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Donovan's Bookshelf

January  2018 Prime Picks

 
Business Sense
The Computer Corner
The Culinary Corner
History
Arts and Crafts
Audiobooks
New Age
Biography & Autobiography
Reviewer's Choice
Science Nature and Technology
Scintillating Science Fiction and Fantasy
Social Issues
Young Adult / Childrens

Business Sense 

The Aquaponic Farmer
Adrian Southern & Whelm King
New Society Publishers
9780865718586             $39.99
www.newsociety.com 

The Aquaponic Farmer: A Complete Guide to Building and Operating a Commercial Aquaponic System will reach small-scale farmers who would consider aquaculture business pursuits, and shows how to raise fish and vegetables together commercially for a profitable food system that includes cold-water fish that can be raised in North America and Europe. 

The cornerstone of such an operation is a proven 120-degree greenhouse system that can be operated by one person, making this quite accessible to small farmers and individual pursuits. 

Step-by-step coverage of how to begin, run, and profit from a cold-water aquaponics system includes contrasts of different system options, recommended equipment and tools, raising fish, plant production, and marketing the final results.

No aspiring aquaponic farmer should be without this indispensably specific guide, which includes black and white photos throughout. 


Passion Projects for Smart People
Michael R. Wing, PhD
Quill Driver Books
9781610353069             $14.95
www.quilldriverbooks.com 

Passion Projects for Smart People: Turn Your Intellectual Pursuits into Fun, Profit, and Recognition is essential reading for any business or career professional who wants to put skill sets and interests into a career that turns intellectual work on side projects into professional pursuits. 

Chapters provide examples of how others launched academic, scientific, or artistic projects from these skills and uses the author's own research projects in various disciplines as examples of how he's moved successfully into different career circles. 

Strategies for making such pursuits successful include tips on how to locate and collaborate with others, applying for grants, and mentoring others, for just a few ideas. 

Those looking to build or recharge careers or foster new careers will find Passion Projects for Smart People a powerful set of connections between intellectual pursuits done in the name of leisure and recreation and career-building strategies encouraging change. 


 

The Computer Corner 

Murach's PHP and MySQL, 3rd Edition
Joel Murach and Ray Harris
Murach, Publishers
9781943872381             $57.50
www.murach.com 

Murach's PHP and MySQL appears in its third updated edition to provide details on the latest renditions and best practices surrounding PHP and MySQL, and provides an essential 'bible' of information that moves from basics for getting up and running to applying advanced features to real-world programming challenges. 

What sets this weighty coverage apart from others is its focuses on professional approaches to building database-driven websites using PHP that presume no prior knowledge of either the program or best practices. Six introductory chapters cover all the basics of handling database-driven websites, while later discussions focus on skills-building, offering short courses on how to design and query a database, how to secure web pages, and how to apply a complete Guitar Shop website example to learn best PHP practices and MySQL programming applications. 

Beginning to advanced programmers should look no further than Murach's PHP and MySQL for a reference that excels in clear directions, visual examples, and real-world applications. 


PHP and MySQL for Dynamic Web Sites, 5th Edition
Larry Ullman
Peachpit Press
9780134301846             $49.99
www.peachpit.com 

The 5th updated edition of PHP and MySQL for Dynamic Web Sites represents a fine visual approach that covers PHP 5 and 7, pairing step-by-step exercises with real-world examples to reinforce best practices and advanced techniques for better web development. 

No prior programming experience is required or assumed with this guide: all that's needed is PHP and MySQL and an ability to learn new web development approaches. A companion website contains the book's code, which can be downloaded, and a support forum where the author answers questions. 

Packed with code, review questions, ideas for further study, and insights on everything from handling errors and debugging to using cookies and working with page elements, this is a 'must' for any who would either get up to speed quickly or apply some of the advanced features of the latest PHP and MySQL.



The Culinary Corner

Best Food Writing 2017
Holly Hughes, Editor
DaCapo Press
9780738220185             $16.99
www.dacapopress.com 

Best Food Writing 2017 is the latest in an annual 'best' compilation series that hand-picks culinary prose and comes from an editor who has fostered the series for the last eighteen years. 

Because the origins of these essays range from online to print sources, containing subjects as varied as chicken pot pie contrasts to Maryland crab and the relationship between a restaurant chef and a dishwasher, readers should ideally be food fans interested in modern food, food history, fads and trends, and how foods influence daily life and reflect cultural melting pots. 

The result is a lively and appealing discussion highly recommended for any culinary fan who likes literary reflections and food insights. 


The Power of Pasta
Bruno Serato
SelectBooks
9781590794357             $28.95
www.selectbooks.com 

There are so many books on the market that revolve around pasta cookery that, at initial glance, one might wonder at the need for yet a pasta book; but The Power of Pasta: A Celebrity Chef's Mission to Feed America's Hungry Children is more than just a recipe collection; but represents a goodwill mission. 

Not only is Bruno Serato a celebrity chef who owned one of the world's most popular restaurants, but he's also a philanthropist who adds a memoir and discussions of his work with underprivileged children to the pasta mix. 

The Power of Pasta thus comes infused with as much insight on doing good through food as it is a discussion of concrete ways to give back to one's community, run a charity, and make a difference. 

Pair this approach with recipes such as Scallops with Beet Mashed Potatoes, Italian Branzino, and the author's own inspired Penne Alla Vodka for quite a different culinary awakening: one certain to appeal well beyond culinary audiences.


The Simple Kitchen
Chad and Donna Elick
Page Street Publishing
9781624144356             $21.99
www.pagestreetpublishing.com 

The Simple Kitchen: Quick and Easy Recipes Bursting with Flavor comes from authors who share their favorite techniques for making fresh, fast food from scratch, and presents an attention to taking traditionally complicated dishes and making them simpler. 

These dishes range from a basic pot roast or a Creamy Bacon Carbonara with Peas to Best Ever Slow Cooker Creamed Corn and Restaurant-Style Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup. Full-page, bright color photos accompany the dishes, while simple kitchen tips in highlighted boxes explain how to assure foolproof results. 

The result is some 80 family-oriented dishes which are a snap to put together and inviting to browse, especially recommended for busy cooks who might think cooking fresh foods from scratch requires too much preparation (The Simple Kitchen proves that it does not). 


Simple Real Food
Amanda Cushman
Amanda Cushman, Publisher
9780615214863             $24.95
www.amandacooks.com 

Simple Real Food: Delicious Clean Food Prepared Simply comes from a teacher and chef who maintains that even the busiest folk can prepare satisfying home-cooked meals using fresh ingredients, and her cookbook proves it. 

There are many satisfying and superior aspects in Cushman's book: among them, an attention to multicultural recipes and flexible dishes that can be easily and successfully adapted, a liberal peppering of appealing color photos that sparkle on glossy paper, and many make-ahead tips. 

From Braised Provincial Chicken with White Beans and Vegetable Chicken and Ginger Soup to a wheat berry and current spiced Brown and White Rice Salad, these dishes are packed with appeal and diverse flavors that busy cooks will appreciate. 



History

The Grouchy Historian
Ed Asner and Ed Weinberger
Simon & Schuster
9781501166020             $26.00
www.simonandschuster.com 

The Grouchy Historian: An Angry Old-Time Lefty Defends Our Constitution Against Right-Wing Hypocrites and Nutjobs certainly pulls no punches, either in its title or in its discussion; which will be a refreshing difference from less passionate discourses about any of its subjects. 

Those who initially think that Ed Asner's name seems familiar, but can't quite place it, likely recognize it from his role as Lou Grant from the Mary Tyler Moore Show on television, but probably won't have realized (prior to this book) that Asner is a long-time Democrat who here focuses on Constitutional facts in his process of refuting 'fake news' and what it actually says. 

His is an angry protest against right-wing interpretations of this document, and considers such varied issues as past political, social, and economic interpretations of the Constitution; various policies that it addresses, from immigrant rights to corruption; and the right-wing forces that work hard at refuting its long-held interpretation and tenants. 

The result is angry, challenging, but filled with historical precedent, and should be in the classrooms of students debating American politics and history. 


The Haas Sisters of Franklin Street
Frances Bransten Rothmann
Heyday
9781597143899             $20.00
www.heydaybooks.com 

The Haas Sisters of Franklin Street: A San Francisco Memoir of Family and Love is a 'must have' history for any San Franciscan, for California history holdings, and for those who would see 19th and early 20th century San Francisco come to life through the experiences of sisters Alice Haas Lilienthal and Florine Haas Branstein. 

Author Frances Bransten Rothmann surveys her mother and aunt's experiences in the city and provides a lively memoir that pairs San Francisco culture with the experiences of two loving sisters and their family ties. 

The result is a lively memoir that deserves top recommendation for any San Francisco history library, peppering its personal story with vintage photos throughout a family memoir that is personal and revealing, recreating the sights, sounds and experiences of a bygone era. 


Arts and Crafts

Georgian and Victorian Board Games: The Liman Collection
Ellen Liman
Pointed Leaf Press
9781938461439             $65.00
www.pointedleafpress.com 

Georgian and Victorian Board Games: The Liman Collection is an oversized and lovely survey of Victorian and Georgian board game history and art from the early 18th century, when people began to realize that board games represented an educational opportunity to link children's play to information. 

Some sixty games designed for instruction and play are profiled in a survey that adds historical and cultural background into its record of how these board games were developed and used. 

Many such games, some printed on linen or delicate materials, didn't survive their young enthusiasts' handling; which makes this collection especially notable and worthy of both artistic and historical attention. 

The gorgeous details in the good-sized illustrations enhance a wide-ranging discussion that not only profiles the Liman holdings and games of the times, but greatly adds to game history surveys. 


Kalmbach Books
www.jewelryandbeadingstore.com 

Two outstanding jewelry-making guides are highly recommended picks for anyone interested in diverse projects that teach skills while producing professional-appearing jewelry pieces. 

Renee Kovnesky's Exquisite Stitching with Multi-Hole Beads (9781627004336, $21.99) features over twenty projects organized by different bead shapes; each offering step-by-step visual and written directions for making bracelets, earrings, and necklaces which incorporate beadweaving techniques. 

Basic lessons about pairing, handling, and working with the beads make every project a tutorial in creating and finishing pieces, with materials lists and clear directions leaving nothing to wonder. 

Jewelry makers who already have some background in and affinity for chain mail will relish Sandy Haugen's Chain Mail Plus: Jewelry Projects Using Crystals, Charms & More (9781627003858, $21.99). 

Those who have created chain mail jewelry in the past receive instructions on how to blend crystals, leather and ribbons, and other materials into the traditional chain mail approach for a new, innovative look. 

Some twenty projects packed with hundreds of photos nicely illustrate each project and cover techniques that build upon chain mail skills. 

Both deserve a spot in any jewelry maker's collection. 


Making the Magic Happen
Peter D. Marshall
Michael Wiese Productions
9781615932658             $26.95
www.mwp.com 

Making the Magic Happen: The Art and Craft of Film Directing is a top pick for film and performing arts readers who would better understand the craft of creative film production. 

By separating the concept of the art of production from the technical craft of making it happen, Peter D. Marshall, himself a filmmaker and film-directing coach with over 40 years of industry experience, offers keys to understanding story structure, translating text to powerful visual results, and the mechanics of preproduction directing to assure success.

These and a variety of other techniques are outlined in a survey that covers everything from collaborating with directors and all involved in the filmmaking process, acknowledging their different jobs and perspectives, to understanding the elements of good screenwriting and visual interpretation. 

Anyone involved in the art and craft of creative film directing needs this specific set of guidelines and insights. 


Audiobooks 

Highbridge Audio
www.highbridgeaudio.com 

Four outstanding new audio books are highly recommended picks for libraries seeking a blend of high-interest topics, top-notch readers, and durable packaging suitable for lending. 

Geoffrey Girard's Mary Rose (9781681689647, $29.99) is narrated by Henrietta Meire, whose smooth voice lends quiet drama to the intriguing story of successful young professionals in Philadelphia who fall in love and are set to begin a new life until a journey to England reveals a long-held secret. 

Mary Rose Morland vanished as a little girl, and showed up over a month later in the exact same spot, with no memory of events during her absence. 

Simon decides to find out what happened in his beloved's childhood - and his investigation leads to her increasingly odd behavior and the unraveling of dangerous secret that will change everything. 

Bradford Morrow's The Prague Sonata (9781681887001, $49.99) is read by Christina Delaine, who lends an authoritative and commanding voice to this powerful story of a worn original sonata manuscript which falls into musiciologist Meta's hands. 

Has Meta discovered an original 18th century piece by an unknown composer; or will her efforts to find the manuscript's Prague owner reveal something more than a lost friendship and a rare piece of music? 

The gripping novel comes to life in audio to provide a complex, absorbing listen. 

Gaute Heivoll's Across the China Sea (9781681687087, $29.99) is narrated by Alex Bloch, who lends the perfect intonation and quiet drama to this Norwegian story of Karin and her husband, who move from Oslo to a small village to build new lives at the end of the German occupation of Norway. 

When they die, their son inherits a legacy and a special relationship with his siblings that comes to life as he cleans out the house and finds that objects of his childhood hold a strange power over him. 

Dan Buettner's The Blue Zone of Happiness: Lessons from the World's Happiest People (9781681689487, $34.99) is read by Patrick Lawlor and author Buettner, who bring to life an outstanding investigation into happiness and its actual incarnation in everyday lives around the world. 

It's about using tools to meet world challenges with well-being and happiness, finding pleasure and purpose in everyday life. The author's Blue Zones Happiness Test helps pinpoint these areas and also details strategies to achieve better, happier life goals. 

Carmen Maria Machado's Her Body and Other Parties (9781681686882, $29.99) features short stories narrated by Amy Landon, who adds an experienced and seasoned voice to tales that blend psychology, comedy, horror, fantasy and more. 

To call this production 'genre-crossing' would be an understatement: like the best short story writers (among them, Harlan Ellison), the key to success lies in twists of plots, ironies, an intriguing blend of everyday and extraordinary circumstances, and the unique reactions and perspectives of the characters. 

All are powerful and highly recommended productions for individual and library pursuit alike. 


New Age 

Crafting Gratitude
Maggie Oman Shannon
Viva Editions/Cleis Press
9781632280343             $18.95
www.vivaeditions.com 

Crafting Gratitude: Creating and Celebrating Our Blessings with Hands and Heart links ideas of gratitude with crafty endeavors, presenting the perspective that crafting can be viewed and used as a meditative practice to enrich life and create positive perspectives on giving and health. 

Mandalas, a 'Values Bracelet', Spirit Houses from Southeast Asia and more connect spiritual lessons to crafts projects, discussing the author's own lessons learned from and tied in with these methods. 

Each craft project comes with stories about physical, mental and spiritual health stemming from them: affirmations that will especially appeal to new age readers interested in project-oriented meditative approaches. 


New World Library
www.newworldlibrary.com 

Two exceptional titles from New World Library are important books any new age collection should have. 

Joan and Anne Watts edit The Collected Letters of Alan Watts (9781608684151, $32.50), a treasure trove of newly discovered letters presented by Alan Watts' first-born children and embellished with black and white photos, drawings, and letters throughout. 

Alan Watts' writings have received extensive attention and acclaim, but this collection of letters, which began in his teen years and were penned throughout his life, is a series of correspondences and discussions nicely supplemented with commentary by his daughters, placing them in perspective. 

The result is a powerful literary, spiritual, and philosophical collection that is a 'must' for any definitive Alan Watts collection. 

Joseph Campbell's The Ecstasy of Being: Mythology and Dance (9781608683666, $24.95) will appeal to prior Campbell fans seeking something new; especially those who might believe that their already-extensive pursuit of his works means that they have exhausted the extent of his pieces. This book offers seven articles and lectures that Campbell gave on dance, art, and myth, along with the book he was writing when he died, Mythology and Form. 

Moreover, it comes with a forward by certified movement analyst and dancer Nancy Allison and peppers black and white dance photos throughout as it discusses dance history, Eastern and Western spirit, and historic folk dance events. 

Fans of mythology and dance history alike will find The Ecstasy of Being an intriguing, revealing approach to both. 


Conari/Weiser Books
www.redwheelweiser.com 

These titles provide new age readers with a fine selection of reflections on joy, gratitude, and how to pass positive vibrations to others. 

Attitudes of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of Your Life by M.J. Ryan (9781573247108, $15.95) is a powerful little package that links a grateful attitude to sharing the good things in life. 

"Gratitude lights up what is already there," but it's the distribution process that may prove problematic to some readers. This book focuses on how lessons are learned from life and how joy can be seen, acknowledged, processed, and given others, making this a fine gift book choice for any interested in life lessons and their greater impact. 

The Magical Art of Crafting Charm Bags: 100 Mystical Formulas for Success, Love, Wealth, and Wellbeing by Elhoim Leafar (9781578636198, $16.95) focuses on charm bags which serve as talismans in the modern world, and which are created by and incorporated into the spiritual traditions of cultures around the world. 

Until now, there's been no real guide to creating charm bags. The Magical Art of Crafting Charm Bags focuses on the magic involved, the process of crafting charm bags and amulets, and provides formulas for adding powerful magical forces into the bag creation. 

There are few books on the market about creating and using charm bags alone, making The Magical Art of Crafting Charm Bags a unique contribution worthy of addition to any magic or new age library. 

Judika Illes edits and introduces The Weiser Book of Occult Detectives: 13 Stories of Supernatural Sleuthing (9781578636242, $16.95). This is for recommended for readers of detective stories who like to see paranormal elements in the course of their stories, and gathers some popular examples of vintage occult detective stories from the pens of such famous writers as Algernon Blackwood, Sir Arthur Conan Coyle, and others. 

The editor is an occult author and scholar who provides a fine and diverse collection of tales revolving around all kinds of detectives facing a wide range of occult mysteries. 

Students of mindful behavior and approaches - especially those looking for an introductory primer to its daily applications - will welcome Emma Mills's Inhale Exhale Repeat (9781573247283, $15.95), an inspirational survey that gathers meditation and mindfulness lessons that can be absorbed in single-day readings and quick at-a-glance pursuit. 

Tips, meditations, recipes, and formulas for success can all be completed in just minutes, so there is no excuse for not taking in and applying their benefits. 

New age readers will find each book unique and worthy of attention. 


Scintillating Science Fiction and Fantasy 

Sea of Rust
C. Robert Cargill
Harper Voyageur
9780062405838             $27.99
www.harpercollins.com 

Sea of Rust presents an unusual post-apocalyptic scenario of the world that focuses on a robot survivor of a war that has destroyed humanity thirty years ago: a conflict that resulted in every human being's extinction. 

This global event has been at the hands not of fellow humans, but of machines; and this brave new world of mechanical survivors is controlled by the shared consciousness of millions of robots under a mainframe brain. 

Some are rogues who won't participate in this shared intelligence - and Brittle, a scavenger robot who is trying to keep himself in one piece against all odds - is one of those renegades who acknowledges the crimes committed by his fellow robots. 

The Sea of Rust is a graveyard where machines go to die... only some of them go there to be reborn, instead. Can Brittle come to terms with the consequences of the actions of his own kind, and his personal guilt about it? 

Pair these insights with a read about robots that seem nearly human for a fast-paced, challenging story that's unpredictable and hard to put down. 


Biography & Autobiography 

 
Missing Persons
Gayle Greene
University of Nevada Press
9781943859467             $22.95
www.unpress.nevada.edu 

Missing Persons: A Memoir comes from one who becomes the last in her family after she loses her aunt and then her mother, facing the rigors of caring for a dying person at home and the ongoing feelings of loss that comes from their recent deaths and the prior demise of her younger brother and her father. 

Gayle Greene was forced to confront basic questions of her values and journey in life as she lived through her mother and aunt's final days and a year's aftermath of being without them and without family ties. 

The result is a hard-hitting account of one woman's adjustments and survival tactics that takes into account the broader issues of death, dying, and family heritage. Missing Persons is recommended for anyone who enjoys memoirs about family connections, loss, and disconnections. 


Tippi: A Memoir
Tippi Hedren
William Morrow
9780062469043      $15.99
www.harpercollins.com 

Tippi: A Memoir is suggested for fans of the Hitchcock classic movie The Birds, for anyone who wants in-depth details about the actress who made the movie famous. 

Hedren has done numerous films; but has never before told her life story in her own words. This book reveals, for the first time, her life, her relationship with Hitchcock (who became both a mentor and a negative, overbearing force in her world), and how she finally broke free of his influence and went on to forge a career without him. 

Readers will relish this involving saga about Hollywood's influences, Hitchcock's routines and roles in his movies, and how one woman overcame the influence of a famous man to achieve her own rightful place in the film industry. 

Very, very highly recommended, Tippi: A Memoir is for any woman who wants to break through the confusion of a personal and professional relationship with a repressive mentor. 


Science, Nature & Technology 

Aerial Geology
Mary Capteron Morton
Timber Press
9781604697629             $29.95
www.timberpress.com 

Aerial Geology: A High-Altitude Tour of North America's Spectacular Volcanoes, Canyons, Glaciers, lakes, Craters, and Peaks discusses Earth's surface and the massive events that have changed its landscape, but represents a different geologic perspective than most in considering these changes from a continent-wide, aerial viewpoint. 

Images and illustrations from aloft explain and explore this striking geologic history by pairing full color photos of marshes, lakes, sand dunes, and rifts around the U.S. with discussions that consider the geologic forces that have crafted these areas. 

Sidebars of flight pattern information for pilots and those who would conduct their own matching aerial surveys offer route information, while the state-by-state coverage makes it easy to browse by area of interest. 

The result is an outstanding blend of geologic history, science, and am aviation focus that is educational, lively, and, most importantly, equally accessible to lay readers and those with geology backgrounds. 


American Wolf
Nate Blakeslee
Crown
9781101902783             $28.00
www.crownpublishing.com 

American Wolf: A True Story of Survival and Obsession in the West brings to life the story of one American wolf as Nate Blakeslee traces her life in Yellowstone National Park and uses her natural history as a focal point for exploring long-standing wolf issues, history, and nature. 

It's a story where the protagonist is an animal; but it's also a powerful story of American nature, politics, and a clash between species that has long pitted wolf and man against one another. 

From wolf reintroduction and wildlife conservation controversies to political rulings on wolf hunting near Yellowstone, American Wolf is a powerful natural history not to be missed by anyone concerned about wildlife conservation issues.


Citizen Scientist
Mary Ellen Hannibal
The Experiment
9781615193981             $17.95
www.theexperimentpublishing.com 

Citizen Scientist: Searching for Heroes and Hope in an Age of Extinction comes from an award-winning writer who has long made a case for vanishing species, but who once lacked the ability to understand the routines and approaches that would really make a difference in saving nature. 

Mary Ellen Hannibal's search for answers in the real world went beyond ethical examination or theory to consider the processes of 'citizen scientists' who participate in data-gathering, observation, and volunteer efforts to restore nature and animals. 

The side benefit of her study of this citizen-based movement and its centuries-long tradition meant that Hannibal was able to examine her own life and hopes. In Citizen Scientist she provides a blend of memoir, scientific and social examination that will make for key reading for anyone interested in the fate of nature and its connection to human affairs. 


Plant Families
Ross Bayton and Simon Maughan
University of Chicago Press
9780226523088             $25.00
www.press.uchicago.edu 

Plant Families: A Guide for Gardeners and Botanists discusses the hundreds of different plant families and their history that arranges and orders over a quarter million different plant species, simplifying a process that is usually so complex a topic that non-botanist readers too often give up trying to understand it. 

In contrast, Plant Families offers an easy guide packed with lovely illustrations throughout as it discusses over a hundred plant families that are keys to understanding how plants are classified. 

From plant history and natural history to identifying flowers, trees, herbs and more, chapters survey each major family and describe their origins, characteristics, and uses in the garden. 

Color botanical illustrations enhance an approachthat is surprisingly accessible to lay readers: something long needed in the botany world, and especially recommended for general-interest science collections. 


Raptors
Traer Scott
Princeton Architectural Press
9781616895570             $19.95
www.papress.com 

Raptors: Portraits of Birds of Prey comes from a nature photographer who narrows her focus to raptors, crafting a collection of close-up images that represent remarkably intricate inspections of raptor countenances and activities. 

In order for these color images to shine, they are presented full-page (in some cases, in two-page spreads), with identifying natural history appearing on its own separate page to compliment each image and sets of images.

From owls and caracara to peregrine falcons and kestrels, these are gorgeous representations not to be missed, recommended not just for science and nature collections, but for those strong in nature photography examples. 


Reviewer's Choice 

Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 3
Rachel Kramer Bussel, Editor
Cleis Press
9781627782241             $16.95
www.cleispress.com 

Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 3 is a collection of bold, sexy, overtly graphic stories that test boundaries of passion and sexual pleasure and offer a focus on women who explore fetishes, role playing, threesomes, and more.

These erotic short stories present a wide range of perspectives and sexual encounters, so the first prerequisite to enjoying this volume is a broader interpretation and acceptance of fantasies and situations that explore non-traditional sexual encounters. 

Women seeking woman-oriented erotic writings by recognized authors will find this collection offers an excellent synthesis of engrossing perspectives and encounters. 


Bolt and Keel
Kayleen VanderRee & Danielle Gumbley
Countryman Press
9781682681206             $14.95
www.countrymanpress.com 

Readers not on Instagram or familiar with the blog of the same name may not know of kitties Bolt and Keel; but that doesn't make this little book a recommendation only for their prior fans. All that's required for an appreciation of Bolt and Keel is an appreciation for cat stories and color photos. 

Bolt and Keel is a fine book that cat fans will relish, following the two cats in a backpacking journey through the Pacific Northwest with the hikers who adopted them. 

"When the meowtains are calling, we must go." This is the opening line of a fun pairing of cat perspectives and sayings and color photos of the often-dressed-up kitties accompanying their outdoors humans on hiking adventures. 

The fun blend of life-affirming admonitions and feline fun makes for a lovely, colorful little book that will make a fine gift for any cat fan - even those who already 'have everything' in the way of cat books. There's simply nothing quite like Bolt and Keel, a testimony to the fact that cats can travel with their humans in even the most adventurous settings. 


Girl Gangs, Biker Boys, and Real Cool Cats
Iain McIntyre and Andrew Nette, Editors
PM Press
9781629634388             $29.95
www.pmpress.org 

Girl Gangs, Biker Boys, and Real Cool Cats: Pulp Fiction and Youth Culture, 1950 to 1980 follows the history and evolution of postwar youth culture as depicted in mass-market pulp novels, drawing important connections between cultural depiction and counter-culture developments among juvenile audiences. 

The collection uses some 400 color book covers; many never reprinted before, and pairs them with some 70 author interviews, biographical data, and previously unpublished articles from over 20 pop culture scholars from the U.S., UK and Australia. 

Having a focus from various countries' experiences and a broad range of pop culture inspirations and influencers makes for a wide-ranging literary and social history not to be missed by any who enjoy studying youth cultural influences of the past and pulp fiction in general. 


Groovy
Mark Voger
TwoMorrows
9781605490809             $39.95
www.twomorrows.com 

Groovy: When Flower Power Bloomed in Pop Culture packs in interviews with 'groovy' figures from the 60s, from the iconic Peter Max and actor Peter Fonda to David Cassidy, cast members of television shows such as "Laugh-In" and "The Brady Bunch", and more. 

Plenty of books have been written about the 60s from all kinds of angles; but what differentiates this book from others and makes it a recommended addition to existing 1960s history collections is a focus on not just the music, art, and culture of the times; but the comic and popular arts industry's promotion of it. 

A bright hardcover format pairs well with color images that appear on every page, profiling the major figures of the times, from musicians and groups such as the Zombies and Byrds to hippie festivals, individuals such as Peter Tork of the Monkees, and the events that brought them all together. 

The many interviews with these iconic figures, paired with 'before and after' color photos throughout, makes Groovy's walk through time a revealing, important discussion recommended for any definitive reader of 1960s pop culture and for public libraries popular history sections. 


How to Do Restorative Peer Mediation in Your School
Bill Hansberry and Christie-Lee Hansberry
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
9781785923845
www.jkp.com 

How to Do Restorative Peer Mediation in Your School gives teachers a kit that includes online resources as it tackles the basics of conflict resolution on a school and peer level, showing how educators can provide students with special skills to create a cooperative atmosphere. 

Peer mediation can help peers solve typical classroom and schoolyard conflicts, resulting in much benefit to all involved; but these techniques are too seldom considered, with adult intervention and guidance receiving the bulk of attention in such matters. 

This guide covers the basics of creating a restorative peer mediation program and how to train educators and kids using sample scripts and templates demonstrating how to work with kids ages 10-16. 

Educators will find How to Do Restorative Peer Mediation in Your School an essential tool for effective change that relies on a more cooperative model than most approaches. 


In the Fall They Came Back
Robert Bausch
Bloomsbury Publishing
9781632864000             $30.00
www.bloomsbury.com 

In the Fall They Came Back is a fine novel about a new college graduate who expects he'll temporarily teach English at a small private school before entering the legal profession. 

But as Ben becomes involved in his students' lives and concerns, he finds himself moving quickly beyond a teaching position and into one where his counsel and expertise leads him to a more personal involvement in his students' lives: a path which heads rapidly towards dangerous consequences. 

Ben's evolving desire to be more than a teacher leads him and his readers into a tangle of stressed lives, love and caring, and a tumultuous tenure at Glenn Acres School that leads to very different kinds of actions and rescue attempts. 

In the Fall They Came Back ultimately makes readers think about altruism, sacrifice, and the consequences of questionable decisions and choices. 


A New Garden Ethic
Benjamin Vogt
New Society Publishers
9780865718555             $18.99
www.newsociety.com 

A New Garden Ethic: Cultivating Defiant Compassion for an Uncertain Future combines gardening savvy with a different approach to the subject, considering a 'new garden ethic' and how growing native plants in one's garden is one way of responding to global crises, putting environmental concerns to work on one's own turf. 

Benjamin Vogt's focus on how humans build landscapes, control designs, and foster social justice through individual choice and gardens that invite wildlife makes for an unusual gardener's guide for any size plot and wide-ranging gardening purposes. 

Gardeners looking for more than design or plant choice books will welcome an unusual approach that embraces quite a different social, political, and horticultural approach.



The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2018
World Almanac
9781600572135             $14.99
www.worldalmanac.com 

The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2018 represents the 150th anniversary edition of an ongoing classic almanac of facts; a heady claim for a historic reference that has educated, informed, and entertained Americans since 1868. 

The almanac packs in facts and pairs statistical reports with top news topics, pictures, historical figure profiles, domestic and international information, and more. 

Of necessity, this paperback reference is packed with much detail in very small print; which will make it a challenge for those who need for larger print for easier reading. 

Anyone who enjoys data and trivia, however, will readily take magnifying glass in hand to make the most out of this information-packed 'bible'. 


Social Issues 

Against Colonization and Rural Dispossession
Edited by Dip Kapoor
Zed Books/University of Chicago Press
9781783609437             $29.95
www.press.uchicago.edu 

Against Colonization and Rural Dispossession: Local Resistance in South and East Asia, the Pacific and Africa is recommended for college-level collections strong in global capitalization history and social issues, and provides a collection of writings by scholars and activists who blend case studies with Marxist and anti-colonial analyses to consider the development periods of these areas. 

These articles consider how local struggles and efforts to resist colonization in the rural areas have influenced critical developments in the Global South regions, documenting such wide-ranging influences as how activists mobilize populations and develop campaigns, how organizations confront and refute efforts to criminalize them, and how big agribusiness projects translate to big changes in peasant populations. 

The varied geographic experiences make for satisfying contrasts between common experiences and contribute to a powerful survey college-level readers will find thought-provoking. 


Extreme Cities
Ashley Dawson
Verso Books
9781784780364             $29.95
www.versobooks.com 

Extreme Cities: The Peril and Promise of Urban Life in the Age of Climate Change makes a case for the fact that cities will be the first to experience climate change as conditions impact their structures and foundations, and brings to light the science behind sea level rise, storms, and current climate trends affecting cities. 

From the efforts of Alaskan island residents to relocate to models for New York City pre- and post-storm activity, chapters offer many examples of adaptation efforts already underway, consider how architects and engineers are handling challenges, and explain why urban movements seeking to remake cities rather than buttress them against storms offer more hope to a wider population of urban dwellers. 

In linking climate change results and survival efforts to adaptation responses and social and community mobilization efforts, Extreme Cities provides scenarios and food for thought that should be part of any serious discussion of the social and urban impact of climate change. 


On the Verge
Rebecca D. Costa
Rosetta Books
9780795350573             $27.99
www.RosettaBooks.com 

On the Verge offers hair-trigger analysis and consideration of the topic of foresight and its relationship to scientific, social, and political breakthroughs that make it possible to predict the future with a high degree of accuracy, and belongs on the shelves of science, social issues, and psychology collections alike. 

Real-world examples document how technology has brought this ability to predict into social, business, and political circles, considering why this newfound ability still falls short of effecting real change. 

Since leaders have failed to take proper steps with these new skills in hand, Costa provides some 12 new principles of adaptation that can be easily applied to fast-paced changes and innovations, offering a dash of unexpected humor in the process of examining the complexities of change, its link to failure, and the process of making prediction a better process. 


White Like Her
Gail Lukasik, PhD
Skyhorse Publishing
9781510724129             $22.99
www.skyhorsepublishing.com 

White Like Her: My Family's Story of Race and Racial Passing is a memoir that could have been featured in a different section covering biographies; but it's profiled here because it's more than just one family's experience, but a powerful account of 'passing' in America, and holds many social messages that should be considered beyond its biography status. 

Dr. Lukasik begins her family account with her mother's choice to 'pass' as white, examines the Jim Crow South and how this woman hid her secret from even her own husband, and how her legacy of shame haunted future generations. 

The author's journey to uncover her mother's racial lineage is a powerful saga that is hard to put down and holds many implications for a historical understanding of race and prejudice in America through the decades. 


WTF? What's the Future and Why It's Up to Us
Tim O'Reilly
HarperCollins
9780062565716             $32.99
www.harpercollins.com 

WTF? What's the Future and Why It's Up to Us comes from the founder and CEO of the computer technology giant O'Reilly Media and considers how new technologies can be integrated into human life and activities without the accompanying fear people have of losing control of or understanding about their environment. It deserves a spot in any social issues collection strong in technology and social adaptation processes. 

WTF? What's the Future and Why It's Up to Us considers a series of technological breakthroughs in the past that provoked reactions of insecurity and fear, but which eventually promoted newfound feelings of empowerment among users. More importantly, it makes a case for embracing new directions rather than eschewing them. 

The result is recommended reading for anyone involved in technological advancement, social issues and growth, or for those who would understand both the pitfalls and promises of human evolution and the innovations they foster. 



Young Adult/ Childrens

Hu Wan and the Sleeping Dragon
Judy Young
Sleeping Bear Press
9781585369775             $16.99
www.sleepingbearpress.com 

Hu Wan and the Sleeping Dragon is a picture book story set in China in 1572 and tells of a nine-year-old who tends a veggie garden with his Grandfather, and who especially likes the gourds they sell in the village market. 

Kid ages 6-10 with good reading skills will appreciate the detail in this folk story of Hu Wan's task to grow that year's special gourd - and what happens when he makes a mistake. 

Chinese history and culture blends with a gentle story of gifts, emperors and dragons that comes to life with a vivid tale paired with lovely drawings by Jordi Solano. 


I Wanna Be a Cowgirl
Angela DiTerlizzi and Elizabet Vukovic
Simon and Schuster
9781481452991             $17.99
www.simonandschuster.com/kids 

I Wanna Be a Cowgirl tells of a determined young girl who wants to be a cowgirl, and who pretends to do so all day as she rides her stick horse and gallops through her backyard. 

From lasso twirling and checking chicken coops to enjoying her home on the range, despite its hardships, this first-person, easy-reader story offers lovely drawings by Elizabet Vukovic as it follows a young would-be cowgirl's interactions with her fantasy world. 


Mouseling's Words
Shutta Crum
Clarion Books
9780544302167             $16.99
www.hmhco.com 

Mouseling's Words features lovely colorful drawings by Ryan O'Rourke which nicely compliment the story of a mouse's happy and unusual nest home, made out of words that Aunt Tillie has collected and brought home from the Swashbuckler Restaurant. 

Every evening Mouseling awakens surrounded by words collected from the specials of the day, brought to the family along with food. 

But is there something more to the world than the words Aunt Tillie brings back? 

Kids with good reading skills or parental read-aloud assistance will relish this gentle story of a little mouse's journey into a strange world of new words and concepts. 


Penguin Putnam
www.penguin.com/youngreaders

Three fine new picture book stories are top recommendations for picture book enthusiasts and their adult read-aloud helpers. 

Jennifer Hansen Rolli's Claudia & Moth (9780425288337, $17.99) tells of a girl who loves colorful butterflies, and who enjoys painting them even if she can't bring them all home. 

But when winter arrives and there are no butterflies, she has to take what she can get - which includes a little moth. He's not a butterfly, but can she make him special? A fun story evolves. 

Julie Falatko's Snappsy the Alligator and His Best Friend Forever (9780425288658, $16.99) features drawings by Tim Miller which illustrate the possibilities of best friends and what they can do together. 

Snappsy the alligator is a talented, interesting reptile, but when he meets a chicken who likes to exaggerate, trouble looms. The two have very different perspectives on friendship, its meaning, and their relationship to each other. Can they come together despite their differences? 

Zebo Ludvicek's Mouse (9781101999362, $16.99) tells of the letter M and a mouse with a cherry. Mouse doesn't want to share his cherry with M, but M is persistent (and, as it turns out, greedy). 

M has all kinds of words for Mouse; but can such different creatures be friends? A gentle yet zany story evolves in this fun, different tale. 


Rot, The Cutest in the World!
Ben Clanton
Atheneum Books
9781481467636             $17.99
www.simonandschuster.com/kids 

Rot, The Cutest in the World! tells of a mutant potato who is different from any other spud. He loves to eat, he likes to play games, and he loves to enter contests - but when he decides to enter the 'Cutest in the World' contest, it never occurs to him that he may have a problem. 

Viewing the other contenders gives him some preliminary notion of the issues involved - a problem that likely wouldn't be resolved even if he decided to eat everyone - and some unexpected events take place that change everything in this winning story, recommended for picture book readers looking for quite a different take on beauty.