Book of the Week (April 12, 2010)

The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and Crusade for America

By Douglas Brinkley

Call Number: E 757 B856 2009

Publisher's Description: Historian Douglas Brinkley draws on never-before-published materials to examine the life and achievements of our "naturalist president." By setting aside more than 230 million acres of wild America for posterity between 1901 and 1909, Theodore Roosevelt made conservation a universal endeavor. This crusade for the American wilderness was perhaps the greatest U.S. presidential initiative between the Civil War and World War I.

Tracing the role that nature played in Roosevelt's storied career, Brinkley brilliantly analyzes the influence that the works of John James Audubon and Charles Darwin had on the young man who would become our twenty-sixth president. He also profiles Roosevelt's incredible circle of naturalist friends, including the Catskills poet John Burroughs, Boone and Crockett Club cofounder George Bird Grinnell, and Sierra Club founder John Muir, among many others. He brings to life hilarious anecdotes of wild-pig hunting in Texas and badger saving in Kansas. Even the story of the teddy bear gets its definitive treatment.

Destined to become a classic, this extraordinary and timeless biography offers a penetrating and colorful look at Roosevelt's naturalist achievements, a legacy now more important than ever. As we face the problems of global warming, overpopulation, and sustainable land management, this imposing leader's stout resolution to protect our environment is an inspiration and a contemporary call to arms for us all.

New York Times Book Review

Book of the Week (March 30, 2010)

New in the Reference Collection on the First Floor
Call Number: REF HF 5382. C34 2009

Green Careers: Choosing Work for a Sustainable Future
By Jim Cassio and Alice Rush

Publisher's Description:

People of all ages and backgrounds are seeking work in career fields that will help save the planet, yet many people are unaware of the variety of green careers available. This unique career guidance book, based on labor market research, covers green jobs representing almost every area of career interest.

The authors’ extensive experience in workforce development will help you explore tomorrow’s green career options by answering such questions as: What green careers are available? What salary can I expect? What education do I need? What is the demand for this profession? How do I change to a green career?

Green Careers offers clear and concise information about the emerging field of environmental jobs. Chapters include:

*Industry-by-industry overview of green jobs
*Ninety different occupations in twelve different career groups
*Over sixty case studies and interviews of people working in green jobs
*Career planning information
*Job search resources

It is an indispensable guide for finding a career to feel passionate about and prospering while doing what you love.

Book of the Week (March 7, 2010

Confessions of a Public Speaker
By Scott Berkun

Call Number: PN 4129.15 .B48 2010

Publisher's Description: " at 7:48 a.m. on a Tuesday, I am showered, cleaned, shaved, pruned, fed, and deodorized, wearing a pressed shirt and shiny shoes, in a cab on my way to the San Francisco waterfront I'm far from home, going to an unfamiliar place, and performing for strangers, three stressful facts that mean anything can happen "

In this hilarious and highly practical book, author and professional speaker Scott Berkun reveals the techniques behind what great communicators do, and shows how anyone can learn to use them well. For managers and teachers-and anyone else who talks and expects someone to listen-Confessions of a Public Speaker provides an insider's perspective on how to effectively present ideas to anyone. It's a unique, entertaining, and instructional romp through the embarrassments and triumphs Scott has experienced over 15 years of speaking to crowds of all sizes.

With lively lessons and surprising confessions, you'll get new insights into the art of persuasion-as well as teaching, learning, and performance-directly from a master of the trade.

Book of the Week (February 15, 2010)

New in the Instructional Materials Center on the 3rd Floor of the Library. Winner of the 2009 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
by Phillip M. Hoose

Call Number: IMC F 334 .M753 C6554 2009

Publisher's Description: On March 2, 1955, a slim, bespectacled teenager refused to give up her seat to a white woman on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama. Shouting “It’s my constitutional right!” as police dragged her off to jail, Claudette Colvin decided she’d had enough of the Jim Crow segregation laws that had angered and puzzled her since she was a young child.

But instead of being celebrated, as Rosa Parks would be when she took the same stand nine months later, Claudette found herself shunned by many of her classmates and dismissed as an unfit role model by the black leaders of Montgomery. Undaunted, she put her life in danger a year later when she dared to challenge segregation yet again — as one of four plaintiffs in the landmark busing case Browder v. Gayle.

Based on extensive interviews with Claudette Colvin and many others, Phillip Hoose presents the first in-depth account of a major, yet little-known, civil rights figure whose story provides a fresh perspective on the Montgomery bus protest of 1955–56. Historic figures like Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rosa Parks play important roles, but center stage belongs to the brave, bookish girl whose two acts of courage were to affect the course of American history.

Book of the Week (February 8, 2010)

Read My Pins: Stories from a Diplomat's Jewel Box

By Madeleine Albright

Call Number: NK 7303 .A43 A43 2009

Publisher's Description: New from New York Times bestselling author and former secretary of state Madeleine Albright, Read My Pins is a story and celebration of how one woman’s jewelry collection was used to make diplomatic history. Exploring the use of the pin or brooch as a means of personal and diplomatic expression and featuring a gallery of fascinating photographs, this unique, intimate, and revealing biography offers a whole new side of Secretary Albright, one of our most beloved public servants.

Part illustrated memoir, part social history, Read My Pins provides an intimate look at Albright's life through the brooches she wore. Her collection is both international and democratic—dime-store pins share pride of place with designer creations and family heirlooms. Included are the antique eagle purchased to celebrate Albright's appointment as secretary of state, the zebra pin she wore when meeting Nelson Mandela, and the Valentine's Day heart forged by Albright's five-year-old daughter. Read My Pins features more than 200 photographs, along with compelling and often humorous stories about jewelry, global politics, and the life of one of America's most accomplished and fascinating diplomats.

Book of the Week (February 1, 2010)

Conquering the Sky: The Secret Flights of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk

By Larry E. Tise

Call Number: TL 540 .W7 T569 2009

Publisher's Description: Despite their great achievements following their first powered flights in 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright still enjoyed virtual anonymity until 1908. In seven crucial days in May of that year, however, the eyes of the world were suddenly cast upon them as they sought lucrative government contracts for their flying technology and then had to prove the capabilities of their machines. In these pivotal moments, the brothers were catapulted into unwanted worldwide fame as the international press discovered and followed their covert flight tests, and reported their every move using rudimentary telegraphs and early forms of photography.

From the brothers’ rise to fame on the historic Outer Banks, to the quickly expanding role of the world press and the flights’ repercussions in war and military technology, Tise weaves a fascinating tale of a key turning point in the history of flight.

Book of the Week (January 4, 2010)

Cornflakes with John Lennon: and other tales from a rock 'n roll life.

By Robert Hilburn

Call Number: ML 423 .H5876 A5 2009

Publisher's Description: Robert Hilburn’s storied career as a rock critic has allowed him a behind-the-scenes look at the lives of some of the most iconic figures of our time. He was the only music critic to visit Folsom Prison with Johnny Cash. He met John Lennon during his lost weekend period in Los Angeles and they became friends. Bob Dylan granted him his only interviews during his "born-again" period and the occasion of his 50th birthday. Michael Jackson invited Hilburn to watch cartoons with him in his bedroom. When Springsteen took to playing only old hits, Hilburn scolded him for turning his legendary concerts into oldies revues, and Springsteen changed his set list.

In this totally unique account of the symbiotic relationship between critic and musical artist, Hilburn reflects on the ways in which he has changed and been changed by the subjects he’s covered; Bono weighs in with an introduction about how Hilburn’s criticism influenced and altered his own development as a musician.

Corn Flakes with John Lennon is more than about one man’s adventures in rock and roll: It’s the gripping and untold story of how popular music reshapes the way we think about the world and helps to define the modern American character.

ROBERT HILBURN, the long-time pop music critic and editor of the Los Angeles Times, is one of the most widely read and respected pop writers of the rock and roll era. His reviews and artist profiles have appeared in hundreds of publications around the world. Hilburn is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nomination committee. He lives in Los Angeles


LA Times Review of the book and additional information about the author