Reviews from the Book Bag

What Librarians Are Reading; What Are You Reading?

Although ebooks and electronic texts have been getting all the hoopla in recent times, librarians are proud to report that the printed book is alive and well at Vincennes University in 2007, as Shake Library has approximately 100,000 books on the shelves available to readers. Below are reviews of books librarians have read recently and recommend to anyone seeking a provocative book. We would love to learn about what faculty, staff and students in the VU community read. If you send us your mini book reviews (use the format below), we’ll try to publish them in our newsletter. Send to rking at vinu.edu . (We reserve the right to edit.)


Reference Shelf
By Joseph Helms, Reference Librarian

Encyclopedia of Appalachia (2007), by Rudy Abramson and Jean Haskell (Ref. 974 E 56a)

This is an excellent reference source on the Appalachian region of the United States that stretches from New York State to Alabama and Mississippi. Within this one-volume reference’s 1832 pages, the reader will find a treasury of information detailing the region’s history, land, culture and people. The volume is divided into five sections: Landscape, People, Work and the Economy, Cultural Traditions and Institutions. Articles include Family and Community, Tourism, Folklore and Folklife, Humor, and Religion. There are two comprehensive indexes.

Dictionary of Medical Biography (2007), by W.F. Bynum and Helen Bynum (Ref. 610 D554b)

This five-volume set fulfills the need for a comprehensive reference source outlining the lives of important contributors to the field of medicine. Coverage of individuals is international in scope and the breadth of the historical coverage is from ancient times (Hippocrates) to modern times (Christiaan Barnard). A group of 384 medical scholars from throughout the world contributed to the writing of the 1,140 biographies. The biographical entries are alphabetically arranged. Volume 1 also contains six introductory essays covering historical treatment of medical traditions from different geographic regions or cultural influences. These essays are (1) The Western Medical Tradition, (2) The Islamic Medical Tradition, (3) Medicine in China, (4) Medical Traditions in South Asia, (5) Medical Traditions in Southeast Asia: From Syncretism to Pluralism, and (6) Medicine, State, and Society in Japan, 500-2000.

APA Dictionary of Psychology (2007), (Ref. 150.3 A639v)

The American Psychological Association has published the definitive reference source to date on the terminology used within the field of psychology. The heart of this reference is the listing of 25,000 terms that provide clear and authoritative definitions. The dictionary covers more than 90 sub areas of psychology such as abnormal, clinical, cognitive, developmental, educational, and personality. The average entry contains about 40 words, but other entries could be considered encyclopedic in scope. A major strength of the dictionary is the numerous cross-references found within the entries to other concepts within the dictionary. For users seeking definitions of psychological terms, this work should be consulted first.

Social Dancing in America: A History and Reference (2007), by Ralph D. Giordano (Ref. 793.33 G497s)

Dance enthusiasts will welcome this historical study of social dancing in the United States from 1607 through 2000. This two-volume set is arranged in chronological order, with each chapter providing an overview of the time period. Treatment is given on how the social, political and cultural characteristics of the time period covered impacted the era’s dances and dance participants. The text is accompanied by illustrations, including sheet music, dancing manual covers and photographs. A sampling of the dances covered include the Minuet, the Waltz, the Buffalo Dance, the Charleston, the Ghost Dance, the Lindy Hop, the Fox Trot, the Twist, Disco and Hip Hop.

New Fiction
and Nonfiction Books

Roumeli: Travels in Northern Greece (2006), by Patrick Leigh Fermor (914.95 F361r)

Fermor is considered one of the finest, most inspiring travel writers of our age, and Roumeli is his account of time spent in Northern Greece during WWII when he was doing clandestine work for the British military organizing resistance fighters. Though his secret travels remain primarily in the background of this book, Fermor focuses on the culture, history, and beauty of the people and geography of this mysterious, myth-ridden land as he visits monasteries, lives with shepherds, and wanders through isolated villages. Originally published in 1966, Roumeli is especially enjoyable due to the literate, evocative writing style of the author. –Richard L. King, Reference Librarian

The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel (2006), by Diane Setterfield (Fiction S495t)

Setterfield’s excellent novel immediately has the aura of a classic English work of fiction in the tradition of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and Daphne Du Marier. It is a finely crafted, old-fashioned ghost story that basically involves a young scholar and rare books expert who is hired to write the biography of England’s greatest living author, the highly mysterious Vida Winter. The Thirteenth Tale gradually becomes a suspenseful detective novel, as biographer Margaret Lea unpeels layer after layer of reclusive Winter’s convoluted, sometimes terrifying life. Fans of the literary mystery—especially those containing old ruined buildings, madness, weird family relationships, and romance--will want to read this pulse-pounding novel. –Richard L. King, Reference Librarian

The Foreign Correspondent: A Novel (2006), by Alan Furst (Fiction F991f)

Alan Furst’s novels are among the finest in the historical espionage/mystery genre being written today. These well-
researched works take place during the time just before
and during World War II, and focus on ordinary Eastern and Western Europeans who find themselves pulled into terrifying wartime, clandestine situations. In Foreign Correspondent, the time is 1938 and we meet Italian journalist Carlo Weisz, who writes for an anti-Mussolini underground newspaper in Paris. His life in danger as he becomes targeted for murder, Weisz tries to stay alive while continuing his subversive contribution to the war. Tremendously atmospheric, Foreign Correspondent is the latest in Furst’s exciting novels that bring him into the category of espionage fiction concerning flawed, believable characters by Graham Greene, Eric Ambler, and John Le Carre. –Richard L. King, Reference Librarian

The Undertaking: Life Studies from the Dismal Trade (1997), by Thomas Lynch (814.54 L987u)

Thomas Lynch not only happens to be a real life undertaker but also a fine writer with a sense of humor and much compassion. While many of his essays deal with family and the local people of Lynch’s small hometown in Michigan, the issue of death and how the living deals with it are at the core of his book. While the subject matter would generally be judged as morbid, Lynch informs us of his profession in a way that celebrates the quirkiness of real lives and deaths.

Although it has been several years since I first read this book, I always think of it with fondness. Whenever I find I am talking with a VU student who happens to be a Funeral Service major, I always ask if they have read this book and, if not, I recommend it. However, it would also be a fine read for just about anyone. Frontline, a public affairs series on PBS, recently premiered The Undertaking, which features Lynch and some of his patrons. www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/undertaking/ --By Bonnie B. Riggins, Lending Services Librarian

Natural Landscaping: Gardening with Nature to Create a Backyard Paradise (1997), by Sally Roth (712.6 R845n)

With only memories of mowing grass, pulling weeds, and digging dirt, Natural Landscaping is a lovely book to look at during the winter months to give us some new ideas on
how to do less of all the afore-mentioned chores next summer. Roth states at the beginning of Chapter 1, “A natural landscape nurtures the gardener. It brims with life, creates its own moods and sows it own surprises.” She advocates the use of native wildflowers and grasses and not much pesticide. The gardeners in her book leave dead trees to rot, build birdhouses, and often use stone for accents. While this type of landscaping involves plenty of physical labor, the author maintains that such methods are better for the birds, insects, and people that live in that landscape.

Filled with many beautiful photographs and a lighthearted text, this book should be handy for browsing during the cold, frosty nights and days ahead. –By Bonnie B. Riggins, Lending Services Librarian

The Dark Is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper:
Over Sea, Under Stone (1966) CS C778o
The Dark is Rising (1973) CS C778d
Greenwitch (1974) CS C778g
The Grey King (1975—winner of the 1976 Newberry Award) CS C778gr
Silver on the Tree (1977) CS C778s

The five books of Susan Cooper’s The Dark Is Rising Sequence provide readers a richly imagined fantasy about the eternal conflict between good and evil, called here the Light and the Dark. Key characters include Merriman Lyon, kindly history professor with mysterious magical powers; the charming but ordinary Drew children, who call Merriman “Great-uncle Merry” but don’t really know much about him; Will and Bran, children born to inherit the magical power and grave responsibility of the forces of the Light; and the Dark Rider, the malevolent and magical leader of the forces of the Dark. Written in the 1960s and 1970s and set in a series of British locations, the stories draw heavily upon the traditions of the British Isles, deftly invoking Arthurian legend, Christian beliefs, and ancient folk ritual as a backdrop for the central characters’ quest to locate a series of long-lost magical objects the Light will need in a final battle to protect humankind from the cold, callous power of the Dark.

These stories rise above many similarly-themed books because of the author’s careful attention to the human price of the struggle between Light and Dark. These books are full of uncomfortable choices and unpleasant consequences: Will Stanton must choose between his quest and his sister’s safety; Merriman Lyon must exact a terrible price for a loved one’s betrayal; Bran must resolve his conflicting feelings about the adoptive father who raised him; and all of the characters must choose to face constant danger as a consequence of accepting their quests. There are no easy victories here.

Beyond their rich fantasy plots, Cooper’s books offer rich, melodic language, ringing with the poetry of Britain’s ancient Celtic heritage, the sweetness of quaint village accents, and the majesty of Shakespearean allusions. With the current popularity of works of fantasy including the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the Harry Potter series, it is no wonder that the Dark Is Rising sequence has been adapted into a movie, due out this season. But this highly original, award-winning sequence merits attention in its own right for the author’s careful portrayal of the complexity of human nature, the seductiveness of evil, the beauty of tradition, and the value of love. Readers of fantasy, literature, and children’s stories will enjoy this sequence.
–By Diane Stepro, Reference Assistant