North America Books

The book arrived quickly and in the condition specified by the supplier. I would use this supplier again.

In This Wind works on multiple levels. As a straight up mystery, Fister gives us a fascinating cold case that is both a whodunnit and a whydunnit. On a psychological level it's also a study of people who live their beliefs and what happens when diametrically opposed beliefs clash. Lastly, on a political level, it demonstrates what happen (and has happened in the past) when security trumps freedom. As a bonus it gives us a set of the most rounded, developed characters I've read about in a long time. Love them or hate them, they are real.

This book should get an Edgar. Barbara Fister proves herself once again to be not just an skillful weaver of multiple strands of plot but also a novelist of extraordinary character-insight. Her people are real: complicated, flawed, injured, hopeless, loving, funny, petty, and noble, frequently in succession but always believably so, even down to little details, quirks, and reactions. Her main character Anni Koskinen, a resigned (more like "forced out") Chicago cop turned PI, is entirely different from Fister's previous sleuth Konstantin Slovo in her 2002 book _On Edge_; and Slovo was a real piece of work unto himself, well worth your acquaintance.

The plot, although quite intricate in involving a score of characters with distinctively different motivations, is coherent in a way that reads as organically developed rather than mechanically impelled; and it all culminates in a climax that, while stunning, is (in retrospect) well prepared for by earlier clues--which, of course, Koskinen picks up on while the rest of us are just swept along.

But it's not just the characters and the plot that work so well: it's also Fister's _writing_. She has a way of striking off deft descriptions that repeatedly make you want to write "Yes!" in the margin; here's just a very small sample:

"I knew him from working in Area 4. He was one of those guys with big feet who worked the phones and typed reports with two fingers, collected his paycheck, and counted the days to retirement, which would be spent in a rustic cabin in Wisconsin, where shellacked fish decorated knotty-pine walls."

"He was a weedy-looking guy, the kind you'd expect to get picked on in school, or made someone's punch the first day in the joint."

"It didn't help that she worked on the assumption that all cops were racist--though I had to admit there was some truth to that. You're sent out to look for trouble and, sure enough, you find it. You find it enough, you stop seeing kids horsing around and see gang members instead. You notice a young man driving a nice car and figure he bought it with drug money. You assume a woman with a pissed-off look on her face means it for you instead of for the driver of that bus she just missed. It's a form of racism that is an odorless, invisible gas that hangs in the air in cop shops. You don't even know it's there."

About a reporter: "He liked nothing better than rubbing elbows with detectives at a crime scene, carrying Vicks in his pocket to dab under his nose if the body was too ripe, going out for a drink with the guys afterward."

About a long-time friend's house: "her kitchen hadn't changed much. It still had the original chipped porcelain sink, the same massive old stove that leaned to one side and always made lopsided birthday cakes."

Okay, stop me before I quote again! The bottom line is, if you want a darn good read, a mystery that not only respects your intelligence but may even increase it, don't miss _In the Wind_.

Anni Koskinen had to blow the whistle on a fellow Chicago cop and it cost her her career. As she's in the process of hanging out her shingle as a private eye, she gets a call from the priest of her neighborhood church. A church worker needs a lift - could Anni oblige? She does only to discover that the woman she has aided is a 60s radical wanted by the FBI for the murder of an agent. To make matters worse the dead man is the father of Anni's mentor, the man who convinced her to become a cop in the first place. As Anni reviews that old investigation she notes things that just don't add up and she becomes convinced that the woman she helped was innocent of the murder. But as she tries to uncover the truth she runs afoul of the present polices of Homeland Security - and no one connected to her is safe from retribution.

This dynamic thriller will keep a reader locked to its pages as the author has a gift for creating real people facing modern dilemmas. The pacing of the plot is the imperative. One is so caught up in the story one scarcely has time to note that the author is touching on both the raw wounds of the past and the controversies of the present.

One of the shining aspects of this novel is the sensitive way the author treats the character of Martin, Anni's autistic older brother. Barbara Fister, in only her second mystery novel, has shown she can write a suspenseful thriller that leaves the reader thinking.

I have used this book to instruct boy scouts in Native American and early New England craft with great success. The broad range of projects can easily provide you with a year's worth of activities that fit perfectly within the scouting program. The sketches and instuctions are easy to follow and the required materials are not expensive.

Indian Handcrafts by C. Keith Wilbur is a great primer for people who actually want to MAKE items in the manner that native Americans. There are countless illustrations in here showing you exactly what the item looks like - in many cases drawn direction from historical artifacts located in museums (which are named). So if you really want to go see the arrowhead, or the rubbing stick, you can literally take a trip out to the named museum and see the actual artifact for yourself.

It's important to note that while this book simply claims to have "Indian Handcrafts", they are ALL from the northeast US area - primarily Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. This isn't a bad thing at all, but they should more clearly identify that on the front of the book. There are a ton of crafts NOT mentioned in here, because they weren't practiced by the tribes in this area. Also, for example when they talk about gardening like a native, and list out the foods that you should grow, the list is: corn, beans, pumpkins, squash, jerusalem artichokes, ground cherries, gourds and tobacco. This is a great list for Massachusetts, and certainly *similar* to what they grew in Florida or Arizona, but it is again important to know that this is a regional summary.

The book is good about both providing a "super 100% authentic" way of doing things - but also giving you shortcuts if you wish. As the author notes, native Americans were very quick to adapt new technologies when they encountered them. When they met up with people who had easy access to metal, they took those metals and melted them down rather than going through the labor intensive trouble of making their own metals from scratch. When they met up with people who had pretty glass beads, they didn't spend weeks and weeks hand grinding stones down into bead shapes. So in the same manner, sure, you are provided with instructions for hand making dyes from plants and flowers. But if you want, you can also use commercial dyes. This is not really "cheating" - it is efficient, and the natives were efficient where they had access to those supplies.

The book is also cautious in its environmental impact. Yes, the natives would strip birch bark off of trees to use it for various crafts. However, in modern times we do not have huge forests of birch - and stripping off birch bark would kill the trees. We can't afford to kill off trees just for "fun crafts". The author gives you ways to get your hands on the ingredients in a more environmentally friendly manner.

Keith was apparently 67 when he published this book in 1990, and you can see his lifetime of research clearly here. He talks about the different ways he practiced making stone tools, tried carving out canoes, and much more. This is a man who actually learned how to do these crafts and is now sharing his knowledge. I really appreciate that! The drawings are very detailed. I still wish, though, that they used a "regular font" for reading, instead of the calligraphy-style handwriting which is sometimes hard to read - and I wish they included some photos. Drawings are great, but sometimes it is so much more helpful to see actual images of things.

Still, these are minor complaints about a treasure trove of knowledge. Whatever your reason for wanting to learn more about how native Americans lived, I highly recommend this book as a part of your library.

This book describes many of the material goods made by Native Americans, and gives the reader an intimate understanding of their construction. Each item is described, with drawings of museum-piece examples. Wilbur then describes how Native Americans made the item (drawing from eye-witness memoirs where possible), and finally describes ways to make reproductions using modern techniques. Really gives one an appreciation for iron. Ideal for a youngster interested in Indians (and what youngster isn't?)

Dr. Houck's book, Indian Island is the tale of survival! It is a testament to the Monacan people's triumph over hardship and years of discrimination. A proud, yet gentle and kind people, the Monacans were among the many victims of the eugenics movement. Political powers wanted them to be forgotten and invisible, but Dr. Houck brings them back to the forefront of our collective conscience. As one who is privileged to know and associate with several members of this tribe and who has personally witnessed the discrimination they face still today, I applaud Dr. Houck, this book, and most of all this couragous group of people. Having finally achieved state recognition from Virginia, today they continue their struggle to gain the federal recognition which is long overdue. May America finally recognize the existence of its first residents!

Having been married to one of the Johns decendants (in Amherst County, VA), I must say that this is probably one of the most accurate depictions of life for the Monacan Indians as any I have heard. I would like to add that Dr. Houck was my daughters neo-natologist when she was born very prematurely...24 years ago!! If you enjoy this book, read MATOHE, written by Cathy Smoot Carson.

Peter Houck and Mintcy Maxham do a wonderful job of presenting a generalized history of the Monacan tribe. As with any generalized History study, consisting of one volume, covering centuries of time, and possibly thousands of individuals, the reader should not expect a complete detailed history of the tribe, but rather a jumping off point to further enhance his or her education of the Monacan past. While lots of specific details are missing, the major events are listed. This list of major Monacan occurrences, along with an ample Bibliography, gives everyone from the begining historical student to the advanced researcher many sources and avenues to approach the study of Monacan history and culture.

I've lived in Florida, and studied archeology, all my life. Mac Perry reported on many sites that I had never known about, plus added information on those that I'd already visited. An excellent book, with a clear, interesting style.

Indian Mounds You Can Visit is informative and very interesting. A must read for anyone interested in Florida's history.

The Author has a style of writing that bring the reader into the world of Florida's first people. He very eloquently puts forth his message of conservation and protection. This book is packed with information on the various cultural periods of Florida pre-history like the Weeden Island and Safety Harbor people.

Lerner Publishing Group's new release THE INDIAN WARS:Chronicle of America's Wars by Carol H. Behrman is a fast reading, comprehensive history of the plight of Native Americans in the United States from the Age of Exploration to the Battle of Wounded Knee in 1890. The author's accurate, well documented text is an easy read. Illustrations, page layouts, maps and sidebars inform and vividly bring to life those critical times, people, and events. Timelines, bibliography, source notes, and websites encourage further study.This is one of the best texts I've seen on this era - a must for elementary and junior high school libraries. You'll need duplicate copies of this fascinating book.

This book covers a great deal of material in a very engaging manner. It is written with a respect for the reader and makes this period come alive for any age.

I was totally absorbed as I read this beautifully written chronicle of the Indian Wars. As a teacher and author, I appreciate the talent of Carol Behrman who provides the reader with fascinating and comprehensive facts of history in a style that young people will find enjoyable as well as educational. The history is not slanted or distorted and the details of the destruction of the Native American nations are told objectively and honestly. Ms. Behrman's delightful writing, the many historical photographs and charts, and the superbly designed book is a "must have" for every library.

This mammoth volume (over 570 pages) truly is the Indians' own book. Natalie Curtis served as collector, editor, and arranger. The elegant and eloquent simplicity of the tales give testimony that these are the Native American's own words. Not only that, but since it was first published in 1905, these are the memories of chiefs, elders, and holy men that still remembered the old days and the old ways. Plus, the marvelous illustrations were all done by tribe members (except for the photographs) and really contribute to the overall magic of the whole. The songs are all authentic and are given in both English and the original tribal languages (with pronunciation guides.)

While not a comprehensive reference of all the tribes it does give a good range of peoples from the eastern coast, northern woodlands, plains, southwest, and pacific coast. The tribes included are: Wabanaki, Dakota, Pawnee, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Winnebago, Kwakiutl, Pima, Apache, Mohave-Apache, Yuma, Navaho, Zuni, San Juan, Acoma, Laguna, and Hopi.

This book is a great monument to all the peoples and their respective ways of life. It is proof that the social engineers and bureaucrats did not kill the spirit and culture of the rightful inhabitants of this land. As long as such a book exists the way back to the old, centered way of living can be tracked.

This is a moving book. Even Theodore Roosevelt was moved by the "depth and dignity" of Indian thought.

This is a monumental work of history. Thanks to the efforts of Natalie Curtis and other recorders in the early twentieth century, there are many songs and stories of American Indians which have not been lost. The 149 songs recorded (in their original language and in translation), the myths and legends, and the interviews are from tribes all over the United States. These groups include the Wabanaki, Dakota, Pawnee, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Winnebago, Kwakiutl, Pima, Apache, Mojave-Apache, Yuma, Navajo, Zuñi, San Juan, Acoma, Laguna, and Hopi. This is a reference book to be treasured.

Curtis begins this book with, "The Indians are the authors of this volume. ...... The work of the recorder (Curtis) has been but the collecting, edititng, and arranging of the Indians' contributions." The Indians' Book is a collection of "Authentic Native American Legends, Lore and Music".

At the turn of the century, this book was instrumental in a change of attitude towards Native Amaricans. Through it, we see the "depth and dignity or Indian thoughts" (Theodore Roosevelt) from a time when Indians were commonly viewed as little more than animals.

But I don't want to make this sound like a political statement. No, don't missunderstand, this book focuses on the legends and the music. Curtis has transcribed enough songs that you could almost call it a Fake Book of Indian Songs. I've already used many of the songs in this book as inspiration for some of my own compositions.

Breskin plainly admires the filmmakers at their best, at work and as people. He wins them into describing, with greater articulation than most, what they were thinking when they made their films and how they see art in general.

But what makes the book so worthwhile is that Breskin makes his subjects pay the piper, when they would almost certainly rather dismiss at least some of his questions with a one-liner. He is not inclined, as more "fannish" journalists would be and have been, to let them off the hook for mistakes or evasive answers.

(Revealing as well to note which of those interviewed arguably still had their best work ahead of them and which did not. The two Davids, Cronenberg and Lynch, are especially useful for this)

It's so very rare to be able to predict that a book, were it a publicly traded stock, is an investment certain to become more valuable over time, the antithesis of a kitten. Breskin has honed his ability to ingratiate ephemerally, and in this process, you will get a rare glimpse of these great directors actually moving outside of soundbite to let you in on some part of process. Very worth...worth.

Probably the best book of director interviews since HITCHCOCK/TRUFFAUT and Andrew Sarris' INTERVIEWS WITH FILM DIRECTORS. After reading it, you want David Breskin to go around interviewing every director, immersing himself in their work beforehand, leading them into intimate and challenging conversations in which they sometimes get mad at him (even the laid-back David Cronenberg gets a little prickly at one point) but develop a grudging respect for him at the same time. INNER VIEWS collects eight interviews Breskin conducted for ROLLING STONE -- yes, children, there was a time when that magazine was worth reading -- though the pieces were significantly shortened for publication in RS, and thankfully restored to full sprawl here. I have no idea why we haven't seen more from Breskin; is he dead or retired? An interviewer this penetrating and eloquent shouldn't be allowed to ride off into the sunset.

I would be duty-bound to cherish this book simply because Breskin sits down with two of my gods, David Cronenberg and David Lynch; between their interviews here and the respective books about them edited by Chris Rodley, you will discover all you could ever want to know about these fascinating directors. But Breskin also interviews six other greats: Robert Altman, Oliver Stone, Francis Ford Coppola, Spike Lee, Tim Burton, and (in the expanded 1997 edition) Clint Eastwood. He parries amusingly with a few of them, as when Oliver Stone -- intellectual macho man that he is -- smugly breaks out a quote from Aeschylus, only to be informed by the unimpressed Breskin that Coppola had already related that same quote to him. (Stone is described as "surprised, his thunder stolen.") Breskin also gets yelled at a few times by accomplished shouter Spike Lee (this was before he became a father and mellowed) but admirably, calmly stands his ground -- yet Lee comes off not as a hothead throwing a diva tantrum but as an impassioned man who isn't used to being challenged by an interviewer from ROLLING STONE. Lee, and everyone else in the hot seat here, would discover that Breskin was much more than that.

These books are so helpful to use as references for painting.

Very clear photograhy. I would have liked a few close-up shots for some of the images perhaps, but otherwise a great book.

(Although I'll admit some of the inclusions in this book made my skin crawl!! I really just wanted the insects and not the spiders, but that's not the author's problem!)

This book has a lot of useful information about insects. It describes basic characteristics, life cycle, and much more. It also includes info on other terrestrial arthropods, such as spiders and centipedes. As a field guide, it focuses on families of insects, not species, which makes more sense because there are so many species that are hard to identify. There are great photographs and descritions as well.

This is really a nicely done guide and almost fits in my coat pocket. The pictures are fabulous and the insects are divided up into their respective families with very clear identifying traits. I'm really impressed, so much easy-to-use information in such a small book. This would be a great precursor to an entomology class. Some of my favorite critters are in the Psuedoscorpion order and are the cheliferids and chernetids, both of which look like tiny ticks with claws. So very cool. I actually found one once in Washington state--in my kitchen! It was very, very tiny. I digress. A book like this is handy if you are always finding insects and wondering what the heck you are looking at. A good value!

My parents were WW2 era, my mom graduating high school in 1942 just in time to go off to war with my dad. Their journey is the story of another day (perhaps one I will write) but now that they are gone, we have the archaeological evidence of the world they lived in. Old shellac 78 rpm records, souvenirs bought dear by a soldier's wife, an E for excellence pin. My dad kept photos of warplanes by the dozens, in neatly arranged albums, old letters and postcards and sheet music and newspapers from VE and VJ day, now nearly dust after all these years.

But I can touch a match to a lamp that will illumine that all important era any time by opening and reading from this book. John Gunther writes with a prose style filled with some kind of inner courage that is rare in today's reportage. He goes for the throat and he finds it--traveling all forty eight states in the USA of 1947. Issues come up again and again, Home rule for DC, Interstate rail tariff, Lend Lease, racism, land reform, interstate highways, social security.

The USA that John Gunther describes is no more, but in many, possibly even most cases it is the seed and reason of the world we inhabit today. This is one of those books you read and reread and sit to wonder about the giants that built America. The Henry Kaisers and David Sarnoff, the Fiorello La Guardia and the Wendell Wilke, the shop steward and the NYC cab driver all have a place in his amalgam, and it all makes halcyon sense.

John Gunther does not fix the USA in amber like a dead insect, he opens a window into another era---once the reader has traveled in the other America found there, he will always find this one changed.

Pray for peace
Fight for freedom
persevere,

Merry Christmas, 2007

If you have not read John Gunther's "Inside U.S.A.", you are in for a real treat. It is like taking a journey across America where Gunther's sense of the present and knowledge of the local environments is hard to rival. Perhaps the most striking aspects of the 1947 tour is how much each State has changed.

Gunther's tour of post war America is a must read for anyone interested in US History or for that matter, their individual States. For me it was striking to see how much my native California has changed. In my case, it was a picture of what we have lost in the last 50 years.

I loved "Inside U.S.A" so much that I ended up getting "Inside Africa", "Inside Europe" and "Inside Asia". Gunther's work has no rivals.

John Gunther's INSIDE U.S.A. comes as close to time travel as we are likely to get, hurling us back to the America of 1947, as he explores, state by state, the people, politics, issues, passions and fads that make up our country. Written with great energy and insight, Gunther captures an America justly proud of its WWII success, still unsure of its role in the world, and populated by fascinating characters like Mayor LaGuardia of New York, Governor Saltonstall of Massachusetts and Boss Hague of Jersey City. Gunther describes regional characteristics that persist today. He captures aspects of America that are gone,l never to return (an "industrial" nation based on coal, iron ore and steel.) And he foresees issues that dog America to this day -- the "Negro problem" (actually, the "White problem.") He condemns the segregationist society he finds in America, so inconsistent with its lofty ideals. As you can tell, I loved this book. It's very hefty -- but every time you are about to put it down, Gunther comes up with another amazing fact or interesting sidelight that keeps you reading. All this said, Gunther does concentrate on the (a) historical, (b) political and (c) economic side of things. You won't find much here about the arts or science. But it is amazing a single individual could have compiled this much data and presented it so interestingly.

A great presentation of what I expected to be an unexciting topic. Examines the workings of the political system in a highly readable way. I was not only well-informed after I read the book, but entertained as well!

This is excellent material if you are conducting any kind of serious research on NAFTA and its negotiations' development and outcome. It provides with a huge theoretical framework, every step of the process. If your line of work is game theory, this book will really help you (or at least it worked wonders for me). This is mandatory reference material for anyone interested in studying NAFTA.

Mayer rivals Grisham. He enfolds the strategy of NAFTA like a good murder-mystery. More proof that reality is more entertaining than fiction. It's a thriller, a nail-biter. I couldn't put it down!