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Seen Read Heard
Books
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Voices in a Mask
Turning on images of disguise in literature, theater and opera, this short-story collection explores themes of identity and subterfuge while touching on Don Giovanni, Tosca, Rigoletto and more. Author Geoffrey Green, professor of English at San Francisco State University, weaves librettos and scores together with authentic biographies of singers and composers, contemporary settings, and imaginative twists. (Northwestern University Press, 2008)
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Lauren Fix’s Guide to Loving Your Car
Lauren Fix, cohost of Talk 2 DIY Automotive on the DIY Network, offers straightforward and fun advice on caring for your car—so that you can actually enjoy driving and owning one. “Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines, this is definitely a must read,” says David Pezzino, professional coach and founder of Success Within Reach Inc. (St. Martin’s Griffin, 2008)
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Last Call:Alcoholism and Recovery
Through powerful first-person narratives, psychotherapist Jack H. Hedblom provides compelling insights into the minds and hearts of addicted drinkers, and reveals the road to recovery as a journey of self-discovery, change and hope. (The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007)
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Clothing Optional: And Other Ways to Read These Stories
In Clothing Optional, Alan Zweibel—one of the original writers for Saturday Night Live—offers a collection of laugh-out-loud personal narratives, essays, short fiction, dialogues and even a few whimsical drawings. “This book made me sick—that I didn’t write it,” says comedy writer Larry Gelbart. (Villard, 2008)
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The Northwest Green Home Primer
Sustainable design and building consultant Kathleen O’Brien and her colleague Kathleen Smith offer advice on making green home decisions that are both down-to-earth and cutting edge. Though written with a regional focus, The Northwest Green Home Primer is a timely and practical green home manual for readers across the country. (Timber Press, 2008)
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Invisible Suburbs: Recovering Protest Fiction in the 1950s United States
Were the 1950s an oppressive or a liberating time? Editor Josh Lukin, lecturer in English at Temple University, has assembled a collection of essays that analyze the many ways in which the decade’s culture stigmatized women, minorities and the poor, while offering new perspectives on U.S. literature of this period and its uneasy relationship with the culture at large. (University Press of Mississippi, 2008)
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Hurricane Katrina, Response and Responsibilities (Second Edition)
The voices in this book represent critical and personal responses to Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. According to editor John Brown Childs, professor of sociology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, the new foreword and afterword of this second edition “make the connections between the specifics of Katrina and the overall social-economic vulnerabilities facing millions in the U.S. today.” (New Pacific Press, 2008)
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Rebel: The Life and Times of John Singleton Mosby
Rebel is the first complete biography of John Singleton Mosby (1833–1916), one of the Confederate army’s highest-profile officers who was known especially for his cavalry battalion’s continued and effective harassment of Union armies in northern Virginia. The book also covers Mosby’s long and turbulent postwar life. “A splendid portrait,” wrote the Richmond Times-Dispatch. (University of Nebraska Press, 2008)
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Radical Vernacular: Lorine Niedecker and the Poetics of Place
Elizabeth Willis, who teaches poetry and poetics at Wesleyan University, collects essays by leading poets and scholars that make a major contribution to the study of Lorine Niedecker (1903–1970), an important but long overlooked American poet. (University of Iowa Press, 2008)
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Lowering the Boom: Critical Studies in Film Sound
Lowering the Boom analyzes how shifting modulation of the spoken word in cinema results in variations in audience interpretation. With its interdisciplinary and global approach, this book also introduces new methods of thinking about the interaction of sound and music in films. Tony Grajeda is associate professor of cultural studies at the University of Central Florida; coauthor Jay Beck is assistant professor of media and cinema studies at DePaul University. (University of Illinois Press, 2008)
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Nursing and Health Care Ethics: A Legacy and a Vision
Nursing and Health Care Ethics, edited by Winifred J. Ellenchild Pinch and Amy M. Haddad, documents the work of nurse scholars in ethics, while examining what can be done to strengthen future scholarship in this area. Critical thinking activities, organized by the book’s themes (such as vulnerability, care and caring, diversity and disparity, pain and suffering) are examples of applying these scholarly insights to practice. Haddad is director, Center for Health Policy and Ethics at Creighton University, while Pinch is professor emerita there. (American Nurses Association, 2008)
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Looking Backward: Don Banks—One TBF Turret Gunner’s Story
This is the story of Donald A. Banks, a TBF torpedo bomber turret gunner during World War II, written by his son, military historian Stephen A. Banks. The book focuses on Banks’ training and service with VC-66, one of the U.S. Navy’s top composite torpedo bomber/fighter squadrons during this period. It draws on his personal memoirs and other documents, plus numerous interviews with Banks and other surviving squadron members. (Signature Book Printing, 2008)
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Jewish Holidays Cookbook: Festive Meals for Celebrating the Year
The traditions and recipes of Judaism are celebrated in this cookbook geared toward kids and their families. Eleven Jewish holidays are discussed and accompanied by recipes for the ancient and modern foods that are traditionally served. Author Jill Bloomfield is the creator of a kids cooking consulting company, Picky Eaters. Contributor Janet Ozur-Bass is a rabbi, mother, teacher and self-proclaimed foodie. (DK Publishing, 2008)
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Building Biotechnology (Third Edition)
Building Biotechnology describes the convergence of scientific, political, regulatory and commercial factors that drive the biotechnology industry and define its scope. The third edition significantly expands the first two, updating case law and business models in this dynamic industry. Yali Friedman is managing editor of the Journal of Commercial Biotechnology. (Logos Press, 2008)
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Reoperative Pediatric Surgery
Reoperative Pediatric Surgery is an indispensable resource covering the full spectrum of pediatric reoperation and is the first book published on this subject. Coeditors Steven Teich, surgical director of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, OH; and Donna A. Caniano, surgeon-in-chief at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, worked with knowledgeable experts to impart the most up-to-date information and techniques for critical cases requiring such surgery. (Humana Press, 2008)
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Teach My Kid—I Dare You! The Educator’s Essential Guide to Parental Involvement
This book shows educators how to positively involve parents to raise student achievement. In addition to offering 10 steps for designing a comprehensive parent-involvement program, the authors—all lifelong educators—offer practical strategies and activities. These aim to involve all parents, monitoring those who are under-involved, balancing those who are over-involved and assisting parents who find themselves in urgent situations. (Eye on Education, 2008)
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The Eden Diet
This Christian-focused book emphasizes eating according to “internal” cues (hunger pains) rather than “external” cues (emotions; the sight, smell or taste of food; time of day; etc.). A central argument is that eating small portions of normal food is ultimately more satisfying than eating so-called diet food. A physical medicine and rehabilitation physician who practices in Oklahoma City, Rita M. Hancock herself lost 75 pounds and has kept the weight off for 25 years. (Personalized Fitness Products, 2008)
Attention Alumni Authors
UB Today publishes notices on recent books, films and CDs by alumni. Send brief, factual descriptions of the book or CD, along with copies of the publisher's or producer's blurb and critical reviews, if desired. Include the full name of the publishing house or recording company, year of publication or production and the author's UB degree(s) and the year(s) received. Indicate where the author now lives and any current credentials that relate to the subject matter of the book, or the content of the CD or film.
To accompany each listing, camera-ready book jacket or CD cover art, or the book or CD itself, may be sent to UB Today, 330 Crofts Bldg., Buffalo, NY 14260, and will be returned if requested. High-resolution digital book cover art (scanned at 300 dpi) is preferred for the print edition and may be sent, along with a description of the book, film or CD, to whitcher@buffalo.edu. Preference is given to titles of wide general interest.
All submissions are subject to editing for length and clarity. Please include a daytime telephone number for verification.