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California Bookwatch

Volume 10, Number 11 November 2015 Home | CALBW Index

Table of Contents

Reviewer's Choice Computer Shelf Education Shelf
Fantasy/SciFi Shelf Mystery/Suspense Shelf Psychology Shelf
Social Issues Shelf Wine/Spirits Shelf Cookbook Shelf
Gardening Shelf Theatre/Cinema/TV Shelf Autism Shelf
Health/Medicine Shelf Art Shelf Metaphysical Studies Shelf
Christian Studies Shelf Needlecraft Shelf Library Science Shelf
World History Shelf Sports Shelf Pets/Wildlife Shelf
Crafts Shelf Automotive Shelf California Shelf


Reviewer's Choice

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
Caitlin Doughty
W. W. Norton & Company
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110
9780393351903, $15.95, www.wwnorton.com

Smoke Gets In Your Eyes and Other Lessons from the Crematory is about death, autobiographical writing at its best, and the author's education on death and what happens to a corpse. As such, is combines the two in a lively series of vignettes not for the weak and not for those who wouldn't closely examine the funeral industry, its methods, and social constructs about death. While Doughty ultimately left her job as a cremation operator to attend mortuary school and find romance and her self, this mortician's memoir embraces the strongest elements of expose, autobiography and social reflection, and is a powerful piece that doesn't neatly fit into any genre, but holds the ability to attract readers from many walks of life.


The Computer Shelf

Hands-on Mobile App Testing
Daniel Knott
Addison Wesley
c/o Pearson Technology Group
801 East 96th Street, #300, Indianapolis, IN 46240-3759
www.mcp.com
9780134191731, $39.99, www.informit.com/aw

Hands-on Mobile App Testing provides the first complete guide to mobile application development to focus on quality assurance methods for Android and iOS systems, and offers a set of insights and approaches to testing apps that are based on the author's real-life experiences. From mobile test planning and automation procedures to developing and assuring high-quality apps without bugs, this guide is especially important for software developers who would absorb not just the common pitfalls of app development, but how to locate problems. From real device pros and cons to where to automate (and when not to), how and when to update testing in the process of app development, and how to select target devices and environments, Hands-on Mobile App Testing addresses many of the typical questions and issues involved in a process specific to mobile applications.


The Education Shelf

The Construction Zone
Terry Thompson
Stenhouse Publishers
480 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04101-3451
9781571108692, $22.00, www.stenhouse.com

The Construction Zone: Building Scaffolds for Readers and Writers comes from a teacher who advocates the concept of 'instructional scaffolding' to encourage students to move from teacher-directed learning to individual pursuits, and offers a plan whereby teachers can apply a 'gradual release' program to foster independent thinking. Chapters offer typical scaffolding scenarios, including feedback loops, flexible group sizes and arrangements, preparing ahead for a sense of direction, and more, using a step-by-step approach of building blocks that teachers can readily implement into diverse classroom settings. Any educator interested in building independent learners will find this filled with real-world applications and constructive approaches to educational scaffolding.

Put College to Work
Kat Clowes, M.B.A.
Quill Driver Books
2006 South Mary, Fresno, CA 93721
www.quilldriverbooks.com
9781610352536, $18.95, www.QuillDriverBooks.com

Put College to Work: How to Use College to the Fullest to Discover Your Strengths and Find a Job You Love Before You Graduate should be a gift to every forthcoming college grad, and it comes from a professional college and career planner who has a career helping kids find work before graduation. Based on her personal experiences and work as a student consultant, her book offers forthcoming grads a range of techniques for using their newfound college background to best advantage. From beginning the process while earning a college education to using informational interviews, job shadowing, and internship to best advantage, this is a solid collection of proven techniques that consider financial and career matters alike.

The Common Core Companion Grades 3-4: Booster Lessons
Leslie Blauman
Corwin Literacy
c/o Corwin Press, Inc.
2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320-2218
9781483392745, $34.95, www.corwin.com

This companion to the original Common Core Companion Grades 3-5 gathers lesson plans, connects them into a logical sequence of teachings, and provides teachers with everything needed to pair the Common Core's requirements with an instructional game plan. Provided in a spiral bound format that lends to reproducibles, lay-flat consultation and easy access, this includes booster reading lessons, reviews of materials and lesson approaches, a blank section for educator notes, and a sidebar of 'core practices'. The result is a powerful set of supplementary materials that's a 'must' to accompany the original book.

Colleges That Create Futures
Robert Franek
The Princeton Review
c/o Random House Inc.
1745 Broadway, New York NY 10019
9780804126083, $14.99, www.princetonreview.com

Colleges That Create Futures: 50 Schools That Launch Careers By Going Beyond the Classroom selects and profiles schools that actually encourage students by matching their talents to professions, and profiles institutions that supplement the educational process with career services from internships to learning programs that take place on and off campus. Each college receives a detailed profile that includes insights on alumni, group activities, school academics, and careers that range from business to law. The result is an eye-opener that is packed with specifics and plenty of detail to enable potential students to assess these value-added institutions of higher learning.


The Fantasy/SciFi Shelf

Supersymmetry
David Walton
Pyr
c/o Prometheus Books
59 John Glenn Drive, Amherst, NY 14228-2197
9781633880986, $17.00, www.pyrsf.com

Supersymmetry is satisfyingly complex and recommended for science fiction fans who want to be entertained as well as challenged by complex plots revolving around high technology, quantum mechanics, and more. When a brilliant physicist develops a technology that could make soldiers nearly invincible, he inadvertently creates a quantum monster who begins attacking in an effort to control the world and destroy those who defeated it over a decade ago. Science and danger blend in a fast-paced story replete with the trappings and drama of a high-tech future in a winding, changing story packed with twists, turns, and satisfying adventure.

The House of Shattered Wings
Aliette de Bodard
Roc
c/o Penguin Group (USA)
375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014
9780451477385, $26.95, www.penguin.com

The House of Shattered Wings comes from a Nebula Award-winning author and is set in late 20th century Paris, where the streets are lined with haunted ruins as the result of a powerful war. All familiar places have been burned and spells linger - but those who survive are willing and able to continue the war all over again. Of the surviving Houses in competition for control is House Silverspires, in shambles, where three very different forces - a Fallen angel, an alchemist, and a simmering young man holding great powers - come together. Will their efforts save what remains, or finish off everything? A simmering, compelling saga emerges, recommended for newcomers and prior fans of Aliette de Bodard alike!

Germanica
Robert Conroy
Baen Books
PO Box 1188, Wake Forest NC 27588
9781476780566, $25.00, www.baen.com

Hidden in the European alps in Germanica is a Nazi propaganda master and a group of Nazi believers who are confronting the last Allied push to end World War II: a struggle as Churchill has lost his election and political forces around the world - including America - are changing. Josef Goebbels is charged with holding out until the political storms turn his way - but just as certain that their side will win is a group of American and European leaders who see this final battle as the death knoll of Nazi rule. The fast-paced story line and numerous political and military battles are perfect for an alternate history that offers a different focus than many, making it a recommended pick even for seasoned genre readers.

Luna: New Moon
Ian McDonald
Tor
c/o Tor/Forge Books
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010
9780765375513, $27.99, www.tor-forge.com

The moon is inhabited, and it wants to kill those who mine and live there in a future feudal society that requires battle and political struggles from its inhabitants. Adriana is leader of the moon's newest family and has eliminated many in her rise to power, grabbing control from a corporate entity and using her family connections to gain status. Now her life is ebbing and her dynasty is being challenged by the many enemies she's made during her life - and it's up to her five children to defend the world she's built for them. Luna: New Moon is fast-paced political and military sci-fi reading at its best, with the lunar atmosphere adding to a highly charged read replete with twists, turns, and memorable, powerful protagonists.


The Mystery/Suspense Shelf

The Darling Dahlias and the Eleven O'Clock Lady
Susan Wittig Albert
Berkeley Prime Crime
c/o Penguin Group (USA)
375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014
9780425260623, $25.95, www.penguin.com

The Darling Dahlias and the Eleven O'Clock Lady provides another 'Darling Dahlias' mystery - the sixth - in the series and will appeal to any who enjoy mysteries centered around a group of garden club members with a penchant for problem-solving. The eleven o'clock lady is a spring wildflower. It's also the nickname of a switchboard operator who is found strangled. As the small town faces gossip, speculation, and danger, it's up to the Darling Dahlias to sort the truth from Rona's private life in this engrossing saga.

The Odds of Getting Even
Sheila Turnage
Kathy Dawson Books
c/o Penguin Group (USA)
375 Hudson Street, 4th floor, New York, NY 10014
9780803739611, $16.99, www.penguin.com

The Odds of Getting Even tells of Mo and her best friend Dale, who have founded a detective agency and find themselves in a courtroom testifying against Dale's kidnapper father Macon. Everyone expects an easy conviction, but when events take a turn for the worse, Mo and Dale find themselves on the wrong side of safety in a showdown that affects the entire town of Tupelo Landing. Did Daddy commit the Tupelo crimes? How can one defend someone who has largely been running on the wrong side of the law? A winding, winning story emerges, perfect for mystery fans of all ages.


The Psychology Shelf

Paranoid
David J. LaPorte
Prometheus Books
59 John Glenn Drive, Amherst, NY 14228-2197
9781633880689, $18.00, www.prometheusbooks.com

Paranoid: Exploring Suspicion from the Dubious to the Delusional considers the foundations of all kinds of paranoia, from pathological killers to those who harbor a degree of healthy (or unhealthy) suspicion about life and its events, and provides an in-depth overview from a psychologist and research who analyzes the elements that define paranoia, why it happens, and what forms it can take. All this is presented with vignettes in chapters that consider lay terms, clinical analysis of the condition, and the psychological, social, and cultural ramifications. Also included is the author's idea that paranoia could become an epidemic, and of concern to public health. There's a lot to consider beyond textbook definitions and mental health approaches, and Paranoid succeeds in providing general-interest and psychology readers alike with a healthy degree of analysis and insights on the subject, making it a pick for health and general-interest holdings alike.

On Multiple Selves
David Lester
Transaction Publishers
10 Corporate Place South, Piscataway, NJ 08854
9781412855723, $49.95, www.transactionpub.com

On Multiple Selves takes an unusual approach in refuting the idea that a human being has one unified self: instead, the mind is naturally made up of multiple selves, and this should be considered a normal psychological phenomenon and not an indication of mental illness. Decades ago psychology held that multiple or split personalities were an aberration that needed treatment - a serious mental illness that was one of the conditions that separated 'healthy' from 'mentally ill' individuals. So the premise here is particularly eye-opening and makes the case for the healthy development of multiple personalities in response to different stimuli that provoke different identities to emerge in response. From what situations tend to encourage development of multiple selves to how bilingualism and other tendencies use multiple abilities and selves to maximum benefit, this book is replete with thought-provoking discussions no psychology student or reader will want to miss.


The Social Issues Shelf

The Sisters are Alright
Tamora Winfrey Harris
Berrett-Koehler Publishers
1333 Broadway, Suite 1000, Oakland CA, 94612
9781626563513, $15.95, www.bkconnection.com

The Sisters are Alright is recommended for women's studies, ethnic studies, and social issues collections alike as it exposes anti-black-woman propaganda and shows how black women can fight against these myths and distorted perceptions. There are several basic stereotypes about black women which all serve to wrongly categorize black women and strip them of power. Tamary Winfrey Harris presents and attacks these false representations of black women and retunes the focus on strong, emancipated women who are fighting against distorted presentations of their psyches. The result is a powerful survey highly recommended for any interested in the evolving culture of black America.

A Colorful History of Popular Delusions
Robert E. Bartholomew and Peter Hassall
Prometheus Books
59 John Glenn Drive, Amherst, NY 14228-2197
9781633581228, $19.00, www.prometheusbooks.com

A Colorful History of Popular Delusions is at once a history and a social survey, and provides a lively discussion of crowd behavior that ranges from fads and manias to urban legends, riots, and mass struggle. From the strange crowd reactions in the Middle Ages, which were steeped in and influenced by superstitious belief systems tempered with Christianity, to popular urban myths and scares that ranged from the initial perceived dangers of rock 'n roll music to stories about hitchhikers who vanished, this is a fun and wide-ranging discussion that embraces world delusions and trends and offers many explanations on how they develop, spread, and their lasting effects on the human psyche and human history alike.


The Wine/Spirits Shelf

Pocket Wine Book 2016
Hugh Johnson
Mitchell Beazley
c/o Octopus Publishing
236 Park Avenue, New York NY 10017
9781784720902, $16.99, www.octopusbooksusa.com

Pocket Wine Book 2016 is fully updated and expanded to add information from wine expert Hugh Johnson's trusted global contributors, and provides a year pocket guide covering some 6,000 wines along with regions and growers around the world. In at-a-glance format is information on grape varieties, food and wine pairing, the 2014 and 2013 vintages, up-and-coming wines for 2016, and notes on wine regions around the world. From recommendations on what to drink to cellaring and major brands, it's a wine 'bible' in pocket format, not to be missed by ongoing fans of the noble grape.

Gin: The Manual
Dave Broom
Mitchell Beazley
c/o Octopus Publishing
236 Park Avenue, New York NY 10017
9781845339388, $19.99, www.octopusbooksusa.com

Gin: The Manual offers a focus on gin that provides keys to understanding the blossoming gin marketplace, and is intended as a newcomer's basic primer on the topic. From what gin is and how it's made to differences between different gins around the world, recipes that can be made with gin, and understanding how botanicals affect a gin's flavor, chapters are loaded with black and white and color illustrations as they explore gin's history and culture. Add critical flavor overviews of particular brands and discussions of gin distillation techniques and you have a basic foundation guide that should be on the reading lists of any new to gin.


The Cookbook Shelf

Vegan Richa's Indian Kitchen
Richa Hingle
Vegan Heritage Press
P.O. Box 628, Woodstock, VA 22664-0628
http://veganheritagepress.com/contact-us
9781941252093, $22.95, www.veganheritagepress.com

Vegan Richa's Indian Kitchen: Traditional and Creative Recipes for the Home Cook goes a step beyond the usual wealth of Indian cookbooks on the market in focusing on vegan cooking methods for traditional Indian fare. These adaptations on traditional themes comes form the author's award-winning blog, which takes the basics and refines them to simplify preparation and ingredients, blending modern techniques and adding alternatives to spices that might not be found in the typical American supermarket. Color photos face many of the recipes, variations and histories are explained in introductions to each recipe, and simple dishes such as a Red Lentil Tomato Pulao and Chickpeas in Spicy Sorghum Sauce often require as little prep time as fifteen minutes - a big improvement over Indian cookbooks that don't consider the busy American cook. The result is a top recommendation not just for fans of vegan ethnic cooking but for any who would enjoy traditional and revitalized Indian cuisine without the associated specialized ingredients or lengthy preparation times.

Eat! The Quick-Look Cookbook
Gabriela Scolik & Team/No.Parking
Weldon Owen
415 Jackson Street, San Francisco, CA 94111
9781616288747, $25.00, www.weldonowen.com

Eat! The Quick-Look Cookbook comes from a team of food lovers and graphic artists who illustrate some 400 step-by-step food and drink recipes from a graphic artist's perspective, creating what is, in effect, a cookbook and an art book all in one. Recipes focus on global cuisines and include various sauces, stews such as Braise Lamb Shanks with Citrus Fruit, and step-by-step instructions on making spinach stuffing and more. The printed recipes and directions are quite small to allow for the step-by-step graphic art visuals - so small that older cooks may find their eyesight challenged. Bolded or larger print might have enhanced the at-a-glance recipe and instructions but would have necessitated smaller graphics - which are already about as small as one would wish for, given that each recipe recipes its own color-coded page. The result will especially delight any interested in not just step-by-step instructions and recipes, but graphic art renderings of culinary techniques.

Preserving the Japanese Way
Nancy Singleton Hachisu
Andrews McMeel Publishing
1130 Walnut Street, Kansas City, MO 64106-2109
9781449450885, $40.00, www.andrewsmcmeel.com

Preserving the Japanese Way: traditions of Salting, Fermenting, and Pickling for the Modern Kitchen follows up on the author's first book Japanese Farm Food and narrows the focus to the process of preserving fruits, vegetables and fish. More than just a recipe collection, it documents the daily operations of various producers, artisanal food manufacturers, and more, and pairs the 125 recipes with insights on producers and classic Japanese food preservation methods. Access to a market that sells such items as miso, sake, burdock root, sour plums or katsuobushi flakes requires that the user have some basic ingredients for success; but those with such access (or internet mail-order) will find these methods revealing and unusual and will appreciate the wealth of flavors that are unique representations of the Japanese method of preserving.


The Gardening Shelf

Plants from Pits
Holly Farrell
Mitchell Beazley
c/o Octopus Publishing
236 Park Avenue, New York NY 10017
9781784721039, $14.99, www.octopusbooksusa.com

Plants from Pits: How to Grow a Garden from Kitchen Scraps is waste management at its best, and imparts the basics of what to do with seeds and pits from the kitchen if you're a grower who wants an economical source of starting material. A surprising range of fruits and vegetables can be started in this manner, grown indoors or out, in limited spaces as well as gardens and acres. This guide covers all the basics with a focus on propagation methods that are easy and economical, and requires only a basic interest in growing veggies and fruits to prove successful.


The Theatre/Cinema/TV Shelf

The Sexy Science of the Big Bang Theory
Nadine Farghaly and Eden Leone, Editors
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
9781476619481, $40.00, www.mcfarlandpub.com

Most fans of the TV show well know of the comedy sitcom's ability to pull of gritty, exact humor - but The Sexy Science of the Big Bang Theory: Essays on Gender in the Series offers a specific focus on a show popular with Millennial viewers, providing attention to gender issues throughout the series and more closely examining masculinity, femininity, and sexuality. Readers should be interested in a college-level critical examination and have prior familiarity with the series. Those with such a background who are taking either media studies, social issues or women's history courses will find this an intriguing survey that analyzes just what makes the Big Bang Theory different from almost any other show on the market today.

Film+Video Budgets, sixth edition
Maureen A. Ryan
Michael Wiese Productions
12400 Ventura Blvd., #1111, Studio City, CA 91604
9781615932214, $29.95, www.mwp.com

The sixth updated edition of Film+Video Budgets includes free downloadable Excel spreadsheet budgets and has been completely revised and updated for seven different film formats from major full-length productions to low-budget student projects, making for a collection that is designed to cut the data entry and formatting headaches to a manageable level. Independent filmmakers will find it covers all aspects of budgeting for a production, covering everything from running times, digital conform and color charges, cross-comparisons of rates for editing, music, and other specialty items, and including sample budgets for specific projects. No general coverage, this offers the line-by-line detail filmmakers need in a top recommendation that doesn't just deserve a spot in a film reference collection, but simply MUST appear there, as a mainstay reference.


The Autism Shelf

Reframe Your Thinking Around Autism
Holly Bridges
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
400 Market Street, Suite 400, Philadelphia, PA 19106
9781849056724, $16.95, www.jkp.com

Reframe Your Thinking Around Autism: How the Polyvagal Theory and Brain Plasticity Help Us Make Sense of Autism comes from an author who runs a therapeutic consultancy, and outlines a new method of understanding autism. It presents the 'Polyvagal Theory', which suggests that autism is a learned response to early childhood stress on the nervous system, and it not only explains this theory but explores how it dovetails into the latest developments in brain research. From basic steps to incorporate when working with children with special needs to understanding the new possibilities in brain plasticity studies as it relates to autism, this is a key to understanding that shouldn't be missed!


The Health/Medicine Shelf

Chinese Auricular Acupuncture, second edition
Skya Abbate
CRC Press
6000 NW Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300
Boca Raton, FL 33487
9781466579460, $89.95, www.crcpress.com

Chinese Auricular Acupuncture narrows the focus to ear acupuncture techniques and uses the concepts of traditional Chinese acupuncture to examine clinical applications of ear acupuncture points. This updated second edition includes five new chapters incorporating new research and common questions as well as ethical issues that may arise, and it provides an easy format that allows newcomers and seasoned practitioners an easy path to applying auricular acupuncture techniques to a range of health conditions. From Oriental medical theory basics and Western contrasts to clinical perspectives, this is a solid reference that provides specific techniques, discusses common issues, and includes everything needed to effectively apply acupuncture in this manner.


The Art Shelf

Art of the Middle East, revised edition
Saeb Eigner
Merrell Publishers
8755 Lookout Mountain Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046
9781858946283, $24.95, www.merrellpublishing.com

Art of the Middle East: Modern and Contemporary Art of the Arab World and Iran is a definitive guide highly recommended for any arts collection seeking to include a solid representation of Middle East artists, and packs in the work of some 230 artists in a new edition that's been revised and expanded to reflect new works and changes in the region. Anticipate surprisingly lavish production that doesn't challenge the bookshelf with an oversized format but succeeds in offering broad overviews that blend examples of modern art with in-depth discussions of their influences, presented in seven themed sections for quick at-a-glance reference. The period of time covered is 1945 to present, while the inclusion of twelve artists new to this edition and discussions of the influence of the Arab Spring on the arts makes this a formidable addition to any academic or arts holding seeking a lavishly-illustrated, definitive guide in an affordable package that doesn't break the library budget or challenge the bookshelf.

Contemporary Wildlife Art
Cindy Ann Coldiron
Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310
9780764348648, $39.99, www.schifferbooks.com

Contemporary Wildlife Art deserves ongoing recognition and recommendation because it stands out from the crowd of wildlife art that typically focuses on paintings to embrace a wide range of mediums. Over seventy-four modern artists and well over three hundred art pieces blend personal artistic reflections of artists from around the world with works in a diverse range of styles and media, from paintings and photography to glass, woodcarving, mosaics, stoneware and much more. The wildlife represented crosses the animal kingdom and includes birds and even insects. Any wildlife and nature enthusiast interested in artistic representations will find in Contemporary Wildlife Art an outstanding survey of all the possibilities, influences, and options in capturing wildlife through artistic efforts.


The Metaphysical Studies Shelf

My Life After Death
Erik Medhus with Elisa Medhus, MD
Beyond Words/Atria Publishing
c/o Simon & Schuster
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
www.simonsays.com
9781582705606, $16.00, www.beyondword.com

My Life After Death: A Memoir from Heaven began on the day Erik Medhus committed suicide at the age of twenty. But how can that be: My Life After Death is written by Medhus, right? Driven by grief, co-author and pragmatic physician Elisa Medhus sought out mediums to help her with her grief and to explain some of the unusual phenomena she and her family was experiencing. What she learned was that Erik was reaching her from the other side - and for a family filled with atheists and skeptics, this was an amazing experience indeed. Dr. Medhus enlisted the aid of a famous spirit translator and Erik's channeled experience thus form the basis of this book, written by Erik from the afterlife with his mother as transcriber. It provides a follow-up to the more autobiographical introduction My Son and the Afterlife but goes far beyond its predecessor in exploring what heaven is like and how it works. The result is highly recommended for followers of the blog, new age readers, and newcomers to Dr. Medhus, and her son's life, death, and afterlife.

Llewellyn
2143 Wooddale Drive, Woodbury, MN 55125
www.llewellyn.com

Carl Llewellyn Weschcke and Joe H. Slate, PhD's Communicating with Spirit: Here's How You Can Communicate (and Benefit from) Spirits of the Departed, Spirit Guides & Helpers, Gods & Goddesses, Your Higher Self and Your Holy Guardian Angel (9780738744681, $34.99) wraps a personal empowerment book with a wide-ranging discussion of the tools of psychic empowerment, and packs in not just theory, but verifiable techniques gathered from world religions East and West. Where traditional thoughts would simplify the process and rely on mediums and psychics to make such connections, Communicating with Spirit embraces all the possible processes and approaches that lend to a better sense of other dimensions and how to handle communications with them. From energy tools from witchcraft to discussions of politics, new age religions, meditation as evocation, basic steps for exploring and experiencing spiritual worlds, and much more, this primer is packed with a synthesis of methods and techniques that places yoga, quantum research, mediums, channelers, and anything to do with psychic communication studies and efforts on the same page - at last! Keith Sherwood and Sabine Wittmann's Energy Healing with Women: Meditations, Mudras, and Chakra Practices to Restore Your Feminine Spirit (9780738741123, $18.99) belongs in health and healing, women's studies and new age collections alike as it provides chapters considering energetic issues that affect emotional, spiritual and physical well-being. It's a gathering of techniques designed to confront inherent belief and spiritual limitations and it provides a powerful survey using story examples, history, theory and exercises designed to help readers replace negative patterns with positive, life-affirming ones. From the problems of multi-tasking to symptoms of energetic trauma, it's a powerful tool for change. It's a Wonderful Afterlife: Inspiring True Stories from a Psychic Medium by Kristy Robinett (9780738740737, $15.99) offers a personal saga of author and psychic medium Kristy Robinett, who has communicated with spirits since she was a child. Her offering takes the form of stories that answer common questions and concerns about the nature of the afterlife and spirit experiences there, and gathers not just her own insights, but those of clients, as well. The result is a powerful survey that offers a glimpse into other states of being and their patterns of logic and survival: highly recommended for any who are curious about such worlds.


The Christian Studies Shelf

A Still and Quiet Conscience
John A. McCoy
Orbis Books
Box 302, Maryknoll NY 10545-0302
9781626981171, $26.00, www.orbisbooks.com

Christian and Catholic collections strong in biographical sketches that include religious and political insights alike will want to add A Still and Quiet Conscience: The Archbishop Who Challenged a Pope, a President, and a Church to their collections. It considers Raymond G. Hunthausen, archbishop of Seattle from 1975-1991 who represented Vatican II in all its spirit of renewal and change, and it follows his efforts to uphold not just that sentiment, but the boundaries of his beliefs. If this included becoming the first American bishop to advocate tax resistance to protest nuclear war and confronting the Vatican itself, he held the courage to do so, making his saga one of remarkable spiritual resilience, courage, and achievement. No Catholic collection should be without this powerful account of not only the archbishop's life and times, but the methods he used to defend and maintain his beliefs against all odds and systems.

Outline of Christian Doctrine
Wilfried Harle
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
2140 Oak Industrial Drive, NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49505
9780802848420, $50.00, www.eerdmans.com

Outline of Christian Doctrine: An Evangelical Dogmatics is recommended for scholarly Christian collections and provides a long-overdue translation of the German work of Harle - but scholars should expect more than just a translation, here. The professor's original work receives Biblical notations, philosophical discussions, and new content reflecting current scientific debates, and these expansions of theme result in a modern theological discussion ideal for classrooms and seminaries where students are considering the evolution of Christian doctrine and some of its foundation beliefs. No scholarly Christian theology collection should be without this classic!

This Economy Kills
Andrea Tornielli and Giacomo Galeazzi
The Liturgical Press
St. John's Abbey, PO Box 7500
Collegeville, MN 56321-7500
9780814647257, $19.95, www.litpress.org

This Economy Kills: Pope Francis on Capitalism and Social Justice includes a new interview with the Pope and is recommended for Christian and social issues holdings alike. It expands upon his basic letter stating that the Western economy is one that 'kills' - a revolutionary statement that caused some to label him a Marxist - and it comes from two Vatican journalists who here explore the wider range of the pope's teachings and discussions on the topic of various social concerns. In including reviews of other popes and their attitudes, it successfully contrasts belief systems and theology and provides the kind of social analysis that will lend well to Christian understanding and, ultimately, a greater understanding of the pope's unique attitude towards political and social structures today.


The Needlecraft Shelf

You Can Quilt!
Leila Gardunia & Marlene Oddie
American Quilter's Society
PO Box 3290, Paducah, KY 42002-3290
9781604601831, $24.95, www.americanquilter.com

You Can Quilt! Building Skills for Beginners is a 'must' for any who would learn to create blocks that can turn into professional-looking results. It's a beginner's handbook which offers three new block patterns in each chapter which represent progressive difficulty levels, in effect teaching beginners through step-by-step instructions that assume no prior knowledge of either quilting or sewing. From basic blocks and color pairing and selection to piecing basics and progressing to other quilting methods and applications, You Can Quilt! is especially recommended for newcomers to needlework who find more complicated quilter's guides - even many purported to be for beginners - too daunting.

Classic Stitching: 25 Beautiful Projects
Anna Elizabeth Draeger
Kalmbach Books
21027 Crossroads Circle, Waukesha, WI 53187-1612
www.kalmbachbooks.com
9781627001489, $21.99, www.jewelryandbeadingstore.com

Classic Stitching: 25 Beautiful Projects offers elegant designs and stitches which can be applied to a wide variety of projects, and includes step-by-step photos for peyote, herringbone, crossweave and other kinds of stitching. Each jewelry project receives a full-page color photo of the finished project, numerous smaller color photos illustrating step-by-step methods, and materials lists that place all required stitching tools in hand. From stringing and weaving to producing earrings, this is a top recommendation for any who would learn and apply classic stitching methods to their jewelry-making efforts.


The Library Science Shelf

The Cybrarian's Web 2
Cheryl Ann Peltier-Davis
Information Today Inc.
143 Old Marlton Pike, Medford, NJ 08055-8750
9781573875127, $49.50, www.infotoday.com

The Cybrarian's Web 2: An A-Z Guide to FREE Social Media Tools, Apps, and Other Resources covers over sixty free tools and how they can be applied to library and information centers, and is written for those involved in library science who want specific applications that have been tested and proven successful in the information system. From mobile apps supporting cloud storage and crowdfunding to ebooks and video conferencing, these tools are arranged in logical chapters and designed for at-a-glance information from an overview of features to how 'cybrarians' can apply them in their library work. The result is a 'must' for any who would learn about the best of free apps that work in information technology settings.


The World History Shelf

King John
Marc Morris
Pegasus Books
80 Broad Street, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10004
9781605988856, $29.95, www.pegasusbooks.com

King John: Treachery and Tyranny in Medieval England: The Road to Magna Carta is essential reading for any who would look beyond the classic Robin Hood association to read more about a man whose stormy reign changed his world. Historian Marc Morris uses King John's letters and modern accounts of his life and times to bring to life all aspects of his personality and events; from his tyrannical rule and its aftermath to how his subjects forced him to issue Magna Carta, which made him toe the line. In the process of providing a detailed biography of King John's life and times, Morris achieves what few others can boast: a wide-ranging blend of biographical and historical review that ultimately lends further insights into the making of Magna Carta and the reasons behind its enactment.

Digging for Richard III
Mike Pitts
Thames and Hudson
500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110-0017
9780500282020, $16.95, www.thamesandhudsonusa.com

Digging for Richard III: The Search for the Lost King could have been featured in a science or archaeology section, but is included here because it should be considered for any college-level or history holding. It comes from a British archaeologist and journalist who traces Richard III's life and times before delving into the archaeological quest to fill in the blanks of his life, and it uses this quest as a starting point to survey excavation methods, the discoveries of remains, and how it was determined that the remains were, indeed, those of Richard III. The amount of information on DNA testing and new research techniques is excellent, offering history readers insights into the process, while the newly expanded paperback edition covers the 2015 reburial of the King. The result is a powerful recommendation for archaeology and history buffs alike.

Evidence Explained, third edition
Elisabeth Shown Mills
Genealogical Publishing Company
3600 Clipper Mill Road, Suite 260, Baltimore, MD 21211
9780806320175, $59.95, www.genealogical.com

Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace appears in its third updated edition to offer an in-depth reference guide to the citation and analysis of historical sources, and will serve as an indispensable if not weighty reference of citation models for most historical sources right up to modern internet times. From different kinds of records and their identification and usage to how to locate source materials and correctly cite and interpret them, Evidence Explained is packed with guidelines key to a researcher's proper presentation of historical evidence, and is a 'must' for any scholarly or college-level collection.


The Sports Shelf

Basketball Anatomy
Brian Cole, MD and Rob Panariello
Human Kinetics Publishers, Inc.
PO Box 5076, Champaign, IL 61820-5076
978145096445, $21.95, www.humankinetics.com

Basketball Anatomy: Your Illustrated Guide to Optimize Performance and Minimize Injury profiles the authors' expertise on basketball exercises, anatomy, and injuries, and is a 'must' for any player or coach more than casually involved in the sport. It's about developing a performance routine that minimizes injury, maximizes results, and even lends to rehabilitation for those players who have already suffered on the court, and it uses illustrations of muscles involved in the basketball player's process to examine who injuries happen and how to avoid them. While anatomy is an intrinsic part of understanding the process, readers needn't have a prior familiarity with the topic; just an affinity for improving strategies to lesson detrimental impacts.


The Pets/Wildlife Shelf

Back from the Brink
Malcolm Smith
Whittles Publishing
Dunbeath Mill, Dunbeath, Caithness, Scotland KW6 6EG UK
c/o National Book Network (dist.)
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, MD 20706
www.nbnbooks.com
9781849951470, $24.95, www.whittlespublishing.com

Back from the Brink takes a different approach from most books about environmental threats in tracing the successful, positive results of animals who were threatened with extinction only to make a turn-around and escape their threats. From the European Bison and the humpback whale to Siberian tigers, Iberian Lynx, butterflies, birds, and more, the wide-ranging approach of Back from the Brink gathers stories of personal courage, conservation efforts, special challenges, and world encounters in the effort to bring back animals from places where they had once thrived. Color photos accompany facts about the changing issues of and approaches to wildlife conservation, making this a solid pick for any science and nature collection.


The Crafts Shelf

Cards That Wow with Sizzix
Sizzix
Creative Publishing International
c/o Quarto Publishing Group USA
400 First Avenue North, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55401-1722
www.quartoknows.com
9781589238848, $22.95, www.craftside.net

Cards That Wow with Sizzix: Techniques and ideas for using Die-Cutting and Embossing Machines offers up a companion to Upcycle with Sizzix and is especially recommended for prior fans who have some basics down but want more keys to using the Sizzix die cutting machines to create unique cards. This how-to guide is packed with tricks and techniques perfect for new projects and designs, and covers new, innovative ways of cutting, folding and making handmade greeting cards. The result is a fun survey that should accompany any Sizzix card-making machine.


The Automotive Shelf

Drawn to Speed
John Lander
McFarland & Company
PO Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640
9780786497850, $40.00, www.mcfarlandpub.com

Drawn to Speed: The Automotive Art of John Lander comes form an automotive artist who considers cars as works of art, and who has collected vintage car art for years. This gathering of images represents the cream of his collecting and presents over a hundred color illustrations, each accompanied by a short description including artist commentary. While the presentation takes the form of am oblong paperback of a little over two hundred pages and not the large-size photo displays of more lavish auto art and history presentations, each art piece is given its own complete page and the accompanying notes are in good-size font, making this a fine and recommended pick for auto enthusiasts also interested in the finer art of depicting cars in general and John Lander's holdings in particular.


The California Shelf

The Women of San Quentin
Kristin Schreier Lyseggen
SFINX Publishing
2209 A Fifth St., Berkeley, CA 94710
9780985624422, $28.00, www.sfinxus.com

The Women of San Quentin: Soul Murder of Transgender Women in Male Prisons brings to light an issue surrounding the incarceration of transgender women in prison, and it comes packed with insights on the social, political, cultural and psychological ramifications surrounding the fact that transgender women have been sent to prison at unprecedented rates for the last thirty years - largely for non-violent reasons. One might expect from such a survey that it would be driven by cast history and autobiography, but one of the pleasures of The Women of San Quentin lies in its focus on not just the stories of nine women from a range of backgrounds, but the history and issues surrounding transgender women in male prisons. Often beaten into becoming sex slaves and denied hormone treatment, this is an eye-opening account not just of prison atrocities, but women driven to become who they are - even if they are imprisoned for it under the worst of conditions. No LGBT collection should be without this unique blend of biography, history, and social examination.


James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief
Midwest Book Review
278 Orchard Drive, Oregon, WI 53575-1129
phone: 1-608-835-7937
e-mail: mbr@execpc.com
e-mail: mwbookrevw@aol.com
http://www.midwestbookreview.com

Diane C. Donovan, Editor & Senior Reviewer
12424 Mill Street, Petaluma, CA 94952
phone: 1-707-795-4629
e-mail: donovan@sonic.net


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