Preview Shelf by Janice Clauser

Library News and Notable New Books

A New Kind of Washington Biography - As we have just observed the 279th birthday of The Father of Our Country, it's a good time to describe the new book, "George Washington's America", a biography "through his maps". Barnet Schecter, an independent historian, was inspired by the maps Washington used as surveyor and military leader, documents which remained in the family for almost a century, now in an atlas at Yale University.

From Indiana University Press, Marsha Mohr’s "Indiana Barns" has an introduction by Duncan Campbell that begins, "Few stories so well represent the history of our continent's settlement as the story of the American barn." It would be fun to identify the barn shown from Montgomery County. The Unofficial Guide to "Walt Disney World 2011" by Bob Sehlinger has the latest scoop on Universal's "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter" too. "The RV Handbook" the essential how-to guide for the RV owner comes from Dave Solberg.

Four music books are John Mayer's "Anthology" of piano, vocal, and guitar music, Jack Johnson's "Strum & Sing" with guitar chords, the "AC/DC: Maximum Rock & Roll, The Ultimate Story of the World's Greatest Rock and Roll Band" by Murray Engleheart, and Michael Heatley’s "Jimi Hendrix Gear" about the guitars, amps and effects that revolutionized rock ‘n roll.

"Simple Food for Busy Families" with "the whole life nutrition approach" explains how to cook various pastas, herbs, and beans. Authors are Jeannette Bessinger and Tracee Yablon-Brenner.

Two new Dummies books are "Pastels for Dummies" by Sherry Stone and Anita Giddings to help discover one's inner artist, and "Green Cleaning for Dummies" by Elizabeth Goldsmith, taking recycling to a better level and reducing exposure to toxic chemicals. "Disconnect" by Devra Davis tells the truth about cell phone radiation, "what the industry has done to hide it, and how to protect your family". "Honeybee Democracy" holds Thomas Seeley's information about humanity's greatest friend among the insects. "First Aid, CPR, and AED" fifth edition meets 2005 guidelines.

David Pogue’s "Windows 7" is "the missing manual" that should "have been in the box" with the product. "CSS the Missing Manual" the fully revised 2nd edition for 2009 comes from David McFarland. "Book Lust to Go" by Nancy Pearl is recommended reading for travelers, vagabonds, and dreamers.

"Ruined" by Matthew Vincent names 101 people who screwed things up for the rest of us, like Ticketmaster "for making a $20 ticket cost $32.50", "George Vernon Hudson for inventing daylight saving time", and "William Harley and Arthur Davidson for making us deaf".

A lovely "home economics" review dedicated to learning from the 1920s is "Amy Barickman's Vintage Notions", an inspirational guide to needlework, cooking, sewing, and fashion; by months, the author offers ideas that rediscover earlier home activities and she reproduces 1920s articles and illustrations.

Books about science begin with Ian Sample's "Massive: The Missing Particle that Sparked the Greatest Hunt in Science" about Higgs boson or the "God particle". "Physics of the Impossible" by Michio Kaku is a scientific exploration into the world of phasers, force fields, teleportation, and time travel. Kevin Kelly's "What Technology Wants" is an optimistic look at how humanity and technology join to produce increasing opportunities in the world to give our lives greater meaning.