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New Books
January 2005
NONFICTION
The United States of Europe:The New
Superpower and the End of American Supremacy
- Reid, T. R.
Booklist starred review. This book argues that
Americans--particularly those subscribing to Robert
Kagan's "let Old Europe eat crepes;
we're going it alone" foreign policy--miss
the fact that the European Union, not the U.S., is
emerging as the true superpower of the twenty-first
century. The emphasis is on economics: the solidity
of the euro, the long reach of European corporations,
and the unignorable power of Europe's enormous
marketplace, which, as Reid shows us, former General
Electric CEO Jack Welch learned the hard way.
It's essentially an argument about "soft
power," bolstered by some eye-opening statistics
(did you know that Europe's GDP is greater than
America's?) as well as a perceptive discussion of
the catalytic forces of anti-Americanism and the
pan-European Generation E. Reid does not duck the
Kaganites' predictable criticism--that such
success is possible because the U.S. is busy keeping
the wolves at bay--but rather offers that, for
whatever reason its success, the EU is simply not to
be dismissed. - Booklist
Greenback: The Almighty Dollar and the
Invention of America -
Goodwin, Jason
Goodwin tells the story of the world's
dominant currency, the dollar, and its astonishing
role in American history. We learn about the endless
list of characters who shaped this country, both
famous and obscure, and how they profoundly
influenced its growth because they understood that
money was the key to unlocking liberty and the
pursuit of happiness or wealth. Paper money, invented
in Boston in 1698, was known as "bills of
credit," which people could use now and pay for
in years ahead. Unlike Europeans, who were attached
to money for its own sake, Americans used it as a
medium for growth with an entrepreneurial spirit that
has flowered in this country during the more than 300
years since the dollar was invented. Goodwin reports,
"America's theology was a secular one. It
revolved around money and liberty, promise and
return, profit and loss. It revolved, in fact, around
the miracle of money." - Booklist
The Righteous : The Unsung Heroes of the
Holocaust - Gilbert,
Martin
Books have been written about individuals who
risked their own safety to aid Jews in Nazi-occupied
Europe. Yet this comprehensive examination by noted
historian Gilbert (The First World War, etc.),
recounted largely through first-person accounts by
the Jews they rescued, is an important contribution.
These thumbnail sketches of rescuers, their methods
and, in some cases, the horrors they endured as a
result of their courageous choices haven't
previously been gathered in one volume. - from the
publisher
Another Country:Journeying Toward the
Cherokee Mountains -
Camuto, Christopher
Hiker, canoer, watcher, listener, and meditator,
Camuto observes history and nature in the southern
Appalachian Mountains, the former homeland of the
expelled Cherokee Indians. Favoring a multilevel,
nonchronological format, Camuto extols the
magnificence of the land before European contact and
laments its appearance today and records in detail
the reintroduction to the region of the red wolf.
With wildness hemmed into the upper reaches of the
Great Smokies, Camuto heads for the heights, where he
camps in winter, reducing encounters with humans, and
engages in a sensitive reflection on the land and the
Cherokees' relationship with it. His inspiration
is James Mooney, a government ethnologist from the
1880s who wrote about Cherokee culture, including
place-names Camuto sought. As he arrives at these
locales, Camuto recalls events, forestry, and
wildlife that have retreated to refuges of place or
memory. Earnest, wistful, and imbued with the
poeticalness of nature, Camuto's work conveys the
exhilaration of mountaintops, streams, and
predators--and the naturalist's dismay at roads,
dams, and tourist traps. - Booklist
Stranger Shores: Literary Essays, 1986 -
1999 - Coetzee, J.
M.
The only author ever to win the Booker Prize
twice, J. M. Coetzee is, without question, one of the
world's greatest novelists. Now his many admirers
will have the pleasure of reading his significant
body of literary criticism. This volume gathers
together for the first time in book form, twenty-six
pieces on books and writing, all but one previously
published. His subjects range from the great
eighteenth and nineteenth century writers Daniel
Defoe, Samuel Richardson and Ivan Turgenev, to the
great German modernists Rilke, Kafka, and Musil, to
the giants of late twentieth century literature,
among them Harry Mulisch, Joseph Brodsky, Jorge Luis
Borges, Salman Rushdie, Amos Oz, Naguib Mahfouz,
Nadine Gordimer, and Doris Lessing. - from the
publisher
Jewelry Concepts and Technology
- Untracht, Oppi
The definitive reference for jewelry makers of all
levels of ability -- a complete, profusely
illustrated guide to design, materials, and
techniques, as well as a fascinating exploration of
jewelry-making throughout history. - from the
publisher
Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of
Aggression in Girls -
Simmons, Rachel
Forget the stereotypes of sugar and spice. Girls
are mean , and as this books and a recent
New York Times Magazine cover story
indicate, their subtle, insidious style of bullying
is rapidly garnering attention and concern. Simmons,
a twenty-something with apolitical background, calls
on her extensive face-to-face research with teens in
this book that exposes the social minefields of
female adolescence and the deep scarring that can
result. Bolstered with numerous revealing anecdotes
and quotes, Odd Girl Out does an excellent
job of articulating to adults exactly the pain and
subtle warfare that many teen girls experience, and
Simmons offers thoughtful motivations for both
bullies and the parents who are reluctant to rein
them in. She also offers admirable, groundbreaking
insight into an all-too-common issue and will be
invaluable to any adult struggling to help a girl get
through her teens. - Booklist
The Art of Money:The History and Design of
Paper Currency from Around the World
- Standish,
David
Beginning with the sunflowers on the
Netherlands' 50-gulden note (Standish loves them)
and ending with the redesigned American fives, tens
and twenties (hates them), Standish's handsome,
offbeat and color reproduction-stuffed volume
displays and describes the world's various paper
moneys. Standish, a journalist and former Playboy
articles editor, sometimes looks at currency design
as a matter of pure aesthetics--what colors, where?
What kinds of lines, and why? But he also shows how
"countries project their self-image through
their money," recording their history and
deciding what they want their visitors to see. He
includes the "tough guys" mythic rebels and
pre-Columbian gods on much Latin American dinero; the
engraved airplanes on Singapore's money, which
promote its national airline; and the countenance of
Queen Elizabeth, which graces more nationalities'
cash than any other. A "Short History of
Money" explains, and depicts, the evolution of
coinage and then of bills in Greece, Rome and
medieval China, whose reliance on bills gave it, in
the 10th century, "the world's first
hyperinflation." A final chapter surveys
American money, which at various points depicted
Washington crossing the Delaware, Ben Franklin with a
kite, and "Pocahontas getting baptized." -
Publishers Weekly
Albion : Origins of the English Imagination
- Ackroyd, Peter
Albion is an ancient name for England as well as
for the primeval giant who made it his home, a clue
to the two primary characteristics Ackroyd discusses
in this marvelous synthesis: the deeply rooted
connection between the English and their land and a
reverence for the past. Ackroyd begins by discussing
how trees became sacred symbols of life and
continuity, and, as he does with each ensuing
subject, whether it's the sea, stones, rain,
gardens, music, painting, or ghosts, he presents a
cascade of evocative examples, keenly interpreting
various artists, composers, and dozens of writers,
including Chaucer, Blake, Wordsworth, Shakespeare,
Austen, and J. R. R. Tolkien. The English imagination
is stoked by visions and leavened with wit, Ackroyd
avers, forming not a linear progression but, rather,
a shining circle that leads back to the
"original sources of inspiration," be they
Celtic, classical, or Christian. A master
extrapolator and wonderfully epigrammatic stylist
fluent in many disciplines, Ackroyd has created a key
to English creativity past, present, and future. -
Booklist
Family Circle : The Boudins and the
Aristocracy of the Left -
Braudy, Susan
Kathy Boudin, former member of the radical Weather
Underground who was on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted
List for 11 years, was sentenced to 20 years in
prison for her part in the 1980 Brink's robbery,
which resulted in the death of two police officers
and a security guard. Braudy, who met Boudin at Bryn
Mawr, offers a revealing look at the Boudin
family--three generations of political activists and
thinkers. Her father, Leonard, intense and driven,
was a respected civil liberties attorney. Kathy's
mother, Jean, was a poet and intellectual, so
slavishly devoted to Leonard that she ignored his
affairs with young women. Kathy's relationship
with her family was deeply troubled; she vied with
her brother for the attention of a father who was
absorbed in his own image. Kathy, in effect, competed
with her father for headlines--he with sensational
court battles, she with plans for bombings and
protests. Based on FBI files, court transcripts, and
interviews, Braudy details the turbulent social and
political atmosphere of the 1960s when Kathy
associated with radicals including Bernardine Dohrn,
Tom Hayden, and Abbie Hoffman. She also vividly
recalls the radical counterculture that eschewed
material comforts, advocated "smash
monogamy" with group sex, and heavily used
drugs. Boudin's recent parole will heighten
interest in this compelling look at a major figure in
American radical politics and domestic terrorism. -
Booklist
Mary Thomas's Dictionary of Embroidery
Stitches - Thomas,
Mary
Originally published in 1989, this is a completely
revised full-color edition of Thomas's 1934
classic, Dictionary of Embroidery Stitches .
A comprehensive dictionary offering more than 400
stitches, this edition includes 100 new stitches, all
described and pictured in full-color diagrams.
Essential for embroidery collections. - Library
Journal
Elegant Stitches: An Illustrated Stitch
Guide & Source Book of Inspiration
- Montano, Judith
Baker
In beautiful color illustrations and lucid
instructions, this handy book presents 144 basic
stitches and includes sections on silk-ribbon
embroidery, crazy-quilt combination stitches,
free-form embroidery stitches, and composite
stitches. - from the publisher
The Needlepoint Book: A Complete Update of
the Classic Guide -
Christensen, Jo Ippolito
Since its original publication in 1976, The
Needlepoint Book has become known as "The
Black Bible" -- the one resource every
aficionado of needlepoint needs to own. Completely
revised and expanded, this updated edition includes
your favorite features, plus: * A 16-pace color
insert with all-new projects * a crash course on the
new fibers updated information on materials, as well
as how to work with and care for them * dozens of new
stitches and a chapter on the popular openwork
stitches * more than 1,300 illustrations * 369
stitches! Diagrams for all projects shown.
The Needlepoint Book covers all the
information you need to learn needlepoint and improve
your technique -- in a single comprehensive volume.
You'll find sections on: * Choosing the right
project * transferring designs * elements of good
design: color, proportion, and balance * left-handed
needlepoint * finishing techniques * cleaning
needlepoint * and much more! The Needlepoint
Book is a complete guide to the craft, and the
only book you'll ever need as a reference to
become an expert at creating exquisite works to be
treasured forever. - from the publisher
1000 Great Cross-Stitch Designs
- Kelly, Maria
Cross-stitch fans, rejoice! Here are 1,000
exciting cross-stitch motifs suitable for
embellishing clothing, gifts, draperies, or anything
else under the sun. The stitches are organized by
category, and include such motifs as flowers and
foliage, celestial bodies, favorite pastimes and
hobbies, and many more. Using a palette of only 30
thread colors, you can turn that ordinary tablecloth
into a treasured family heirloom with
Christmas-themed embroidery, or add fantasy creatures
such as angels, mermaids or playful dragons to
brighten a lucky child's outfit. There are
instructions for using the provided charts; thread
“recipes” for each motif; and advice for
mixing-and-matching the motifs to create wonderful
samplers or scenes of your own design. With the
endless ideas provided, you'll never run out of
projects. - from the publisher
Charted Monograms for Needlepoint and
Cross-Stitch -
Weiss, Rita
350 designs for monograms just right for that
Shakespeare cross-stitch project or your own use.
S everal large and small alphabets, numerals,
and illustrated instructions.
Cross-Stitch for the First Time
- Kooler, Donna
Chapter one treats all the basics of
cross-stitch--except the actual sewing--in one large
information section. The rest of the data, from
stitching on Aida fabric to the use of waste canvas,
are presented in 20-question formats, with oversize
charts, graphs, and directions. Designs are simple,
featuring animals and nature, yet appealing enough to
create "I gotta sew" feelings among
beginners. A gallery showcasing the work of nine
needlepoint artists will inspire readers, who will be
amazed at the professional talent found exercising
this craft. - Booklist
World of Cross Stitch: 1001 Motifs, Borders,
and Pattern Ideas -
Verso, Jo
A collection of more than 1000 cross-stitch
motifs, borders and patterns, presented on a
mix-and-match basis, allowing embroiderers to choose
and combine those applicable to their own projects.
Advice is given on design materials, preparing the
chart, sewing materials and stitching the design. -
from the publisher
Latin American Popular Culture: An
Introduction -
Beezley, William H. (editor)
Exploring the cultural focus of an entire
continent is a daunting task, but for the 13
academics here--mission accomplished. The essays,
only two of which are reprints, share the Latin
American theme yet represent unique contributions to
scholarship by employing cultural events or
activities to relate a nation's history and
social awareness. Essays by Pamela Voekel and Matthew
D. Esposito take a cemetery and a funeral as their
settings, while two other articles report on national
exhibits at world expositions to demonstrate the
efforts of Argentina and Ecuador to present
themselves as civilized nations. John Chasteen,
Darien Davis, and Graham Holton turn to music and
dance as forms of popular culture. In one of the
reprinted essays, Nancy Stepan reviews a volume of
photographs depicting medicine and health in Brazil.
Collectively, the essays overcome the stigma often
attached to the study of popular culture as a
legitimate academic discipline that provides insight
into intellectual and cultural character and the
distinguishing "images, practices, and
institutions" that create national
identities.
Imagination Beyond Nation: Latin American
Popular Culture -
Bueno, Eva P. (editor)
This collection explores both the practices of
popular culture in Latin America, featuring studies
of iconography in Mexico, telenovelas in Venezuela,
drama in Chile, cinema in Brazil, comic strips and
tango in Argentina, and ceramics in Peru. Some of
these, like tango, are familiar art forms. Others,
such as Peruvian cholo art, are not so familliar. In
examining these popular arts, the scholars gathered
here ask the same broad questions: what precisely is
a national culture at the level of the popular? Is it
separate from the state? Can it ever be coherent? The
national idea in Latin America emerges from these
pages as a problematic and multi-faceted. - from the
publisher
Beyond Numeracy -
Paulos, John Allen
This well-written and easy-to-follow book gently
guides readers through many interesting mathematical
topics. Each subject has its own short chapter, which
can be found easily in the table of contents. Binary
numbers and codes, chaos, mathematical folklore,
limits, pi, Russel's Paradox, and voting systems
are some of the topics covered. No math teacher
should be without this book, and students should not
deny themselves the opportunity to view the study of
numbers from this delightful and informative piece of
literature. - School Library Journal
First Things First : To
Live, To Love, To Learn, To Leave a
Legacy - Covey,
Stephen R.
What are the most important things in your life?
Do they get as much care, emphasis, and time as
you'd like to give them? Far from the traditional
"be-more-efficient" time-management book
with shortcut techniques, Covey, author of The
Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, shows
you how to look at your use of time totally
differently. Using this book will help you create
balance between your personal and professional
responsibilities by putting first things first and
acting on them. Covey teaches an organizing process
that helps you categorize tasks so you focus on what
is important, not merely what is urgent. -
Amazon.com
Early Man and the Ocean: A Search for the
Beginnings of Navigation and Seaborne Civilizations
- Heyerdahl,
Thor
This rich collection of essays, filled with facts
and speculations on subjects ranging from primitive
navigation techniques, ocean winds, and currents to
Columbus, the Vikings, and the striking similarities
between cultures separated by legions of ocean, is
the result of Heyerdahl's ( Kon-Tiki )
explorations. Here is the compelling eidence
for his long-time theory that men were crossing the
oceans--spreading both their cultures and their
genes--thousands of years before Columbus. - from the
book jacket
War in the Pacific: Pearl Harbor to Tokyo
Bay
This is a joint effort by ten professional
military historians under the direction of Bernard
Nalty of the Air Force History Program. Each of the
contributors furnished a chapter on some aspect of
the war; several are the authors of well-regarded
military histories in their own right. Although the
result is a sound and readable overview of the
Pacific War, the book is really a showcase for an
extensive collection of military memorabilia.
Numerous full-page color photographs display an
exhaustive array of the uniforms, weaponry, and
assorted combat equipment used by both sides in the
Pacific Theater. In addition, the book features a
great many action photos, posters, and full-page
drawings of airplanes and soldiers, as well as an
array of colorful and simplified maps. - Kliatt
The World's Great Battleships: From the
Middle Ages to the Present -
Jackson, Robert
With their irresistible mixture of strength,
power, and awesome beauty, nothing will ever match
the battleship as the symbol of naval might. The
World's Great Battleships is an in-depth
study of these magnificent fighting vessels
throughout history. Beginning with the lumbering
hulks of the late Middle Ages, it charts the story of
the battleship to its decline after WWII. The
authoritative text documents the continued attempts
of designers to both maximize firepower and bolster
protection. This volume is highly-illustrated with
over 120 b/w photos and color illustrations, many of
which show cut-away views. Also included are
specifications such as armament, displacement,
dimensions, propulsion, speed, and complement. Sail
the seas with the mightiest ships to have ever left
port, like the Dreadnought, Bismarck, Tirpitz,
Yamato, and Iowa. - from the publisher
Carrier Warfare in the Pacific: An Oral
History Collection
The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor marked the end
of the battleship as the centerpiece weapon of the
U.S. Navy--in the future, the aircraft carrier would
be the star of the fleet. In this oral history edited
by Wooldridge, Ramsey Fellow at the National Air and
Space Museum, we see how Colonel Jimmy
Doolittle's flyers learned to launch their B-25s
off the Hornet . Admiral John S. Thach details his
``Thach Weave,'' a fighting tactic which
allowed slower American planes to fight the fast
Japanese Zero on equal terms. The outspoken Thach
also charges that the Yorktown would not have been
sunk at the Battle of Midway if Admirals Fetcher and
Spruance had been carrier admirals. A major part of
the story lies in the sheer might of American
industry. During the course of the war the U.S. would
build 17 Essex- class carriers; many Independence
-class carriers; and an extraordinary 109 escort, or
jeep, carriers. As the war winds down we are a part
of the excitement of the ``Turkey Shoot'' in
the Battle of the Philippine Sea, in which Navy
pilots could choose their targets, and we share the
terror of trying to find a carrier to land on at
night. We witness the destructiveness of the
kamikazes as the Franklin loses 800 of its crew and
we see equal destructiveness when two typhoons wreck
the fleet. This is a story of guts, sacrifice, terror
and exhilaration to be savored by anyone interested
in the carrier as the ultimate war machine. -
Publisher's Weekly
D-Day, June 6, 1944:The Climactic
Battle of World War II -
Ambrose, Stephen
On the basis of 1,400 oral histories from the men
who were there, Eisenhower biographer and World War
II historian Stephen E. Ambrose reveals for the first
time anywhere that the intricate plan for the
invasion of France in June 1944, had to be abandoned
before the first shot was fired. The true story of
D-Day, as Ambrose relates it, is about the citizen
soldiers - junior officers and enlisted men - taking
the initiative to act on their own to break through
Hitler's Atlantic Wall when they realized that
nothing was as they had been told it would be. This
is a brilliant telling of the battles of Omaha and
Utah beaches, based on information only now
available, from American, British, Canadian, French,
and German veterans, from government and private
archives, from never before utilized sources on the
home front, gathered and analyzed by the author, who
has made D-Day his life work. Ambrose's first
interview was with General Eisenhower in 1964, his
last with paratroopers from the 101st Airborne in
1993. The focus moves from the level of Supreme
Commander to that of a French child, from General
Omar Bradley to an American paratrooper, from Field
Marshal Montgomery to a British private, from Field
Marshal Rommel to a German sergeant. Ambrose covers
the politics of D-Day, from Churchill's
resistance to the operation to Stalin's
impatience and Roosevelt's concern. On the other
side were Hitler's command structure, German
policy, and the plot against the Fuhrer. This is the
epic victory of democracy in winner-take-all combat.
- from the publisher
Ernie's War: The Best of Ernie Pyl's
World War II Dispatches -
Pyle, Ernie
Pyle is the best-remembered of the World War II
correspondents, partly for the businesslike, earthy,
down-home tone his columns had. He spent months in
foxholes, living with and talking to the soldiers he
came to love, and he explained the dangerous, dirty,
exhausting, frightening business of infantry warfare
better than anyone else. His death on Ie Shima was
regarded as a national loss. This collection of the
best of his wartime writings shows why. Nichols's
37-page biographical essay adds necessary perspective
to Pyle's work. Very highly recommended for any
World War II or journalism collection. - Library
Journal
The Last Great Victory: The End of WW II -
July/August 1945 -
Weintraub, Stanley
Stanley Weintraub brings life to the tensions and
fears of the last thirty days of World War II. Using
material available only forty years after the end of
the war, the author follows President Truman as he
decides to drop the first atomic bomb and later takes
the measure of Joseph Stalin at Potsdam. He takes us
behind the scenes at meetings of the Japanese war
cabinet and sheds new light on how far from
inevitable the Japanese surrender was - even after
the A-bombs fell . We even have fascinating vignettes
such as JFK working as a reporter; and tapes of
German scientists gossiping in an English prison camp
about Allied A-bomb progress. The Last Great
Victory gives us an insider's view of a
month in history in which the world's future hung
in the balance. - from the publisher
Pearl Harbor: Final Judgement
- Clausen, Henry C.
This book goes a long way toward ending the
50-year-old debate as to how the Japanese managed to
surprise U.S. forces when they bombed Hawaii on
December 7, 1941. In 1944, Secretary of War Henry
Stimson selected co-author Clausen, then a lawyer in
the U.S. Judge Advocate's office, to conduct an
independent investigation into the Pearl Harbor
attack; Clausen submitted a top-secret report on the
matter, the substance of which is published here for
the first time (in 1992). Assisted by New York-based
editor Lee, Clausen details his discovery of
egregious errors of omission and commission, as well
as criminal neglect of duty by the Army and Navy high
command in Washington and Honolulu. He concludes that
the top officers in Hawaii, General Walter Short and
Admiral Husband Kimmel, were simply asleep at the
switch and ignored repeated warnings. Probably the
most telling factor in this failure of communication,
he argues, was the Navy's arrogant hoarding of
secret intelligence that should have been shared with
its Army counterparts. This thoroughly engrossing
narrative, as compelling as a detective novel,
answers two major questions: What did Washington and
Honolulu know about Japanese actions before the
attack and what did they do about it? -
Publisher's Weekly
Romeo & Juliet (Barron's Shakespeare
Made Easy)
A modern English version of the script
side-by-side with the original text.
Architecture and Construction: Building
Pyramids, Log Cabins, Castles, Igloos, Bridges, and
Skyscrapers
A very short, simple introduction loaded with
illustrations. Begins with simple shelters,
progresses to the classical world's
constructions, medieval castles and cathedrals,
Japanese paper houses, bridges, London's Crystal
Palace, skyscrapers, and Frank Lloyd Wright's
Fallingwater.
FICTION
The Wheel of
Time series by Robert Jordan
I'm not going to annotate these because if you
haven't read the first three it won't make
any sense anyway!
"The Wheel of Time [is] rapidly becoming the
definitive American fantasy saga....A fantasy tale
seldom equalled and still more seldom surpassed in
English." - The Chicago Sun-Times
The Shadow Rising (book 4)
The Fires of Heaven (book
5)
Lord of Chaos (book 6)
Killer Diller -
Edgerton, Clyde
Through a federal grant, Ballard University, a
Baptist school in North Carolina sponsors a halfway
house with the optimistic name "Back on Track
Again." Its residents teach skills such as
masonry, sewing, and plumbing to the public
school's special-education classes. Former car
thief Wesley Benfield, first introduced in
Edgerton's Walking Across Egypt , lives
there and teaches the art of bricklaying to
16-year-old Vernon Jackson. Vernon, although mentally
handicapped, has a vivid imagination and a talent for
hard-headed arguments. He also has an incredible
musical talent. Young adults will delight in
Edgerton's finely drawn and wonderfully human
characters. In addition to Wesley and Vernon, they
will meet Wesley's girlfriend, a resident of the
the university's Christian diet center; Mattie
Rigsby, the grandmotherly instrument of Wesley's
reformation; and Ned and Ted Sears, the glad-handing
president and provost who seem more interested in
University expansion than the word of God. The book
abounds with lighthearted situations and with subtle
satirical undercurrents. Killer Diller will
surely provide side-splitting comic relief in this
day of social, economic, and political crises. -
School Library Journal
Keesha's House -
Frost, Helen
Michael L Printz Award Honor Book. Frost has taken
the poem-story to a new level with well-crafted
sestinas and sonnets, leading readers into the souls
and psyches of her teen protagonists. The house in
the title isn't really Keesha's; it belongs
to Joe. His aunt took him in when he was 12, and now
that he's an adult and the owner of the place, he
is helping out kids in the same situation. Keesha
needs a safe place to stay-her mother is dead; her
father gets mean when he drinks, and he drinks a lot.
She wants to stay in school, all these teens do, and
Keesha lets them know they can stay at Joe's.
There's Stephie, pregnant at 16, and terrified to
tell anyone except her boyfriend. Harris's father
threw him out when his son confided that he is gay.
Katie's stepfather has taken to coming into her
room late at night, and her mother refuses to believe
her when she tells. Carmen's parents have run
off, and she's been put into juvie for a DUI.
Dontay is a foster kid with two parents in jail.
Readers also hear from the adults in these young
people's lives: teachers, parents, grandparents,
and Joe. It sounds like a soap opera, but the poems
that recount these stories unfold realistically.
Revealing heartbreak and hope, these poems could
stand alone, but work best as a story collection.
Teens may read this engaging novel without even
realizing they are reading poetry. - School Library
Journal
The True Meaning of Cleavage
- Fredericks, Mariah
Booklist starred review.
Sari is "madly, psychotically" in love with
David, a senior at Manhattan's Eldridge
Alternative School. Jess, a freshman like Sari, and
the story's narrator, has not crossed the
psychological divide that makes boyfriends more
important than girlfriends and is frustrated, even
frightened, as Sari begins drifting away when David
shows some interest. But rather than a girlfriend (he
already has one of those, a cool kid like himself),
Sari is his backstreet girl, dutifully visiting David
on Thursday afternoons and telling herself they have
a secret romance. At first, Jess tries to be a
supportive friend, but in a fit of pique, she
discloses the relationship to a blabbermouth, and the
law of unintended consequences immediately kicks in.
Fredericks, a first-time novelist, writes with
amazing truth and perception. These characters are
kids whom readers see every day, and the emotions so
clearly on display are ones that they've
experienced in their guts. Some readers will
recognize Jess' wrenching feelings of being left
behind and the desperate gyrations to turn the world
right again. But others will identify with Sari,
whose first hormonal surges lead her to places like
behind a bathroom door at a party, when she first
catches David's eye. The book's ending is
both honest and hopeful. - Booklist
DVD & VHS
The Complete Churchill
- 4 VHS tapes
Written and presented by Martin Gilbert, Sir
Winston Churchill's official biographer and the
author of Churchill: A Life , The
Complete Churchill is a treasury of rare
newsreel clips and interviews with Churchill's
family, staff, and political contemporaries, both the
supporters and the detractors. The first volume
surveys Churchill's early life through his
schooling, the Boer Wars, the First World War, and
his lecture tour in America. Volumes 2 through 4
trace the bold and eloquent British statesman's
determined leadership as he guides Britain through
one of her most vulnerable periods, the Second World
War. This series provides enough interviews and
never-before-seen footage to interest the most avid
Churchill enthusiast while presenting history buffs
and neophytes with a balanced portrait of this
pivotal historical figure's public and private
personas. - Amazon.com
The Question of God: Sigmund Freud
& C.S. Lewis
Based on a popular Harvard course taught by Dr.
Armand Nicholi, this four-hour PBS series explores in
accessible and dramatic style issues that preoccupy
thinking people today: What is happiness? How do we
find meaning and purpose in our lives? How do we
reconcile conflicting claims of love and sexuality?
How do we cope with the problem of suffering and the
inevitability of death? The series illustrates the
lives and insights of Sigmund Freud, a life-long
critic of religious belief, and C.S. Lewis, a
celebrated Oxford don, literary critic, and perhaps
this century's most influential and popular
proponent of faith based on reason. -
from the producer
ks 1-21-05
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