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NEW PUBLICATIONS

C&RL News, January 2005
Vol. 66, No. 1

by George Eberhart

The Encyclopedia of African American Military History, by William Weir (365 pages, July 2004), highlights the military operations in which black troops participated, from the American Revolution to the Iraq War. This is a handy place to find information on Buffalo Soldiers, the Red Ball Express, the Golden Thirteen, Vietnam shipboard troubles, or biographies of Gen. Daniel "Chappie" James, Eugene Jacques Bullard, and Lt. Henry O. Flipper. $99.00. Prometheus. ISBN 1-59102-169-3.

From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America, edited by Michael W. Grunberger (243 pages, September 2004), accompanies a Library of Congress exhibition marking the arrival in New Amsterdam in 1654 of 23 Jews fleeing Recife, Brazil, which had just passed from Dutch to Portuguese hands. In 1905, Jews in America first marked the occasion as a symbol of our nation’s role as both a haven and a home, and this volume examines the history and context of the 150 treasures from LC’s Judaica collection that is now traveling on exhibit. $50.00. George Braziller. ISBN 0-8076-1537-4.

Hennen’s Public Library Planner: A Manual and Interactive CD-ROM, by Thomas J. Hennen Jr. (417 pages, July 2004), has a wealth of information on long-range planning processes in public libraries. Hennen’s statistical approach is practical and adaptable, and his constant attention to governance issues make this a valuable analytical tool. $125.00. Neal-Schuman. ISBN 1-55570-487-5.

The Monarch Butterfly: Biology and Conservation, edited by Karen S. Oberhauser and Michelle J. Solensky (248 pages, August 2004), brings together 27 contributions by worldwide monarch specialists on the breeding, migration, overwintering, and population biology of this colorful butterfly. At the root of the monarch’s popularity is the fact that it’s the only insect that flies more than 2,000 miles from summer breeding grounds to overwintering sites in Mexico, which now offers a protected area for the millions of migrants. One chapter describes the catastrophic effects of the January 2002 winter storm on Mexican populations. $39.95. Cornell University. ISBN 0-8014-4188-9.

Popeye: An Illustrated Cultural History, by Fred M. Grandinetti (337 pages, 2d ed., August 2004), is a significant expansion of the author’s 1994 edition, just in time for the cartoon character’s 75th birthday. Grandinetti explores every conceivable manifestation of the spinach-loving sailor man in print, and on film, television, and records. A comprehensive annotated episode guide, sample cartoon scripts, and the abundant illustrations will make the confirmed Popeye fan exclaim, "Blow me down!" $45.00. McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-1605-X.

Unleashed: Of Poltergeists and Murder, the Curious Story of Tina Resch, by William Roll and Valerie Storey (309 pages, May 2004), is the absorbing story of a poltergeist outbreak that affected the John Resch family in Columbus, Ohio, in 1984 when their adopted 14-year-old daughter Tina exhibited some remarkable psychokinetic abilities. The case drew national attention because of photographs taken by a Columbus Dispatch reporter and was investigated promptly by parapsychologist Roll, who took the girl to his lab in North Carolina for some scientific testing. However, Tina’s already unhappy childhood led to miserable experiences as an adult and she is now serving a life sentence in Georgia for the murder of her three-year-old daughter in 1992, a crime which Roll thinks she did not commit. In some ways, the ambiguity of Tina’s poltergeist talent parallels that of an unfortunately flawed judicial process. $14.00. Paraview. ISBN 0-7434-8294-8.

George M. Eberhart is senior editor of American Libraries, e-mail: geberhart@ala.org