ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

New Publications

George M. Eberhart

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

Air Apparent: How Meteorologists Learned to Map, Predict, and Dramatize Weather,by Mark Monmonier (309 pages, April 1999), traces the history of weather maps from the earliest (drawn by Heinrich Wilhelm Brandes in 1816 for the Annalen der Physik) to the latest colorful computer simulations on the Weather Channel. Calling meteorology “today’s single most map-intensive scientific enterprise,” Monmonier emphasizes how developments in telegraphy, aviation, forecast modeling, satellites, radar, and the Internet have revolutionized weather maps. In the process, he identifies the role and resourcefulness of newspaper weather maps in educating the public. $27.50. University of Chicago. ISBN 0-22653422-7.

All Music Guide to the Blues,edited by Michael Erlewine, et al. (658 pages, 2d ed., April 1999), contains some 6,100 reviews and ratings of blues recordings—more than twice the number in the first edition of 1996 and with nearly twice as many musicians described, with many gospel singers added in this edition. A vast amount of information is densely packed into small type, with no space wasted on illustrations other than “music maps” that diagram relationships between musicians, styles, and record labels. Separate sections on jazz recordings with a strong blues content, historical essays on genres and instruments, and recommended blues books make this an essential purchase for music collections. $22.95. Miller-Freeman. ISBN 0-87930-548-7.

Sharony Andrews Green’s Grant Green: Rediscovering the Forgotten Genius of Jazz Guitar (274 pages, April 1999) resurrects the life and talent of the Blue Note Records jazz guitarist Grant Green (1931-1979), whose music has recently influenced acid-jazz and hip-hop recordings. A fine tribute to a neglected artist by his daughter-in-law. $22.95. Miller-Freeman. ISBN 0-87930-556-8.

Catholic Shrines of Central and Eastern Europe,by Kevin J. Wright (317 pages, March 1999), is a pilgrim’s guide to Roman Catholic sacred sites from the Czech Republic to Turkey. Many of these places—such as the church in Absam, Austria, that commemorates a Marian apparition in 1797—are little known outside Europe. Detailed descriptions of the sites are provided, along with directions, nearby tourist and travel offices, and tips and trivia about the shrines. This is the latest in a pilgrimage series (other volumes cover Western Europe, the United States, and the Holy Land) that will be handy for students of religious history as well as pilgrims. $16.95. Liguori. ISBN 0-7648-03344.

The East Asian Challenge for Human Rights,edited by Joanne R. Bauer and Daniel A. Bell (394 pages, February 1999), consists of research papers that came out of a four-year Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs’ study that explored how the people of East Asia are coming to terms with human rights issues. Much of the book centers on the “Asian values” theory that Western concepts cannot be imposed on cultures that value social cohesion higher than the rights of individuals. Other topics include the rights of women in Islamic countries, Confucianism and human rights, and the right to a clean environment. $57.95. Cambridge University. ISBN 0-52164230-2.

A Guide to World Language Dictionaries,by Andrew Dalby (470 pages, December 1998), critically reviews more than 1,600 dictionaries and special vocabularies for 295 languages, ancient and modern, from Abkhaz to Zulu. Descriptions of the arrangement, features, and shortcomings of each book are provided, along with alphabets for non-Roman scripts. $105.00. Fitzroy Dearborn. ISBN 1-57958-069-6.

Foreign-phrase droppers will want the World Dictionary of Foreign Expressions, by Gabriel G. Adeleye and Kofi Acquah-Dadzie (413 pages, July 1999), which defines many phrases used by lawyers, doctors, academics, and journalists. The majority are Latin, and the dictionary does not discriminate between borrowed phrases and adopted words like “ogre” or “aura,” but this reference will complement similar works. $70.00. Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers, 1000 Brown St., Wauconda, IL 60084. ISBN 0-86516-422-3.

The Indian Southwest, 1580-1830: Ethnogenesis and Reinvention,by Gary Clayton Anderson (376 pages, April 1999), examines the social mechanisms that various Indian groups in the Southwest adopted to deal with whites, especially the Spanish. Anderson focuses on the role of Spanish missions in restructuring Indian society, the “Apacheanization” of the region in the early and mid-18th century, the poaching-and-raiding economy of the Southern Plains Apaches, and the rise of the Comanches who came to the area late but wound up assimilating many other groups. $39-95. University of Oklahoma. ISBN 0-8061-3111-X.

Interpreting and Negotiating Licensing Agreements,by Arlene Bielefield and Lawrence Cheeseman (162 pages, April 1999), steers a path through the complex legal issues involving contracts. Especially relevant is the chapter on “What Do Licensing Agreements Really Mean?” where specific legal wordings are deciphered with their ramifications identified. Appendices include a checklist for evaluating licenses, library-related portions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, a statement on preferred practices by a coalition of library consortia, and a glossary. $55.00. NealSchuman. ISBN 1-55570-324-0.

Latin Jazz: The First of the Fusions, 1880s to Today,by John Storm Roberts (286 pages, April 1999), examines the influence of Latin rhythms and forms on the complicated fabric of American jazz—perhaps as early as the ragtime era. Much as he did for American popular music in The Latin Tinge (Oxford University, 1979), Roberts takes a decade-by-decade approach and explains the role that habanera, tango, rumba, swing, mambo, Cubop, bossanova, funk, fusion, and Afro-Latin music in general have had upon mainstream jazz. Roberts peppers his narrative with such little-known facts as Jelly Roll Morton’s comment that if it doesn’t have a “Spanish tinge,” it isn’t jazz. An excellent glossary and discography complement the text. $29-95. Schirmer Books. ISBN 0-02864681-9.

For other Latin music, check out Music in Latin American Culture: Regional Traditions, edited by John M.

Schechter (496 pages, May 1999), which examines mariachi and conjunto jarocho music in Mexico, marimba and other music of Central America, Caribbean calypso and other genres, as well as Andean, Argentinian and Brazilian traditions, and the pan-Latin nueva canción. Very little analysis of this music has appeared in English, and this book is a welcome addition, with its numerous maps, lyrics, transcriptions, and photos. $40.00 (an audio CD is available for an extra $20.00). Schirmer Books. ISBN 0-02-864750-5