November 2020 Prime Picks
Biography and Autobiography
Charmian
Kittredge
London
Iris Jamahl Dunkle
University of
Oklahoma Press
9780806167138
$26.95
Charmian Kittredge London: Trailblazer, Author,
Adventurer is a
compelling biography of a woman born in 1871. Charmain married author
Jack
London, yet forged new pathways of creativity and adventure in her own
right.
Given
London's
worldwide fame, it's somewhat surprising that no prior book has
examined London's
life before. This omission is remedied in this fine survey of her
entire life,
from her literary achievements and her efforts to foster her husband's
career
to her travels around the world, at his side.
The lively
tone and
insights about her life and adventure-seeking spirit will delight many;
especially women who like biographies about strong, independent
literary
figures who have traditionally been under-represented.
The Meaning
of Mariah
Carey
Mariah Crey with
Michaela Angela Davis
Andy Cohen
Books/Henry Holt
9781250164681
$29.95
www.henryholt.com
The Meaning of Mariah Carey provides a
memoir by a famous musical
personality who, surprisingly, had to draw on special reserves of
courage and
fortitude to put pen to paper to write this story.
There have
been many
biographical coverages about Carey, but her book summarizes the life
experiences that made her the artist she is today. It's composed of her
memories, insights, struggles, and songs, with no holds barred.
From her
childhood
and adolescence to stormy family interactions and the evolution of her
career,
Carey explores all aspects of her life with an attention to detail that
will
fill in many blanks even for the most avid Mariah Carey fan.
The result
is a
winning coverage that's highly recommended reading for even those who
have
avidly followed her career and think they know everything about her.
They don't.
Stephen
Hawking
Leonard Mlodinow
Pantheon
9781524748685
$25.00
www.pantheonbooks.com
Stephen Hawking: A Memoir of Friendship and Physics
tackles the
life and persona of the famous scientist from a different angle than
most,
drawing on memories of Hawking's world from the standpoint of a close
friend
who is also a fellow physicist.
Various
perspectives
are explored, from Hawking's science and its evolution to the
progression of
his disease and what it felt like to be Hawking's friend and colleague.
From
Hawking's
personal life and interests to his science challenges and discoveries,
this
multifaceted biography is an excellent adjunct to any exploration of
Hawking's
scientific prowess, offering a human inspection to the man and his life
that
will delight Hawking enthusiasts.
The
Culinary Corner
The British
Baking
Book
Regula Ysewijn
Weldon Owen
9781681885674
$35.00
www.weldonowen.com
The British Baking Book: The History of British
Baking, Savory and
Sweet features recipes, written descriptions of British
culinary history
and culture, and color photos of both landscapes and finished dishes.
It is
recommended for cooks with a special interest in not just cookbooks,
but cultural
explorations.
This
celebration
focuses on baked goods, from a Lemon Drizzle Cake staple that appears
in many a
tea room to Chelsea Buns, sold in London's longtime, famous The Chelsea
Bun
House from 1711 to modern times.
Tea cakes,
iced fingers,
buns, biscuits, and sandwich biscuits are all explored in detail, with
full-page color photos accompanying introductions of each baked good's
place in
British culinary history.
Americans
will find
the measurements in British and American lend to easy reproduction
that's
especially important given that translation between the two systems of
measurement is not always straightforward.
Anyone with
a special
interest in British baking needs this outstanding compilation.
Easy
Everyday Keto
America's Test
Kitchen
America's Test
Kitchen
9781948703123
$24.99
www.americastestkitchen.com
Easy Everyday Keto: Healthy Kitchen-Perfected
Recipes is improved
by the participation of Alician A. Romano, MS, RD, CNSC, who adds
nutritional
guidelines to a collection of keto dishes that substitute healthy
non-carb
ingredients for traditional fare.
Examples of
this
approach include Zucchini Noodles with Pesto Meatballs, in which a
spiralizer
cuts zucchini into 'noodles' that pair nicely with the spicy meatballs;
or Fish
Tacos which are served in lettuce wraps instead of the usual flour or
corn
tortillas.
Each recipe
enjoys a
full-page, artistic rendition of the finished dish, and each has been
fully
tested, including detailed insights on 'why this recipe works' above
competitors, and what challenges the test kitchen faced in perfecting
the dish.
From
substituting
crunchy nuts for breadcrumbs in a Nut-Crusted Pork Chops dish to using
cauliflower as a low-carb replacement for rice, Easy
Everyday Keto is an inviting cookbook highly recommended for
keto followers at all skills levels.
Let's Brunch
Belinda
Smith-Sullivan
Gibbs Smith
9781423655350
$24.99
www.gibbs-smith.com
Let's Brunch: 100 Recipes for the Best Meal of the
Week pairs
lovely color photos by Susan Barnson Hayward with creative recipes that
often
offer a twist on traditional brunch fare, from Ramp Buttermilk Biscuits
that
adds the wild onions typically found in America's Southeast and East to
a
hearty Loaded Steak and Bell Pepper Strata, which is more
protein-filled than
most, or a Grit Cake, Collard, and Pulled Pork Sammie that uses cabbage
collard
greens typically available in the South.
These are
innovations
not to be found in competing brunch cookbooks. They adapt regional fare
into
brunch-oriented flavors to expand the idea and presentation of brunch
to embrace
soups, brunch cocktails, and casseroles, among other fare.
Cooks who
love brunch
but have found their skills limited by egg-based dishes alone will
welcome the
more expansive, easy dishes in Let's
Brunch.
Rising Hope
Rachel Stonehouse and
Kaila H. Johnson
Harper Design
9780063040403
$26.99
www.hc.com
Rising Hope: Recipes and Stories from Luminary
Bakery requires no
prior familiarity with the fare of the Luminary Bakery to prove
satisfying to
newcomers, even though it's designed as a celebration of the
establishment that
includes stories and insights about the bakery's community involvements.
Newcomers
will also find
this a celebration of the bakers that comprise Luminary. Short
biographical
sketches outline their history and perspectives on baking, accompanying
recipes
that capture the establishment's innovations, from Cherry and Coconut
Vegan
Brownies that stem from its roots as a wholesale bakery supplier across
London
to baker Giselle's adaptation of a Japanese vanilla cake with her Lemon
and
Poppy Seed Cotton Cake.
These are
recipes not
to be found elsewhere, which will make Rising
Hope particularly inviting to bakers seeking innovations and
inspirations both
far from the norm and easy for home cooks to reproduce.
The
flavorful blend
of bakery personalities and history and unique dishes makes this
cookbook a real
winner.
The Arts
The Art of
Illusion
Florian Heine
Prestel
9783791386799
$40.00
www.prestel.com
The Art of Illusion provides arts
holdings with a solid history on
the development of illusionist art, considering its techniques,
processes, and
the evolution of both the art and methods of producing it.
Drawings,
architecture, street art, and other mediums are all explored with an
eye to
tracing the concept and presentation of illusion over the centuries.
Full-page
color images accompany biographical sketches in chapters arranged
chronologically by medium. An introduction to each subject discusses
the
overall history of that medium's illusionist art evolution.
From artists
of
centuries past to contemporary mediums such as photorealism and
computer-generated portraiture, this wide-ranging survey juxtaposes
past and
present artistic expressions and approaches, drawing together the
trends,
methods, and different focuses of contrasting illusionist efforts.
Arts
holdings will
find it an invaluable acquisition.
Schiffer
Publishing
www.schifferbooks.com
Arts
collections
strong in women's history and photography will find Katherine
Manthorne's Women in the Dark: Female
Photographers in
the U.S., 1850-1900 (9780764360169, $45.00) an essential
acquisition.
Women in the Dark covers two generations
of female photographers
across the country, exploring their careers and creations. Primary
sources and
new materials help readers consider not just their art, but how they
fostered
their careers.
The variety
of
photographs presented here, as well as the trends and influences of the
times
in which women created them, creates a wide-ranging history
supplemented by
good-sized images and examples throughout.
Jenny
Thomasson's Perishable Poetics: Manifesting
Emotion
through Contemporary Floral Design (9780764359866, $60.00)
pairs some forty
color examples, many full-page, with a discussion of how Thomasson's
floral
designs evolved, and how she grew to make a name for herself in the
industry.
Hand-drawn
sketches
and notes follow the progression of techniques and creative form, while
discussions of the overall approach to floral arranging art and the
mediums
that turn dead elements into lifelike displays offer invaluable keys to
not
just Thomasson's unique approach, but the finer materials and designs
that differentiate
her approaches from others.
Design with Love: At Home in America by
Katie Swenson
(9780764359934, $45.00) features photography by Harry Connolly. It
explores
housing, vulnerable communities, and how abandonment and poverty can be
combated by revised choices in architectural design that embody
supportive
human relationships.
One doesn't
usually
associate spirituality and social strength with architectural design,
but this
survey, with its focus on the challenges of designing safe, vibrant
neighborhoods
that encourage community interactions, does a fine job of blending the
subjects
of social objective and artistic design challenges under one cover.
Pictures of
individuals involved in building processes that encourage community
vibrancy's
return, even in poor areas such as Detroit, provide visual emphasis of
renovation and construction projects that support written descriptions
of their
evolution.
The result
is
recommended beyond arts holdings as a powerful resource that should
reach ideally
into social issues and community urban planning collections alike.
These are
exceptional
standouts that should be considered necessary additions to
comprehensive arts collections.
Reviewer's Choice
Angry Weather
Friederike Otto
Greystone
9781771646147
$32.95
www.greystonebooks.com
Angry Weather: Heat Waves, Floods, Storms, and the
New Science of
Climate Change comes from a University of Oxford researcher
who considers
the rise of violent weather and its possible causes, examining the role
and
science of climate change in mapping extreme weather events.
Daily
stories of such
weather and its damage supplement discussions of how attribution
science models
and predicts future weather patterns. This proffers a cutting edge look
at a
style of science that has, until now, received relatively little
attention from
books directed to general-interest, non-scientist readers.
This new
ability to
predict and model changing weather can change society responses, which
is why Angry Weather deserves a
prominent place
in any general interest collection, and should not be limited to
science
holdings alone.
Bipolar
Disorder, 4th
Edition
Francis Mark
Mondimore, MD
Johns Hopkins
University Press
9781421439068
$23.95
www.press.jhu.edu
The 4th
updated
edition of Bipolar Disorder: A Guide for
You & Your Loved Ones provides bipolar individuals
and their families
with the latest science, medicine, and perspectives about the condition.
Even those
who have
long familiarity with addressing bipolar's special issues and
management
challenges will find there's a host of new medications and approaches
to treating
it. Mondimore's survey reviews the latest scientific studies on
everything from
medicines to herbs, nutritional supplements, and brain stimulation
treatments.
From
lifestyle
changes to legal issues and family support systems, Bipolar
Disorder: A Guide for You & Your Loved Ones even
goes
beyond medicine alone to address many issues of daily living that other
books
on the subject rarely tackle.
The result
is a
detailed survey of bipolar disorder's many facets and challenges that
makes it
easy to understand its incarnation, progression, and treatment. Bipolar Disorder: A Guide for You & Your
Loved Ones should be required reading for any family or
individual
concerned about bipolar disorder; especially those either new to the
diagnosis
or who haven't read an updated book on the subject in a long time.
Spirits of
San
Francisco
Gary Kamiya
Bloomsbury
9781635575880
$28.00
www.bloomsbury.com
Spirits of
San Francisco: Voyages Through the Unknown City pairs
lovely black and white cityscape pen-and-ink drawings by Paul Madonna
with
prose capturing the history, culture, and evolution of San Francisco.
It opens
with a contemporary essay on San Francisco life and culture under COVID
quarantine.
This
personal exploration
of the city's changing feel without much of its iconic cultural
attractions on
full display both synthesizes the city's odd atmosphere and explains
why, more
so than most urban environments, San Francisco maintains the ability to
prove
mysterious, alluring, and "sublimely empty even when it's full of
people."
As essays
traverse a
variety of neighborhoods, from the glory days of its piers and displays
of
architectural wealth to the heyday of the Sutro Baths and the
all-but-forgotten
founder of Land's End, the poetic descriptions and loving synthesis of
history,
culture, and San Francisco atmosphere creates a lovely celebration of
the
city's diverse environments.
This
approach will
delight all readers whether they have a casual interest in or
familiarity with
San Francisco or are natives, like this reviewer.
There's
something
here for everyone, and it's simply enchanting.
We're Better
Than
This
Elijah Cummings with
James Dale
Harper
9780062992260
$28.99
www.harpercollins.com
We're Better Than This: My Fight for the Future of
Our Democracy
provides the posthumous memoir of Representative Elijah Cummings,
pairing a
biography of his life with a review of his perceptions of democratic
process.
Whether
readers choose
We're Better Than This for its
biography or its underlying political message, these insights on what
makes a
democracy, how it changes, and what influences it, pro and con, are
invaluable
in this time of turmoil.
His survey
also adds
stories from his past to trace his personal moral, ethical, and
political
evolution, offering keys to the foundations of his attitudes toward and
fight
for justice.
A centerfold
of color
photos of family and political friends completes his memoir, a
definitive
examination of not just one politician's life, but the social, racial,
and
legal changes during his lifetime that changed who he was and his
perception of
individual rights and responsibilities living in a democracy.
Young Adult/Children
Disney Press/Hyperion
www.disneybooks.com
Three fun
picture
books are standouts that promise fun and original stories to youngsters
and
adult gatekeepers who choose them for leisure reads.
Svetla
Radivoeva's Malina's Jam
(9781358024587, $17.99)
features a shy hedgehog who makes raspberry jam from the garden she
tends.
When her
neighbors
begin to realize that her jam is special, Malina begins to break free
of her
shyness and isolation; especially when everyone joins in to celebrate
her jam
by sharing in the work that goes into tending the garden and making it.
Engaging
drawings of
the enterprising Malina, who is more comfortable in kitchen and garden
than
with others, makes for an appealing story many a shy child will readily
understand.
Mo
Williams's I Want to Sleep Under the Stars!
(9781368053358, $12.99) is an Unlimited Squrrel friends book that tells
about
Zoom Squirrel, who dreams of sleeping under the stars. His other
Squirrel
friends are happy to help him achieve his dream, but first they have to
really
understand what it means to sleep outside.
A fun story
filled
with action follows the busy, zipping squirrels as they learn about not
just
sleeping outside, but staying friends in the process.
Phineas and
Ferb's Guide to Life
(9781368065733, $9.99) is
now streaming on the Disney channel. It offers an antidote to boredom
with a
guide packed with tips and tricks for adding zest to life via
imagination and
effort.
Chapters
include
quizzes, vocabulary-building fun, big words, black and white drawings,
and
remarkable sayings that accompany activities encouraging advanced
elementary
grade readers to make life fun.
The
whimsical
approach to even mundane-sounding daily activities like cleaning one's
room is
appealing and fun, though a color presentation might have enhanced the
story.
A Guinea Pig
Night
Before Christmas
Clemente Clarke Moore
and Tess Newall
Bloomsbury Publishing
9781526613561
$15.00
www.bloomsbury.com
A Guinea Pig Night Before Christmas joins
others in the Guinea Pig
Classics series and retells the Christmas poem, accompanied by guinea
pig
photos.
Kids who
like guinea
pigs will appreciate the fun visual embellishments, from a Santa wish
list that
includes radishes, carrots, and a big ball to cunning guinea pig
sleigh-pullers
sporting gold 'antlers' and a fun red harness.
Read-aloud
parents
seeking something different for the holidays will find A
Guinea Pig Night Before Christmas visually fun, and a fine
takeoff interpretation of the original classic poem.
Kitchen
Explorers!
America's Test
Kitchen
America's Test
Kitchen, Publishers
9781948703628
$12.99
www.americastestkitchen.com
Kitchen Explorers! is the perfect item of
choice for parents who
wish to teach youngsters how to cook, and provides the third book in
the Young
Chefs series.
With
shelter-in-place
restrictions keeping kids at home, there's no better time for such a
book,
which teaches kids the basics about making everything from Peanut
Butter
Cookies to understanding the science of what makes fizzy drinks fizzy.
More than
just a
collection of recipes, though, this book focuses on experiments, games,
and the
science behind cooking. It gives kids a solid and diverse set of
insights into
how cooking actually works, from identifying and working with food
textures to
understanding how smell can change taste.
The puzzles,
word
games, recipes, and insights will delight parents and kids seeking more
than a
cookbook alone.
Peachtree
Publishers
www.peachtreeonline.com
These fine
new
arrivals are highly recommended picks for young picture book readers.
Each
features a winning combination of artistry and plot that sets them
apart from
others.
Danny
Schnitzlein's Gnu and Shrew
(9781682631461, $16.99)
receives fun drawings by Anca Sandu as it tells of very different
friends and
their approach to adventure. This provides a STEAM-enhanced takeoff on
the
fable "The Ant and the Grasshopper" by not only changing the animals,
but adding humorous contrasts between the personalities and life
approaches of
two pals.
Elements of
engineering, math, art, and creative problem-solving create an
engaging,
thought-provoking tale.
Julia
Woolf's Duck & Penguin Do Not Like
Sleepovers
(9781682632017, $16.99) tells of humans who are best friends, and their
toys
who are not.
What is one
to do
when best friends want what their toys do not? Duck and Penguin are
forced
along for the sleepover even though they don't like these plans. But
when they
are left to their own devices during a scary night, they soon find that
all
they really have is each other.
This is a
fun follow-up
to Duck and Penguin are NOT Friends,
expanding the themes of togetherness and alienation.
Lisa Papp's Madeline Finn and the Therapy Dog (9781682631492,
$17.99) deserves ongoing recommendation as an exceptional story of a
puppy who
needs to demonstrate his skills in order to become a therapy dog
candidate.
He and
Madeline Finn
have been practicing for a long time. But can he really pass the final
test to
enter the world that he's been raised to work in?
This fine
story will
teach kids about therapy animals, their training, and the special
challenges
they face along the way.
All are
excellent
leisure reading choices.
Penguin
Putnam
www.penguin.com
These fine
books
provide leisure readers with lovely tales that are more than a cut
above the
norm, making them recommendable for elementary-level readers and
library collections
alike.
Young adults
will
find Katie Alender's The Companion
(9780399545917, $18.99) the compelling story of Margot, an orphan who
survived
a terrible accident that killed her family and left her with lasting
nightmares.
The other
orphans
think she's lucky for surviving and for being chosen by a rich family
to live
at their remote country estate. But, actually, Margot has been
especially
chosen to be a companion to the silent Agatha, their daughter. When she
begins
seeing things in the old house, she begins to wonder if her nightmares
have
come home to roost.
Part ghost
story and
part survival piece, mature teens will find The
Companion a compelling tale indeed.
Michael
Slack's Kitties on Dinosaurs
(9780593108383,
$17.99) presents a gentle picture book story about mischievous little
kitties
who like to climb on things.
But when
they choose
to climb on dinosaurs, trouble ensues and forces them to sail back to
Kitty
Island in the litter mobile to devise a plan to thwart the roaring
dinos who
resist their climbing efforts.
Young fans
of
fantasy, cats, and dinosaurs will find Kitties
on Dinosaurs a vivid story packed with action words perfect
for parental
read-aloud.
Jessika von
Innerebner's Why Can't We Be
Beastie-Corns? (9781984814807, $17.99) provides a Kevin the
Unicorn fantasy
about Kevin's new neighbor, whom he views as a potential new best
friend.
Unfortunately,
there
seem to be too many differences between them to make best friendship a
possibility...but can they still be friends?
A fun story
about
exploring new friends and new possibilities teaches young picture book
readers
about getting along and forming new relationships.
These are
all fine books,
highly recommended for leisure readers seeking high-quality stories.
Sleeping
Bear Press
www.sleepingbearpress.com
Five new
books are
excellent picks highly recommended as superior productions.
The
intriguing T is for Thor by
Virginia Loh-Hagan (9781534110502,
$17.99) will reach ages 6-10 with an alphabet that introduces
Scandinavian
mythology to the young.
The arts,
writings,
and history of the Norse perception of the universe will require good
reading
skills, even though this looks like a picture book easy reader. This
audience
will appreciate the dark, brooding drawings of Torstein Nordstrand and
the
rhymes that introduce mythology along with stories centered around the
alphabet.
From K, for
the
knowledge Mimir gained from a special well, to Q, for the Queen of
Asgard who
was a kind goddess, the blend of alphabet and Nordic information is
enchanting.
For a
different kind
of alphabet, choose Robbyn Smith van Frankenhuyzen's H
is for Honey Bee: A Beekeeping Alphabet (9781534110700,
$16.99). This
enjoys contemporary, bright drawings by Eileen Ryan Ewen as it follows
the work
of beekeeping and bee colony maintenance.
The author
is herself
a beekeeper and wildlife rehabilitator, and uses each letter of the
alphabet
and rhyming verses linking them to explore issues of conservation and
bees.
STEM lessons on these issues and other nature concerns enhance this
lively
educational primer for ages 6-10.
Barbara
Joosse's Lulu & Rocky in Indianapolis
(9781534110663, $16.99) is illustrated by Renée Graef, who provides
engaging animal drawings to accompany a story of fox cousins who
continue their
state-by-state exploration, here visiting Indianapolis, Indiana.
This fourth
book in
the series explores various attractions in the state. It profiles a
range of
activities and adventures, from whimsical encounters with dinosaurs in
a
Children's Museum display to a race car experience at Indianapolis, in
which
the fox muses "What would it feel
like to drive that fast? What would it be like to WIN?"
Kwame
Alexander's Acoustic Rooster's Barnyard
Boogie Starring
Indigo Blume (9781534111141, $16.99) returns the Acoustic
Rooster to young
picture book readers with the story of his work with a young girl who
becomes
afraid of performing, the night before a big appearance.
Indigo is
supposed to
sing at a community festival, but is afraid of getting on stage.
When she
falls
asleep, she enters a world in which characters from her favorite
children's
book encourage her to join a famous musical group.
When
disaster
strikes, Indigo must muster up a different form of courage to perform
on many
levels and save the day.
Lovely
drawings by
artist Tim Bowers accompanies an appealing tale that will reach ages
4-8.
Lions & Cheetahs & Rhinos, Oh My!
Animal Artwork by Children in
Sub-Saharan Africa (9781534110540, $16.99) by John Platt and
Moira Rose
Donohue gives readers ages 4-8 a fine picture book exploration packed
with
colorful drawings made by children who live in East Africa.
Lovely
illustrations
pair with animal facts in a production that blends art and natural
history and
comes from the founder of the organization How to Draw a Lion.
100% of the
author's
royalties from this book will be donated to this foundation, devoted to
encouraging
young artists in Africa. Meanwhile, young artists in the U.S. will be
equally attracted
by the full-page colorful art and the animal facts.
Tree: A
Gentle Story
of Love and Loss
Lynn Jenkins
EK Books/Exisle
Publishing
9781925820126
$17.99
www.ekbooks.org
Tree: A Gentle Story of Love and Loss is
a lovely children's
picture book that helps kids understand grief processes through the
experience Tree,
a mainstay of the community.
One day,
Curly and
Loppy notice that his leaves are falling and his bark flaking. They
come to
understand that Tree is set to leave them.
Sadness
ensues. How
can Loppy say goodbye to something that has been part of their lives
for so
long?
Kirrili Lonergan's whimsical Seuss-like drawings provide appealing embellishments to a very simple lesson in saying goodbye to a loved one.