Tuesday, December 07, 2010

Short Takes: unforgettable, multidimensional journeys

NY Times Book Review holiday roundup includes SOUTHERN FOODWAYS ALLIANCE COMMUNITY COOKBOOK as a top cookbook for giving this year, and Nashville Scene agrees: "includes of plenty of genuinely new and genuinely Southern food to prove that it's still a living, breathing cuisine." The book also appears in current issues of Smoky Mountain Living and Charleston Magazine, and is reviewed in the Raleigh News & Observer.

THE OYSTER QUESTION has won the 2010 book prize from the Forum for the History of Science in America, as mentioned here in the Rochester Business Journal. The judges for the prize noted, "By situating local knowledge and politics into her narrative, Keiner’s study captures the full complexity of the history of scientifically-informed environmental policy in the Chesapeake. In particular, the prize committee was impressed by her accessible and engaging prose, and her extensive notes that helped the reader navigate the complex history of the region, its politics, and its people." The book has already received awards from the Organization of American Historians and the Maryland Historical Trust.

The new issue of the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography reviews BROTHERS OF A VOW, a study of secret fraternal organizations in antebellum Virginia, praising in particular its role in helping to "enlarge our understanding of the culture and place of non-elite white men in the South."

Several strong reviews in the Alabama Review:
CARRY IT ON: "Ashmore makes a compelling case in an exceptional narrative, and she provides an outstanding analysis of the intersection of politics and economics in the aftermath of federal intervention in American inequality."

ON HARPER'S TRAIL: "Shores has done a masterful job of bringing together this enigmatic man's disparate traits to present the life of an accomplished but troubled individual whose contributions to science are only today becoming fully recognized."

SOUTHERN MASCULINITY: "a successful venture and a fascinating opening into the complex ideals of masculinity as they were imagined and acted out."

CROSSROADS OF CONFLICT mentioned in the Augusta Chronicle.In other Civil War news, press author Jim Cobb contributed a piece to Disunion, the New York Times blog that "follows the Civil War as it unfolded" in honor of the sesquicentennial.

Colin Cheney's HERE BE MONSTERS in The Bloomsbury Review: "This is not the easiest poetry to write, but it is a joy to read and ponder as he turns wisdom into unforgettable, multidimensional journeys."

In the Aiken Standard, Whit Gibbons recommends buying nature books for a local public or school library this holiday season.