To highlight the wide range of publications reviewed in Choice, each month Choice editors feature some noteworthy reviews from the current issue.

Alien worlds: social and religious dimensions of extraterrestrial contact, ed. by Diana G. Tumminia.  Syracuse, 2007.  364p bibl index afp ISBN 0815608586   pbk, $34.95; ISBN 9780815608585, $34.95.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3721 BF2050 2006-102594 CIP
 
The American cultural mainstream is broadly aware of the proposal that aliens have made contact with humans on Earth. Since a spaceship reportedly crashed near Roswell, NM, in 1947, thousands of reports have surfaced of friendly visits to "contactees" or hostile encounters with "abductees." Thanks to movies and television programs (e.g., Star Wars and The X-Files), millions of people are familiar with the notion of alien contact. The general public remains skeptical about the reality of these claims; instead, most view the Sci-Fi channel and read science-fiction novels for escape entertainment. However, some people believe in the reality of an alien world, and a few have appropriated this idea to create new religions, such as the Raelians, Solar Temple, and Heaven's Gate. The foundation for these belief systems is that people have imperiled the planet's existence by ignoring ecological and nuclear threats. By virtue of their superior intelligence and technology the aliens are the saviors in these new religions. This book's essays explore many related and debated issues such as reasons for the appeal of the movement, the possibility of channeling, out-of-body experiences, and the nature of belief itself. The authors provide a splendid introduction to the religious dimensions of extraterrestrial contact. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers. -- W. L. Pitts Jr., Baylor University 

Anderson Lee W.  Congress and the classroom: from the Cold War to"No Child Left Behind."  Pennsylvania State, 2007.  214p bibl index afp; ISBN 9780271032238, $29.95.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3905 LC89 2007-17105 CIP
 
Anderson, an independent education researcher, provides an excellent political history of No Child Left Behind. The analysis uses voting behavior and rhetoric of key players in Congress to explore how the federal government's involvement in financial support for K-12 schooling increased. He describes how liberals and conservatives compromised over time to achieve their goals. Liberals targeted equality of educational opportunity as conservatives sought fiscal restraint and accountability. According to Anderson, since the 1950s, conservatives' effort to limit federal involvement in schools has been permanently overturned. Concurrently, he argues that accountability for spending devoted to closing achievement gaps is here to stay. Yet, certain boundaries liberals or conservatives will not cross are still in place, including vouchers and class size reduction. A fascinating analysis shows how conservatives and liberals have been appeased by including both categorical and general aid initiatives in federal education law. Anderson explains how applying both financial largess and accountability across all schools, rather than to the Title One schools that really need it, has led to widespread labeling of non-Title One schools as failing, fallout that may profoundly and negatively affect the next revision of the law. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers, upper-division undergraduates and above. -- R. F. Subotnik, American Psychological Association

Ball, Howard.  Bush, the detainees & the Constitution: the battle over presidential power in the war on terror.  University Press of Kansas, 2007.  275p index afp; ISBN 9780700615292, $34.95.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-4053 KF5060 2007-21676 CIP
 
Since the declaration of a "war on terror" in 2001, scholars from a variety of fields have begun to investigate a wide range of issues surrounding this conflict. The most recent offering is from Ball (emer., Vermont Law School), who has written a passionate polemic regarding presidential power in wartime. In his comprehensive and detailed analysis, Ball focuses on the issue of enemy combatants, giving a systematic and expansive probing of the development, contradictions, and legal exercises surrounding this controversial designation by the president. Ball presents the conflicting, and, at times, troubling relationship between the three branches of government. This book should enlighten not only scholars but also the general public about the issues confronting the nation in this war on terror, including a strong, unitary presidency that may or may not be countered by the constitutional checks within our governing system. Ball is critical of the unitary presidency theory, and advances arguments for the constitutional checks on the presidency at this time. His arguments are compelling and thoughtful, and should be required reading for understanding our complex system, which encompasses separate institutions that may jealously guard, and often attempt to expand, their own powers. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels. -- J. Michael Bitzer, Catawba College

Bravo, Ellen.  Taking on the big boys: or why feminism is good for families, business, and the nation.  Feminist, CUNY, 2007.  294p bibl index ISBN 1-55861-545-8, $49.00; ISBN 1558615466 pbk, $15.95; ISBN 9781558615458, $49.00; ISBN 9781558615465 pbk, $15.95. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-4086 HQ1190 2006-24679 CIP
 
"Feminism" has become such an emotionally charged term that many people who hold feminist ideals are reluctant to identify themselves as feminists. Bravo's feminist treatise on families, business, and society will benefit feminists and nonfeminists alike. While there are a couple of one-sided statistical interpretations, for the most part this is a refreshing, statistically and anecdotally enlightening look at how current concepts of gender roles and responsibilities are not beneficial for individuals, business, or even society at large. Bravo (Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee) tackles issues and myths surrounding pay equity, the balance of work and home life, discrimination, and welfare. Even more useful are her realistic, attainable suggestions for change. A witty, statistically supported, and readable book that provides a strong message sure to foster ideas and generate debate. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. -- L. Wolfer, University of Scranton

Brown, Bridget.  They know us better than we know ourselves: the history and politics of alien abduction.  New York University, 2007.  247p bibl index afp ISBN 0-8147-9921-3, $70.00; ISBN 0814799221 pbk, $22.00; ISBN 9780814799215, $70.00; ISBN 9780814799222  pbk, $22.00. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-4074 BF2050 2007-6143 CIP
 
Unlike Philip Klass (in UFO Abductions: A Dangerous Game, 1988), Brown (Montclair State Univ.) is not interested in demonstrating the improbability of abductions. Neither does she focus on the kinds of people who claim to have been abducted, as Susan Clancy does in Abducted: How People Come to Believe They Were Kidnapped by Aliens (CH, Feb'06, 43-3698). Rejecting the notion that humans have been or are being abducted and molested by aliens, Brown tries to understand the psychological, economic, and political forces that have shaped the alien-abduction phenomenon and the subculture surrounding it. In so doing she addresses a variety of questions: What role have media played in promoting belief in alien abductions? What contribution does the profitable industry of diagnosing and treating "abductees" make in caring for these individuals and publishing and lecturing about the cases? What theories have emerged about the motivations of the aliens who are allegedly committing abductions/molestations? How has the abduction phenomenon led to conspiracy theories? What vacuum does the role of abductee fill in the lives of supposed abductees? Brown's writing style is clear and engaging, and she supplements her discussion with endnotes. About much more than abduction, this is a fascinating addition to the literature. Summing Up: All readers, all levels. -- R. H. Cormack, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology

Crowe, Michael J.  Mechanics from Aristotle to Einstein.  Green Lion Press, 2007.  331p bibl index afp; ISBN 9781888009323 pbk, $17.95. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3847   Orig
 
This wonderful, user-friendly book combines selected translations of original texts, extensive commentary, numerical examples of computations, biographical notes, and easy lab experiments to provide a history of mechanics, emphasizing motion (i.e., dynamics). Crowe (emer., Univ. of Notre Dame) is a well-recognized scholar on the history of science, and he developed the book from long experience in teaching. The annotated bibliography is well organized, as is the index, and reads beautifully. This work can be used in courses on history of science, history of mathematics, or related topics and, with the right emphasis, for either undergraduate or graduate courses. A good high school-level preparation in math and basic physics is needed for understanding. Sections on Galileo and Newton, about 60 percent of the book, are superb and will introduce the Principia or Dialogues concerning Two New Sciences, or more scholarly works by Cohen. Crowe's book is incomparable because of the perfect balance of translations, examples, computations, commentary, and hands-on exercises. Not covered are contributions of non-Europeans, e.g., Arabs, Persians, or Indians on mechanics; Archimedes' works; analytical dynamics (Lagrange and Hamilton, the concept of action); statistical mechanics (Boltzmann); mechanics of deformable bodies (vibrations and waves); or quantum mechanics via matrix or wave equation formulations. Summing Up: Essential. General readers; lower-division undergraduates through professionals. -- J. Lambropoulos, University of Rochester

Cunningham, Jane.  Inside her pretty little head: a new theory of female motivation and what it means for marketing, by Jane Cunningham and Philippa Roberts.  CYAN/Marshall Cavendish, 2007 (c2006).  247p bibl ISBN 1-904879-96-9, $26.95; ISBN 9781904879961, $26.95.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3872 HF5415  MARC
 
Marketers often refer to the "black box" model of the human brain--a dark, unknown area represented by a question mark. What are consumers thinking? What do they really want? Now the answers are clear--at least for the female half of the population. Cunningham and Roberts (partners in the marketing consultancy PrettyLittleHead) have identified "four feminine codes" that underscore how women think and make purchases. Unlike men, who value hierarchies, competition, action, and things, women focus on helping others, making the world a better place, maintaining harmony, and building relationships. The authors translate these attributes into the four codes: The Altruism Code, The Aesthetic Code, The Ordering Code, and The Connecting Code. Thus, women buy from ethical companies like The Body Shop (no animal testing of cosmetics) and drink fair trade coffee (altruism). They follow Martha Stewart's advice for the perfect home (aesthetics). Before making purchases, they ask lots of questions and want product warranties (ordering), and they join Oprah's Book Club and Weight Watchers (connecting). An informative, engaging book. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division and graduate marketing students, faculty, practitioners, and women themselves. -- P. G. Kishel, Cypress College

Currid, Elizabeth.  The Warhol economy: how fashion, art, and music drive New York City.  Princeton, 2007.  258p bibl index afp; ISBN 9780691128375, $27.95. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3888 HD9999 2007-14019 CIP
 
Given the current hype about economic clusters, what a pleasure it is to read a book about a real cluster--one with all the competition and collaboration, the shared pool of skilled labor, and the intense face-to-face interaction that are essential to the true cluster. Others have discussed the New York City arts scene from the standpoint of economic geography, but none better than Currid (Univ. of Southern California). Her discussion ranges from the development of the creative industries in New York to the education of the workforce, to the social scene that is essential to support these enterprises. Her understanding of how the industry functions and her insightful analysis of its economics provides the basis for her discussion of what urban policy makers should do to foster growth of this essential element in the economy of the creative or knowledge city. Currid focuses less on tax incentives, the first thought of local officials, and more on providing the spaces and ambience that these creative individuals will seek out. While New York is the premier arts city in the world, Currid urges each city to build on its own strengths, rather than simply emulate the leader. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers; students, upper-division undergraduate and up; professionals. -- P. K. Kresl, Bucknell University

Frith, Chris.  Making up the mind: how the brain creates our mental world.  Blackwell Publishing, 2007.  234p index afp; ISBN 9781405160223 pbk, $24.95. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3771 QP376 2006-38336 CIP
 
"After the age of about 50, many neuroscientists feel that they have sufficient wisdom and expertise to set about solving the problem of consciousness," says Frith (University College London) in the epilogue to this book. He asserts that "this book is not about consciousness." Indeed, this volume stands apart from many that have been written lately (perchance by neuroscientists over 50?) about the mind-brain connection. Making Up the Mind begins with a description of the experiments that have had the greatest impact on current views of how the brain works. This includes an elegant section about perhaps the most startling revelation of the past 50+ years--namely, that much, if not all, of one's mental life is an illusion. The final section of the book highlights the often-overlooked role of human culture in the creation of mental worlds. It is not just people's interaction with the physical world, including their own bodies, that creates the perception of reality; people are equally if not more dependent on their interactions with the mental worlds of others. For those who have time to read only one book about the brain, this should be it. Summing Up: Essential. Lower-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers. -- C. A. Lindgren, Grinnell College

Goldstein, Paul.  Intellectual property: the tough new realities that could make or break your business.  Portfolio, 2007.  244p bibl index; ISBN 9781591841777, $27.95.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3874 KF2979 2007-14193 CIP
 
Goldstein (Stanford Law School) does an outstanding job of putting the complex and frequently changing area of intellectual property (IP) law within reach of the average reader. In this easy-to-read volume, he tackles thoroughly and concisely what is generally covered in two semesters of law school. Goldstein covers all areas of IP law in detail, from patents and copyright to trademarks and trade secrets; traces the history of each area; and explains key legal cases and legislation. The book covers current topics such as peer-to-peer file sharing through music sharing services like Napster and Kazaa, Internet domain name trademark infringement cases, cybersquatting, and the Google Library Project. Goldstein also examines what effects new technologies have had, and will continue to have, on traditional IP law. Although most of the book focuses on US intellectual property law, one chapter titled "Intellectual Assets in International Markets" covers the relationship between IP laws in the US and foreign countries. The book concludes with Goldstein's thoughts on the US's position in global IP markets. Ample endnotes for primary and secondary sources offer readers additional research materials. Summing Up: Essential. General readers; students, upper-division undergraduate and up; researchers and professionals. -- J. D. Graveline, Business Librarian, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Hatch, Charles R.  Trees of the California landscape: a photographic manual of native and ornamental trees.  California, 2007.  540p bibl indexes afp; ISBN 9780520251243, $60.00.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3782 QK149 2006-51410 CIP
 
Important guides to California's trees and vegetation exist; among them are J. D. Stuart and J. O. Sawyer's compact field guide Trees and Shrubs of California (CH, Nov'01, 39-1568) and North American Terrestrial Vegetation (2nd ed., CH, Jul'00, 37-6267), ed. by M. Barbour and W. D. Billings. However, as this book's foreword notes, not since H. E. McMinn and E. Maino's An Illustrated Manual of Pacific Coast Trees (1935) has a book covered both native trees and nonnative (introduced) ornamental trees designed for landscaping. Hatch (landscape architect) offers a work that could find a place on the coffee table but also serve as an outstanding resource for landscape professionals, botanists, horticulturists, ecologists, and anyone with a general interest in California trees. It includes excellent illustrated introductory sections on the California environment, climate, and geography, and chapters on the California landscape and trees in the native and urban landscapes. An alphabetical tree compendium by Latin name offers separate pages for each of 419 taxa, describing the leaves, bark, flowers, and fruit; accompanying these are beautiful color photographs of both the tree and individual leaves and/or flowering branches. Supplementary tables include keys to tree species and genera, indexes to common names, a glossary, and an excellent up-to-date bibliography. Summing Up: Essential. All levels. -- N. Kobzina, University of California, Berkeley
 
 
An Introduction to the aquatic insects of North America, ed. by R.W. Merritt, K.W. Cummins, and M.B. Berg.  4th ed.  Kendall Hunt, 2008.  1,158p bibl index CD-ROM; ISBN 9780757541285 pbk, $94.95. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3789 QL473  MARC
 
Merritt and coeditors and a host of specialist authors have provided readers a wonderful update with the fourth edition of this book. Even so, as it sat on this reviewer's desk, this spiral-bound tome of nearly 1,000 text pages looked intimidating. In practical use it is an accessible instrument, especially when coupled with its interactive electronic key to the orders. Unfortunately, the black-and-white line drawings in the print portion are generally not as clean and crisp as one might expect and not as nice as those in the electronic version; however, they are more than adequate and very extensive. The book also offers nearly 250 color plates. The CD-ROM uses the Lucid3 platform application running on a cross-platform Java operating system (JVM 1.4.2 or greater). This part of the package may present a brief learning curve, depending on the user's computer background. This book/CD-ROM combination should be required at field stations where aquatic insects are studied and in every research lab of aquatic ecology. Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through professionals/practitioners. -- R. L. Wallace, Ripon College

Karmel, Henia.  A wall of two: poems of resistance and suffering from Kraków to Buchenwald and beyond, by Henia Karmel and Ilona Karmel; tr. by Arie A. Galles and Warren Niesluchowski; introd. and adaptations by Fanny Howe.  California, 2007.  117p bibl afp; ISBN 9780520251359, $45.00; ISBN 9780520251366  pbk, $16.95. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3676 PG7158 2007-15644 CIP
 
A noted American poet and a friend of Ilona Karmel, Howe undertook an awesome task in "adapting" Ilona and Henia Karmel's Nazi labor camp poetry, which the sisters wrote (then squirreled away) to help them survive their harrowing ordeal, capture the horrors they witnessed, and stay sane amid the maddening mayhem of Hitler's genocide and torture. How does one manage to appropriate the rough terror and the desperate cry for help so palpable in the original Polish poems? How can one help those who have not suffered so to grasp the reality in these words? What bridges to understanding, compassion, and care can one build between these witnesses and the generations present and those yet to come? Howe dares to undertake these tasks. In measured, unimpassioned language, she renders in English the essence of the images and feelings the two sisters recorded. In so doing, she spans the abyss between experience and empathy. These are, by Howe's own admission, "adaptations," and they regard neither the form nor the power of the rhymed original lines. Just as in music, variations on the theme, elegant and sophisticated, transpose the difficult topoi and fill the need to know and to experience viscerally, so that the reader can remember and continue to say "never again." Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers, all levels. -- D. Hutchins, Buena Vista University 

Kenneally, Christine.  The first word: the search for the origins of language.  Viking, 2007.  357p bibl index ISBN 0-670-03490-8, $26.95; ISBN 9780670034901, $26.95. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3614 P107 2007-3182 CIP
 
Kenneally (linguist; freelance writer) explores how animal behavior can shed light on the evolution of human speech. Prominent linguists have long accepted that language is distinctly human, but the notion that animal behavior can inform us about language evolution has recently attracted attention, particularly with Steven Pinker's The Language Instinct (CH, Jul'94, 31-6014). Noam Chomsky entered the discussion with On Nature and Language, ed. by Adriana Belletti and Luigi Rizzi (CH, Feb'03, 40-3223), fueling the controversy by veering from his earlier insistence that language is distinctly human. Kenneally devotes her opening chapters to prominent figures in the debate. Subsequent chapters explore gestures, genes, the brain, and culture. Kenneally not only takes the reader into the minds of the renowned linguists whom she interviews but also offers glimpses into their personalities. She concludes with a series of responses from many of her interviewees concerning whether babies raised in isolation might develop speech. Kenneally's presentation of scientific and linguistic material is lucid and accessible. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals; general readers. -- C. P. Jamison, Armstrong Atlantic State University

McBride, Keally.  Punishment and political order.  Michigan, 2007.  194p bibl index afp ISBN 0-472-09982-5, $55.00; ISBN 9780472099825, $55.00. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-4049 HV7419 2006-29795 CIP
 
This well-thought-out little tome has a tremendous punch line for those trying to understand the consequences of holding enemy combatants at Guantánamo Bay or Abu Ghraib. McBride (Univ. of Pennsylvania) traces linkages between those who rule and legitimate state punishment from an impressively wide variety of perspectives. The author delves deeply into the history of the legitimacy of punishment, surveying the issue from the views of Thomas More, Kafka, Hobbes, the Old Testament, modern concepts of sovereignty, the early American republic, liberal regimes, and prison labor. Despotisms do not need to justify punishment, but democracies must. In the 19th-century reform era, punishment by a legitimate regime was supposed to garner rehabilitation. Regimes that punish simply to demonstrate power are typically denounced by other countries. McBride asserts that the US, by holding enemy combatants and refusing to bring charges against them, uses "punishment to demonstrate the power of command." This, according to her analysis, is rightly considered an illegitimate use of state power over individuals. Therefore, such punishment is not appropriate and "will ultimately reap resistance." Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above. -- D. S. Mann, College of Charleston 

   
Online matchmaking, ed. by Monica T. Whitty, Andrea J. Baker, and James A. Inman.  Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.  209p bibl indexes ISBN 1-4039-9849-3, $74.95; ISBN 9781403998491, $74.95.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-4098 HQ801 2006-50193 CIP
 
This work began as a research project by James Inman and several graduate students at the Univ. of South Florida. Other editors joined, and a year and a half later, the project encompassed 16 authors from different parts of the world and the US. Three articles in Part 1 define online matchmaking. Part 2, with three articles, concerns presentation of self to attract lovers, i.e., how online daters present themselves to potential partners. Two articles in Part 3 deal with how relationships progress in cyberspace, and how they often progress to face-to-face encounters. Part 4 covers the darker side of online dating, and the last section deals with subgroups of special populations meeting in cyberspace. All the articles are very interesting, even for readers not interested in dating, though the quality is somewhat varied. Appropriately, most of the construction and editing of the book took place in cyberspace. This should be of great interest to many scholars, as well as nonspecialists who might be interested in cyber-dating. There will undoubtedly be many more publications on the subject in the near future. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. -- M. Y. Rynn, Lackawanna College

PaperofRecord.com. Internet Resource. Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-3515
http://www.paperofrecord.com/ 

[Visited Dec'07] Paper of Record is a freely accessible archive of international newspapers. The site provides digital facsimiles of original newspaper pages for approximately 300 titles. Free registration and Adobe Acrobat Reader are both required to view the images. International in scope, Paper of Record includes newspapers from Australia, Bahamas, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Ecuador, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Mexico, the UK, and the US, with Canada and Mexico most abundantly represented. Publication dates range from the mid 1700s to the early 21st century. Some titles include only partial runs; others are complete. Examples are The Sporting News (St. Louis: 1886-2003), Afro American (Baltimore: 1902-1978, partial), Toronto World (1880-1921, partial), Irish Times (Dublin: 1859-2000, partial), and El Informador (Guadalajara, 1917-1968).

Conceived by Bob Huggins as a "global pioneer of searchable newspaper image documents presented in their original published form," Paper of Record is based on the model used to digitize and make accessible the Toronto Star. Created from newspaper collections on microfilm, the archive contains more than 21 million images to date. Updates are clearly marked on the title list. Searching is within one title at a time, for a maximum of five years at a time. Search terms are required; one may limit a search to specific dates, newspaper sections, and page contents. Results may be displayed as thumbnails. Though arranged chronologically, results may be sorted in various ways, e.g., number of hits or section of the paper. Browsing a newspaper by date is possible but not necessarily intuitive--one simply leaves the search box empty. The site also provides brief histories of each newspaper, and registration includes e-mail-based support. Paper of Record is an impressive collection of newspapers from around the globe. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Academic and public libraries; all levels. -- S. Markgren, Purchase College, SUNY
 
 
Stone, Pamela.  Opting out?: why women really quit careers and head home.  California, 2007.  295p bibl index afp; ISBN 9780520244351, $24.95.
Reviewed in 2008mar CHOICE.
45-4102 HQ759 2007-6566 CIP
 
This is at once a thoughtful, sensitive, and provocative examination of the rationales that prompt accomplished, productive women to transfer their work lives from workplace to home. Stone's profound but caring, concerned, and considerate research leads readers to share in both the women's struggles and their decision to remake work in an image of their newly discovered responsibilities of family and child development. Though the text ends with the exhortation "Ladies, start your engines," equally arresting is the appendix detailing the study's methodology, from the choice of research design to participant recruitment and the interview as a research enterprise, to the presentation of results, including their possible limitations. Stone (Hunter College) hopes the voices of the subjects come through clearly as she comments on them, and these individuals do indeed come through in exemplary fashion. This work is an object lesson in the research enterprise, quite apart from the story the research tells. The volume merits a wide and similarly concerned audience. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. -- L. Braude, formerly, SUNY Fredonia 
 

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