Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome: A Reference Librarian Looks at Consumer Health Reference Sources

This is Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome Awareness Month. EDS is a group of connective tissue disorders which may, depending on the type and severity, make a person super flexible, reduce mobility, cause constant pain, or even threaten life. Basic to all is that a person's collagen is defective, resulting in stretched skin and dislocated joints. The Ehlers-Danlos National Foundation website is a good starting point for learning about the condition.

A good website from which to learn about the life of a person with EDS is LibrarianInBlack. Last week Sarah Houghton-Jan wrote about her life with EDS. As a dedicated librarian intent on educating readers, she embedded two videos about other EDS cases and photos showing hyperelastic skin and joints. She also included a link to the Ehlers-Danlos Support Group. You can also look through the recent posts and archives of LibrarianInBlack to see what an active person Sarah is despite her condition.

The following is a collection of EDS resources available in public libraries (many at the Downers Grove Public Library). Readers will notice that there is disagreement in the EDS literature as to how many types of the syndrome exist. No one source tells the whole story. Persons with EDS will, of course, seek many sources to help them understand their prognosis. Friends and family are urged to take time to also explore many resources.

Missing from the list are book-length EDS memoirs. I found none through our local library system catalog, Worldcat, or Amazon.


Reference Books

Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 31st ed., 2007 - A user has to look at two entries to see all that the dictionary says about about EDS. On page 603 is an entry "Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome" which provides a pronunciation and the names of the two dermatologists for whom the syndrome is named, Edvard Ehler of Denmark, 1863-1937 and Henri Alexandre Danlos of France, 1844-1912. For more information, readers have to turn to page 1854 and look under "syndromes." Dorland's describes six types of EDS (down from ten) and includes a photo of hyperextensible skin.

American Medical Association Family Medical Guide, 4th ed., 2004. - This AMA guide has about a page of information about EDS under the heading of "Autosomal Dominant Disorders." Across pages 969-70 are paragraphs about symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment. Near the end is a stern warning to parents to reduce injuries by preventing their children from "showing off" their unusual flexibility.

Dictionary of Syndromes and Inherited Disorders by Patricia Gilbert, 3rd ed., 2000 - Gilbert says that an alternate name for the syndrome is "joint laxity." On pages 102-5, she describes population incidence of EDS, genetic causation, syndrome characteristics, and case management. She emphasizes the need for good dental care.

Current Medical Diagnosis and Treatment by Stephen J. McPhee and Maxine A. Papadakis, 2009 ed. - CMDT does not have a separate entry for EDS, but it is mentioned in entries for mitral valve prolapse (p. 301), cardiac involvement in miscellaneous systemic disease (p. 373), cardiac patient and pregnancy (p. 374), and thoracic aortic aneurysms (p. 414).

Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 17th ed., 2008 - Harrison's includes about two large pages of professional level content about EDS, pages 2465-67. A chart explains eight types of EDS. The syndrome is also mentioned in entries about skin manifestations of internal disease (p. 335), bleeding (p. 366), valvular heart disease (p. 1472), cardiac manifestations of systemic diseases (p. 1499), aortic aneurysms (p. 1563), stroke (p. 2519), and osteoporosis (p. 2400).

Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine, 3rd ed., 2006 - Like other resources, the encyclopedia describes many types of EDS and explains family genetic patterns. Friends and family may appreciate the prognosis section, which describes the challenges of living with EDS. A total of five pages is included in the encyclopedia. Entries in two other Gale titles, Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health and Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders, 2nd ed., resemble this entry. The latter, however, also mentions EDS in entries for other syndromes.

Genetic Disorders Sourcebook, 3rd ed., 2004 - Only two brief pages about EDS. A bit disappointing.

Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders and Birth Defects by James Wynbrandt and Mark D. Ludman, 3rd ed., 2008 - The authors note that EDS experts have proposed that the official number of types of EDS be reduced to six, but they then describe ten types anyway. Two full pages of data.

Encyclopedia of Skin and Skin Disorders by Carol Turkington and Jeffrey S. Dover 3rd ed., 2007 - The authors focus on skin in their entry about EDS but also describe the overall condition of the EDS patient on pages 125-26.

Rudolph's Pediatrics, 21st ed., 2003 - This pediatrics medical guide describes the clinical features of six types of EDS and emphasizes injury prevention (shin guards, knee pads, braces). Surgical correction is also discussed.


Newspaper and Magazine Articles

"Kids' Illnesses Spark Battle with State: A California Mom Spent Years Trying to Figure Out What Made Her Children Sick, Then Almost Lost Them," Chicago Tribune, March 20, 2008, p. 4 - A story about how a pattern of bruises and injuries in her children nearly led to abuse charges against a mother whose children have EDS.

"A Life with Purpose," Swimming World, May 2005, pp. 29-30 - A profile of Nancy Burpee, a champion swimmer who has had EDS for 40 years.

"Coping with Livelong Pain," Toronto Star, April 30, 2009, p. U10 - A story about how a pain clinic is helping a mother and her two daughter, all of whom have Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.

"A Mother's Burden," Santa Fe New Mexican, August 8, 2007, p. D1 - A story about a mother and three daughters with EDS. Tells how use of braces reduced pain and injuries in the children.

"After a Multitude of Tests, an Answer from Grandmother's Memory," New York Times, August 24, 2004, p. E5 - A story about the difficulty of diagnosing EDS in infants and toddlers.


Websites

Ehlers-Danlos National Foundation - Sarah says that this is the website with the most useful information.

Ehlers-Danlos Support Group - This British site has a message board and a section with advice for living with EDS.

Mayo Clinic - The Mayo Clinic website includes a basic definition, symptoms, causes, complications, treatment, and advice for coping with the syndrome.

Medline Plus - This site from the National Library of Medicine and National Institute of Health tells us that EDS is also called "cutis elastica." The EDS page includes links to articles from nonprofit organizations and medical journals.

National Organization for Rare Disorders - Basic information on EDS, identifying eight types. The site has a list of recommended websites.

NLM Gateway - Search this website to find basic information, medical journal articles, and clinical trials that may be recruiting participants.


Final Note

My abbreviated notes about these resources, of course, oversimplify what they contain, but together they suggest the vast amount of information on the topic. Ironically, there is still much that is not known or understood, and being a rare condition, as Sarah explains, EDS is not a priority in medical research. I hope that you spend a bit of time with these resources to comprehend the uncertainty of the EDS experience and the hand dealt to people with the syndrome.

A Wall of White: The True Story of Heroism and Survival in the Face of a Deadly Avalanche by Jennifer Woodlief

In the five days leading up to the afternoon of March 31, 1982, snow had fallen constantly on the slopes above the Alpine Meadows ski resort near Lake Tahoe, California. Knowing that the risk of avalanche was very high, resort managers had closed the grounds, sent nonessential staff away, and assigned ski patrol crews to bring down controlled amounts of snow with explosives. By that afternoon many cars were completely hidden under snow and plows were failing to keep roads clear. Some guests were stranded in the resort condos, unable to leave the valley. While the staff was concerned about dangerous conditions, no one imagined that three slopes would give up their snow simultaneously, burying the resort headquarters. In A Wall of White: The True Story of Heroism and Survival in the Face of a Deadly Avalanche, Sports Illustrated journalist Jennifer Woodlief reports on a monster storm, tragic avalanche, and subsequent rescue efforts.

For a reader like me, who grew up where an inch or two of snow fell every five years, A Wall of White tells a pretty incredible story. Who could imagine that much snow? Over twelve feet in ten days! Woodlief explains the meteorological conditions, the dynamics of mountain snow, the methods of avalanche prevention, and the difficulties of rescuing people from the almost concrete formations formed after avalanches. She also profiles staff and guests of the resort and describes their movements on the day that the resort headquarters was destroyed.

A Wall of White will appeal to readers who enjoy a bit of science with a large dose of human drama. Libraries should add it to their disaster story collections.

Woodlief, Jennifer. A Wall of White: The True Story of Heroism and Survival in the Face of a Deadly Avalanche. Atria Books, 2009. ISBN 9781416546924

Critter Encounters: Exploring Our Fascination with the Animal Kingdom by Richard Conniff

I have written an a chapter about popular science readers' advisory for a book being edited by Jessica Moyer. At Jessica's request, it takes an interdisciplinary approach, recommending media as well as books for people who enjoy learning about science. She is calling the book Integrated Advisory Service: Breaking Through the Book Boundary to Better Serve Library Users. Look for the book in Spring 2010.

I mention this now because I just read an article in the May-June 2009 issue of Sierra that is in the same spirit. Richard Conniff write about some of his favorite books and DVDs about nature and wildlife in "Critter Encounters: Exploring Our Fascination with the Animal Kingdom." He even includes two titles that I recommend: American Buffalo: In Search of a Lost Icon by Steven Rinella and Wesley the Owl: The Remarkable Love Story of an Owl and His Girl by Stacey O'Brien. Another old favorite that he suggests is My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell.

The "Mixed Media" section of Sierra often has good reading recommendations. Also watch the back pages of Audubon to find popular science titles.

ricklibrarian's Short Guide to Family History on the Web

I created this short list of websites of interest to family historians for my workshop at the Thomas Ford Memorial Library. The workshop was focused on using Heritage Quest, to which the library subscribes, but I wanted to provide further resources that may be useful to novices and experienced amateur genealogists. I have added these links to the Library's website. Here I expand and get more personal with the reflections.

Local Resources

Cook County Clerk's Office - Genealogy Online: Search for birth, death, and marriage records from Cook County, Illinois. You will have to register, but registration is free. Due to privacy laws, none of the data is recent.

The Newberry Library's Chicagoancestors.org: In addition to the Newberry Library files, there are links to many Chicago area genealogy and history websites. Of course, a trip to the Newberry is even better. I found much about my ancestors in New England through books in the Library's collection.

Western Springs Historical Society: Network of Western Springs residents interested in local history and genealogy. Information about the society's collections, programs, and events.

Illinois State Archives: Links to a variety of Illinois records of interest to family historians, including vital records, court records, and military service records.

National Archives - Great Lakes Region: Describes resources of the National Archives with visiting hours and contact information. It used to be difficult to get an appointment to use the microform readers at the National Archives. With so many people now on the Internet, there are plenty of openings to use the equipment.

General Resources

Cyndi's List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet: A portal to over 240,000 websites of interest to family historians.

Family History Archives: A combined catalog of family histories and local history books from leading libraries and archives across the country. Hosted by Brigham Young University.

Family Search: Internet access to some of the genealogy resources of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints.

Find a Grave: A searchable database of grave records from across the country. Use the search link in the body of the page, not the rectagular ad at the top of the site's pages.

Mike's Index: Found on the Fox Valley Genealogical Society's website, Mike's Index searches 243 genealogy periodicals.

The USGenWeb Project: Volunteers from counties all over the United States are putting their files up on the Internet to help family historians. I think this is one of the most interesting projects on the web. I have often found interesting lists on the county level webpages. Cemetary records are a strength of this resource.

Google Books: With so many books about local history scanned as part of the Google Books project, it is a great source for genealogy. The books not under copyright have full text viewing. Knowing about the other books, allows researchers to identify books to borrow through interlibrary loan or view at genealogy libraries. I found sources about many of my New England, Maryland, and Texas ancestors here.

My Geek Chart is Rather Simple

Ricklibrarian's Geek Chart

My Geek Chart as I post it looks a bit like a Y for "Yes" which is a nice thought. It also looks somewhat like an upside down peace symbol. I think it will adjust accoding to my activity.

Sailing Alone Around the World by Joshua Slocum

This week's audiobook is a really old book - Sailing Alone Around the World by Captain Joshua Slocum. In this travel adventure story, Slocum recounts his precedent setting solo sailing journey around the globe in his sloop Spray, which he began in April 1895. The trip took three years two months and covered over 42,000 miles. During that time, Slocum never sprang a leak in the boat that he had rebuilt himself. He did, however, lay over in port to refit the masts, sails, and rigging several times, giving him ample time to meet people around the world. He was mostly treated kindly by port authorities and colonial governors and many other sailors were hospitable, but he did spread carpet tacs on the deck at night to foil some harborside thieves.

Early in the journey, he expressed some mild loneliness, but he found books, dolphins, and birds to be good companions. He went months sometimes without speaking to anyone other than the ghost of helmsman from the Pinta, whom he brought aboard off the Iberian Coast. He found singing helped during the lonely times, turning to old sailors' tunes and hymns. His favorite books were by Robert Louis Stevenson, whose widow he met during the voyage. He also met President Paul Kruger of the Transvaal, who stubbornly insisted that the world was flat.

While alone at sea, Slocum heard no news, but when he pulled into port, he caught up as best he could. Sometimes he found letters waiting for him. Mostly, he talked to the locals, who told him what other sailors had told them when they arrived. This is how he learned of the war between Spain and the United States just as he sailed into the Caribbean on his way home to New England. He got past the Transvaal and Orange Free State as they heated up for the Boer War of 1899-1903. As these two wars indicate, colonialism was still an unquestioned reality of international affairs. Modern readers may be dismayed by his description of native peoples of Terra del Fuego as "savages." They may also dislike that he killed every shark that he could. Otherwise, he claims that he disliked ending any life - fowl, fish, or mammal.

I enjoyed listening to the familiar voice of narrator Nelson Runger reading Slocum's text. I am uncertain whether the book's charms came more from the text or from Runger's narration. I gladly recommend the audiobook.

Slocum, Joshua. Sailing Alone Around the World. Recorded Books, 1988. ISBN 9781436104739

Fred Astaire by Joseph Epstein

If Fred Astaire had stood still, no one would have been impressed, according to Joseph Epstein in his quick-reading book Fred Astaire. Astaire was between 5' 6" and 5' 10" in height (no one seems to know for sure for the studios kept this information secret), and his head was large for his body. His hands were oversized, his torso undersized, and his arms lacked "visible" muscles. But Astaire didn't stand still. He was a dancer, some say the greatest ever.

The dust jacket identifies Epstein's book as a "portrait." As such, it is a quick look at Astaire's dance and movie career, from his early days out of Omaha, Nebraska, to his work in London, New York, and Hollywood. He began dancing with his less polished, more energetic sister Adele, with whom his name was always paired on Broadway and London. Only after she retired and married did he venture to Hollywood where his initial screen tests were panned. Astaire's Broadway reputation helped get him a secondary role in Joan Crawford's Dancing Lady, in which he impressed the movie producers enough to give him another chance.

Much of the book discusses Astraire's on screen and professional relationships with his dancing partners and contemporaries, with Ginger Rogers and Gene Kelly getting the most attention. According to Epstein, Astaire and Rogers were not really happy dancing together and never saw themselves as a team. Both tried (but not very hard) to end the act, but the producers foresaw large profits in keeping them together for a series of movies. To her credit, Rogers complained less than most of the other dance partners about the excessive rehearsals on which Astaire insisted. Epstein says Aistaire was at his best with Rogers, but ironically Rogers shone more after she escaped. Astaire and Kelly were never friends and rarely appeared together, but Epstein portrays them as respectfully different in style and philosophy.

While there is some personal, behind-the-scenes information about Astaire, this book avoids gossip. Epstein indicates that there really wasn't much about which to gossip, for Astaire was a conservative man who was faithful to his wife. The book is as much a work of criticism as a biography, and despite Epstein's knocks on the lameness of movie plots, I now want to see some old Astaire musicals. Fred Astaire should be popular with dance and movie fans.

Epstein, Joseph. Fred Astaire. Yale University Press, 2008. ISBN 9780300116953

Google Web Elements for Feeds on Library Websites

This week's American Libraries Direct includes a story about new Google Elements, saying that it is very easy to add news feeds to websites. Here is a test. It does seem very easy. Instead of taking a basic feed, I typed the keyword "books" into a custom feed box. Most of the news displayed seemed on topic. What do you think?

Watch for a moment and the stories will change.




Here is another using the keyword "library."




Those are pretty broad categories. Here is something more specific: memoirs.




It is very easy. Whether it serves a great purpose is another question.

Tales of Terror by Edgar Allan Poe

I started reading Edgar Allan Poe in junior high. The creepy stories about strange deaths really appealed to me then. They still do, so I borrowed Tales of Terror performed by Jack Foreman on audio CDs. Foreman's reading is mesmerizing, and I am now struck by Poe's eloquent descriptions and drawn-out listen-to-me-for-awhile storytelling. He really knew how to build suspense.

I remembered some of the stories very well despite the decades since I last read them. I knew just what was going to happen in "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Fall of the House of Usher," and they were not hurt one bit by familiarity. I had forgotten the surpring end of "The Pit and the Pendulum." I was most interested in hearing "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," having just recently read The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl. As a model for Sherlock Holmes, C. Auguste Dupin does not disappoint.

Many a fowl and retched weed met an inglorious end while I listened to Poe in the garden.

Poe, Edgar Allan. Tales of Terror. Recorded Books, 1981. 4 compact discs. ISBN 1402549113

The Protest Singer: An Intimate Portrait of Pete Seeger by Alec Wilkinson

When Alec Wilkinson asked for an interview and permission to write a book about Pete Seeger, the folk singer said that too many books and articles had already been written. All that Seeger thought was missing was a book that could be "read in one sitting." Taking the hint, Wilkinson wrote The Protest Singer: An Intimate Portrait of Pete Seeger, a book that can be read during an evening or on a cross country airplane flight. The main text is only 118 small pages including 30 photographs. Much of it appeared previously as an article in New Yorker. As a short and somewhat rambling account, The Protest Singer serves best as an introduction to Seeger for readers who are too young to know much about the subject or as a recollection for older fans. In this book, Wilkerson mostly tells about his visits with Seeger, recounting the stories that the singer told him. It will please the musician's admirers.

The Protest Singer also seems to bother Seeger critics, who are ready to challenge his memory and interpretation of events with their own. This was to be expected as the past never seems to be really behind us in America (or anywhere else for that matter). Popular history writing is as much about the present day struggle for the minds and souls of readers as it is about fairly describing historical events, figures, and eras, and Seeger is one person about whom few who remember him are neutral. This is a book by and for his fans. Instead of just complaining, a critic should write a book for the disparagers. Public libraries will buy that book also.

Personally, I enjoyed The Protest Singer, which describes the start of the folk music movement and its relationship with political causes, such as labor unions, civil rights, and war protests. Wilkinson portrays Seeger as a singular character within that movement, who is forthright with his opinions and ready to challenge the political, corporate, and military establishment. He also tells how the singer survived blacklisting by playing wherever he could, subsistence farming and bartering. Throughout the book are details about his musical career, which has emphasized audience participation over performance. He is still a person to rally a crowd around a cause or song.

After reading the book, I listened to The World of Pete Seeger on vinyl, two discs full of songs many people my age will recognize. My favorite is the sad and reflective "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?" I also recently heard the recent CD Pete Seeger at 89, enjoying the instrumental pieces most of all. That he can really play the banjo well has been lost in all the controversy.

Wilkinson, Alec. The Protest Singer: An Intimate Portrait of Pete Seeger. Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. ISBN 9780307269959

Honey Bun Rose

Honey Bun Rose
Originally uploaded by ricklibrarian.

Memorial Day seems a good day to just stop and enjoy the gardening. I've spent most of the morning in the yard with the flowers and an audiobook. Click on the Honey Bun rose to see how my garden grows.

We hope that you are enjoying the holiday with flowers, books, and friends.

The Sound of Freedom: Marian Anderson, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Concert That Awakened America by Raymond Arsenault

Not many people remember Marian Anderson. When she died in 1993 at age 96, her career as a singer of art songs and spirituals was far in the past. She was already a historical figure, for her name was often paired with Eleanor Roosevelt, who had died nearly thirty years earlier. She had been mostly forgotten.

According to Raymond Arsenault in his book The Sound of Freedom: Marian Anderson, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Concert That Awakened America, Anderson was as important a civil rights figure as boxer Joe Louis, baseball star Jackie Robinson, and seamstress Rosa Parks. With her beautiful voice and insistence on her right to be heard in the finest concert halls despite her race, she exposed the absurdity of Jim Crow laws. In the 1930s, she had spent nearly three years in Europe singing for enthusiastic audiences and had been accorded many privileges of fame. Back in the United States, she could not even get a hotel room in many cities because of her skin color. In 1939 she was at the center of a controversy in Washington, D.C., where both the Daughters of the American Revolution and the public schools denied her auditoriums for a concert. Eleanor Roosevelt resigned from the DAR because of its "whites only" rule for Constitution Hall. When Anderson sang at the only venue allowed, the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, 75,000 people came.

The Sound of Freedom is a laudatory account of Anderson's career and her role in the civil rights movement. Arsenault portrays the singer as a humble and somewhat shy person, who never set out to be a hero. Many people both black and white helped her grow into the role that she played. If I had had this biography when putting together my forthcoming book Real Lives Revealed, I could have put it in either the Inspirational chapter under "Exemplary Lives" or the Historical chapter under "Human Rights and Social Justice Stories." The Sound of Freedom should be in most public libraries.

Arsenault, Raymond. The Sound of Freedom: Marian Anderson, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Concert That Awakened America. Bloomsbury Press, 2009. ISBN 9781596915787

Christmas in May: Ordering Books

Novelist have long had an eye on writing tales for Christmas. Since Charles Dickens wrote a series of Christmas stories, including "A Christmas Carol," they have used the holiday season as a backdrop. Lately, they have almost flooded the market with Christmas-inspired books. In 2008 we saw Santa Clawed by Rita Mae Brown, The Spy Who Came for Christmas by David Morrell, Small Town Christmas by Debbie Macomber, A Christmas Grace by Anne Perry, The Christmas Sweater by Glenn beck, and Dashing Through the Snow by Mary Higgins Clark and Carol Higgins Clark.

Here it is May 21, only seven shopping months to Christmas, and the Thomas Ford Memorial Library already has these 2009 Christmas novels ordered:

• Christmas List by Richard Evans
• Christmas Promise by Anne Perry
• Home for Christmas by Andrew Greeley
• Lakeshore Christmas by Susan Wiggs
• Plum Pudding Murder by Joanne Fluke
• Wish for Christmas by Thomas Kinkade

I'm sure there will be more.

In the Sanctuary of Outcasts: A Memoir by Neil White

On May 3, 1993, Neil W. White, III entered a minimum security prison on a narrow peninsula on the Mississippi River in Carville, Louisiana. Soon after being praised by several national business journals as a model for entrepreneurs, White had been caught kiting checks to support his growing magazine empire, which included New Orleans Magazine, Louisiana Life, and Coast Magazine. The story of his quick fall from a life of luxury, professional acclaim, and a happy family to bankruptcy, societal disdain, and divorce is one element in his unusual account of a year in prison, In the Sanctuary of Outcasts: A Memoir.

On that fateful day, White had no idea where he was. Due to a shortage of federal prison space, some inmates not considered dangerous were being sent to the Federal Medical Center at Carville, formerly called the National Leprosarium, a residential, long-term hospital for leprosy patients. Though the population of patients had shrunk dramatically over decades, there were still more than 100 in residence. Some had been there over half a century. On his way to his assigned room (which could not be called a cell because it had no door), he noticed people missing legs, fingers, and parts of their faces. Not knowing where he was and with whom he was sharing space, he was troubled. What was about to happen to him?

What happened was that White was immersed in a community of inmates and patients, both unhappy about the "marriage of convenience" forced by the federal prison system. Distrust was high for good reason, and White thought that he could write a sensational book about the situation to sell as soon as his eighteen-month sentence ended, helping him regain his status and wealth. What he learned instead, after breaking rules to interview patients, led him to question his whole way of life. His gentler, more reflective book took fifteen years to write.

In the Sanctuary of Outcasts: A Memoir is a highly entertaining book. White includes a fascinating cast of characters - most with names changed. His short chapters recount daily encounters with patients and inmates, visits from his family, and a battle with the prison system that the patients eventually win. Most public libraries should get this forthcoming book, which according to the publicity, will be heavily promoted across the South.

Readers may be interested in learning more about leprosy. A good starting spot is the World Health Organization wesite, which discusses the disease, its treatments, and its incidence around the world.

White, Neil W., III. In the Sanctuary of Outcasts: A Memoir. William Morrow, June 2009. ISBN 9780061351600

The Prince of Frogtown by Rick Bragg

Until now, I have not read Rick Bragg's books about his kin in Alabama. There are so many other books to read, and I was not sure I wanted to get involved in another dysfunctional family story. With elements of alcohol, poverty, hunting, fishing, fighting, fast cars, heartache, and living a macho life in a rural setting from which some people can not escape, his books sounded too much like life where I grew up. Hitting too close to home. But I wanted an audiobook as I left the library Monday and The Prince of Frogtown was sitting in the library's new items display, so I took it. By the next afternoon when I went back to work, I had already listened to four of seven discs.

In The Prince of Frogtown, Bragg tells a classic tale well - that of a man who will not control his vices - Bragg's father. The author can not excuse Charles Bragg of his many sins, for he is still too hurt himself, but he looks deeply into all the elements that formed his father. There was the father's father and brothers who all spent their weekends in drunkenness. There was the mill town where everyone breathed the cotton dust. There were friends who were just as trapped by their early marriages and big families. What lifts the story is Bragg's graceful, eloquent storytelling and his determination to find something good to say about a lousy father. In this, he succeeds.

Between his chapters about his father, Bragg inserts little stories about his relationship with his stepson. In these, he struggles to find the proper way to be a father, a difficult task for someone who had such a bad example. The extent to which he succeeds is debatable, but he seems to be loved even in ineptitude.

The Prince of Frogtown should interest many readers and would be a great choice for discussion groups. I now want to go back to Bragg's previous writings.

Bragg, Rick. The Prince of Frogtown. Books on Tape, 2008. ISBN 9781415953990

What You Might See at the Brookfield Zoo

A superhero getting a foot massage

Smiling faces in unlikely places

Cookie is out only on weekends now.

A cardinal flying by

Awful Library Books

Ulotrichous twitted. Librarian.net noticed. I am re-blogging.

Mary Kelly and Holly Hibner, two librarians from Michigan, have a crusade to get public libraries in their state to weed. They have a blog Awful Library Books, which shows books that should have been removed from collections long ago. They are kind and do not reveal the libraries at which they find these "gems." Take a look. You may both laugh and cringe.

Knucklehead: Tall Tales & Mostly True Stories about Growing Up Scieszka by Jon Scieszka

One good thing leads to another. Dana, a children's librarian at the Thomas Ford, noticed that I had read some juvenile biographies and offered me another, Knucklehead: Tall Tales & Mostly True Stories about Growing Up Scieszka by Jon Scieszka. Thanks, Dana. It was a very funny book.

Scieszka, who has written The Stinky Cheese Man and other books with Lane Smith and who is a champion of reading for boys, grew up the second of six sons in Flint, Michigan. Knucklehead is a memoir of that rough, crazy time, when he and his brothers would try about anything that sounded dangerous. It is a wonder they did not die or, at least, burn the house down. The book includes a couple of Knucklehead "Do not try" Warnings after stories. It hardly seems necessary, except if there were Knuckleheads in the 1950s and 1960s, there may still be Knuckleheads now. It also helped that his mother was a nurse.

As a contemporary of Scieszka agewise, I enjoyed recalling cub scouts, baseball cards, model planes, Halloween costumes, Dick and Jane, tiny toy soldiers, etc. The black and white family photos with the period furniture, wallpaper, and clothes evoke my own memories. I suspect many of my old friends might enjoy this book just as much or more than young readers. Dana had the right idea. Offer it to older readers.

Scieszka, Jon. Knucklehead: Tall Tales & Mostly True Stories About Growing Up Scieszka. Viking, 2008. ISBN 9780670011063

Mrs. Dred Scott: A Life on Slavery's Frontier by Lea VanderVelde

Who was Mrs. Dred Scott, wife of the slave whose claim for freedom was denied by the U. S. Supreme Court in 1857? According to Lea Vandervelde in her new book Mrs. Dred Scott: A Life on Slavery's Frontier, Harriet Robinson was a black woman born in Virginia around 1818 and taken to the Northwest Territory in 1835, where she met and married Etheldred Scott, a slave at Fort Snelling. Not much verifiable personal information about Harriet is really known. As a woman, a servant, and the member of an enslaved race, she was unnoticed by diarists and journalists of her time and historians subsequently. VanderVelde, however, has found enough documentary evidence (tax, census, and court records) to place Harriet at the scene of many momentous events both in territorial Minnesota and later in St. Louis. Most importantly, she was a party to the famous case that further divided an already fractured nation.

What many readers may not know before reading this history is that many slaves had successfully sued for freedom before the Dred and Harriet Scott case. These slaves had been taken into and resided in free states and territries north of the Mason-Dixon Line. Juries had consistently ruled in favor to release them for having been in states where slavery was illegal. Why the Scotts did not gain their freedom is a "one-thing-after-another" story worthy of satirical novels. In their eleven year legal quest, they went through six lawyers of varying talent, two of which died on them. They were at one point denied freedom because they could not prove who owned them. In the end, the dirt poor couple were opposed by some of the richest people in the country.

As a detailed history, Mrs. Dred Scott will please committed history readers. Most pleasure readers will not make the effort. There is, however, a lot of potential for a novelist to come along and rework the content into historical fiction. With so little really known about Harriet herself, the novelist would have a fairly clean slate. The supporting cast is great. The characters include her husband and two daughters, Indian agent Lawrence Taliaferro, the explorer Joseph Nicollet, the painter George Catlin, many Indian chiefs, John C. Fremont and many other military figures from the War with Mexico, the powerful Chouteau family of St. Louis, U. S. Grant, millionaire John F. A. Sanford, and, of course, Roger Taney and the rest of the U. S. Supreme Court. VanderVelde includes a handy gallery of photos in the book to help the reader keep them straight. The book could also be the basis of a great television mini-series.

I spent weeks reading this big book and feel rewarded for the effort. I certainly know a lot more about the plight of Sioux and Chippewa Indians, the widespread use of slaves in the "free" territories, the corruption of the U. S. government by the American Fur Company, the renting of slaves in St. Louis, and the racism of the 1857 U. S. Supreme Court. Mrs. Dred Scott should be in most public libraries.

VanderVelde, Lea. Mrs. Dred Scott: A Life on Slavery's Frontier. Oxford University Press, 2009. ISBN 9780195366563

George Catlin: Painter of Indian Life by Richard Worth

I am currently reading Mrs. Dred Scott: A Life on Slavery's Frontier by Lea VanderVelde. In this book, the author tells about a young slave named Harriet in the employ of the Indian agent at Fort Snelling in the territory that later became Minnesota. The time is the 1830s. It is remarkable that many people whose names are remembered in history passed through the remote outpost in the few years that Harriet was there. In addition to many Indian chiefs and warriors, military officers, and agents of the American Fur Company, there were the explorer Joseph Nicollet and the painter George Catlin. Because the settlement was small and her master entertained most of the important visitors, Harriet saw and probably cooked for most of them. It was there that she met and married Dred Scott, whose name is also remembered.

The figure that most interests me is George Catlin. Bonnie and I saw a collection of his paintings at the Smithsonian's American Art Museum when we were in Washington for the American Library Association Conference in 2007. When I saw George Catlin: Painter of Indian Life by Richard Worth on our children's new book display, I had to borrow it.

I am impressed by how much more honest children's biographies are now than when I was a child in the 1960s. Then the purpose of most juvenile biographies was to present glowing examples of good people for young minds to absorb. Rarely was anything disagreeable ever mentioned. In George Catlin: Painter of Indian Life, Richard Worth does still make a case for the painter having lived a significant life, but he includes evidence of Catlin's darker side - selfishness, unreasonable behavior, and neglect of his family. Readers realize that Catlin never really enjoyed his success, wanting something more in life that never materialized. We usually did not learn such things when I was a kid.

Though only eighty pages, George Catlin: Painter of Indian Life includes a good representation of Catlin's paintings, a map of his expeditions, a timeline of his life, and an account of the painter's life that has enough detail to satisfy an adult reader. This book aimed at grades 6-9 is part of the Show Me America series, which also includes books about John Turnball, Mathew Brady, Lewis Hine, and Corothea Lange, all painters or photographers.

Worth, Richard. George Catlin: Painter of Indian Life. Sharpe Focus, 2008. ISBN 9780765681522

The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann

Here are some travel tips. When exploring deep in the Amazon rain forest, expect misadventure. Learn to tolerate vicious insect. Don't be surprised when you find maggots in your wounds. Don't break any of your limbs, for your companions will abandon you. When canoeing, don't drag your hands in the water! Plan for the moment when staying alive becomes more important than finding Eldorado. Also, read The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann before you go. You may change your mind.

In his book Grann mixes an account of the famous 1925 Amazon expedition of British explorer Percy Harrison Fawcett with the story of his own investigation into Fawcett's fate. Fawcett was a celebrated member of the Royal Geographical Society at the time that he led a son, his son's friend, and a small party of guides and pack animals into the forest. The Englishman was convinced that a great ancient city was to be found within the white spaces on his maps. Shunning all the latest technology, such as two-way radio and light aircraft, he set off to move fast through the forest. After sending back the last guides from deep in the Mato Grosso region of Brazil, he was never heard from again.

Grann reports that around 100 people died trying to rescue Fawcett in the ensuing years. Not all of the expeditions were well documented. Many people simply disappeared in the rain forest. Some were known to have been killed by the secretive tribes who lived in the forest and were sometimes discribed as cannibals. What could Grann possibly find 80 years later?

I do not want to spoil the story, so I will let you read about Grann's discoveries yourself.

Grann, David. The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon. Doubleday, 2009. ISBN 9780385513531

Dakota: A Spiritual Geography by Kathleen Norris

Eleven people from our church came to our house last week for a discussion of Dakota: A Spiritual Geography by Kathleen Norris. The book is a collection of very personal essays by Norris about her returning to live in her grandparents house in South Dakota after living in New York City. She had planned to reside in the rural community for only a couple of years as her family decided what to do about the house and furnishings, but she and her husband stayed. In addition to rediscovering rural life, Norris also visited Benedictine monasteries to practice a more contemplative life. Dakota is the first of a series of books Norris has written about her spiritual journey.

While the group seemed generally supportive of the book, there were a few dissenters. A question that came up is why Norris felt the need to take retreats when she seemed so alone most of the time any way? Also, why Norris said so little about her husband in this book was asked. Of course, several of the group had read subsequent books and were able to fill in gaps in our knowledge.

This bring up the subject of just how self-revealing are memoirs and do authors get better at it? I am reminded of Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam. Hickam held back some of details and stories from the book, which he later revealed in Sky of Stone and Coalwood Way. Like Hickam, Norris had a certain objective with her first book and only so much would fit into the text. Also, she may have just not been ready to tackle her husband's depression when she wrote Dakota.

As a person who grew up in a small town in a remote area, I felt Norris was fair and enlightened in her assessments of rural life. I especially enjoyed her descriptions of the western part of the Dakotas, which I thought starkly beautiful the one time that I saw it. I liked that at night she could see lights from over twenty miles away. I sometimes think that that is my kind of place. I would enjoy reading more.

Norris, Kathleen. Dakota: A Spiritual Geography. Ticknor & Fields, 1993. ISBN 0395633206

Top Biographers

From today it is two months until publishing day! June 30, 2009 is the date my book Real Lives Revealed will be officially unveiled. You may now find it for pre-orders on Amazon, Baker & Taylor, and Barnes & Noble. I look forward to seeing it on display at the Libraries Unlimited exhibit at the American Library Association Annual Conference in Chicago, July 11-14.

In the meantime, I plan to post several pieces about and around the subject of biography. I'll start by identifying some top biographers. As with any literary genre, there are men and women who repeated write biographies. I identify dozens of them in the second appendix in my book. Here are three samples.


Fraser, Antonia (1932) – Popular mystery writer who also writes novel-like biographies of British and French monarchs.
· Mary, Queen of Scotts (1969)
· Cromwell: The Lord Protector (1973)
· King James VI of Scotland, I of England (1975)
· Royal Charles: Charles II and the Restoration (1979)
· Warrior Queens (1989)
· Wives of Henry VIII (1992)
· Marie Antoinette: The Journey (2001)
· Love and Louis XIV : The Women in the Life of the Sun King (2006)
Authors to try: Stephen Coote, Benita Eisler, Robery K. Massie, Nigel Saul, Claire Tomalin, Alison Weir, Derek Wilson


Macintyre, Ben (1963- ) – Journalist who writes about flamboyant historical characters.
· Forgotten Fatherland: The Search for Elisabeth Nietzsche (1992)
· The Napoleon of Crime: The Life and Times of Adam Worth, Master Thief (1997)
· The Englishman's Daughter: A True Story of Love and Betrayal in World War I (2002)
· The Man Who Would Be King: The First American in Afghanistan (2004)
· Agent Zigzag: A True Story of Nazi Espionage, Love, and Betrayal (2007)
Authors to try: Andrew Cook, Laurence Bergreen, Mary S. Lovell, Charles Nicholl, Jack Repcheck, David S. Reynolds, Kenneth Silverman


Spoto, David (1941- ) – Celebrity biographer interested in film directors who has recently also begun to write about religious figures.
· Stanley Kramer, Film Maker (1978)
· The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock (1983)
· The Kindness of Strangers: The Life of Tennessee Williams (1985)
· Falling in Love Again: Marlene Dietrich (1985)
· Lenya: A Life (1989).
· Madcap: The Life of Preston Sturges (1990)
· Blue Angel: The Life of Marlene Dietrich (1992)
· Laurence Olivier: A Biography (1992)
· Marilyn Monroe: The Biography (1993)
· A Passion for Life: The Biography of Elizabeth Taylor (1995)
· Rebel: The Life and Legend of James Dean (1996)
· Notorious: The Life of Ingrid Bergman (1997)
· Diana: The Last Year (1997)
· The Hidden Jesus: A New Life (1998)
· Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis: A Life (2000)
· Reluctant Saint: The Life of Francis of Assisi (2002)
· Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn (2006)
· Joan: The Mysterious Life of the Heretic Who Became a Saint (2007)
· Spellbound by Beauty: Alfred Hitchcock and His Leading Ladies (2008)
Authors to try: Charlotte Chandler, Anne Edwards, Fred Lawrence Guiles, C. David Heymann, Charles Higham, Kitty Kelley, Andrew Morton, Sally Bedell Smith, Tom Santopietro, J. Randy Taraborelli


These and the other top biographers entries may be used to develop readalike lists.

The Poe Shadow: A Novel by Matthew Pearl

Sometimes I feel as though I have let Edgar Allan Poe down. Though a big fan as a youth, I have not returned to his writings, though they are still on my to-read-sometime list. Also, I have failed him as a tourist. When visiting Richmond, Virginia back in 2002, I arrived at the Edgar Allan Poe Museum just as it was closing and failed to get in. That same year I went to Baltimore where I uncharacteristically got lost and never found the Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum. If I am ever invited to read at a poetry program, I plan to perform "The Raven" in the manner of Vincent Price, but it has never happened.

In The Poe Shadow: A Novel by Matthew Pearl, Quentin Clark of Baltimore was determined that he would not fail the poet, whom he had never actually met. Clark had sent Poe several letters expressing his appreciation of the author's poems and short stories. Poe had ignored most of these but just before his death had responded with a suggestion that he would like Clark to be his attorney for an upcoming publishing venture. Clark was honored and eagerly waited for the day that never came. Poe mysteriously died and was quietly buried in Baltimore in October 1849.

When muckraking newspapers began to speculate about Poe's movements during his last week and why he had died, Clark began his own investigation. His law partner and great aunt immediately tried to stop him, which, of course, egged him on. As the newspaper accounts became more lurid and contradictory, Clark became more determined and began neglecting his practice, fiancee, and home. He then went to Paris to contact the French detective whom he was certain was Poe's model for C. Auguste Dupin in The Murders in the Rouge Morgue. If anyone could solve the mystery, it was Auguste Duponte.

The Poe Shadow is just the kind of fiction that appeals to me, for I most like to learn about other times and places. Pearl has cleverly used a true mystery as a basis for this literary novel. As he explains in the "Historical Notes" in the back of the book, nearly every character, except for Clark, his partner, his aunt, his fiancee, and two Frenchmen who pose as the true Dupin, was an associate of the real Edgar Allan Poe. Pearl explains the details of the case that he utilizes. He even claims to have made a few significant discoveries of his own during his Poe research.

I chose to read Pearl's book after hearing about his new title The Last Dickens: A Novel. He has also written a novel about Dante. All of these books should be in most public libraries.

Pearl, Matthew. The Poe Shadow: A Novel. Random House, 2006. ISBN 1400061032

Juvenile Biographies for All Ages

At the bottom of the back stairs, around the corner, on an A-frame shelving unit in the Youth Services room in the Thomas Ford Memorial Library, you will find new children's books, audiobooks, and DVDs on display. Whenever I visit that area, I glance at the offerings. Thinking about how Will Manly said in a recent column in Booklist that he enjoys juvenile biographies, I took three and read them this past week.

The first biography that I borrowed had just a woman's face on the front cover. Upon seeing it, I thought I recognized her, but I wasn't quite sure. She looked younger than in the standard depictions of a very famous person. Turning to the title page, I was affirmed; it was Eleanor Roosevelt. Eleanor, Quiet No More: The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Gary Kelley is a handsome picture book about a woman who is remembered as a pioneer for women's rights and an activist for world peace. With a minimum of words, Rappaport describes Roosevelt's long life filled with both privledge and sacrifice. The author recounts the major events of the First Lady's life, even telling about her struggles with her mother-in-law and the hurt that she suffered when people described her as ugly. I enjoyed Kelley's soft, muted colors, which evoke the black-and-white world of the Depression and World War II eras. I think the page with Marian Anderson singing before the Lincoln Memorial would make a great poster.

The Many Rides of Paul Revere by James Cross Giblin was the second juvenile biography that I borrowed. I would not describe Giblin's book as a picture book, for there is quite a bit of text and even an index. Clearly it is aimed at students with assignments as much as pleasure readers. The primary message of this book is that Paul Revere did much more for the Revolutionary cause than one midnight ride. He was sent out by the Sons of Liberty on several occasions, traveling as far as Philadelphia to deliver messages. He was also a silversmith of renown, an early industrialist, and an articulate and respected member of his community. While looking at the many drawings and photographs, I enjoyed thinking about my family's past visits to Boston, including a visit to the Revere House, which is right off the Freedom Trail. Giblin's book is a substantial introduction to Revere for any age reader.

The third biography that I read was Seven Miles to Freedom: The Robert Smalls Story by Janet Halfmann and illustrated by Duane Smith. In this book, Halfmann tells about a slave who in late 1863 spirited several African-American families across the Civil War battlefront by stealing a Confederate paddle boat. Posing as a white captain in the early morning light, he calmly guided the boat past several Confederate forts to the Union blockade of the Charleston, South Carolina harbor. In the afterward, the author tells how Smalls served five terms in the U.S. Congress. I liked Smith's broad brush illustrations dramatizing the bold escape.

I see now why Will Manly is enjoying juvenile biographies, which he has been reading with his grandchildren. The books are attractive, stories are compelling, and the research is substantial. More adults should notice these books with something to offer to all ages.

Rappaport, Doreen. Eleanor, Quiet No More: The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt. Disney Hyperion Books, 2009. ISBN 9780786851416

Giblin, James Cross. The Many Rides of Paul Revere. Scholastic Press, 2007. ISBN 9780439572903

Halfmann, Janet. Seven Miles to Freedom: The Robert Smalls Story. Lee & Low Books, 2008. ISBN 9781600602320

Do I Dare Disturb the Universe?: From the Projects to Prep School by Charlise Lyles

One of the benefits of having a book review blog is getting an occasional free book. I look at each one that shows up in my mailbox, but, being under no obligation, I do not read and review every one. With plenty to read already, an unsolicited book has to somehow "speak to me" to get my attention. Do I Dare Disturb the Universe?: From the Projects to Prep School by Charlise Lyles succeeded. I enjoy coming-of-age memoirs and am very interested in civil rights stories.

Lyles new book is actually an old book rewritten. She published a first edition in 1994. In it she told about growing up in a dangerous public housing project in Cleveland, her up-and-down experiences in public school, and her search for her errant father. In the new edition she revised the story of her early experiences and added a section about her three years in Hawken School, an exclusive prep school in the Cleveland suburbs. I can hardly imagine the book without the final section, which completes her adolescence story and shows why she successfully left poverty behind her.

I like how Lyles begins the book at the point when her life is about to change dramatically. She has won a scholarship to attend Hawken School. She is not totally sure that she should accept because she will leave the known dangers of the African-American projects for the unknown dangers of the highly competitive and mostly white prep school. She seeks to find her missing father 1) to show him that she has done quite well without him, 2) to see if he is really as bad as her mother and older sister contend, and 3) to get a sign from him that she is doing the right thing. She finds him amid his piles of books in a dark and dreary apartment.

Lyles then goes back in time to describe her elementary and middle school years, showing how unlikely a candidate for prep school she was. She had even repeated the third grade. Readers also learn why she felt compelled to leave her Black Power stronghold and accept the scholarship. The final section recounts the difficulties and success of her Hawken School years.

Do I Dare Disturb the Universe? arrived at just the right time. My Library is featuring coming-of-age stories in our adult summer reading program. Lyles memoir of Cleveland in the 1960s and 1970s will be an appealing title to add to the display and booklist. I recommend it to other public libraries.


Lyles, Charlise. Do I Dare Disturb the Universe?: From the Projects to Prep School. Gray & Company, 2008. ISBN 9781598510416

Book Review Podcasts

I have been listening to several book review podcasts for a couple of months now. Each week I connect my iPod to my computer on Saturday, and iTunes loads episodes of The Washington Post Book World (Friday), The New York Times Book Review (Friday), and NPR Books (Thursday). I then usually listen to them while I cook one of the weekend meals. As I prepare dinner, I keep a pencil and pad nearby to jot down titles and authors. I later check whether my library owns the books and place reserves for the titles that interest me.

My favorite of the three programs is The Washington Post Book World with Rachel Hartigan Shea, which usually begins with some book news, is followed by two author interviews and a poetry reading, and then ends with a litany of author events in the D.C. area for the coming week. This week the news included a brief recap of the Amazon sales rankings controversy and quick announcements of literary prizes. The first interview featured Warren St. John discussing his new book Outcasts United, an investigative report about a soccer team composed of foreign refugees living outside Atlanta, Georgia. St. John recounts how the players and their coach came to be living in the American South after fleeing their homelands. The second author interviewed was with Barbara Moran, who wrote the forthcoming book The Day We Lost the H-Bomb. She described a mid-air collision between a B2 bomber and a fueling tanker in 1966 that resulted in the U. S. Air Force losing a hydrogen bomb in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Spain. The entire program was about twenty-six minutes.

The weekly podcasts with Sam Tanenhaus for The New York Times Book Review also feature two author interviews along with book news and a report on the weekend's NYT bestseller lists. With only fifteen minutes and more emphasis on the other features, the interviews are briefer than those in The Washington Post Book World. This week's NYTBR report on Amazon's troubles was more detailed than that in the WPBW. Tanenhaus draws reports from several of his paper's editors each week. The program is a pleasant companion while I chop vegetables and stir the soup.

NPR Books varies greatly from week to week. Unlike NPR Science, this podcast has no hosts introducing the stories and reviews. This week the podcast had three stories, including an interview with Romi Lassally of True Mom Confessions: Real Moms Get Real, each taken from All Things Considered or other NPR broadcast programs. The podcast lasted about fourteen minutes. Some weeks the podcast lasts nearly thirty minutes. Any type of book may be featured. NPR is more likely to have an obscure book than WPBW or NYTBR.

All of the podcasts refer listeners back to their websites for more information on books and publishing. Readers who enjoy getting background on how books are written and hearing about book trends will appreciate these lively programs.

The Inside Scoop: A Guide to Nonfiction Investigative Writing and Exposés by Sarah Stadz Cords

I am not unbiased in the reviewing of this book. I know Sarah Statz Cords. More importantly, my upcoming book about biography is the second in the Real Stories series. Sarah's book, The Inside Scoop: A Guide to Nonfiction Investigative Writing and Exposés, is the first.

The Real Stories series edited by Robert Burgin will be a group of books to help readers and librarians find nonfiction books to read. Volumes about autobiographies and memoirs, women's nonfiction, true adventure, travel, environmental writing, true crime, and sports books are being written or planned. The series will be a sort of Genreflecting for nonfiction.

It is fitting that Sarah's book start the series, as her previous book, The Real Story: A Guide to Nonfiction Reading Interests (Libraries Unlimited, 2006), is the model from which the other books are drawn. In that book, you learn of her interest in investigative writing, a genre based more on a style of writing than on a common theme. She expands a chapter in that book into six chapters in The Inside Scoop: In-Depth Reporting, Exposés, Immersion Journalism, Character Profiles, Political Reporting, and Business Reporting. Within these chapters are short reviews of hundreds of books collected in sub-sections, such as "Government Exposés," "Science Reporting," and "Hot-Button Issues."

If you are having trouble imaging the titles included, here are some that you may know:

• The Soul of the New Machine by Tracy Kidder
• Uncommon Carriers by John A. McPhee
• The Outlaw Sea: A World of Freedom, Chaos, and Crime by William Langewiesche
• The Great Deluge: Katrina, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast by Douglas Brinkley
• The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East by Sandy Tolan
• Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
• Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H. G. Bissinger
• The Good Rat: A True Story by Jimmy Breslin
• The Long Road Home: A Story of War and Family by Martha Radatz

These titles are all in the first section, In-Depth Reporting. Most are from the last few years, though there are some older works, such as Working by Studs Terkel. The other five chapters are also filled with well-known and waiting-to-be-rediscovered books.

The idea behind The Inside Scoop and the other titles in the series is that a reader or librarian look up a known title to find other titles to read. Each review includes four to eight recommendations for what to read next. For example, if you look up The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World by Alan Greenspan, Sarah suggests memoirs by Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, biographies of Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, and Henry Kissinger, books on economics by Thomas Friedman and Tim Hartford, and even the novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.

Sarah thinks beyond just books in The Inside Scoop, including lists of documentary films and magazines of investigative writing in the appendices. I believe libraries wanting to build their nonfiction readers' advisory service will want this smart new guide.


Cords, Sarah Statz. The Inside Scoop: A Guide to Nonfiction Investigative Writing and Exposés. Libraries Unlimited, 2009. 449p. ISBN 9781591586500

The Shawnees and the War for America by Colin G. Calloway

In the litany of American wars, the Indian Wars are often overlooked. They are not celebrated and memorialized with the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and the world wars of the twentieth century. Americans several generations removed from the events forget that there even were wars between European settlers and Native Americans in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Violence on the frontier is just remembered as "trouble." "There was trouble with some Indians." Rarely is it admitted that whites fought a war to eliminate (exterminate) Native Americans.

Perhaps these wars are forgotten because we are unable to reconcile our Constitutional commitment to justice with the apparent crimes of our ancestors. We would rather forget.

It is difficult now to imagine a time when the spread of Europeans across the continent of North America was not seen as inevitable. We now wonder why the Shawnees and other tribes would have bothered to fight.

As Colin G. Calloway makes clear in The Shawnees and the War for America, there were wars. The Shawnees and other tribes thought that they could win. Some whites feared the Indians might prevail. In response, the U.S. government sent military forces to the frontier repeatedly over the course of 100 years. Sometimes there were battles, but at other times there were peace settlements. The Indians actually won some of the battles, but they always lost the peace, as the whites repeatedly violated the treaties.

Calloway's concise history of the Shawnees, whose lands ranged from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico, is on the surface a calm, respectful story, but I sense underneath a rage at the atrocities committed by both whites and Indians. But, perhaps, that feeling comes from me, the reader.

The Shawnees and the War for America is the second volume of The Penguin Library of American Indian History. The Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears by Theda Perdue and Michael D. Green was the first. Public libraries should get them all.

Calloway, Colin G. The Shawnees and the War for America. Viking, 2007. ISBN 9780670038626

I Read You, You Read Me: A Poem

I have noticed many jabs at social networking lately in cartoons, columns, and editorials. Some of the jokes are funny, many are exaggerated, some are unfair. It is an irresistible target. Here's my shot in verse for National Poetry Month.


I read you,
You read me,
We both read endlessly.
Our Facebook pages suit us most.
Please wait a moment,
I have something to post.

*****

Nosy people want to know
Just where it was you planned to go.
Why did we see you on THAT street?
Just who was it you planned to meet?
We noticed you were so neatly dressed,
You tie was tied and your pants were pressed.
Your hat was tipped on your head so low.
Just where was it that you planned to go.
Nosy people want to know.

*****

So now where were we?
Is it time to read?
I'm going to log off now
And check my Twitter feed.

*****
___________________________________________________41
If I turn into chocolate and melt in your hand, will you remember my sweetness and say I was grand?

*****

I read you,
You read me,
We both read electronically.
Our digital footprints are spread so wide.
Listen folks, we have nothing to hide.

A History of Reading by Alberto Manguel

If it were not for the desire to read other books, I might never have finished A History of Reading by Alberto Manguel. As it was, I read a little at a time over about five weeks. I had to renew the book once. I could have renewed it again, as no one is waiting for it. The title is sort of drab and not promising of thrills, but once I got into the book, I thoroughly enjoyed all the arcane details about people, places, and eras that I know so little about.

For instance, on page 55, I read that Petrarch carried a pocket-sized edition of the Confessions of St. Augustine wherever he went. Petrarch lived in the 13th century and predated Gutenberg. I was surprised to learn there were pocket-editions of books even then.

On page 226, Manguel tells us about women of 1st century Greece who spent their time reading romance novels. Greek men thought that would keep them servile and out of mischief. Little did the men know that the women found ways to broaden their learning and gender communications through the supposedly safe literature. You can't keep readers down.

"The Silent Readers" is a particularly interesting chapter. In ancient times, reading was expected to be aloud. Reading quietly was thought of as sinister and diabolical. Only someone with evil purposes would not share with others their interaction with text.

Perhaps Manguel should have called the book A History of Readers as every chapter tells about individual persons and their experiences reading. Some are names that you will recognize, such as Franz Kafka, Colette, Gutenberg, or Charles II, King of England. In some ways, the book is autobiographical, as we learn about Manguel's education, work, and travels. In some other ways, it is about all of us and our habits of reading.

A History of Reading, with its nice type and many illustrations, is definitely a book for serious book lovers. Are you one? There are lots of copies on library shelves just waiting for you.

Thanks to Christine Pawley for recommending A History of Reading in her article on Readers' Advisor News.

Manguel, Alberto. A History of Reading. Viking, 1996. ISBN 0670843024

Thames: The Biography

Thanks to Bonnie and Citizen Reader, I read Thames: The Biography by Peter Ackroyd. It had been on my big list of many titles that I would like to read someday, but with their recommendations, I moved it to the front of the queue. Because it is a big book and I was busy with my other projects, I spent a month reading it, which may have been a blessing. It is a great book to read slowly, a little at a time.

If you have not seen it, Thames: The Biography has 441 pages of actual narrative divided into many chapter, some as small as six pages. Each of the 45 chapters is an essay about some aspect of the history of the great English River around which many of the most important events in British history have occurred. Ackroyd must love the river immensely to put so much effort and thought into this fascinating book. Reading it makes me want to return to England badly.

Thames: The Biography is truly mostly about the river and its life. Ackroyd seems to have thought of every topic historical, cultural, religious, environmental, political, and literary. Readers who have narrower interests could well chose only the chapters that appeal to them and still enjoy a full reading experience. The book is almost an encyclopedia, but do not guess that it is dry and academic. I can imagine Ackroyd telling me about his river in the comfort of a den with a blazing fire and hours to spend in good conversation.

I loved some of the place names, especially Horseferry Place, Long Wittenham, Little Wittenham, Bablock Hythe, Iffley, Twwickenham, and Isle of Dogs.

While reading, I often visualized scenes that I have seen in movies, in BBC programs, or in my own travels. When Little Dorret went to the riverside in the recent Masterpiece Theater production by the same name, I noticed everything I could about the sand, the tide marks, and who was doing what by the water. Thames: The Biography is a book that will wake you up to the world around you. And you will wish it was the Thames.

Ackroyd, Peter. Thames: The Biography. Doubleday, 2007. ISBN 9780385526234

Steve Justman at Friday at the Ford

Singer/guitarist Steve Justman's roots are folk music. You might guess so from his play list at the April 10 performance at Friday at the Ford at the Thomas Ford Memorial Library. He began with a lively rendition of Tom Paxton's classic "I Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound." After a less-known song by Jo Mapes, he also showed his love for old country music, singing "Someone I Used to Know" by Nashville's Porter Wagonner. Add Hank Williams, the Kingston Trio, the Weavers, Dean Martin, Steve Goodman, Johnny Cash, and more Tom Paxton. Steve took us on an entertaining tour of the musical world of the 1950s and 1960s that had members of the audience tapping their feet.

I enjoyed Steve's banter between songs almost as much as the songs themselves. I know it is tough for some performers to play alone, as he does, and keep the listeners engaged. He seems a natural.

Steve reports that he enjoys playing libraries, where he says he is always warmly received. It is a logical market for him, as his wife is head of technical services at a library in the north Chicago suburbs. To find more about Steve and his programs, visit his website, where he has audio files for several of the songs that he played at Thomas Ford.

Update on Real Lives Revealed

Having worked six days last week, I had today off. So, I spent almost the entire day proofing Real Lives Revealed: A Guide to Reading Interests in Biography, which is due to publish June 30, 2009. It's looking really good. I found only a couple of dozen corrections to make.

• Some Zs with accent marks disappeared.
• One editing command printed on the text.
• A couple of singular/plural problems.
• See references to books that I had dropped from the text.

The biggest help in spotting problems was completing and sorting the spreadsheets for the indexes. I identified several misspellings when I saw how variations appeared in the spreadsheets. I am particularly glad now that I indexed the book myself. If I do another book, I am going to have my spreadsheets active from the beginning.

Real Lives Revealed is now listed both on Amazon and on Baker and Taylor. Amazon says that it is 348 pages. The book actually is 491 pages without the chronological, author/title, and subject indexes. I can hardly wait to see how many pages it will have in the end. I do like the statement about the book on Amazon, which urges you to ask the publisher to put out a Kindle version. For a roving readers' adviser, it might be nice on a Kindle.

The book is not listed on Barnes in Noble yet. If you search my name, the first result is the anniversary DVD of the Ten Commandments. Search my title and you find A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez.

I am very excited by the prospect of actually holding the book soon. I am also very indebted to the team of people who have helped. There is a full page of thank yous in the book. You'll find them in the front, before the 491 pages.

"Why I'm Happy" by Will Manley

I had to smile at Will Manley's "Why I'm Happy" essay for his column "The Manley Arts" in the April 1, 2009 issue of Booklist. He is enjoying retirement, and a big part of that is his time with his grandchildren Connor (three) and Sophia (one). Physical play has gotten him "in the best shape of my life." For his mind there is going to the library, where he is reading children's books, especially biographies. He has been pleasantly surprised by the wide variety of subjects on the shelves of the children's library.

I can relate. I had a great time for six years as a stay-at-home dad. I still enjoy reading books froom my favorite children's authors. I would, however, caution him against going down enclosed slides. They are not made for adults. The sliding is not the problem. Getting out of them sometimes is. Don't hurt your back, Will.