives together, her future, and celebration of their love. All these facets come to life in a story that traverses these and other topics of life, death, and everything in between. 

As readers absorb In Bohemia, they receive a lovely, evocative survey of moving through grief: "It's hard to be forever the fiancé, rather than the wife that Tommy wanted me to be. I know the truth of us, as do his friends and family, but the fact remains that we were not yet married. I had no legal status." 

This reflective piece should be in the collections of anyone interested in moving through the day-by-day passage of time after the death of a loved one. 


Murder is a Must
Marty Wingate
Berkeley Prime Crime
9781984804136             $26.00
www.penguinrandomhouse.com 

In Murder is a Must, Hayley Burke is the new curator of the Fist Edition Library in Middlebank House, which features Lady Fowling's mystery collection. She's settling into her job and faces challenges in developing an exhibition of the works and dealing with those who have been privy to Lady Fowling's inner circle. 

She also is on the hunt for a missing priceless edition. Her pursuit reveals clues that it's located somewhere in the library. Ooona Atherton, Hayley's former boss, is convinced that she's located the book, but she's murdered before Hayley can get the information. 

This sends Hayley on a treasure hunt for both a priceless book and a killer in a powerful story filled with satisfying book history and details, twists and turns over a murderer's special interests, and a dangerous truth about the collection and her role in exploring it, that could change everything. 

Mystery readers are in for a treat; especially those interested in antique books. 


Pretty Good Advice
Leslie Blodgett
Abrams Image
9781419742149             $19.99
www.abramsbooks.com 

Pretty Good Advice for People Who Dream Big and Work Harder offers candid advice on beauty, business, and life. It comes from an author who changed how makeup was sold and who created a community brand, bareMinerals, that offered fresh new approaches to beauty concepts and products. 

Her book takes the form of various admonitions for success, from living up to parental expectations to accepting flaws, trying not to be a jerk, writing letters that cultivate connections in life, and taking risks that feel right. 

It's hard to easily categorize this set of admonitions. Part business advice and part life guide, with a dash of autobiography added for emphasis and enhancement, Pretty Good Advice for People Who Dream Big and Work Harder offers an inspirational and business read not to be missed. 


A Sound Mind
Paul Morley
Bloomsbury Publishing
9781635570267             $30.00
www.bloomsbury.com 

A Sound Mind: How I Fell in Love with Classical Music (and Decided to Rewrite its Entire History) comes from an unlikely source: a rock 'n roll journalist who found himself drawn to classical music with the advent of new streaming platforms and services that introduced him to all the pieces written by the classical masters. 

His probe of the history and culture of classical music provides descriptions, insights, and exciting play lists of pieces that invite readers to embark on their own journey into this world, even if they arrive with relatively little familiarity with it, as did Paul Morley. 

The excitement lies in this book's ability to capture the nuances of orchestrated sound, its appreciation, and its culture. His journey around the world embraces classical players from other countries such as Iceland, covering both the familiar and the obscure with an attention to detail that will delight classical musicians and novices alike. 

The result is a lovely celebration that requires no previous familiarity or expertise with the subject in order to prove accessible and enlightening to all. 


Tiny Hotels
Florian Siebeck
Prestel
9783791386720             $25.00
www.prestel.com 

Tiny Hotels profiles some 40 tiny hotels around the world and is especially recommended for post-COVID travel, as it outlines the attractions of smaller establishments which are user-friendly without being crowded. 

From the six-room Villa Antionette in Semmering, Austria, with its lovely chalet-like appearance and its origins as a small rustic snack bar turned into a chalet hotel, to the 6-villa Bisate Lodge at Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, located on the slope of an extinct volcano in the hills, Tiny Hotels features select, beautiful establishments. 

It includes appealing color photos of every hotel, in-depth descriptions of the establishment's layout and attractions, and lovely photos of interiors, from rooms to lobby to outside setting. 

Tiny Hotels will appeal to armchair readers interested in learning about hotel architecture through lovely images, as well as to destination-oriented readers who will find the addresses and contact information at the book's conclusion leaves nothing to wonder. 


We Do Not Want the Gates Closed Between Us
Justin Gage
University of Oklahoma Press
9780806167251             $45.00
www.oupress.com

We Do Not Want the Gates Closed Between Us: Native Networks and the Spread of the Ghost Dance belongs in any collection strong in Native American history and culture. It surveys how Native Americans resisted the effort to limit their world to the reservations the U.S. government forced them onto in the 1860s and 1870s. 

The Native American community built intertribal networks of communication and relationships through letters and visits, resisting the U.S. government's effort to keep them isolated from each other, and they mobilized to take charge of their information, destiny, and futures as much as possible. 

Other books cover reservation history, but Justin Gage focuses on these resistance efforts and attempts to forge connections against U.S. government repression. This creates a powerful survey that uses new materials, including a hundred letters written by 19th-century Native Americans, to document the defiance of American colonialism over the decades. 

The focus on the Ghost Dance and its spread follows this networking process and provides a valuable testimony to Native activism and how it was kept alive through various means and approaches to survival. 

No Native American history holding should be without this hard-hitting testimony to resilience and resistance. 



Young Adult/Children

The Complete DIY Cookbook for Young Chefs
America's Test Kitchen
America's Test Kitchen
9781948703246             $19.99
www.americastestkitchen.com 

The Complete DIY Cookbook for Young Chefs should be the first cookbook provided to young readers seeking simple, appealing, kid-friendly recipes to try, and focuses on familiar recipes for store-bought food that kids will find easy. 

This cookbook has been 'kid-tested', which means that America's Test Kitchen has adjusted many of its strategies for producing foolproof results to the child's-eye view of the kitchen. 

Color images throughout show kids in the kitchen producing such dishes as Pumpkin Spice Mix, Strawberry Pop Tarts, Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, and Fresh Tomato Salsa. 

Kids and parents will find The Complete DIY Cookbook for Young Chefs a bright, fun, appealing cookbook that not only holds recipes, but keys to understanding more about what recipes work well, and why. 


EK Books
www.ekbooks.org 

Two fine new releases from EK Books offer more than just leisure reading entertainment, and are recommended picks for adults who would help children learn. 

Brooke Graham and Robin Tatlow-Lord's Go Away, Worry Monster (9781925820393, $18.99) is the perfect tool for helping kids cope with anxiety, using tested strategies from psychotherapy to help kids understand anxiety and how to cope with it. 

Parents, teachers, and caregivers will want to use Go Away, Worry Monster as an interactive opportunity for discussing coping strategies, as the story tells of a Worry Monster who loves 'helping' Archie worry. Archie's only recourse is to make this monster vanish. But, how? 

Large, colorful drawings detail this monster's influence and Archie's ability to vanquish it with a little help and insight. 

Raymond Huber and Sandra Severgnini's Tree Beings (9781925820539, $24.99) is the perfect story of choice for adults who want to teach kids about trees and how to protect them. It covers the scientists, explorers, and history of tree protection around the world. 

Good reading skills are required from grades 2-3 to enjoy these detailed descriptions of life in trees, tree preservation activists, tree history, and rainforest power, among many other topics. 

The gorgeous, oversized color illustrations are a fine plus to this appealing educational survey of the history and science of trees and their importance. 


Peachtree
www.peachtree-online.com 

Advanced elementary to early middle grade readers ages 8-12 will find Lavie Tidhar's The Candy Mafia (9781682631973, $16.99) an inviting, fun story set in a city where all candy has been outlawed, leading children to go on the lam via a black market candy ring. 

Young readers who enjoy investigative pieces will relish this story of a missing teddy bear, a vanished owner, and an investigation which leads Nelle and her fellow sleuths into an underworld of candy smuggling. 

The lively tale is hard to put down and will delight fans of Encyclopedia Brown and other sleuthing mysteries, providing a taste of something different. 

Mara Rockliff's The Grudge Keeper (9781564157298, $16.95) receives delightful drawings by Eliza Wheeler as it tells of a town free of grudges—except for one notable grudge-holder, Cornelius, who manages to keep them all squirreled away until a storm sends them flying free. 

Can Cornelius maintain his role in the town, or is it doomed to experiences grudges from then on? 

Good reading skills or parental assistance will enhance enjoyment of this concept of grudges, their lasting impact, and what happens when they vanish, only to return in force. 

These fine books are recommended for individual purchase and library acquisition alike. 


Penguin
www.penguin.com/kids

Penguin's new arrivals are highly recommended picks for young leisure readers who enjoy picture books that excel in image and story. 

Misty Copeland's Bunheads (9780399547645, $17.99) receives fine drawings by Setor Fiadzigbey and requires either good reading skills or parental assistance as it tells of young Misty, who becomes captivated by the world of dance through the ballet Coppelia, about a toymaker's dangerous creation. 

Misty has never danced ballet before she decides to audition for the role, but her exploration of this world introduces readers to its processes, terminology, and the routines of training for a ballet production. A lovely story evolves, especially recommended for youngsters newly involved in the world of dance. 

Jonathan Bentley's colorful, whimsical drawings accompany P. Crumble's jaunty story of animal equality in We Are All Equal (9780593202555, $17.99), in which animals do more than just tolerate each other, joining together to celebrate their differences. 

The basic ideals of independence, freedom, and differences in America is covered in a fun and easy reader parents will want to use to teach kids about the fundamentals of what constitutes equality. 

Rachel Larsen, Adam Reid, and Ozi Akturk's The Tiny Chef and da Mishing Weshipee Blook (9780593115053, $18.99) tells of a chef's dilemma when his favorite recipe book goes missing. 

Could it be because his kitchen is such a mess that he can't find it? 

The Chef is furious and frustrated, but he decides to channel his anger in a different way, and his discoveries lead to information that enhances his cooking. 

The gorgeous full-page color art is especially striking in this story, drawing readers into a world of problem-solving and a small chef's success. 


The Racers
Neal Bascomb
Scholastic, Inc.
9781338277418           $18.99
www.scholastic.com 

Although The Racers: How an Outcast Driver, An American Heiress, and a Legendary Car Challenged Hitler's Best  is written for a young adult audience of race car enthusiasts, this book is a top recommendation for many an adult race car reader, who will find much of the racing and historical references new to them. 

Even the most avid racing fan will find this a powerful story of how Hitler's Grand Prix driver was thwarted by 32-year-old French Jewish driver Rene Dreyfus, who found a sponsor in American heiress Lucy Schell and went on to prove that the Third Reich wasn't the greatest at everything in the world. 

This powerful story, set against the backdrop of an evolving world war, will simply delight all ages with a compelling and unusual story, which hasn't received much (if any) discussion in either adult or young adult circles before, making it a 'must' for all ages interested in history and car racing. 


Simon and Schuster
www.simonandschuster.com/kids 

Two fine new books are top recommendations for middle grade leisure readers, offering different topics and compelling stories. 

Ages 9-12 will appreciate Summer Rachel Short's The Mutant Mushroom Takeover (9781534468658, $17.99), which tells of Magnolia Stone's life in her gramma's mobile home with a grumpy older brother. 

Determined to change this scenario, Magnolia wants to win a naturalist merit award that will help her reconnect with her scientist father.  Doing so involves an investigation of a rare bioluminescent fungus, but evolves into a real mystery when the fungus spreads and brings infection and danger to Shady Pines. 

Kids who enjoy science and mystery will relish this unexpectedly compelling adventure. 

Stuart Gibbs' Spy School Revolution (9781534443785, $17.99) will appeal to a slightly younger audience (ages 8-12) with the story of young agent Ben Ripley, who is determined to clear Erica Hale's name by investigating the Croatoan who are blackmailing his friend. 

His mission is to defy the CIA's notion that this group is mythical, and to locate evidence of its involvement and Erica's innocence alike. 

Kids who enjoy spy stories will find this an engaging tale. 


Sleeping Bear Press
www.sleepingbearpress.com 

Two new arrivals are top recommendations for picture book leisure readers, providing warm stories that lend particularly well to parental read-aloud. 

Clayton Anderson's Letters from Space (9781534110748, $16.99) is illustrated by Susan Batori and blends science and humor about space. It comes from a retired astronaut who examines life on the International Space Station, and uses fun letters to impart science lessons and insights on space living. 

The sequence of letters explores experiences from the third day to leaving the station 152 days later, following STEAM content specifications as it provides ages 4-8 with insights on everything from spacewalking to space suits and personal experiences. 

Helen Foster James creates a keepsake edition of Welcome to the World (9781534110120, $16.99) that includes an additional page for a baby's photo as it provides a gift for new parents and their babies. 

Petra Brown's gorgeous, sweet animal drawings follow doting parents as they enjoy their new arrival, from "singing songs to make you smile" to a fun bubble bath. 

Parents will relish this sweet, inviting, fun picture book. 


Wash Your Hands!
Steve Behling
Disney Press
9781368071550             $4.95
www.disneybooks.com 

Wash Your Hands! gives young picture book readers a basic primer about hand-washing, telling of a doctor who washes her hands when she goes to the clinic. 

Based on the series created by Chris Nee, this story features bright, colorful images, requires either good reading skills or parental assistance, and involves a variety of creatures in Doc's display of hand-washing and germ prevention. 

Parents looking for a lively primer on cleanliness which turns the task of hand washing into an educational adventure will find Wash Your Hands! a compelling, attractive choice.