Jan 18, 2010
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Web Pick of the Week |
 Give My Poor Heart Ease: Voices of the Mississippi BluesWilliam Ferris. Univ. of North Carolina, $35 (320p) ISBN 9780807833254  In the 1960s and ‘70s, American history professor Ferris (Blues from the Delta) crossed and re-crossed Mississippi to document the rich history of its iconic blues music; here, years of work pay off in an illuminating, transporting volume. One of the freest, most elastic musical genres, the blues are based in slave songs and spirituals, and, decades before punk, established the original DIY aesthetic: an aggressively homegrown, independent, and individual sound that reasserts itself with each new telling and teller. That spirit is expertly captured Ferris’s collection of testimonies. The unvarnished words of musicians, faith healers, religious leaders, and other Mississippians provide not so much a contiguous history as a series of isolated encounters with the genre’s myriad influences, in which views on art, race, religion, piety, and injustice stand on their own feet. A trained folklorist, Ferris skillfully (and invisibly) mimics the casual, immediate nature of blues music, building his own composition from testimony that is in many ways irreducible; those seeking more context will find the final two interviews, with Willie Dixon and B.B. King, provide a more straightforward account of the genre’s evolution. An accompanying CD/DVD contains Ferris’s original audio recordings and film footage. 42 b&w photos. (Dec.) |
NONFICTION Andy Warhol and the Can That Sold the World The Bag Lady Papers: The Priceless Experience of Losing It All Nelson Mandela: A Life in Photographs America’s Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry
Daniel Eagan. Continuum, $39.95 paperback (848p) ISBN 9780826429773
The great, the historic, and the lousy (but, alas, influential) all find their place in this engrossing survey of titles selected by the Library of Congress’s National Film Registry. Eagan (HBO’s Guide to Movies on Videocassette and Cable TV) chronologically catalogues 500 Registry films, from 1893’s 30-second Blacksmithing Scene to 1995’s Fargo, jumbling Hollywood classics together with obscure art films, cartoon shorts, documentaries, industrial and student films, newsreel footage from the Hindenburg disaster and the Zapruder film. Each entry includes complete cast and credits lists and an engaging one- to two-page historical and interpretive essay. These are packed with biographical thumbnails of actors and directors and making-of narratives—from screenplay rewrites to on-set feuds and hysterics to final-cut showdowns—that buffs and scholars will delight in. Eagan dutifully assesses the artistic merits of each film (yes, even Animal House) in critiques that abound in pithy and sometimes contrarian opinions: he rates Clint Eastwood rather higher than either Orson Welles (Citizen Kane is, merely, “a delightful stunt with the appeal of an eager puppy”) or the “glib, cruel” Robert Altman. The result is an erudite, perceptive, always entertaining cinematic encyclopedia. Photos. (Jan.)
The latest from cultural critic and author Indiana (Utopia’s Debris) explores the legacy of Andy Warhol through his most famous and, arguably, groundbreaking work, 1962’s Campbell’s Soup Cans, a group of 32 20”x16” paintings of the ubiquitous red-and-white canned staple. Beginning with a brief look at Warhol’s impoverished childhood, Indiana focuses in on the creation and impact of the famed Soup Cans, resulting is an exhaustive report on the Pop Art movement and its relationship to contemporary culture, featuring vibrant commentary on the way a single piece can stand in for an entire oeuvre. Indiana is highly knowledgeable regarding the art world and Warhol’s work, and can assume a similarly sophisticated level of understanding in his reader; as such, he will probably leave casual fans behind with dashed-off discussion of the art scene at large. For those already fluent in the man or the movement, Indiana’s in-depth look at Soup Cans is a welcome refresher on the power of a single vision not just to make a remarkable career, but to recast the world in a new light. (Feb.)
The Animal Manifesto: Six Reasons for Expanding Our Compassion Footprint
Marc Bekoff. New World Library, $14.95 paper (272p) ISBN 9781577316497
A collaborator with legendary primatologist Jane Goodall and the 2000 winner of the Exemplar Award from the Animal Behavior Society, author and Colorado University professor Bekoff (The Emotional Lives of Animals) lays out the “unique responsibilities” of human beings, as “moral agents,” to overcome speciesism and recognize animals “as fellow sentient, emotional beings,” with all the attendant rights that implies. Taking examples from everyday life—from rodeos and circuses to word-processors that replace “who” with “that” when referring to animals—Bekoff illustrates the lengths to which humans go to convince themselves animals don’t think, feel, and suffer like we do. Concerning a topic of growing popularity, Bekoff’s arguments can be less than rigorous; an “unwavering optimist and dreamer,” he focuses more on anecdotes and emotions (“alienation from nature… kills our hearts”) than practicalities or a concrete agenda. Instead, Bekoff encourages readers to start simply, by being “mindful” in their interactions with animals. Addressing a weighty issue with gentle but insistent charm, Bekoff’s manifesto will nudge skeptics in the direction of enlightenment (assuming anyone but the choir is buying copies). (Feb.)
A victim of Bernie Madoff’s ponzi scheme, mom and former Self magazine editor-in-chief Penney (How to Make Love to a Man), hyperventilates her way through this intriguing memoir of putting it back together. Finding herself almost entirely without money, Penney faces the unexpected need to retrench with a daunting sense of paranoia; brought up by aloof parents, Penney lived for a long time with a chronic, seemingly irrational fear of becoming a destitute bag lady. As a “Person of Reduced Circumstances”, Penney bolsters herself with chin-up wisdom (“unless you’ve been mummified, you have choices and alternatives”) and bravely vows to apply her own nail polish while eulogizing her days as an expensively-dressed editrix at Conde Nast. While she ponders lists labeled “money can still buy” and “money can’t buy,” a collection of well-heeled and influential friends encourage her with quotes from Emerson, invitations to the Caribbean and tax advice. With considerations like, “Is it worse to have had money and lost it? Or is it worse to never have had money at all?” Penney can be an (admittedly) unsympathetic protagonist, but her struggle is genuine, her charm expansive and surprising, and her strength winning. (Feb.) The Butcher and the Vegetarian: One Woman’s Romp Through a World of Men, Meat, and Moral Crisis
Tara Austen Weaver. Rodale, $23.99 (240p) ISBN 9781605299969
Raised a vegetarian, writer and editor Weaver was always diet-conscious, so it was a bit of a surprise when, in her 30s, her physician recommend meat-eating for her suffering health; Weaver’s consequent foray into the world of meat is a toothsome take on the learning-to-eat-better memoir. Weaver jumps into the flesh flood with both feet, sampling all things savory, up to and including roasted bone marrow, in a game effort to understand the appeal. She finds some dishes, like flank steak with chimichurri sauce and Syrian kebabs, life-changing, but turns a critical eye on herself and her endeavor that proves honest and endearing, whether voicing her disappointment in the classic steak house, mulling the ethics of eating dead animals, considering the joys of grilling, chronicling the evolution of USDA dietary recommendations, or detailing the butchering process. Her narrative maintains a funny, personable tone throughout, more like a knowledgeable friend than a professional reporter. Though eventually settling on a raw food diet, Weaver avoids prescriptive finger-shaking, encouraging readers to find the diet that’s right for them by incorporating a wide range of perspectives. (Feb.)
Custer Survivor: The End of a Myth, the Beginning of a Legend
John Koster. Chronology, $16.95 paper (220p) ISBN 9781933909035
For decades, Custer’s “Last Stand” at Little Big Horn has captured the American imagination. Remembered by some as the tragic result of imperialist policies and by others as a noble sacrifice for American expansion, the one thing everyone learns in school is that Custer’s battle against Lakota and Cheyenne forces left no Americans alive. In this chronicle of meticulous research, handwriting analysis and document investigation, journalist Koster turns that myth on its ear: though a number of people claim to have fought at (and survived) Little Big Horn, Koster identifies the one reluctant claimant who actually did—Sergeant Frank Finkel of Company C. A carefully deconstructed historical mystery sure to thrill American history enthusiasts, Koster’s narrative and methods are entirely transparent, presenting all the information and leaving readers to draw their own conclusions. Though Finkel’s story isn’t particularly dramatic, Koster’s pursuit of the truth behind a great American myth makes for a compelling tale in itself. (Jan.) Devotion
Shapiro’s newest memoir, a mid-life exploration of spirituality begins with her son’s difficult questions—about God, mortality and the afterlife—and Shapiro’s realization that her answers are lacking, long-avoided in favor of everyday concerns. Determined to find a more satisfying set of answers, author Shapiro (Slow Motion) seeks out the help of a yogi, a Buddhist and a rabbi, and comes away with, if not the answers to life and what comes after, an insightful and penetrating memoir that readers will instantly identify with. Shapiro’s ambivalent relationship with her family, her Jewish heritage and her secularity are as universal as they are personal, and she exposes familiar but hard-to-discuss doubts to real effect: she’s neither showboating nor seeking pat answers, but using honest self-reflection to provoke herself and her readers into taking stock of their own spiritual inventory. Absorbing, intimate, direct and profound, Shapiro’s memoir is a satisfying journey that will touch fans and win her plenty of new ones. (Feb.)
From Bauhaus to Ecohouse: A History of Ecological Design
Peder Anker. Louisiana State Univ., $34.95 (216p) ISBN 9780807135518
The growing public profile of climate change concerns have brought ecologically-minded programs like LEED to the forefront of today’s building design industry, but New York University science historian Anker claims, in this 50-year survey, that design has long been linked to ecology and science. The Bauhaus school began this interchange in the 1930s, “a period in which many biologists turned their attention to avant-garde modernist architecture… [as] a way of improving social health and the environment” while designers looked to biology: “true functionalism to them was a matter of designing according to the laws of nature.” Anker profiles designers including Gropius, Bayer, and Fuller, and discusses attempts to integrate design and nature in projects like the London Zoo, Fuller’s “4D Tower House,” Biosphere 2, and spacecraft. Disappointingly, Anker’s history ends in the 1980s, appended with some generalizations about the present (as well as a glossary and thorough references). A lack of illustration will also limit this detailed (though didactic) volume’s appeal to students and professionals. (Jan.)
The Power of Half: One Family’s Decision to Stop Taking and Start Giving Back
Kevin Salwen and Hannah Salwen. Harcourt, $24 (256p) ISBN 9780547248066
In this well-meaning but self-congratulatory memoir, the Salwen family decides to sell their gorgeous Atlanta mansion, move to a home half the size, and commit half the proceeds to the needy. Putting their plan into action, a raft of family decisions and meetings are led by mom Joan, a former corporate consulting executive and teacher, with the help of an actual whiteboard. Entrepreneur and activist Kevin, a former Wall Street Journal editor, writes with daughter Hannah, who, as instigator of the family project, provides commentary and practical suggestions. The chronicle is intriguing and the cohesiveness of the four family members is remarkable: “Friends and others… always focused on… the big house, the big donation, or the trip to Africa” with their eventual partner, The Hunger Project, rather than “the transformational energy” of “a family eager to stand for something collectively.” The authors tend to gush over their efforts while discounting the privileged position that allows them to make them (“we think everyone can give one of the three T’s: time, talent or treasure”); their unflagging optimism, buttressed by clear self-regard, can also be tiring. (Feb.) This Book Is Overdue! How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All
Marilyn Johnson. Harper, $24.99 (288p) ISBN 9780061431609
In an information age full of Google-powered searches, free-by-Bittorrent media downloads and Wiki-powered knowledge databases, the librarian may seem like an antiquated concept. Author and editor Johnson (The Dead Beat) is here to reverse that notion with a topical, witty study of the vital ways modern librarians uphold their traditional roles as educators, archivists, and curators of a community legacy. Illuminating the state of the modern librarian with humor and authority, Johnson showcases librarians working on the cutting edge of virtual reality simulations, guarding the Constitution and redefining information services—as well as working hard to serve and satisfy readers, making this volume a bit guilty of long-form reader flattery. Johnson also makes the important case for libraries—the brick-and-mortar kind—as an irreplaceable bridge crossing economic community divides. Johnson’s wry report is a must-read for anyone who’s used a library in the past quarter century. (Feb.)
Written in Water: Messages of Hope for Earth’s Most Precious Resource
Edited by Irena Salina. National Geographic, $26 (304p) ISBN 9781426205729
This varied collection of 25 essays by leading conservationists, edited by documentarian Salina, range from a warning by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Frank Clifford about the ten-year drought threatening 30 million residents of Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Denver, to stories of successful activists like Marion Stoddart, who stopped the industrial pollution of Massachusetts’s Nashua River. A photographic study of Mount Everest shows graphic evidence of receding glaciers; several pieces describe traditional methods of “rainwater-harvesting and storage” being implemented in locations like Nepal; Rose George discusses the reasons behind the staggering statistic that 2.6 billion people worldwide live without sanitation, “surrounded by human excrement,” which causes 25 percent of global child deaths. The book’s central message, that “water conservation is not about scarcity” but rather its careful use and fair distribution, comes through in a number of sober but optimistic calls to action. (Feb.)
LIFESTYLE How to Change Someone You Love: Four Steps to Help You Help Them
Brad Lamm. St. Martin’s, $24.99 (276p) ISBN 9780312590826
In this self-help guide to helping, the founder of Intervention Specialists addresses the spouses, parents, and friends of addicts whose lives are out of control: “loved ones who know that change is critical and urgent.” Having struggled with drugs and alcohol himself, Lamm began the difficult road back to sobriety when a friend organized an intervention; here, the deeply dedicated counselor presents a four-step method based in his experiences on both sides of the process. Showing how easy it is for well-meaning people to fall into the power trap of “nagging, prodding, manipulation or threats,” Lamm details methods for successful intervention, using a group of friends and family to form an ongoing support group (a “circle of change”) that will confront the abuser as a first step (with “words of encouragement, truth… and the warm protective embrace of love”). Lamm also addresses inevitable setbacks, and the stress faced by members of the support group, with practical methods, anecdotal illustrations and a comprehensive resource guide. As a thorough guide to helping substance abusers find help, this makes a valuable addition to the self-help shelves. (Jan.)
ILLUSTRATED
With beautiful color photos and well-chosen text, including contributions from South African journalist Battersby and six of Nelson Mandela’s seminal speeches, this enlightening coffee table tour covers all stages of Mandela’s career: a young and passionate activist, an eloquent spokesman for his oppressed countrymen, a political prisoner of 27 years, a transformative president, a larger-than-life international figure of peace, and an eternally charming elder statesman (one of many memorable full-page photos shows Queen Elizabeth breaking into an uncharacteristically broad smile in Mandela’s presence). Battersby quotes Mandela the outspoken (“The grave plight of the people compels them to resist to the death the stinking policies of the gangsters that rule our country”) and unafraid (“[Democracy] is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die”), and explains the man vividly on Mandela’s own terms and the world’s: “As he was paraded on the rooftops of limousines, in pickups, and on podiums, Mandela walked the talk.” Editor Cohen has amassed a worthy, crowd-pleasing tribute to one of the world’s living legends. (Feb.)
FICTION The Rules of ’48
The final work from novelist Cady (1933-2004) immerses readers in Southern city life just as it emerges from the suffering and shortfalls of WWII, a chronicle of seven summer weeks in 1948 that irrevocably change a handful of ordinary Louisville, Ken. residents. Facing the local ramifications of growing issues in the world-at-large—shock over the Holocaust, the specter of impending communism, mounting unrest in black America—are successful auctioneer Wade, a white man with “a mouth on him that could stun horseflies”; personable black day laborer Lester, a veteran of war and auctioneering; Jewish pawnbroker Lucky; and Lucky’s young employee Howard, a determined black teenager. As the summer roils, rising racial tensions ensnare all the characters, leading to violence and unexpected redemption. A fittingly personal farewell (it began as a memoir), Cady’s novel showcases (as in Ghosts of Yesterday and others) a skill for story-telling that rivals Mark Twain’s, rich with lived-in details of the way things were. (Jan.)
Thereby Hangs a Tail: A Chet and Bernie Mystery
Spencer Quinn. Atria, $25 (320p) ISBN 9781416585855
Taking the genre for another refreshing spin, Quinn brings back Chet, the 100-pound crime-fighting canine he introduced in last year’s Dog On It. Once again narrated by Chet, this volume finds dog and owner, private investigator Bernie Little, down on their financial luck and looking into threats against a pampered celebrity show dog named Princess. Before long, Princess and her wealthy, high-maintenance owner are abducted, along with the newspaper reporter who was covering the case, Bernie’s on-again off-again love interest, Susie Sanchez. The trail leads the four-legged detective and his bipedal partner to a creepy ghost town, where they’re separated; with a bit of doggie diligence and good luck, the duo reunites and unravels a messy conspiracy involving a corrupt small-town sheriff, a disgruntled dog trainer, and two hippies who can’t stop listening to “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida.” Chet makes a clever narrator, thinking like a human but often confounded by figures of speech (“crocodile tears,” “red herring”), and Quinn manages to keep things both humorous and suspenseful while delivering a proper, satisfying whodunit.(Jan.)
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