Nonfiction Reviews: Week of 6/9/2008

In this expertly written account, Matsen (Descent) does what would seem impossible: he tells us something new about the Titanic disaster. In August of 2005, a team using Mir submersibles found previously undiscovered wreckage from the ship on the ocean floor. The wreckage suggested that the Titanic had not sunk with the bow rising into the air. Instead the ship had broken in half while almost horizontal and gone down before most of the passengers knew what was happening. The discovery directs Matsen’s retelling of the Titanic story, beginning with events that led to the creation of the giant ocean liner. Matsen is an engaging writer and has smoothly incorporated massive amounts of research. After opening in the 21st century, Matsen spends 150 pages recounting the entire Titanic saga, including biographies of the builders, the ins-and-outs of shipyard politics and ocean travel. It’s all very well done but leads at times to a loss of overall focus. A dive to Britannic, Titanic’s sister ship, is handled rather hastily and the personalities of the team that made the Titanic discovery are never fully developed. These are minor issues, however, and it testifies to the quality of the book that the reader is left wanting more. (Oct.)

This fascinating—if excessively detailed—oral history subverts countless preconceptions in its illustration of black gay subcultures thriving in just about every imaginable rural and religious milieu in the South. Johnson (Appropriating Blackness) has an obvious fondness for the 63 men he interviews. Unfortunately, these interviews suffer from his failure to ask follow-up questions to revelatory or troubling responses and his adherence to set questions, for example, his insistence on asking his churchgoing subjects why they are attracted to the choir, keeps him from exploring the more interesting intersections (and contradictions) of their faith and sexuality. Responses are arranged by topics (“Coming Out”; “Love and Relationships”), an organization that provides thematic coherence, but makes it difficult to follow each recurring narrator. Still, the courage and honesty of Johnson’s interviewees humble, and readers will find much to treasure in the stories of Stephen, who adopts the mannerisms of straight classmates because he lacks masculine gay role models; proudly effeminate Lamar, transgendered Chastity and gay men in every state in the South falling in love, growing up and growing old, negotiating and redefining their identities. (Sept.)

In this joint memoir, congresswomen Linda and Loretta Sanchez present their compelling story—noteworthy not only for their history-making achievements (including first sisters or women of any relation to serve together in Congress, first woman and person of color to represent a district in Orange County, first Latina on the House Judiciary Committee and first Head Start child to be elected to Congress) but also for its “American Dream” aspect—their parents immigrated from Mexico and despite lacking a formal education managed to send their seven children to college. Interweaving childhood vignettes with accounts of serving in Congress, both from California, this refreshing book evades many of the tropes of the typical political memoir—perhaps because these two women are not typical politicians. “Having the courage of your convictions,” writes Linda, “that is tested a lot in the Congress.... I’m not paranoid about losing office, so there’s no need for me to compromise my values.” The Sanchez sisters vividly demonstrate the power of hard work and steady determination in this inspiring portrait of an extraordinary family. (Sept.)

Mired in self-indulgence and consumerism, Americans have lost their way, argues this passionate appeal for a return to traditional values. Framed as a dialogue between the coauthors of AWOL—Schaeffer, a founder of the modern evangelical movement, and Roth-Douquet, a Jewish liberal and former Clinton aide—the book asserts that obsession with materialism has produced a citizenry more unfulfilled, depressed and alienated from government and community than at any time in history. Their solution requires understanding that our lives have meaning and purpose derived either from God (Schaeffer) or from the self-evident laws of nature and teachings of great men (Roth-Douquet). Their conclusion is neither trite nor simplistic; it comes with the obligation to live a moral life, respect others (not simply those who share our beliefs) and sacrifice for the common good. Readers who get beyond the authors’ early liberal-conservative sniping will discover that they set a fine example by curbing their ideological differences in their effort to unite and heal a deeply divided nation. (Sept.)

“Grief is in two parts,” writes Roiphe (Fruitful; 1185 Park Avenue). “The first is loss. The second is the remaking of life.” In her new memoir of late-life widowhood, she encounters the latter. Roiphe’s husband, “H” (Herman), died of a heart attack after 39 years of marriage. He left stacks of publications forwarded from his office that she can’t help reading—psychoanalytic case histories in which patients are known only by initials. She lives in a stunned, rhythmless disconnect, unsure how to mark time, sleep or stave off fear and loneliness. Thoughts of suicide comfort her as her former sense of independence evaporates. She struggles to manage her finances, decide where to live, keep up with the contents of her refrigerator and learn countless tasks that had always been H’s. Courtship, sex and gender roles confound her as she ventures to date men she meets through Match.com and the personal ad that her daughters place on her behalf. She considers her role in her family, her circle of friends, her new “sisterhood” of widows and the broader world in which she has “no right to complain.” In poignant flashes of everyday moments and memories, Roiphe tells an unflinching and unsentimental story of widowhood’s stupefying disquiet, of surviving love and living on. (Sept.)

Celebrity biographer Sandford (McCartney, etc.) tackles the life of director Roman Polanski, but only scratches the surface of one of cinema’s most controversial figures. Born in Paris in 1933, Polanski, with his family, moved to Poland in 1936 on the eve of World War II. His mother died in Auschwitz and his father was imprisoned for the duration of the war, leaving Polanski to fend for himself in the Kraków ghetto. He later attended Lódz’s National Film School and began attracting attention for themes that would become his trademarks: voyeurism, sexual tension and latent violence. Polanski took full advantage of the “swinging” ’60s in Paris, London and later America, and developed a reputation as a lothario with an eye for younger women. His life and career in America, which included the classics Rosemary’s Baby (1968) and Chinatown (1974), were marred by two pivotal events: the 1969 slaying of his pregnant wife, actress Sharon Tate, by members of Charlie Manson’s “Family” and Polanski’s own arrest in 1977 for the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl. (Sept.)

Wetherell’s son Matt is a starter for a Hanover, N.H., high school soccer team, which is seeking its third straight state championship, and he details the season’s ups and downs, while describing the culture surrounding competitive youth soccer and saying good-bye to his son’s childhood. Wetherell (Chekov’s Sister; Morning) writes with energy and light humor, but he tries to cover so much territory that the narrative lapses into disorganization and unanswered questions. The account feels like a collection of short essays linked tangentially by Matt, whose challenging senior year isn’t well integrated into Wetherell’s musings on soccer parents or the grueling life of a teenage soccer star. Wetherell also indulges in sweeping, hero-making prose regarding soccer and Matt’s team, which has the opposite effect of its intent (“cleats on the bass line that supplies the game’s rhythm—always there, hardly noticed, absolutely core”). Still, Wetherell’s astute observations on soccer and the accompanying lifestyle plus his passion as a parent contribute to an often informative read. (Sept.)

In 1911, Iron Workers Union leaders James and Joseph McNamara plea-bargained in exchange for prison sentences instead of death after bombing the offices of the Los Angeles Times—killing 21 people and wounding many more. The bombing had been part of a bungled assault on some 100 American cities. After the McNamaras went to jail, Clarence Darrow, their defense attorney, wound up indicted for attempting to bribe the jury, but won acquittal after a defense staged by the brilliant Earl Rogers. The McNamaras were investigated by William J. Burns—near legendary former Secret Service agent and proprietor of a detective agency. Surprisingly, Burns’s collaborator in the investigation was silent film director D.W. Griffith. This tangled and fascinating tale is the stuff of novels, and Vanity Fair contributing editor Blum (The Brigade) tells it with a novelist’s flair. In an approach reminiscent of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood, Blum paints his characters in all their grandeur and tragedy, making them—and their era—come alive. Blum’s prose is tight, his speculations unfailingly sound and his research extensive—all adding up to an absorbing and masterful true crime narrative. (Sept.)

What could be more intriguing than the young writer Roald Dahl—destined to create such classics as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory—assigned by His Majesty’s Government to Washington, D.C., as a diplomat in the spring of 1942, charged with a secret mission? Dahl’s brief was to gather intelligence about America’s isolationist circles (indeed, he infiltrated the infatuated Claire Boothe Luce in more ways than one) and propagandize for prompt American entry into the European war. The United States had technically been at war with Germany since December 1941. However, the U.S.’s attention was focused mainly on the Pacific theater—and such pro-German political figures as Luce and Charles Lindbergh meant to keep it that way. Dahl’s most important job was to influence public opinion generally and the opinions of Washington’s powerful specifically. As bestselling author Conant (Tuxedo Park) shows in her eloquent narrative, Dahl’s intriguing coconspirators included future advertising legend David Ogilvy and future spy novelist Ian Fleming. Most fascinating, though, is Dahl’s relationship with the great British spymaster William Stephenson, otherwise known as “Intrepid.” This all boils down to a thoroughly engrossing story, one Conant tells exceptionally well. (Sept.)

Lockhart, professor of history at Wright State University, has written the first modern scholarly biography of one of the American Revolution’s iconic figures. Friedrich von Steuben is regularly described as the man whose drilling and discipline made an army out of the demoralized men camped at Valley Forge in the winter of 1776. Lockhart makes solid use of primary and secondary sources to present a more complete picture of the Continental Army’s inspector-general. Steuben exaggerated his rank and status in order to secure employment, but was fully justified in asserting mastery of the techniques of war as practiced in Europe. Steuben learned his craft during 17 years of service in the army of Frederick the Great. There was no better school. Lockhart demonstrates the importance of European-style tactics to a war that could not be won by ambush and skirmishing alone. He shows how clearly Steuben understood the differences between American citizen-soldiers and the outcasts and conscripts that filled Europe’s ranks. And he describes Steuben’s contributions after Valley Forge to creating an army that won battles from Monmouth to Yorktown. Illus., maps. (Sept.)

This entertaining biography hits the elusive sweet spot between scholarship and readability. British archeologist Tyldesley (Daughters of Isis) is charmingly transparent about the unreliability of her sources. She tells us that when the Roman poet Lucan describes Cleopatra’s “ineffable night of shame” with Julius Caesar, he is “writing the equivalent of modern tabloid journalism.” In spite of the lack of eyewitness descriptions of Cleopatra, the question, for instance, of what she looked like becomes a fast-moving amusing discussion of statuary as royal propaganda, the modern perception of Cleopatra’s nose as way too big and the difference between beauty and sexiness. Writing with an easy mastery of her subject, Tyldesley always seems to be able to lay her hands on the perfect lively detail, whether an excerpt from an obscure bureaucratic document or a description of a kind of giant robot that paraded through the streets of Alexandria pouring libations of milk from a gold bottle. Though she makes it clear we’ll never know what Cleopatra was “really” like, Tyldesley provides a memorable journey through the rich and contradictory sources of our knowledge about her. 8 pages of illus., 3 maps. (Sept.)

After undergoing chemotherapy and surgery for brain cancer, Servan-Schreiber, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, asked his oncologist if any lifestyle changes would prevent a relapse; the answer was no. Certain this was wrong, Servan-Schreiber spent months researching a mass of scientific data on natural defenses against cancer. After a lucid introduction to cancer and its causes, he points out studies indicating that a poor diet, unhealthy habits (like smoking), some hormones, and environmental toxins increase risk. But as his advice grows more specific, evidence dwindles that these steps work. Eating organic foods, avoiding red meat and processed food, and eliminating household chemicals seem reasonable, but readers curious about how much turmeric or garlic to consume and how much it lowers their cancer risk will find no answers. Servan-Schreiber also advocates a positive, life-affirming attitude, illustrating with anecdotes of patients whose cancers disappeared when they attained inner peace. Servan-Schreiber underscores that his advice should be an adjunct to, not a replacement for, conventional treatments like surgery and chemotherapy, in this spirited mixture of good medical information, helpful suggestions and alternative medicine. (Sept. 22)

It would be a monumental task for Moore and Galloway to top their classic 1992 memoir, We Were Soldiers Once... and Young. But they come close in this sterling sequel, which tells the backstory of two of the Vietnam War’s bloodiest battles (in which Moore participated as a lieutenant colonel), their first book and a 1993 ABC-TV documentary that brought them back to the battlefield. Moore’s strong first-person voice reviews the basics of the November 1965 battles, part of the 34-day Battle of the Ia Drang Valley. Among other things, Moore and Galloway (who covered the battle for UPI) offer portraits of two former enemy commanders, generals Nguyen Huu An and Chu Huy Man, whom the authors met—and bonded with—nearly three decades after the battle. This book proves again that Moore is an exceptionally thoughtful, compassionate and courageous leader (he was one of a handful of army officers who studied the history of the Vietnam wars before he arrived) and a strong voice for reconciliation and for honoring the men with whom he served. 16 pages of b&w photos. (Aug. 19)

Former Time Moscow correspondent Meier (Black Earth: A Journey Through Russia After the Fall) tells a remarkable story about Cy Oggins, a Columbia University undergraduate who joined the fledgling Communist Party in 1920. Recruited by Soviet intelligence in 1926, he went to Europe in the guise of an academic; his residences acted as centers for Soviet espionage. After 1930 he sailed to China and Manchuria for various undercover schemes, then traveled to Moscow in 1939 during Stalin’s purges. Despite long, loyal service, he was arrested and sent to an Arctic gulag and despite frantic pleas for Oggins’s release from his wife, and more modest U.S. government efforts, the Soviets murdered Oggins in 1947 to keep his story from getting out. In Soviet archives, Meier saw a heavily censored fraction of Oggins’s 162-page file, supplemented by the FBI’s massive records, compiled thanks to J. Edgar Hoover’s lifelong fixation on Communists. These files plus the author’s extensive research have produced a rich account of American communism’s early years as well as the bizarre, tragic odyssey of an American who devoted his life to serving the U.S.S.R. 16 pages of illus. (Aug. 11)

Bass, associate professor of international affairs at Princeton (Stay the Hand of Vengeance: The Politics of War Crimes Tribunals), makes the case with delightful wit, insight and scholarship that humanitarian military intervention arose not with genocide in Bosnia or Rwanda, but in Victorian times in parallel with democracy and the mass media. When Greeks rebelled against the Ottoman Empire, Turkish troops committed atrocities viewed by reporters and letter writers whose accounts produced a torrent of outrage. Reluctantly, British leaders began pressuring the sultan, but the failure of this effort led to Britain’s great naval victory at Navarino that assured Greek independence. Bass moves on to two other half-forgotten but ghastly crises: the 1860s Syrian upheaval in which Maronite Christians and Druze slaughtered each other, and the 1870s mass murders of Bulgarians by the Ottomans. Bass ends with the Armenian genocide during WWI. Readers may squirm at the slowness with which nations acted to oppose gruesome cruelties, but they will relish Bass’s gripping account of bloodthirsty characters, bitter political infighting and cynical leaders, forced by public opinion into moral actions that did not serve their own national interest. (Aug. 20)

This book begins and ends with a description of the looting of books, manuscripts and artworks in Iraq’s National Library in 2003, a destruction abetted, says Báez, by the inaction of American leaders. This episode poses an “enigma” for the author: “Why should this murder of memory have occurred in the place where the book was born?” Beginning with ancient Mesopotamia, Venezuelan historian Báez (The History of the Ancient Library of Alexandria) considers the wide-ranging reasons why books are destroyed: the desire of conquerors to eradicate their predecessors or foreign cultures, religious intolerance, fire and other natural or man-made disasters. Other books were lost because they were no longer considered important, and we know of them only through references in other works. Báez includes a fascinating chapter on fictional bibliocasts (book destroyers), from Don Quixote to Fahrenheit 451. He sometimes overwhelms the reader with authors, titles and statistics. Still, this marvelously informative, sometimes depressing, occasionally entertaining work should appeal to bibliophiles. (Aug. 18)

Four hundred years after John Milton’s birth, biographer and Oxford lecturer Beer (Bess: The Life of Lady Ralegh, Wife to Sir Walter) presents a loving tribute, a portrait of the poet in all his humanity. Drawing on newly available archives, Beer elegantly chronicles Milton’s life from his precocious childhood (he read Greek and Latin when he was five) to his embattled support of Cromwell and his mature religious and political writings. Beer points out that Milton wasn’t a one-note writer, but excelled in producing religious pamphlets (The Reason of Church Government), treatises on education and divorce (Areopagitica and The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce) and epic poetry (Paradise Lost). Although the specifics of Milton’s three marriages are well known, Beer reveals the details of a little-discussed aspect of the poet’s life: his passionate, and perhaps homoerotic, friendship with Charles Diodati. Planting Milton firmly in his time, one of political and religious upheaval, Beer’s splendid biography portrays Milton (d. 1674) as “both a radical and a traditionalist” who drew on classical and Christian sources to contend again and again for freedom from tyranny and oppression. B&w illus. (Aug.)

Albino pythons, endangered lizards and other reptiles are the currency of an underworld as dangerous and lucrative as the drug trade. Freelance writer Christy’s debut is an enthusiastic but scattered chronicle of the rise and fall of a lizard kingpin and the federal agent who pursued him. Mike Van Nostrand inherited Strictly Reptiles, an import-export business in Florida, from his father, Ray, turning it into a multimillion-dollar smuggling operation. Van Nostrand imported reptiles of all shapes and sizes, usually concealed in the suitcases or clothing of his mules, and sold them to collectors and pet stores. He exploited loopholes in the international treaty on endangered-species trade and paid off corrupt officials. In the early 1990s, Fish and Wildlife Services agent Chip Bepler set his sights on Van Nostrand. After Bepler’s years of surveillance and hard work, Van Nostrand was sentenced to eight months in prison, his export license revoked, and Strictly Reptiles was forced to pay $250,000 in fines to a wildlife fund. Christy’s frenetic approach—bouncing from Mike’s smuggling to young Ray catching snakes to the neglect of wildlife crime prosecution—is disorienting in what could have been a fascinating tale. (Aug. 1)

Prolific Venetian writer Scarpa pledges not “to name a single hotel, restaurant, bar or shop” in this delicate yet supple book, a chain of linked and sensuously translated essays about the one of the world’s most unusual and historical cities. He focuses each chapter of his tour through different parts of the body. He begins with the feet before moving up to the legs and heart. The translation renders even the most basic descriptions wonderfully tactile. Only eventually does Scarpa move on to the more obvious sights, sounds, tastes and smells. The main text is just over a hundred pages, but a 40-page coda takes it into the lit-crit realm by way of a “micro-anthology of Venetian texts” that includes samplings from the author’s other works. Scarpa is better known in Italy than America, but that could change with this brief book, which captures Venice as only words and language on the tongue of a native can. (Aug.)

On March 3, 1983, Peter Ivers was found murdered in his loft on skid row in L.A. When Ivers died, much of the history of his experimental television show, New Wave Theatre, went with him. In this frustrating book that is part detective story and part pop history, screenwriter and producer Franks awkwardly weaves interviews with Ivers’s many friends and associates—from Harold and Anne Ramis to Paul Michael Glaser (Starsky & Hutch)—into his chronicle of Ivers’s life. Franks recreates the thriving theater and music scene in New York and L.A. in the late 1970s and early 1980s as he traces Ivers’s move from the Harvard Lampoon to his work with David Lynch. Ivers’s most brilliant moment came with the creation of New Wave Theatre, which brought together comedy and punk music in a new way, featuring acts from the Dead Kennedys, Black Flag and the Circle Jerks alongside Beverly D’Angelo and John Belushi. Because it tries to cover so much material—Ivers’s unsolved murder, the history of New Wave Theatre—it fails to cover any of it effectively; nevertheless, it provides a new look into a now mostly forgotten moment of pop culture. (Aug.)

In this indispensable guide for indie musicians, Chertkow and Feehan, lead members of the Chicago band Beatnik Turtle, explain how they have managed successfully to get their music out to the public, to produce four albums, to build a huge following and to write music for television shows and theater without the benefit of a record label. Covering topics such as building a brand, networking, Web site, getting booked, playing live and getting publicized, Chertkow and Feehan pass along advice that, while sometimes self-evident, encourages bands to exploit the Internet and to become Web savvy to make a name for themselves. For example, in illustrative detail they spell out clearly the terms of contracts such as “nonexclusive” that can often be so fuzzy. In their section on getting booked, they remind bands that the essence of a good show is remembering that the band is there for the audience, and the authors explain step-by-step the ups and downs of dealing with bookers, scheduling and booking kits. Because this lively book offers such essential guidance in these changing times, no band should be without a copy. (Aug.)

Rothschild, a writer and high school teacher living in Florida, was abandoned by his mother and raised by his grandparents, a retired Jewish couple living in “the most exclusive building in the most exclusive neighborhood” of New York City. The setting is sitcom-perfect, from the headstrong grandmother and exasperated grandfather to the wisecracking servants, and Rothschild’s youthful acting out offers much opportunity for humor. At one point, his behavior was so out of hand that one of the few private schools he hadn’t been asked to leave would accept him only if his grandparents donated one of their Van Goghs as well. But all is not happy: an early attempt by his mother to reunite the family ends in disaster, and her selfish behavior forces him to care for his Alzheimer’s-stricken grandmother while still a teenager. Rothschild has been through a lot, and he’s an able storyteller, easily drawing readers’ sympathy by layering the emotional drama. If his story seems incomplete, that’s probably because it is—the final break with his mother would, from an older author, be the midpoint at which Rothschild turns his life around, but this memoir ends with just the first glimmers of an optimistic future. (Aug.)

In this study of American “social self-loathing” Meyer addresses why Americans have come to hate themselves (and each other) at a time of national prosperity and “relative peace.” In compelling, wonderfully cranky and comic prose, the author contends that the radical social changes of the 1960s and the recent technological revolution have drastically altered the pace of life, leaving Americans “morally and existentially tired, disoriented, anchorless, and defensive.” In arguments familiar to any sociology student, Meyer describes how the rise of freedom of choice in nearly every aspect of American life has been accompanied by the enervation of traditional social institutions (“Our communities have been neutered, and our traditional, inherited moral, religious, and aesthetic sensibilities have been discredited”). Pointed critiques of political theater, celebrity culture, the rise of marketing and media conglomerates and the decline of manners elaborate on the growing trends of “bullshit, belligerence, and boorishness.” Meyer is gleefully critical and very sincere in his concern for the state of American life; his practical suggestions urging readers to turn the tide of self-hate and phoniness are a must-read for anyone fed up with modern life. (Aug.)

A former president of the Coca-Cola Company, Keough has assembled an enviable Rolodex in his 81 years, and his book counts Bill Gates, Jack Welch and Warren Buffett among its champions. His lessons draw upon his long and varied career—from his early days as a philosophy major to his first job as a TV sports announcer and employment at Butternut Coffee and Coca-Cola—and comprise a list of tongue-in-cheek rules guaranteed to make the follower a true loser in business: from “quit taking risks” and “be inflexible” to “don’t take time to think” and “be afraid of the future.” Keough supports his commandments with stories of business mistakes and failures, both his own—the roll-out of New Coke, for example—and those of others—namely, Schlitz beer and IBM. While the author’s clear and encouraging tone and renown within the business community will likely garner his effort publicity, the unoriginality of the material—all standard business-book fare simply phrased in the negative—keeps this well-meaning book from standing out or offering original advice to business leaders in the market for a little self-improvement. (Aug.)

Horowitz collaborates with his FrontPage Magazine coeditor Johnson in a vitriolic attack on the left’s “cowardly” betrayal of “the American cause,” singling out the antiwar stances of John Edwards, Al Gore and Nancy Pelosi for special reproach. According to the authors, “a nation divided during wartime is a nation that invites its own defeat,” and they argue that through ignorance and design, Democrats have obstructed presidential policy, undermined American security and continually failed to grasp the nature of the “Islamofascist” threat. Cataloguing Democratic miscalculations from the Carter administration on, the book asserts that Carter encouraged the Iranian revolution, Clinton fatally ignored bin Laden and Bush’s wiretapping program was perniciously leaked to the New York Times. Their earnest moralizing overshadows these compelling fact patterns as Horowitz and Johnson omit intellectual or historical contextualization that might ratchet down the fever pitch of their argument; sadly, this sensationalism comes at the expense of some truly effective excoriations of liberal figures—particularly a brutal and delicious takedown of Frank Rich. (Aug.)

In this winning success guide, the authors expose “Nice Guy Syndrome,” where the afflicted—overly selfless men and women—give away their power in the workplace and often face frustration and career derailment. While 61% of Americans believe that niceness impedes business success, the authors argue that the condition is correctable, and it is possible to succeed without resorting to aggression or excessive competitiveness. Their “Bill of Rights”—eight rights and corresponding strategies emphasizing self-awareness and setting boundaries—will aid readers in fending off the typical mistakes “nice guys” make: “valuing agreeableness over assertiveness”, overcommitting and prioritizing other people’s needs. Equally valuable are the authors’ demonstration of the roots of self-sabotaging behavior and the revelation that certain “nice guy” behaviors may be less well-intentioned than they seem. Drawing on extensive interviews with 350 business professionals and an assortment of celebrity CEOs, this well-organized and psychologically astute book excels in its presentation of a simple and encouraging message: that “nice” doesn’t have to mean “weak” and that nice guys can make it to the top. (Aug.)

Journalist Vartan, founder of the environmental Web site eco-chick.com, makes “going green” irresistible in this breezy, energetic guide. In upbeat prose that will especially appeal to younger women, Vartan emphasizes that sustainable living needn’t involve making sacrifices; her host of recipes, trivia, instructions on cooking up homemade household cleaners and pet food (not to mention toothpaste!) and tips on ecological makeovers for the home, body and wardrobe make an environmentally friendly lifestyle seem desirable, accessible and full of creative potential. Packed with profiles of inspiring “eco chicks” and lists of organic products and companies, the book supplies readers with every possible resource necessary to launch and sustain their ecoconversion. Vartan’s pleasure in living consciously is infectious; readers will appreciate her lack of condescension or preachiness and feel inspired to test—if not wholeheartedly adopt—her simple prescriptions. The author informs and entertains as she presents natural solutions to roaches (catnip!), the unexpected health benefits of cast-iron cookware, how to offset the carbon-emissions caused by plane travel and how to (subtly) convert others to the cause. (Aug.)

In this deeply affecting, scrupulously researched study, scholar Al-Jawaheri examines how women bore the brunt of the impact of the 13 years of U.N.-backed sanctions on Iraq. Intended to force Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein to comply with international law, the sanctions “failed miserably,” Al-Jawaheri writes. Indeed, “the cruel irony is that the dictator and his henchmen grew obscenely rich... while helpless civilians... were made to suffer hunger, disease, or even death.” Combining heartrending statistics with case studies of women across the economic spectrum, Al-Jawaheri demonstrates that sanctions devastated the state mechanisms that had only latterly begun to free women from the constraints of a patriarchal society, “the desperate situation [forcing]... young women in Iraq to take up positions for which nothing in their lives had prepared them.” Studies that focus on gender are too often consigned to the cul-de-sac of “women’s studies,” but in a country where women both form the majority and are responsible for somehow feeding and protecting the next generation, this story of Iraq’s women is the story of Iraq’s future. (July)

After being passed over twice for advancement, Wyche—now president of U.S. operations for Pitney Bowes Management Services—took a hard look at himself and began to consciously develop his approach, performance and image to better position himself for success. Aimed primarily at helping minorities advance their careers, his book highlights the 12 key lessons he learned—including the importance of personal branding, visibility and staying current as well as identifying potential career killers. Each chapter elaborates on a different skill while relating how Wyche and others managed to overcame specific obstacles. The author also includes useful coaching tips, suggesting employees try to meet with their boss’s boss at least once a year, become active in an industry organization and always have an intelligent, thoughtful question to ask. Particularly helpful are the sections on business writing, the five top skills required for senior leadership and the qualities of a good presentation. While Wyche directs his lessons at minorities, who frequently lack mentors in the workplace, his sound advice will prove valuable to anyone looking to take ownership of their career advancement. (July)

Williams, a Catholic priest, ethicist and CBS News Vatican analyst, challenges the popular notion that conscience is always an inerrant guide in this thoughtful look at a timely topic. Proposing that conscience recognizes, but does not determine, good and evil, Williams dissects its role, showing how conscience is “formed” and can even be corrupted. Although he holds that conscience is deserving of respect as that place where a person is alone with God, he says it does not automatically respond correctly and is in need of training through prayer and moral education. Such instruction, he writes, is to be found in the Bible and natural law as well as in the teaching of the Catholic Church. Williams says consciences must be evaluated regularly and offers practical steps to conduct periodic self-tests. He deals with conscientious objection and its application as well. Readers willing to accept or consider the book’s basis in Catholic teaching will find this to be an excellent guide for dealing with the panoply of moral choices presented by contemporary culture. (Sept. 18)

Schwartz, a journalist and convert to Islam, offers Sufism, the mystical branch of Islam, as an aid to the United States’ efforts to fight extremism. He provides an incomparable history of Sufism, covering in one short book all the major Sufi saints, schools, and the persecution of Sufis by Wahhabis. Deeply anti-Wahhabi, Schwartz encourages U.S. policymakers to ally with Sufis to undermine the Wahhabi influence. Schwartz believes the Wahhabi philosophy, which is literal and extreme in its interpretation of the Islamic faith, to be the motivation behind Muslim terrorism, with Wahhabi Saudis providing the financing. Wahhabis abhor Sufis for centuries-old traditions they label as idolatrous. Schwartz critiques the Western media for inaccurately dismissing Wahhabi attacks on Sufis, including the insurgency in Iraq, as Sunni-Shia disputes. In reality, Schwartz argues, they are part of the centuries-long Wahhabi campaign to destroy Sufism and moderate Islam. Schwartz’s opinion—that Sufis are the natural allies of the U.S. in the ongoing war on terror—is well presented and worth considering. (Sept. 16)

In this penetrating theological memoir, Norris (The Cloister Walk) details her relationship with acedia, a slothful, soul-weary indifference long recognized by monastics. Norris is careful to distinguish acedia from its cousin, depression, noting that acedia is a failure of the will and can be dispelled by embracing faith and life, whereas depression is not a choice and often requires medical treatment. This is tricky ground, but Norris treads gingerly, reserving her acerbic crankiness for a section where she convincingly argues that despite Americans’ apparently unslothful lives, acedia is the undiagnosed neurasthenia of our busy age. Much of the book is taken up with Norris’s account of her complicated but successful marriage, which ended with her husband’s death in 2003. The energy poured into this marriage, Norris argues, was as much a defiant strike against acedia as her spiritual discipline of praying the Psalms. Filled with gorgeous prose, generous quotations from Christian thinkers across the centuries and fascinating etymological detours, this discomfiting book provides not just spiritual hope but a much-needed kick in the rear. (Sept. 16)

Not unlike an epic story, the history of the formation and translation of the Bible is filled with intrigue and adventure, heroes and knaves. Considering how much ink has been spilled about the Bible’s purported meanings, it’s surprising how few authors have captured the excitement of its evolution from disparate manuscripts to accepted canon to bestselling book. Brake, who is president of Multnomah College and has a Ph.D. from conservative Dallas Theological Seminary, takes the reader on a wonderful journey through several thousand years of history (though the heaviest emphasis is on the 15th century to the present), marking the people, events and crises through which the Bible has had to pass, finally emerging in our time as a versatile and vital document. Nearly every page contains an illustration, chart or other visual aid to assist the reader. Refreshingly readable and lavishly illustrated, this volume is essential to anyone wanting to understand the Bible and its hazardous progress through the ages. (Sept. 15)

Tome pastors a megachurch in Cincinnati that draws a large number of attendees unfamiliar with the Christian faith. As he was counseling new believers, he wanted to give them a guide to explain the Christian life, and decided to write this book when he couldn’t find anything appropriate. Tome doesn’t get bogged down in difficult questions (e.g., “What happens to people who have never heard about Jesus?”), instead encouraging readers to take the next step in their faith and address those questions over time. Chapters on basics like Bible reading and prayer will probably be most beneficial. As one would expect for this audience, Tome’s advice is appealingly honest (i.e., some of the Bible will be boring and you won’t like everything you read). Other chapters get a bit off focus, like the one on community, which recommends rating friends and spending more time with those who encourage you (sage advice, perhaps, but not necessarily the heart of Christian community). Letters from church attendees and new believers are a precious addition. (Sept. 9)

This little book begins with a brief introduction by Stevens, author of Sanctuary and founder of the remarkably successful Magdalene, a Nashville home for women overcoming drug abuse, prostitution and/or incarceration. Stevens describes the book as “an open letter written to friends and strangers, inviting them to keep love alive and to offer it to others.” In the spirit of the Rule of Benedict, the book articulates 24 principles that guide the Magdalene community in its effort to live graciously together. Each principle is a tiny chapter, exploring themes like coming together, showing hospitality, losing gracefully and loving without judgment. Each principle is followed by a woman’s personal recollection of life before Magdalene, her experience with the community and sometimes advice or encouragement. Paradoxically, it is the particularity of these musings that evokes universality and brings the book alive. Even if readers do not share the history of abuse and extraordinary difficulties these women face, the rules and anecdotes speak to feelings of loss, the relief of love and the comfort of finding home. (Sept.)

Sheer star power should draw a broad range of readers to this volume of 37 interviews, in which Catholics from diverse fields reflect on their church. Kennedy, daughter of the late Robert Kennedy, invited luminaries from politics, entertainment, media and the church itself to talk about their Catholic origins, current beliefs and what they would do if they could be pope for a year. Writer Anna Quindlen would ordain women and lift the ban on artificial birth control. Comedian Bill Maher, who confesses to hating religion, would end the church, while Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, former archbishop of Washington, D.C., would “resign right away and get a good guy in there.” Other interviewees include Cokie Roberts, Susan Sarandon, Allouisa May Thames, Thomas Monaghan and Douglas Brinkley. In the preface, Kennedy adds her own views, explaining why she remains a Catholic despite differences with the church on issues like abortion and homosexuality. The collection makes for interesting reading, though at times the interviews, which consist wholly of the subjects’ responses, seem disjointed and rambling without the context of questions. (Sept.)

It is hard to make individual philanthropy, a sacrificial virtue mandated by the major world religions, sound enticing, inspirational and even occasionally pleasurable—but this book often succeeds in doing just that. “Generosity can give you joy,” asserts Wright, a researcher on faith and family at Indiana University. In this refreshingly candid volume on the transformative power of sharing one’s material, emotional and spiritual wealth, the author ponders the theological, psychological and social significance of giving. It is many things, she says: worship, stewardship, discipline and an act of redemption, charity and justice. Less a scholarly tome than a practical treatise, Wright’s book offers multiple resources, including worksheets, exercises, quotations from some of the world’s faith traditions and a bibliography. Readers of all faiths, or none, will find many useful suggestions for incorporating giving into their lives. The writer’s willingness to share specific examples of change from her own life is both helpful and provocative, underlining her assertion that giving offers the potential to change not only the individual but ultimately the world. (Sept.)

Using the style of extemporaneous sermons, Cymbala, longtime pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle and author of Fresh Faith, brings a message of inspiration to readers. God, Cymbala says, wants more for Christians than rote religion or an empty life. The book is dotted with anecdotes of real people who overcame obstacles of poverty and drug addiction by a newfound commitment to Jesus; used their money and skills to support the church; or gave up the security of good jobs to serve others. As such, it will likely encourage some Christians facing life challenges. Although the associations often seem forced and the book’s trajectory is unclear, Cymbala’s use of biblical texts (particularly from Joshua, Judges and Ruth) serve their contemporary purpose. What the book lacks in unity, it makes up for in passion. Cymbala’s confidence about defining the nature and wishes of God will not suit every reader, but his commitment to promoting generosity and well-being through the church yields gems of encouragement for people seeking stability and direction. (Aug. 31)

Christian recording artist Troccoli and Bible teacher Lofaro dub themselves two Italians from Brooklyn who feast on the life God gives. With New York–born sass and bravado, the authors successfully dish up a five-course spiritual meal, heavy on principles such as faith, hope and love. Good friends since the 1990s, this writing duo share their similar backgrounds (with delicious family recipes) and discuss their dissimilar life paths (Troccoli is a single professional woman; Lofaro, a married mom of three in ministry) to depict how God is present and active no matter where life takes them. Evangelical readers will appreciate the authors’ candor as they discuss bouts with depression, bulimia, low self-esteem and general discontent. The authors tempt readers to taste and see that the Lord is good, and they provide the means to do so through this bounty of tempting ingredients for experiencing hope in the heat-filled kitchen of adversity. This book is both fun and faith-promoting, a tasty combination. Mangia! (Aug. 19)

Photojournalist Wright has gone to the ends of the earth, including some mountaintops, in a career that has documented the human wonders of the world, especially resilient children and endangered cultures. In this memoir she turns her lens on herself and her own astonishing story. The victim of a horrific bus crash in Laos in 2000, Wright should have died of her grievous injuries. She survived, and in this book retraces the steps of her journey of physical recovery, spiritual development and literal return to the scene of the crash. An Asia enthusiast, the author was led by work and temperament to Buddhism and some of Asia’s most compelling Buddhist figures, including Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi and the Dalai Lama, who contributes a foreword. Wright’s editors owe this tale of courage and gratitude more respect in the form of harder editing. The author’s spiritual insights are fascinating and should have been teased out more. A chapter set in Australia is an interesting but irrelevant sideshow, and chronology is occasionally confusing. This inspiring story deserves a wide audience and better editing. (Aug. 14)

On September 11, 1857, more than 120 men, women and children traveling from Arkansas to California were butchered by Mormon militiamen and Paiute Indians at Mountain Meadows in southern Utah. This study of the tragedy, by three LDS historians, utilizes previously unavailable archival documents to answer the question, “How could basically good people commit such a terrible atrocity?” The authors find responsibility almost everywhere: in the escalating tensions between the federal government and Mormon authorities, in the 19th-century American culture of violence, in the barbarism of the emigrants and in the unchecked hunger for vengeance the Mormon militiamen felt toward Americans who had opposed their faith. John D. Lee, a fanatical militia leader, receives much of the blame, while church president Brigham Young gets a pass. This first volume covers the massacre itself, not the coverup that some historians have alleged was masterminded by the LDS Church; the authors leave the door open for a possible sequel. But the book’s evocative portrayal of the moments leading to the massacre and its careful reconstruction of the lives of the victims makes an important contribution. This is an absorbing, if unsettling, read. (Aug.)

Firestone provides a balanced introduction to Islam that will be helpful for all beginners, but particularly for the Jewish readers for whom it is intended. The first part offers a survey of Islamic history, with special emphasis on the interactions of Jews and Muslims throughout (and an entire chapter devoted to the violent relations in seventh-century Medina). Firestone extends a real effort to be fair to both sides; in his discussion of Muhammad’s massacre of between 600 and 900 Jewish men, for instance, he reminds readers that the Jews had committed treason and points to examples in the Hebrew Bible where Israelites engaged in similar tactics. Part two digs into the foundations of Islamic law and belief, discussing the Qur’an, the prophetic tradition, key doctrines and sharia law. The final, and perhaps most interesting, part explores Islam in practice. Firestone undertakes an in-depth discussion of the Five Pillars of Islam, finding much common ground: like Muslims, Jews have an ancient tradition of praying at set times; early Muslims, like Jews, fasted on the 10th day of a particular month. (Aug.)

How can Christians invite God into their decision making? Liebert, who teaches spirituality at San Francisco Theological Seminary, says that discernment is about aligning human will with God’s. Unlike ordinary decision making, it requires prayer and the accountability of a faith community to help us know which way to go. Drawing on Christian thinkers through the ages, from Ignatius of Loyola and Jonathan Edwards to Frederick Buechner and Thomas Merton, Liebert teaches that discernment is both a spiritual gift and an acquired habit that can be honed through regular practice. To that end, she provides extensive exercises to help readers identify and work through discernment issues in their own lives. Readers should plan to take time with this book, because the exercises yield their richest rewards through careful and slow implementation—ideally over a period of 11 weeks. While the author cautions that absolute certainty is rarely possible, a diligent practice of discernment can lead to confirmation. Liebert’s wise spiritual counsel will aid many seekers as they determine their next step. (Aug.)