Web Exclusive Reviews: 6/15/2009
-- Publishers Weekly, 6/15/2009
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Web Pick of the Week |
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Just when you thought it was going to be another summer of lazy barbecue, Argentinean chef Francis Mallman presents a gorgeous volume detailing seven approaches to grilling that will give outdoor cooking and DIY enthusiasts their next big building projects, such as a chapa, a cast-iron griddle suspended over a fire; an outdoor oven (an horno de barro); an asador; or an ad hoc cook pit using a wheelbarrow in place of a hole in the backyard. Though his methods are impressive—Mallman even includes instructions for cooking a whole cow—the book’s emphasis is on technique and flavor rather than showmanship. Mallman’s years as a chef have enabled him to pare down recipes to their bare essentials (both caramelized endives and the visually impressive potato dominoes have just three ingredients), coaxing harmonious flavors out of appetizers like pears and Iberico ham with a parsley, olive oil and garlic sauce; charred calamari salad; a succulent slow-cooked leg of lamb redolent with red wine, rosemary and lemon; and plenty of applications for Argentina’s famous chimichurri sauce. More involved affairs like the multicourse asado, a grilled meat-and-vegetable feast perfect for a long Sunday afternoon, includes both a shopping list and a time line. What will keep cooks coming back, however, are rustic dishes like burnt tomatoes with fennel and mustard vinaigrette; pork chops with honey gremolata; and boneless ribeye with chimichurri. Augmented with plenty of smoky photos, the only thing readers will lack is the smell of charcoal. (JuneA Day in the Life: One Family, the Beautiful People, and the End of the ’60s
Robert Greenfield. Da Capo, $24.95 (352p) ISBN 9780306816222
In this roving relationship biography, journalist Greenfield (Exile on Main St.) documents the end of swinging London and the psychedelic 1960s through the breakdown of a high-society, scene-hopping married couple. Tommy Weber and Susan “Puss” Coriat were pure products of their times: Tommy was a race car driver-turned-drug supplier (for no less than the Rolling Stones); Puss’s experimentation with LSD and quest for a spiritual guru led to schizophrenia, involuntary hospitalization and electroshock therapy. The couple’s two young sons, caught between their coke-addled father (Tommy once taped a pound of cocaine to each of them to get through customs) and their mother’s steady mental decline, prove remarkably resilient. Following the couple’s divorce, Tommy and his sons lived with Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards (and his hangers-on) in the south of France, where Tommy got heavily into heroin; Puss’s thwarted plan to meet them there in 1971 would presage her suicide by sleeping pills. Capturing the tenor and tone of the era, Greenfield’s dysfunctional family is just as mesmerizing as his previous big-name subjects like Jerry Garcia and Timothy Leary. (May)
The Female Brand: Using the Female Mindset to Succeed in Business
Catherine Kaputa. Davies-Black (NBN, dist.), $24.95 (200p) ISBN 9780891062844
Kaputa, a marketing and branding whiz, mines anecdotes from successful women and her own personal experience to sell readers on themselves—rather than trying to be “one of the boys,” Kaputa insists, women will get further in the workplace by using the strengths unique to them. Stuffed with self-evaluation materials, direct advice and “brainstormer” exercises, Kaputa's work is a useful, well-organized primer on a familiar argument. While some of the generalizations are a bit heavy-handed—women have stronger verbal skills than men, women derive less satisfaction from high-level “workaholic” positions—Kaputa breaks down the idea of personal branding into manageable concepts: specialization, presentation and effective networking. In uncertain economic times, this text should prove useful for job seekers, the underemployed and those striving for advancement. (June)
Madness, Betrayal and the Lash: The Epic Voyage of Captain George Vancouver
Stephen R. Bown. Douglas & McIntyre, $34.95 (254p) ISBN 9781553653394
Though mostly forgotten, the 1791-1795 voyage of Capt. George Vancouver and his crew rivaled Columbus and Cook’s for long-term impact; Vancouver’s painstaking navigation through the uncharted Pacific set the path for modern North Pacific history. Bown (Scurvy, a Most Damnable Invention) provides a thorough, engaging account of a journey remarkable for its time and even more so in retrospect. Essential background information is flawed by excessive foreshadowing, but Bown’s vivid account of Vancouver’s work—mapping the labyrinthine coast between Northern California and southern Alaska, stopping off in Hawaii and Spanish California—proves fascinating. Plans for the voyage changed repeatedly; the end of the American Revolution, Britain’s long rivalry with Spain, the pressure for new trade routes, manipulation by British politicians and fur traders, and the obsession with finding a Northwest Passage made a difficult, vague assignment nearly impossible. The last chapters read like a thriller, as Vancouver’s health declines, his relations with the crew sour, and Britain and France go to war. Any fan of the Great Age of Sail, the history of the Royal Navy or European voyages of exploration will enjoy rediscovering this almost-forgotten hero. (May)
Our Nation Unhinged: The Human Consequences of the War on Terror
Peter Jan Honigsberg. Univ. of California, $27.50 (336p) ISBN 9780520254725
Law professor Honigsberg, who documented his 1960s civil rights work in the memoir Crossing Border Street, brings his considerable knowledge and steadfast values to document the U.S. government's abuses of domestic and international law in the name of combating terrorism. His unflinching descriptions of detainee treatment make difficult reading: prisoners are kept in isolation for years and subject to sensory deprivation (Brooklyn native Jose Padilla was held in complete isolation for 21 months), confined to “dog box[es]” designed to prevent standing and induce “learned helplessness,” plied with “truth serum” (which may have been LSD or PCP) and much worse. Honigsberg does not deny that prisoners may well be “extremely bad guy[s],” but contends that, regardless, “civilized society declines in direct relation to the ascendancy of torture.” Honigsberg charges the Bush administration with “abandon[ing]... our core values of due process and justice,” but even if one does not agree, Honigsberg insists, “we should all know what responses our nation chose” to 9/11. Inspired by a 2007 visit to Guantanamo, Honigsberg has penned a powerful indictment of Bush's "war on terror," vivid and horrifying and hard to put down. (May)
Paradise Found: Nature in America at the Time of DiscoverySteve Nicholls. Univ. of Chicago, $30 (448p) ISBN 9780226583402
Entomologist, writer and documentary filmmaker Nicholls combines natural history, American history, and ecology into a fascinating study of American wildlife and its fate. Nicholls uses documents left behind by Scandinavian and European explorers to reveal the stunning natural riches that met them—"rivers and lakes down the east coast were choked with so many fish that it left those early explorers lost for words"—and the distance we’ve come since then. Largely thanks to an us-or-them mentality (“[we] preserve and isolate sections of nature, in national parks or wilderness areas, separate from the human world”), many U.S. species have been lost or nearly lost, including cod populations (from an estimated four million tons in 1492) and carrier pigeons (the last of which died in a zoo). Nicholls highlights the ironic situation of early settlers, who faced starvation despite this incredible abundance, and ecology-shaping practices of Native Americans that “we are only just beginning to realize.” In an engaging prose style peppered with humor, Nicholls takes readers from Atlantic to Pacific, studying local ecology from historical and personal perspectives, hammering home the warning that, despite appearances, "Planet Earth is finite." (May)
The Ride: A Shocking Murder and a Bereaved Father’s Journey from Rage to Redemption
Brian MacQuarrie. Da Capo, $26 (288p) ISBN 9780306816260
In 1997, the murder of 10-year-old Jeffrey Curley rocked the blue-collar Boston suburb of East Cambridge, a scrappy but idyllic community where, in the crime’s aftermath, neighbor quickly turned against neighbor. The murder sparked an intense movement in liberal Massachusetts to reinstate the death penalty; at the outset, one of the movement’s most outspoken proponents was Jeffrey’s father, Bob Curley. In this vivid account by Boston Globe reporter MacQuarrie, Bob Curley wrestles with the demons of grief, alcoholism and vengeance, as well as family conflict and outsiders' opportunistic political agendas, to emerge a staunch, courageous opponent of capital punishment. His saga will hold particular resonance for readers who struggle with their own opinions on the complex issue. While relating details of the horrific crime, MacQuarrie’s style is visceral and haunting, but he loses some steam when focusing on Bob’s journey—perhaps because MacQuarrie gives the rest of the Curley family such short shrift. Still, this is a gripping, unusual true crime tale, likely to move readers to tears and sure to inspire personal contemplation. (June)
Tabloid Valley: Supermarket News and American Culture
Paula E. Morton. Univ. Press of Florida, $24.95 (224p) ISBN 9780813033648
Though sensationalism was rampant by the time Generoso Pope Jr. purchased the struggling New York Enquirer (later the National Enquirer) in 1952, he was arguably first to fully realize the if-it-bleeds-it-leads maxim: “I noticed how accidents drew crowds, and I decided, if it was blood that interested people, I’d give it to them.” Journalist Morton chronicles the rise of Pope's tabloid news empire, from its first shock-value headlines through its toned-down, supermarket-friendly format (aiming at the suburban Reader's Digest demographic) and into the loony heights of tabloid surrealism. After Pope moved his venture to Lantana, Fla., he acquired the Weekly World News, which took the tabloid concept to new levels of absurdity (headlines include “Bat Child Found in Cave” and “Elvis Is Alive!”). Morton uncovers fascinating details behind the paper's most sensational stories, including the1977 photo of Elvis in his coffin and the 1987 story of philandering presidential hopeful Gary Hart. The book also covers tabloid staples like Jon-Benet Ramsey, O.J Simpson, Princess Diana and 9/11, as well as Pope's competition (especially Rupert Murdoch's Star). This delightful, nostalgic look at a peculiar era in journalism demonstrates its lasting influence on mainstream news (greater than many would like to admit); front-page reproductions of the Enquirer and its contemporaries round out the tour. (June)
Writing Places: The Life Journey of a Writer and TeacherWilliam Zinsser. Collins, $22.99 (196p) ISBN 9780061729027
Influential journalist, author and educator Zinsser (American Places; Easy to Remember) produces an elegantly written memoir, featuring an array of vividly drawn tales from 50-plus years of writing, reporting and teaching in London, the Hamptons, Yale University and elsewhere. A master of storytelling Zinsser makes his memoir most effective in the gentle connection he forms with nearly everyone who enters his life, from his students at Yale, who treated Zinsser as a trusted confidante, to the elusive golf-ball thief “Mr. Roby,” who Zinsser celebrated in a Saturday Evening Post article. Zinsser also chronicles his days as a writer for the Herald Tribune and Life, as well as the lean times when freelance work alone sustained him. Zinsser also delves into the development of his own nonfiction writing course at Yale, his bestseller On Writing Well, and a multitude of other articles and books. With careful introspection and nothing but gratitude for the people in his life, Zinsser makes perfect sense out of his long, strange journey. (June)
LIFESTYLE
The Goodness of Guinness: A Loving History of the Brewery, Its People, and the City of Dublin
Tony Corcoran. Skyhorse. $16.95 (192p) ISBN 9781602396531
A third-generation employee of Guinness, Corcoran delivers an insider account of the company's St. James Gate compound in Dublin that's also a love letter, both fascinating and heartwarming. Rarely critical of the company (unions are only briefly discussed), Corcoran focuses on the more charming aspects of working at the brewery, describing everything from the cafeteria to “The Taps,” locations scattered throughout the brewery that once enabled workers to sample their wares (workers now receive a case of beer every two weeks in lieu of the suggested two pints per day). Such minutiae, along with revelations about the company’s remarkably progressive labor policies at the turn of the century, will keep readers smiling while longing for a pint. Details like the personnel structure, on-site concerts and social clubs like the Guinness Drama Group will probably bore those without ties to the brewery, but tales of the firm’s generosity (including a loan system the company instituted during the Great Depression) are laudable and inspiring. Those who appreciate the legendary stout will find plenty more reasons to tip one back, but teetotalers interested in the business will appreciate the history as well. (June)
ILLUSTRATED
Mothers in Charge: Faces of Courage
Edited by Paul Nigel Harris. Harrowood Books (Baker & Taylor, dist.), $35 (96p) ISBN 9780915180431
A book with a mission (profits going to the organization Mothers in Charge), this is a photo essay-style condemnation of violence, supplemented by the words of Philadelphia mothers who have lost children in random acts. Some of the victims were innocent, some on the wrong track, but all had mothers who deal with their grief every day. Dorothy Johnson-Speight’s son was shot eight times over a parking space; watching the television news one night, she saw Ruth Donnelly pleading for information in the murder of her own son. The story sounded familiar to Dorothy, who founded Mothers in Charge in 2003, and when she went to meet Ruth they discovered that their sons were killed by the same man (who is now serving two life sentences). These ordinary women, whose lives have been forever altered, have bravely chosen to help others to break the cycle of violence by mentoring, teaching, visiting prisons, stopping the proliferation of handguns and offering support and counseling for family members. With an introduction by Susan Taylor, of Essence magazine, this is a heartfelt book; photos of each mom have a wrenching, resonant, “there but for the grace of God” kind of power. (May)
Stone Offerings: Machu Picchu's Terraces of Enlightenment
Mike Torrey. Lightpoint (SCB, dist.), $40 (144p) ISBN 9780981881201
Steps carved from huge rocks, boulders used for the sides of buildings, windows precisely aligned to capture the first rays of the solstice sun, and other amazing features of Peru’s Machu Picchu are captured in this collection of Torrey’s detailed photographs. An architectural photographer, Torrey finds that the ancient Incan city "framed the implicit harmony between nature and humans... [forming] an underlying skeleton that signifies our interconnectedness. " Approximately 120 pages of photographs from the "Ancient Peak," sometimes called the Lost City of the Incas, will captivate armchair adventurers and spur travelers’ imagination. What is known of the city’s history is related in the introduction: built in the 15th century, abandoned not long after, "lost" for several centuries, and then rediscovered (and plundered) in the 19th century. To capture the city drenched in sunlight and etched in fog, Torrey visited Machu Picchu at the summer and winter solstices. Dazzling views of stone terraces against the green mountainsides reveal the intricate, mortarless construction of each, built from thousands of stones carried and set by hand. Photo captions are spare and far between, but Torrey concludes with a useful long shot labeling the site’s points of interest. (May)
FICTION
April & Oliver
Tess Callahan. Grand Central, $23.99 (326p) ISBN 9780446540599
In this memorable debut, Callahan offers a uniquely funereal love story that focuses on a stagnant friendship-turned-untenable romance between unlikely life-long friends. To deal with the death of her immediate family, as well as the scars of childhood abuse, April assumes the role of the jaded wild child; Oliver, her once-inseparable childhood companion, has become her polar opposite, an engaged law student poised for success. Estranged during Oliver’s college years, the two reconnect with troubling results. Callahan’s descriptions are vivid, and often paired with charming flashbacks to more innocent times, providing stark contrast to the tumultuous course of April's and Oliver’s young-adult lives. Callahan’s narrative takes some supporting-character detours from the principles’ love-hate relationship, including an abusive boyfriend; a manipulative and dangerous family friend; and April’s strong-but-slipping Nana. Callahan’s poetic style and grasp of emotion gives proper weight to April’s loss and Oliver’s secrets, and is sure to engage, sadden, and enthrall readers, especially in a bittersweet, somewhat surprising finale. (June)
The Girl with Brown Fur: Tales and Stories
Stacey Levine. MacAdam Cage, $13 paper (202p) ISBN 9781596923102
Levine's new collection (after 1992’s My Horse and Other Stories) of 27 quirky short stories constantly challenges readers’ notions of reality. Many of her isolated characters live in bizarre, dysfunctional families; in "Uppsala," the snowbound narrator states, "Our family is sad and does not live in a verdant place." "The Danas" centers on a pallid family so insular that the parents encourage two of their children, who had never "tried a thing in life,” to marry each other. Another bizarre family story, "The Parthenogenetic Grandmother," is narrated by a woman who is 21 on the day her grandmother is "born in a tree"; the story follows their twisted, manipulative relationship, a theme that gets carried into the story “And You Are?” in which two older women revisit their childhood relationship as babysitter and baby-sat. Loneliness is palpable in "The Cats," a grotesque cloned-pet story, and the quirky kidnapping story "The Girl" runs on a strange clash of characters and emotions. Levine's stories are often thematically ambiguous, and some seem little more than stylistic experiments, but fans of shorter short stories will find much to like. (May)
CHILDREN’S BOOKS
My Love Will Be with You
Laura Kraus Melmed, illus. by Henri Sorensen. HarperCollins, $17.99 (24p) ISBN 9780061552601
A companion to this author-illustrator team’s previous effort, I Love You as Much..., which focused on motherly love, this cuddly picture book instead celebrates the relationship between fathers and their children. Each spread features stirring images of a papa and baby animal pair in their natural habitat, and a couplet of verse containing words of wisdom spoken by the elder, e.g., “Said the father panda to his child, ‘Someday you’ll snuggle your own cub and dream.’ ” The cozy and warm-toned oil portraits of a father lion licking his cub, awash in golden sunlight, and of a majestic eagle watching over his chick in their lofty mountain nest, are the perfect pairing for the text’s gentle rhythm and rhyme scheme. Though certain to tug especially at parents’ heartstrings, the reassuring words here will have kids clamoring to share some quiet time reading this book with someone they love. Ages 2–7. (May)
Feeling Sad
Sarah Verroken. Enchanted Lion (FSG, dist.), $16.95 (32p) ISBN 9781592700837
This picture book debut from Belgium is a curious combination of visual pop and narrative pap. Opening with rough-textured black and white woodcuts, Verroken establishes beyond a doubt that her duck heroine is suffering an Edvard Munch-sized case of the blues (“Dark clouds hang over her head. Everything looks black—even the flowers. Duck is grump... and sad”). Duck even believes that rain means the sky is crying. But after a frog pipes in with a bit of encouragement (“No pluck, Duck?... Cheer up. Look ahead!”), gradually Duck bucks up, realizing that there are always glimmers of hope and light. “Come back, Sun!” she cheers on the heavens. “It’s time to warm the flowers and dry up all our tears.” By book’s end, the woodcuts are blazing with cheery colors, and even Duck is her “wonderfully yellow self.” Children may well be entranced by bold graphic elements and the reassuring transformation that occurs over the pages. But it’s hard to believe that the uninspiring text will similarly hold their attention. Ages 3–6. (May)
Sir Ryan’s Quest
Jason Deeble. Roaring Brook/Porter, $16.95 (32p) ISBN 9781596433304
A typical household provides the perfect landscape for adventure—as seen through the eyes of a boy’s imagination in this picture book debut. The king of pots—who rules the kingdom in the kitchen cupboards—sends a brave and armored Sir Ryan on a far-reaching quest beginning with the “jungle” of a bedroom closet, the garage “castle” filled with oily machines, and finally, the “cave” beneath the kingdom, home to a “moldy monster” (a collection of old boxes). Ryan gathers courage—and knightly accessories like a cape and shield—along the way. Young readers may grow weary of Ryan’s elevated and somewhat cumbersome knight-speak, and may be puzzled that Ryan never seems to find what he seeks (the quest ends with a hug and some soup from Mom). However, the preschool set will surely relate to the boy’s passion for active, imaginary play. Deeble’s colored-pencil illustrations keep readers clued in to reality and fantasy alike and have a rough childlike quality that suits the subject matter. Ages 4–8. (Apr.)
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