Arts & Photography / Graphic Arts / Instructional & How-to / Reference

Complete Guide to Materials and Techniques for Drawing and Painting by David Sanmiguel (Barron’s Educational Series)

The enormous number of materials and tools that are available to artists nowadays is exponentially greater than the number of materials that were available in art stores just ten or fifteen years ago. The reasons are varied: the merging of brands into multinational conglomerates that constantly offer new products is one reason; the opening of local markets to those conglomerates is another. In addition, the advances of modern chemical industries have revolutionized the production of binders, and with it, the fabrication of paints. The result is that the availability of fine art products is growing and changing all the time. This gives the artist the advantage of being able to find products that are much more in tune with their particular needs. But it also has some disadvantages, one of them being that the tools that the artist was accustomed to disappear overnight due to the inflexible demands of a global market. – from the introduction

Today more than ever, both beginners and professional artists need reliable informa­tion that will help them discern the real novelties from the products in ‘disguise.’

Complete Guide to Materials and Techniques for Drawing and Painting is a one-volume directory that shows and describes virtually everything for every graphic artist – from simple charcoal pencils to easels and canvas-stretching equipment. All items are illustrated in color photos, and examples of how all materials are used are shown in drawings and reproduced paintings. Cataloged in this book are: charcoal and colored pencils, sanguine chalks and pencils, charcoal sticks, crayons, pastel chalks, inks and pens, paint brushes of all shapes and sizes, palettes and palette knives, dry pigments, oil paints, watercolors and gouache paints, acrylics, varnishes and paint solvents, papers of different textures, drawing pads for different media, canvases and stretching frames, easels, cutting tools, sponges, brush and equipment cleaners.
With hundreds of color photographs and illustrations, Complete Guide to Materials and Techniques for Drawing and Painting is a book that allows artists to identify any material, new or traditional, that may come their way. Based on the idea that artists have always been able to obtain what they need, no matter the period, the goal of the volume is to educate readers so they can make the best choices from among the products that flood the shelves of art stores.

The drawing and painting materi­als are covered in the first half of the book: from drawing pencils and papers to acrylic paints, including the differ­ent mediums, solvents, varnishes, and the many additives that are available. This is not only a complete guide but it also contains comments, advice, and suggestions about the use of each tool and how to choose from among them, with the different consequences that result from each choice.

The second half of Complete Guide to Materials and Techniques for Drawing and Painting is devoted to techniques – it shows examples of how to use these many different materials in finished paintings and drawings. Here David Sanmiguel shows the results that can be achieved with the tools presented in the first part. Only those materials that are truly relevant and that can provide an idea of the range of products derived from them are used. There are a total of 50 examples covering a wide field of subjects and styles so artists can see how the materials that they studied on the previous pages can be handled and the results that can be obtained with them.

Complete Guide to Materials and Techniques for Drawing and Painting is an accessible book; it is a reference book that is useful and needed by anyone who wishes to learn or to improve their skills in the field of fine arts. Both beginning art students and practicing artists will find information and advice on a wide selection of materials and equipment to help them expand on their skills and further develop their techniques in all art media.

Business & Investing / Job Hunting & Careers

Change the Way You See Yourself: Through Asset-Based Thinking by Kathryn D. Cramer & Hank Wasiak (Running Press)

Whatever you admire in someone, you have in yourself – if only but a glimmer. In fact, when a person’s talent, virtue, skill or attitude strikes you as amazing, you can be sure it’s something you want more of for yourself. You are ready, willing, and able to incorporate it into your repertoire of assets. – from the Introduction

Everyday we are bombarded with news, much of it negative. Whether reading the morning paper, logging onto a favorite news site, watching the 11 o'clock news or listening to the radio, there are a lot of unpleasant stories being reported – war, poverty, disease, global warming, foreclosures, layoffs, just to name a few – and it is easy to become preoccupied with problems, focus on what's wrong and missing in life. So easy, in fact, it is almost a natural response. This kind of Deficit-Based Thinking (DBT) can, over time, drain the life out of anyone.

In their breakthrough first book, Change the Way You See Everything, psychologist Kathryn D. Cramer, managing partner of The Cramer Institute, and advertising industry leader Hank Wasiak, co-founder of The Concept Farm, inspired readers to imagine what could be possible if they focused on opportunities rather than problems, strengths instead of weaknesses, progress in place of perfection.

Now these revolutionaries are back with Change the Way You See Yourself, teaching readers to be proactive and look inward to improve their lives. So while the first book taught readers how to view their world differently, this next book shows them how to see themselves differently. It reveals that everyone is a leader in their own way, and that, through Asset-Based Thinking (ABT), every person can plug into their unique power.

"We have crossed over a monumental threshold into a world in which the power and importance of ‘you’ has taken on a whole new meaning and dimension," say the authors. This second book in the series shows people how to tap into their own personal power, dramatically expand their circle of influence, and identify and pursue their own ‘mighty cause,’ i.e., their purpose and passion for living, to gain greater meaning in their lives. The impact one has in this world, the authors explain, is fueled by this passion, and changes the way they see their future.

This kind of Asset-Based Thinking (ABT) can make all the difference in how readers see the world, their world. Divided into four sections that focus on one's Power, Influence, Impact and Future, Change the Way You See Yourself outlines for readers where to look for assets (in themselves, those around them, and in any situation (good or bad). Exercises throughout assist readers into recognizing their own unique talents, values and overall power, and help them to hone their networking/influencing skills so that they can create an impact in their lives that's in service of the ‘greater good.’ In doing all of this, they can not only imagine a better future, but rehearse for it and in effect create it.

Cramer and Wasiak proclaim readers to "Call Yourself to Action," pointing out that in order to lead a significant life, it's important for each person to identify what their personal ‘mighty cause’ is – the one they feel born to serve. For some it might be ending world hunger, and maybe initially that means volunteering at soup kitchens on the weekends, or perhaps it is advancing world peace, starting with their own family unit. Whatever the cause, it is up to each to apply ABT and pursue that signature impact over the course of their lives.

According to Cramer and Wasiak, small shifts in thinking lead to big rewards. Readers let the power of ABT help change the way they perceive themselves and their ability to change the world around them. By transforming the way they see their own power, their influence grows exponentially and their personal impact intensifies dramatically.

Change the Way You See Yourself features moving stories of real people who have used ABT to make a difference and impact their lives and the world around them. It is quite a reading experience, fully illustrated with vivid images, inspiring messages, and lessons that will assist readers into realizing their own unique power.

Business & Investing / Management & Leadership

A Culture of Rapid Improvement: Creating and Sustaining an Engaged Workforce by Raymond C. Floyd (CRC Press)

Managing a business so that it achieves a supreme pace of improvement requires that all members of an organization can and do make their best contributions to the success of the enterprise – this can seem an impossible task. Management must provide employees with a shared set of values and beliefs so that they can decide for themselves how to behave in accordance with the expectations of a nurturing and empowering culture.

A Culture of Rapid Improvement is intended for those leaders seeking to encourage dramatic improvement within their organizations. It shows these change agents how they can

• Develop the shared values and beliefs that serve as the foundation for a dynamic culture.
• Engage all employees to join the new culture and provide opportunities for these stakeholders to initiate and participate in improvement.
• Measure, evaluate, and manage the performance of the new culture.

Filled with lessons garnered from personal experiences, A Culture of Rapid Improvement is based on Raymond C. Floyd's 40 years of industrial management experience, including his more than 20 years at Exxon Mobil. Floyd is the winner of a Shingo Prize and also holds the unique distinction of having led businesses from two different industries that were both recognized by Industry Week magazine as being among the Best Plants in America.

According to A Culture of Rapid Improvement, the first benchmark on this journey is that readers should be able to make progress of noticeable benefit to their business performance during the first six months, and the rate of progress as they enter the second six-month period should be faster than the pace at which they entered the first six-month period. Two important attributes that world-class businesses share are (1) they improve rapidly, and (2) they sustain rapid improvement once it has been achieved.

The second benchmark of the improvement effort is that they should have all of the elements of the new culture in place throughout their organization by the end of two years. They will not yet enjoy a strong and mature new culture at the end of two years, but they will be clearly positioned to do so and they will already have many attributes of a new culture, including strong, autonomous improvement teams throughout enterprise. After that, the culture will become more stable and more productive with time.

According to A Culture of Rapid Improvement, it is convenient to think of culture – either business or social – as comprised of four elements: values, beliefs, behavior, and rituals. The logic chain of this model is explained in the sections of the book. The value of this simple model is that it provides a handle to grasp the amorphous concept of culture in a way that most people can actually use. The purpose for possessing a usable theoretical model of culture is to enable readers to apply the theory to their specific situation as they design a unique corporate culture that is mindfully appropriate to their people and to their business.

A usable model of cultural theory also provides a basis for communication on cultural issues, especially behavioral issues, among many people of different personal cultures. Cultural discussions, including discussions on differences in personal behavior, will be valuable as readers form and operate a strong cadre of autonomous teams.

The typical expression of a cultural model that is even simpler than this one often stops at discussions of behavior without referring to the underlying roots of behavior. Behavior-only models of personal and social culture typically result in a stereotypical assessment of individuals, and that is often more offensive than useful. Simpler cultural models often cause even more interpersonal problems than they resolve.

Through the communication and understanding facilitated by this model of culture, readers can begin the process of creating an ‘on-purpose’ corporate culture that is specifically designed for their people and their business needs. Readers can begin managing the interface between their corporate culture and the several personal cultures of the people in their business. Finally, they can give their people a way to form and sustain fully functional teams of people from different social cultures. Intelligent and inoffensive cultural discussion often allows teams to work together, despite behavior by team members that is comfortable and natural to some people, but is initially either offensive or completely inexplicable to others.

This model of culture is presented at the beginning of A Culture of Rapid Improvement to enable readers to consider the rest of the material and their own situation in light of the model. As they create their business strategies, they can do so in a way that their people will accept them as a shared value that is consistent with their personal and social values. As they create the social elements of their corporate culture, they can do that in a way that will draw the specific individuals who work with them together into a successful team and enable all their people to behave comfortably at work and to work comfortably together. As they create and use the rituals of a business culture, such as quality stations, they can do that in a way that will reinforce the commonality of purpose and action that they want to be shared broadly across the organization.

Among the many tasks of a leader who intends to achieve world-class performance, including the task of operating the business on a daily basis, is the creation of an on-purpose culture of rapid improvement within the business. Creating that new culture requires four things from leaders, and Floyd devotes one section of A Culture of Rapid Improvement to each of these:

1. Leaders must establish the strategic direction for the business that will enable each person to contribute to success through tactical actions that are within their normal scope of activity. Section I.
2. Leaders must provide the framework for improvement, including the objective and subjective support that people need in order to engage with the business and with others. Within this framework, people will have new capabilities for improving their work. Section II.
3. Leaders must create a new on-purpose culture for the business. Informal business adaptations of social cultures tend to exclude or diminish people who have a different personal or social culture outside of the workplace. The new culture for their business must specifically include everyone. Section III.
4. Leaders must manage and sustain the new culture. Even cultures such as Christianity that have existed for millennia receive regular attention from leaders to ensure that the values are upheld and the details of daily application of the culture evolve correctly, and to ensure that the people of the culture remain unified. Section IV.

In the first four sections of A Culture of Rapid Improvement, Floyd describes the theory and practice of creating and sustaining a culture of rapid improvement by fulfilling each of those leadership responsibilities. The subject of Section V is a detailed description of activities during the first two years that will lead readers to their goal.

Throughout the book Floyd offers ‘Key Ideas’ that appear in boxes. He includes a chapter summary at the end of each chapter to remind readers of the key points they need to implement in their own organization. Finally, numerous, practical case study ‘Examples’ are described throughout A Culture of Rapid Improvement, based on his experience working with many organizations in different industries and nations during his career.

As Manager for our large manufacturing complex in Baytown, Texas, Ray Floyd and his team fundamentally changed performance by turning the entire workforce into an improvement-idea-generating machine. Over the seven-year period that Ray was manager, Baytown changed from a troubled plant to a world-scale example of manufacturing excellence. Manufacturing efficiency improved at a rate of 16 percent each year and employee participation grew to a level of 40 improvements per person per year all resulting in outstanding bottom line profitability. I know of no one better than Ray to record and teach those lessons. – H. Eugene McBrayer, President (retired), Exxon Chemical Company
Ray Floyd has compiled a complete collection of all the theory, practice and examples that you will need to create an engaged workforce. If you truly want world-class performance, you will want a copy of this book on your desk as a ready reference manual. – King Pouw, Executive Vice President Operations and Business Transformation, ConAgra Foods   
Ray has brought the ideas in this book into reality for us. Currently our Chairman, Ray’s experience has assisted us in taking strategy from the Board Room to practical application in creating a true highly productive service culture. I encourage others to read this book and apply these principles to your business so that you may benefit from his insight and experience as we have. – Randall Dixon, President, Energy Capital Credit Union 
…If you want to get ahead of your competition and maintain a leadership position in your industry, this book shows the successful application of Ray Floyd's formula for establishing and maintaining an environment of rapid improvement and points out the fundamental importance of creating a culture based on shared values to drive the behavior of an entire organization toward the accomplishment of common goals. – David K. Christein, Vice President of Operations, Molex Incorporated

A Culture of Rapid Improvement is intended for people who will lead change in their organization and for those who will help or advise the leaders. This material may also be of interest to anyone who is joining the conversation or who wants to influence the outcome. Floyd shows through concrete and practical examples how a culture based on shared values and beliefs can drive the right behavior throughout an entire organization, and establish and maintain an environment of rapid improvement. The book is a must read for any organization wanting to out-perform their competition long term in a global economy.

Children / Ages 4-8 / Poetry / Holidays & Festivals

Amazing Peace: A Christmas Poem by Maya Angelou, Steve Johnson, & Lou Fancher (Schwartz & Wade Books, Random House)

Offering us always the raw truth and the eloquence of hope, Maya has shown our world the redemptive healing power of art. – Bill Clinton, on awarding the National Medal of Arts to Maya Angelou in 2000

“Angels and Mortals, Believers and Nonbelievers, look heavenward,” Maya Angelou writes, “and speak the word aloud. Peace.” First read at the 2005 White House tree-lighting ceremony, Amazing Peace comes alive again as an illustrated children’s book, celebrating the promise of peace in the holiday season. In this simple story, a family joins with their community – rich and poor, black and white, Muslim and Jew – to celebrate the holidays.
Angelou is a poet, writer, performer, teacher, and director. In addition to her bestselling autobiographies, which began with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, she has also written five poetry collections, a cookbook, and the celebrated poem “On the Pulse of Morning,” which she read at the inauguration of President Clinton.
Illustrators Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher have collaborated on many award-winning and New York Times bestselling picture books, including My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss, New York’s Bravest by Mary Pope Osborne, The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams, The Cheese by Margie Palatini, The Boy on Fairfield Street by Kathleen Krull, and Star Climbing.

Angelou’s beautiful and moving poem, Amazing Peace, comes alive as a fully illustrated children's book, celebrating the promise of peace in the Holiday season. The poem is a radiant affirmation of the goodness of humanity. Children will be inspired by Angelou’s words and touched by Johnson and Fancher's illustrations; their textured, softly glowing images perfectly complement Angelou’s resonant poem.

Children’s / Ages 4-8 / Literature & Fiction

Imaginary Menagerie: A Book of Curious Creatures by Julie Larios, illustrated by Julie Paschkis (Harcourt Children)

Here in Imaginary Menagerie, we have a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book and a Book Sense Children's Pick from the creators of the acclaimed Yellow Elephant: A Bright Bestiary.

Who is half gallop, half walk?

Who can turn you to stone with one look?

Whose voice do you hear in the splash on the shore? – from the book

Centaurs, mermaids, and other curious creatures populate the poems and paintings, inspired by a mythological world.   

Imaginary Menagerie is written by Julie Larios, a prizewinning poet for children and adults, faculty of the Vermont College Writing for Children and Young Adults program. Illustrations are by Julie Paschkis, painter and illustrator of numerous books for children.

Using poems and pictures, this modern bestiary proves a fascinating introduction to mythical creatures from different cultures. . . . Each creature is described in a poem capturing some of its unique features as well as its mystery. . . . End-pages ingeniously unite the curious creatures providing the perfect start and finish to this little masterpiece. – Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

The animals featured in these well-crafted poems flash with color and emotion. – Booklist (starred review)

A dynamic, contagious energy emanates from both the poetry and the art. – Publishers Weekly

Imaginary Menagerie is a book of wondrous poems and paintings full of the mythological world of imagination and mystery. The book includes end notes about cultures and legends.

Children / Ages 9-12 / Science Fiction, Fantasy & Magic

Yesterday's Magic: A Sequel to Tomorrow’s Magic by Pamela F. Service (Random House)

Set 500 years in the future, following a nuclear devastation, in Yesterday's Magic the technological world has ground to a halt, but magic is beginning to take hold again. And the powerful icons of myth are starting to fight for control of the world. From the Russian witch Baba Yaga, to the native American trickster god, Raven, the most ancient magical forces are beginning to awaken, and they have very different ideas about the future of the earth.

Yesterday's Magic begins at the wedding festivities of King Arthur and Queen Margaret of Scotland, where Heather McKenna is kidnapped by the sorceress Morgan LeFay. Arthur is still struggling to unite the warring factions of England, so it is up to Heather’s friend Welly and the wizard Merlin to rescue her.

Thus begins a round-the-world pursuit of Morgan, who is using Heather as a pawn in a centuries-long game with the Hindu goddess of death. But Heather is not helpless. Her own powers of new magic are growing stronger, and she finds she has allies in unexpected places.

Yesterday's Magic, written by Pamela Service, museum director and actor, is a riveting sequel to Tomorrow’s Magic continuing Merlin and Arthur’s quest to reunite the world.
Cooking, Food & Wine

The Farm to Table Cookbook: The Art of Eating Locally by Ivy Manning, with photography by Gregor Torrence (Sasquatch Books)

Farmer's markets are multiplying across the country, and their stalls are bursting with locally grown produce, artisan breads and cheeses and naturally raised meats.

Simultaneously, a revolution is taking place in the way Americans eat. Many are turning away from highly processed foods and turning toward farmer's markets and community supported agriculture to get fresh, locally grown food. But with change, comes challenge. The farmer's market experience can be daunting. Standing elbow to elbow with foodies, it is easy to be seduced by gorgeous greens, the vibrant colors of unknown vegetables, and the aroma of sweet berries. Next thing shoppers know, they are at home with a bag full of fresh produce and they have no idea how to turn it into a delicious meal.

As America's move toward local, natural ingredients continues, author Ivy Manning offers up a spectacular collection of recipes. The Farm to Table Cookbook helps readers make the most of the delectable, colorful foods they find at their favorite market. Filled with full-color photographs, and more than 100 recipes, the cookbook shows readers how to take full advantage of the brightest peppers, wildest mushrooms, and most interesting leafy greens.

Organized by season, this cookbook invites the home cook to sample and explore to prepare such dishes as Fresh Pea and Pancetta Risotto, Baby Artichoke and Fava Bean Salad with Pecorino, Asparagus and Caramelized Leek Bread Pudding, Seared Scallops with Creamed Ramps and Black Truffle, Spice-Crusted Lamb Chops with Quince, Swiss Chard and Feta Phyllo Pockets with Yogurt Dill Dip, and Spinach and Roasted Shallot Flan.

Manning organizes The Farm to Table Cookbook by season, and includes a How to Choose feature for most recipes to help navigate the stalls and get the best vegetable bang for their buck. She encourages readers to make the most of their market experience with:

• Tips for Happy Market Going (arrive early, bring cash, don't be shy if they are stumped, and perhaps best of all: nibble, taste, and sniff).
• Benefits and reasons to go local with The Flavor of Farm to Table (taste, diversity in diet, humanely raised livestock).
• How to be even more supportive in Going One Step Further (buying shares and easing the financial burden on farmers – they will get thanked with fresh produce).

If dessert makes readers weak in the knees, they can flip immediately to the end of each season's section where they will discover mouth-watering treats such as the Peach and Blackberry Hazelnut Crisp, Marsala-Baked Pears with Maple Whipped Cream, Real Gingerbread Cake with Apple Cider Glaze, Strawberry Shortcakes with Lemon Curd Cream. In addition to her own original contributions, Manning also includes recipes from many of the Northwest's premier chefs and restaurants that specialize in fresh and local dishes, including Tilth, Lark, Crush, The Farm Cafe, Wildwood, and Paley's Place.

We love Ivy Manning's first book. Not only is it an important book for people striving to eat locally, but – just like its author – it's warm, sincere, intelligent. – Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Dugruid, authors of Hot Sour Salty Sweet

I can't think of a better guide to the world of cooking fresh, seasonal produce than Ivy Manning. Her food is delicious and her recipes are smart and efficient; this book is a brilliant vehicle for her talent and passion. Looking through it, you can't help but get happy and hungry. – Martha Holmberg, food editor; The Oregonian

The Farm to Table Cookbook gives in to vegetable lust, not to the exclusion of sustainably raised or harvested seafood, meat, and poultry, but fresh produce rules. Wherever readers’ farmers markets are found, the book urges them to declare their allegiance to the locavore movement. With full-color photographs and more than 100 recipes, readers learn how to think globally but eat locally with this attractive, sophisticated, and satisfying cookbook.

Education

Being an Effective Mentor: How to Help Beginning Teachers Succeed, 2nd Edition by Kathleen Feeney Jonson (Corwin Press)

Mentoring is the professional practice that provides support, assistance, and guidance to beginning teachers to promote their professional growth and success. It is sometimes one program within a larger teacher induction program that also includes, for example, orientations and in-services. The task of mentoring is complex and requires the skills of a teacher, coun­selor, friend, role model, guide, sponsor, coach, resource, and colleague. An experienced and expert professional develops a relationship with a trained but inexperi­enced protégé. The mentor may incorporate a variety of strategies and activities to help the protégé grow and develop in professional compe­tence, attitudes, and behaviors – but regardless of the specific activities and goals, the qualitative nature of the relationship determines the overall effectiveness of the mentor.

Being an Effective Mentor provides the rationale and guidelines for setting up an effective mentoring program as well as practical information and advice for new mentors.

Skilled mentors can make a major difference in helping novice teachers succeed and thrive during that all-important first year. This updated edition of the best-selling book, Being an Effective Mentor strengthens practicing mentors' skills with updated strategies to help protégés develop confidence and expertise as teachers.
Educator and mentoring expert Kathleen Feeney Jonson, Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Multiple Subject Credential Program in the Teacher Education Department of the University of San Francisco, identifies the skills and experiences that nurture beginning teachers and provides specific, research-based techniques for mentors, such as demonstration teaching, positive observation and feedback, informal communication, role modeling, and providing direct assistance. Readers will find guidance for using reflections to promote discovery, an action plan for professional development, and month-by-month mentoring activities for building productive mentor/mentee relationships and promoting best teaching practices.
This second edition of Being an Effective Mentor demonstrates how to help new instructors improve instructional, interpersonal, and coping skills; examines the components of successful mentoring initiatives; and offers new information on:

• The stages of teacher needs and development.
• Professional growth for long-term teaching success.
• Assessment of student work.
• Working with difficult mentees.
• The role of mentors within teacher induction programs. 

Part I, Setting the Stage for the Teacher-Mentor of Being an Effective Mentor explains the context for mentor­ing programs, describes components of a successful program, and positions the mentor in the broader scope of teacher induc­tion programs and professional development. Part II, Effective Strategies for the Good Mentor, provides a wealth of strategies for mentors working with new teachers. Part III, Putting It All Together, offers specific activities for mentors to use with their mentees and provides a checklist as a practical guide.

In Part I, Chapters 1 (Passing the Torch) and 2 (Setup for Success) provide a knowledge base useful to those structuring a mentor program. These introductory chapters contain a historical and policy perspective. Topics explored include the role of the mentor, qualifications of a good mentor, and the importance of providing preparation and support for the mentoring process. New to this second edition is an expanded discussion of successful programs in Chapter 2, as well as a look at some possible variations in mentor programs.

In Chapter 3, Remembering the First Days, mentors are encouraged to think back on their own first days in the classroom. ‘Reality shock’ and the fears and anxieties of beginners are discussed. Chapter 4, Beyond Survival, provides an overview of the myriad of skills that beginners need to get off to a good start. Helping the beginner acquire these skills requires that the mentor perform a variety of functions, from serving as a role model in the full scope of daily profes­sional activities to developing specific skills such as classroom observation.

An all-new Chapter 5, Moving Toward Professionalism, sets the mentor in the broader context of teacher induction programs. It takes a close look at the Santa Cruz New Teacher Project, one program that is working and serves as a model for other programs. This new chapter also examines ways mentors can help teachers move beyond their initial need to survive and toward professionalism.

How mentors develop trusting relationships is the heart of Chapter 6, Working as a Partner With the Adult Learner, the first chapter in Part II. Because mentoring relationships go through phases, Chapter 6 deals with how mentors need to adjust their responses as their protégés develop. Another chapter new to this second edition, Stages in Teacher Development (Chapter 7), explores the stages of development typical for teachers through two models – one that tracks the teacher through the first year on the job and another that looks at development throughout the teaching career.

Chapter 8, Practical Strategies for Assisting New Teachers, explores specific strategies for mentoring. New to the second edition is a section on assessing student work.

And finally, Chapter 9, Overcoming Obstacles and Reaping the Rewards, takes a close look at the pitfalls and payoffs of mentoring. The chapter includes an expanded discussion of ways for mentors to deal with some pitfalls, notably finding time to mentor in addition to all of the other teacher tasks and how to work with difficult mentees.

In Part III, Putting It All Together, the mentor finds a month-by-month listing of suggested activities designed to promote interaction between mentors and their protégés. Following the monthly list of activities is a checklist to use as a guide. Finally, three appendixes provide tools to help the mentor work with the beginning teacher.

Although intended primarily for mentors, Being an Effective Mentor will be of interest to anyone concerned with the complex process of guidance, assistance, and support to promote growth and success for beginning teachers. Principals, staff developers, university supervisors, beginning and experi­enced teachers, and even parents and community members, all can benefit from an understanding of the value and process of mentoring. Straightforward, readable, well-organized, practical and thorough, Jonson’s handbook contains everything mentor teachers need to know to establish a partnership with a beginning teacher and start them on a rewarding and satisfying path of career-long development.

Entertainment / Humor / Political

So You Want To Be President? by John Warner (Tow Books)

What's the best job in the world? No, not Oprah, although that's a pretty sweet job. It’s probably the President of the United States. As we've found out lately, almost anyone can do it. Now, just in time, while there's still time, readers who are dissatisfied with this year's current crop of Presidential candidates can find out for themselves if they would be a better candidate for the job.

And, according to So You Want To Be President?, who wouldn't want to be president? Consider the perks: Nice house (rent-free), massive staff (taxpayer-supported), private plane (and helicopter and hovercraft and super-secret modes of transportation the public doesn't even know about), guar­anteed television exposure ... it's like being Donald Trump, with access to nukes.

That said, becoming president – getting elected president – is much, much harder than being president.

In theory, there are only two qualifications needed to run for President of the United States: one must be 35 years of age and a natural born U.S. citizen. But what else does one need to be a contender? Whether readers are elephants or donkeys, or whatever animal may be associated with an independent candidate, So You Want To Be President? helps readers figure out if they are cut out for the job.

Humorist John Warner, editor of McSweeney's Internet Tendency and teacher at Clemson University, guides them through a series of obstacles that determines their ability to lead the biggest nation in the Free World. So You Want To Be President? takes readers from choosing their party affiliation, through the primaries and ultimately to the general election. Along the way quizzes, tests and obstacles test their presidential mettle. In the back of the book is a scorecard for readers to track their progress toward 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. During the Primaries, ‘candidates’ attempt to amass enough delegates to win the nomination. In the general election, ‘candidates’ gun for electoral votes. If they manage to successfully navigate all challenges, they'll win the ultimate prize, the Presidency of the United States.

(Well, it's only make-believe, and not really a credible endorsement for any potential candidate. But readers can try and use it on their resume if that's all they got.)

Consider all the great historical figures who have never held the top office: Bob Dole, Florida Evans, Winston Churchill, Anne Frank, Lassie, Q*Bert, Thomas Jefferson – How on Earth did those people not get elected president?" readers may ask. Because they didn't have So You Want To Be President?, a paper and ink-based dry run for the oval office that serves as a step-by-step guide to the entire campaign. By reading this book readers find out if they have the right stuff to pander, grovel and humiliate themselves to win the ultimate prize, the Presidency of the United States. Handy-dandy scorecards, too.

Entertainment / Music

The James Brown Reader: Fifty Years of Writing About the Godfather of Soul edited by Nelson George & Alan Leeds (Plume)

When James Brown passed away on December 25, 2006, the world lost one of the most celebrated and memorable entertainers of the last fifty years. In addition to being one of the most influential musicians, James Brown has been one of the most written about.

In The James Brown Reader edited by Nelson George and Alan Leeds, James Brown's phenomenal career of epic highs and lows is chronicled in this collection of newspaper and magazine articles of the soul musician’s life. George, music and culture critic, journalist, and filmmaker, and Leeds, a superstar networker and one of the leading experts on Brown, were among the team of writers who won a Grammy for the liner notes of the James Brown boxed set Star Time.

Known as the hardest-working man in show business, James Brown (1933-2006) embodied rhythm and blues, funk and soul, sensuality and the power of a good performance. His musical innovations in such indelible grooves as “Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine,” “I Got You (I Feel Good),” and “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag,” transformed American music.
To appreciate Brown’s influence, to chronicle his professional and personal triumphs and struggles, and to capture his essence, in The James Brown Reader writers from four decades weigh in on the legendary Soul Brother Number One. Separated into five sections, this collection paints a textured portrait of Brown through the eyes of over forty journalists. What emerges is a comprehensive collection of writings about the Godfather of Soul. It is a tribute to a trailblazer, and includes rare photographs of Brown, a timeline of his life, and a discography.

From hardscrabble roots in the deep South, Brown, by virtue of immense talent and indomitable will, built and international following that parallels the ubiquity of black popular culture in every corner of the globe. From R&B to soul to funk to disco to hip hop and the fusions in between, it was Brown who perfected, created or inspired all of these musical genres. Brown's strong-willed personality, political ambitions and massive ego pushed writers to do their best work in an attempt to capture his essence. Editors, George and Leeds have assembled seasoned music writers such as Thulani Davis, Gerri Hershey, Philip Gourevitch and Jonathan Lethem; from publications such as The New York Times, Rolling Stone, The Village Voice and Penthouse to now defunct publications like Look, Sepia, and Crawdaddy.

This unique and fascinating collection illuminates, celebrates and memorializes a legend whose impact on music is immeasurable. George and Leeds have assembled the first comprehensive collection of writings about the late, great Godfather of Soul, creating a fascinating mosaic of the man and the musician. The James Brown Reader, especially with the extensive discography, is a book that no dedicated James Brown fan or music history buff will want to be without.

Entertainment / Sports / Baseball

Classic Cubs: A Tribute to the Men and Magic of Wrigley Field by Chris De Luca, with artwork by John Hanley (Cumberland House Publishing)

Few things evoke as much emotion as the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field. Love them or hate them, the Cubs have a mystique all their own. And both Wrigley Field and the Chicago Cubs have been the subject of many books, but none have captured the spirit of the team through the display of the artist's brush.

In Classic Cubs, John Hanley, nationally renowned sports artist, celebrates the history and milestones of the team and highlights a galaxy of hall of fame ballplayers with more than 125 original oil paintings and drawings created exclusively for this book, evoking the sense of mood that only art can create. Hanley's paintings record the legacy and beauty of the game and the valor of those who played it, illustrating the ivy-covered walls and the manually operated scoreboard of Wrigley Field and recounting the legendary players, announcers, owners, and the famous curse. The text is by Chris DeLuca, who has covered Chicago baseball for the Sun-Times for eleven years.

The book illustrates what makes Wrigley Field one-of-a-kind. Hall of Fame players such as Ernie Banks, Cap Anson and Grover Alexander are captured by the artist's brush, with great attention given to the managers, great and not-so-great moments, the owners and the voices of the game. Forewords by Fergie Jenkins and Ryne Sandberg, as well as an introduction by Pat Hughes round out the book.

Classic Cubs is a living tribute to everything that is special about one of the greatest baseball organizations ever. – Ryne Sandberg, Cubs second baseman, 1982-97

John Hanley is one of the most talented sports artists I have ever seen. The beautiful work he does is only surpassed by his generosity and spirit. The 1st Touch Foundation is proud to support his art and call him a friend. Our partnership has been an honor. – Derrek Lee, President and Founder, 1st Touch Foundation Chicago Cubs First Baseman

John Hanley's paintings in Classic Cubs bring the rich history of the Cubs and Wrigley Field to vivid life. His stunning depictions of the ballpark and the Wrigleyville area and his portraits of all the Cub greats are breathtaking. Chris De Luca's writing is a perfect companion to Hanley's art – just the facts with no clutter – as he succinctly paints the written history of the Cubs. – Len Kasper, Cubs TV Play-by-Play Announcer

This is a compelling collection that all Cubs fans, baseball fans, and art lovers everywhere will appreciate for years to come. – Pat Hughes, Cubs play-by-play announcer

A beautifully painted history of the team, Classic Cubs dramatically details where some of baseball's most dramatic and bittersweet moments occurred with interesting stories and little-known facts. Hanley has clearly brought his love of the game of baseball to this project; his art recreates the personal connection and intimate friendship between a team and its fans. The book is the perfect gift and collector's item for any Cubs fan.

Entertainment / Sports / Tennis / African American Studies

Blacks at the Net: Black Achievement in the History of Tennis, Volume 2 by Sundiata Djata (Syracuse University Press)

While much has been written about black triumphs in boxing, baseball, and other sports, little has been said of similar accomplishments in tennis. In Blacks at the Net, the final volume of his examination of black achievement in international tennis, Sundiata Djata fills that gap. Exploring the discrimination that kept blacks out of pro tennis for decades, he examines the role that this traditionally white sport played in the black community and provides insights into the politics of professional sports and the challenges faced by today's black players.

Drawing on original and published interviews, life writings (autobiographies, memoirs, etc.), and newspaper and magazine articles, Djata, who teaches African and African American sports history at Northern Illinois University, in Blacks at the Net offers a look at black participation in tennis in Europe, Africa, Australia, and the Caribbean. He investigates how black African players broke through the color barrier of South African apartheid using sports to gain international sympathy in the face of oppressive discrimination. Djata's wide-ranging history includes Aboriginal Australians and a chronicle of Yannick Noah's racial identity in the eyes of the French and the world.

Volume one covered the formation of early black clubs in the United States, the emergence of professional black tennis players, and some insights into the par­ticular pressures that black players have faced. In this second volume page after page is filled with fascinating stories of black players from Africa, Australia, Europe, and the Caribbean and the matches that would affect the sport of Tennis from the late 19th century to the present.

The major purpose of the study is to provide a historical outline of black participation in tennis, highlighting some important personalities and the challenges they confronted.

Although most professional black tennis players have come from the United States, Blacks at the Net looks also at blacks and tennis in other countries. In addition, Djata offers an extended discussion on Af­rican players (of any race). He discusses South Africa separately from other African polities owing to its peculiar and lengthy history of racial segregation. Through Yannick Noah and Evonne Goolagong-Cawley, one can see some issues that players of color have faced in France and Australia. He compares other athletes, other highly visible personalities, and circumstances from other sports and professions to professional tennis to shed light on issues of image, advertising, and racial identity.

There are few works on sports in Africa, with the exception of South Africa. However, the sport traditions in Africa have long his­tories, and with the introduction of sports such as tennis by colonial powers, the histories became richer and more dynamic. Because of the tradition of sport in South Africa and Australia, there is a wealth of general literature on sport for those two countries. However, the role of sports among blacks has been largely omitted from these tomes.

A fascinating look at the exploits of outstanding black tennis players and how the sport was closely intertwined with racial identity, advertising, and notions of style in such [regions] as Australia, Africa, and South America. Essential reading for anyone interested in knowing how blacks have negotiated the racial divide in one of the most popular, yet traditionally white sports. – David K. Wiggins, George Mason University

Despite black professional player’s successes, the issues of race and gender have remained constant. Djata fills the gap in the record of black achievement in international tennis with Blacks at the Net, the final volume of his ambitious examination of black achievement in international tennis. There is still much work to be done. Combining the available materials, these books begin to assemble the puzzle of a largely ignored history. Hopefully these two volumes will stimulate additional scholarship.

Health, Mind & Body / Psychology & Counseling / Parenting & Families

The Case for Make-Believe: Saving Play in Our Commercialized World by Susan Linn (New Press)

Does your teen turn on the sarcasm when she's kicked off the computer?

Is your grade-schooler asking for more quality time with the TV?

In the nationally celebrated Consuming Kids, Susan Linn provided an unsparing look at how modern childhood is molded by commercialism. The resulting threat to children's play is the subject of her new book. In The Case for Make-Believe, Linn argues that while play is crucial to human development and children are born with an innate capacity for make believe, the convergence of ubiquitous technology and unfettered commercialism actually prevents them from playing. In modern-day America nurturing creative play is not only counter­cultural – it threatens corporate profits.

In an age when toys come from TV shows, dress-up means wearing Disney costumes, and parents believe Baby Einstein is educational, Linn lays out the inextricable links between play, creativity, and health, showing readers why they need to protect their children from corporations that aim to limit their imaginations. At the heart of The Case for Make-Believe are gripping stories of children at home, at school, and in a therapist's office using make believe to grapple with real-life issues from entering kindergarten to the death of a sibling, revealing feelings they can't express directly, and making meaning of an often confusing world.
Linn, a psychologist at Judge Baker Children's Center and Harvard Medical School in Boston and also a pioneer in using puppet therapy with children, believes adults should make an effort to spend ‘unplugged’ time with children. She advises creating special times after they unplug, shut down and switch off. In The Case for Make-Believe, she says nix the phone, shut down the computer and turn off the television for a ‘family slowdown’ – it may be hard to find the time, but it's worth it.

"Remember that your child is going to be grappling with electronic media and the things it sells for the rest of their lives," said Linn. "They'll be better equipped to cope if they have lots of experience enjoying their own ability to make things happen, using their own curiosity as an impetus for actively exploring the world."

Of course, there are times when even the most attentive parents are grateful to the creators of DVDs and video recorders. But quieter activities that kids can do mostly themselves with exhausted grownups nearby can replace electronic babysitters. Parents can dig into the desk for rubber bands and have the kids start a rubber band ball. Parents can teach children old-fashioned hand string games, get them to think up a story and draw their own illustrations to go with it, pack travel puzzle books with enough variety to keep fresh on the road or suggest freestyle origami that encourages kids to be inventive.

Whatever suits the family, Linn in The Case for Make-Believe urges parents to start young. In good weather, a family hike in the woods or a walk around the neighborhood can clear everybody's heads and provide a quieter outdoor alternative to noisy and chaotic playgrounds. They can visit the pet shop, the firehouse and the resident cat at the corner store as they stroll.

A trip to the airport just to watch planes take off and land is oddly exciting when they are not running to and fro with luggage. For youngsters learning how to identify money, they can grab the spare change jar, toss the contents on the dining room table and let them create sorting and counting games of their own.

"Don't buy into the ‘educational’ baby video and software scam," said Linn, who is the director and co-founder of the nonprofit Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood. "There's no credible evidence that screen time is beneficial to babies and toddlers and some evidence suggests that it might be harmful."

This timely book documents the contemporary paralysis of imaginary play while offering us the means to revive this critical ingredient of child development. – Mel Levine, professor of pediatrics, University of North Carolina Medical School, co-founder of All Kinds of Minds

An eloquent brief on the indispensability of unmediated, unadulterated play. – Howard Gardner, author of Five Minds for the Future and Hobbs Professor of Cognition and Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education

… An important and engaging read! – Alvin F. Poussaint, professor of psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and Judge Baker Children’s Center

[Makes] a strong argument for play as health, play as learning, and play as intellectual freedom. – Anne Elizabeth Moore, author of Unmarketable

This book is a superb tool for growing social capital right from the start with our young…. – Raffi Cavoukian, singer, author, and founder of Child Honoring

The Case for Make-Believe is all about giving children the space to play … and parents, too. – Joan Blades, co-founder of MomsRising.org and MoveOn.org

Her research is comprehensive, her firsthand knowledge is impressive, and her examples are damning in their conclusions. Linn brings invaluable expertise to this well-organized and straightforward exploration of a neglecter subject. – Booklist

Linn argues that the contemporary reliance on media and toys based on media stifles children's imaginations and ability to cope with the world as life progresses. This is a welcome addition to such books as D.W. Winnicott's Playing and Reality, Bruno Bettleheim's The Uses of Enchantment, and Mihaly Csiksznentmihaly's Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. – Library Journal

Both timely and important, The Case for Make-Believe helps readers understand how crucial child's play is – and what parents and educators can do to protect it. Linn lays out the links between play, creativity, and health, showing readers why they need to protect their children from corporations that aim to limit their imaginations. The book is a clarion call for preserving play in our material world, a book every parent will want to read.

Health, Mind & Body / Psychology & Counseling

Making a Difference in Patients' Lives: Emotional Experience in the Therapeutic Setting by Sandra Buechler (Psychoanalysis in a New Key Book Series: Routledge)
To make a difference –

Within the title of her book, Making a Difference in Patients' Lives, Sandra Buechler, training and supervising analyst at the William Alanson White Institute in New Your City and supervisor at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and at the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy, echoes the hope of all clinicians. But, she counters, experience soon convinces most of us that insight, on its own, is often not powerful enough to have a significantly impact on how a life is actually lived. Many clinicians and therapists have turned toward emotional experience, within and outside the treatment setting, as a resource.

How can the immense power of lived emotional experience be harnessed in the service of helping patients live richer, more satisfying lives? Most patients come into treatment because they are too anxious, or depressed, or don't seem to feel alive enough. Something is wrong with what they feel, or don't feel. Given that the emotions operate as a system, with the intensity of each affecting the level of all the others, it makes sense that it would be an emotional experience that would have enough power to change what we feel. But, ironically, the wider culture, and even psychoanalysts seem to favor ‘solutions’ that aim to mute emotionality, rather than relying on one emotion to modify another. We turn to pharmaceutical, cognitive, or behavioral change to make a difference in how life feels. In prose that utilizes both clinical vignettes and excerpts from poetry, art and literature, Buechler explores how the power to feel can become the power to change. Through an active empathic engagement with the patient and an awareness of the healing potential inherent in each of our fundamental emotions, the clinician can make a substantial difference in the patient's capacity to embrace life.

Making a Difference in Patients' Lives is Buechler’s effort to formulate what emotion theory, interpersonal psychoanalysis, and her own clini­cal experience have taught her about having a significant emotional impact in treatment. The fundamental tenets of emotion theory can suggest much to the clinician. They have powerful implications for our understanding of therapeutic action. Buechler draws on both her own clinical experiences and treatment accounts contributed by others to explore the clinical relevance of concepts taken from emotion theory. Each chapter approaches the issue of the clinician's emotional impact from a different angle. The first chapter outlines some basic precepts about human feelings that emotion theory has researched, and then explores their potential clinical applications.

Throughout Making a Difference in Patients' Lives, Buechler explores what her reading of some of the interpersonal analytic literature and emotion theory suggests about the sources of treatment's emo­tional impact. While analytic theories differ in how they understand therapeutic action, we know that to have lasting significance a treatment must engage forces with the power to affect the course of a human life. Poets, visual artists, philosophers, ecclesiastics, developmental researchers, and others have long searched for an understanding of what is pow­erful enough to truly affect life experience. It is her belief that one set of answers can be found in the feelings that form our bonds, our passions, our shared emotional experiences. In each chapter, in a sense, she asks what the analyst can learn from this and other vignettes of human beings whose emotional experiences have been profoundly affected by the behavior of another.

The second chapter of Making a Difference in Patients' Lives applies emotion theory and interpersonal analytic theory to our understanding of empathy in treatment. How can we envision empathic therapeutic action if we use ideas contrib­uted by these theories? First, our conception of an empathic therapeutic stance would be likely to focus on the feelings that the analyst's presence adds to the patient's emotional experience. Using her own reading and clinical experience as guides she suggests that it is often through the ana­lyst's (and the patient's) struggle to regain balance, in unpredictable, previously unformulated ways, that emotional modifications occur for them both. What is added is the analyst's active emo­tional effort to discover how to be in relation to this patient.

The following five chapters of Making a Difference in Patients' Lives honor the emotion theorist's funda­mental belief that each emotion deserves to be understood as a dif­ferent human experience. Our regret is not entirely the same as our shame or our guilt, although all three may have much in common. Analysts come into contact with every possible human feeling in their patients and in themselves. Can we say anything about working with regretful moments? Is there some way empathic immersion in these experiences differs from work with intense shame, or anger, or sadness? It is especially important, in Buechler’s view, to consider nuances of difference in our own and our patients' emotions. Too often we refer to counter-transferential emotions as though they were interchangeable. We write about disclosing ‘affect’ as though it makes no difference which feeling it is.
Shame, regret, joy, sadness or depression, and anger are each con­sidered in separate chapters. Buechler believes it is crucial to think in emotion-specific terms when we write about the treatment exchange. What can we say about working with these feelings when each predomi­nates? Is the nature of an empathic response to regret different, in any identifiable way, from an empathic response to sadness? While every clinical moment is unique, and every treatment pair its own interpersonal milieu, it seems probable that we can say something about what it feels like to respond to great joy, for example, when we encounter it in treatment.

Making a Difference in Patients' Lives’ final chapters make up a special section on clinical train­ing, where she considers how we can nurture the cognitive, emotional, and interpersonal strengths needed to treat patients using insights derived from emotion theory and interpersonal psychoanalysis. What is the ‘right stuff’ to do this kind of work? Is it ‘born’ or ‘made’? Are there ways to recognize candidates who can use their emotions well in clinical exchanges? What fosters the development of a capacity for empathic emotional relating as it is discussed in this book?

When termination of treatment with one of her patients approaches, Buechler makes it a point to reflect, with the patient, about their emotional experiences with each other. In particular, she asks what the patient thinks affected him or her most. She says that patients have taught her that making a difference can come in various forms. This complicates research into a treatment's course and outcome studies of its effectiveness. How can effectiveness be measured, if the patient's definition of progress is always evolving? But, although this complexity makes the study of therapeutic action more difficult, the vast array of ways a human life can be improved is a blessing for both clinician and patient. Emotion theory and interpersonal psychoanalysis can both be mined by the clinician for new ways to think about how to make a meaningful difference in patients' lives.

Aimed at therapists, Making a Difference in Patients' Lives is a clear and jargon free exposition on the use of emotions in the therapeutic relationship, using extensive, enlightening clinical examples. Buechler has a deep understanding of how to harness patients’ feelings to help them heal. She decries the numbing that often accompanies therapy in a culture that fears emotional intensity. And she bravely lays her own feelings bare in service to her patients.

Health, Mind & Body / Psychology & Counseling

Treating PTSD in Battered Women: A Step-by-Step Manual for Therapists and Counselors by Edward S. Kubany & Tyler C. Ralston (New Harbinger Publications)

Treating PTSD in Battered Women, a book for clinicians, is based on a new treatment model for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It offers a comprehensive therapy targeting symptoms of PTSD in battered women.

Pioneered by Edward Kubany, this innovative intervention is called cognitive trauma therapy (CTT). CTT is a highly structured intervention, deliverable to clients unlike any other therapy. Treating PTSD in Battered Women, written by Kubany, and Tyler C. Ralston, both clinical psychologists in private practice in Honolulu, describes the CTT protocol for:

• Managing trauma-related symptoms.
• Building cognitive and behavioral self-advocacy skills.
• Assessing and correcting irrational guilt-related beliefs.
• Learning assertive communication skills.
• Managing unwanted contacts with former partners.
• Identifying potential perpetrators and avoiding revictmization.

The CTT intervention therapy described in Treating PTSD in Battered Women represents an innovative advance in the study of psychosocial interventions in at least two respects. First, the intervention directly targets and addresses symptoms of PTSD in battered women. Although some counseling or therapy approaches for battered women have been reported, these accounts are largely descriptive or anec­dotal in nature, they have not generally been aimed directly at PTSD, and few have been subjected to peer review.

A second way in which this intervention is innovative is in how the treatment is described. Cognitive trauma therapy is highly psycho-educational, and its delivery is described more specifically than any other psychotherapeutic intervention. For example, most procedures are described in such detail that they can literally be read or paraphrased by therapists conducting CTT. Moreover, according to Treating PTSD in Battered Women, CTT has proven to be highly efficacious in two treatment-outcome studies.

CTT includes several elements adapted from existing cognitive behavioral treatments for PTSD, including psycho-education about PTSD, stress management (with relaxation training), talking about the trauma, and exposure homework. In addition, CTT includes specialized procedures for reducing negative self-talk and assessing and correcting irratio­nal guilt-related beliefs. CTT also includes interventions addressing issues that can com­plicate the treatment of battered women. These interventions focus on self-advocacy and empowerment and include education on self-advocacy strategies, building skills in asser­tive communication, managing stressful contacts with former abusers, and learning how to identify potential perpetrators, thereby enabling women to prevent revictimization.

The course of treatment described in Treating PTSD in Battered Women includes fifteen modules that are used with all clients, five optional modules addressing issues that may be less relevant for some clients, and a closing module that is used with all clients. Most modules require one to two sessions to complete with the exception of the module on guilt, which usually takes four to five sessions. The number of sessions needed to complete each module can vary depending on the client's specific trauma issues.

After a brief introduction, each module presents lists of objectives, materials needed for that module, and homework assignments. Next is a checklist of module procedures, followed by detailed descriptions of module procedures, including therapist scripts.

Kubany and Ralston in the Introduction elaborate on their rationale for conducting CTT modules in the sequence described in Treating PTSD in Battered Women. Their clinical experience has shown that it is a good idea for clients to start talking about traumatic experiences at the very first session. This initiates the process of overcoming trauma survivors' tendencies to avoid reminders of traumatic experiences. Also, Kubany and Ralston believe that talking about traumatic experiences in a nonjudgmental interpersonal atmosphere is therapeutic. Clients often cry when disclosing events that were highly distressing, and they typically feel better after they have cried.

In the second session, the therapist shifts the focus by addressing negative self-talk and stress. The therapist assigns homework for monitoring and breaking negative self-talk habits (module 2) and then focuses on managing stress (modules 3 and 4) to provide clients with some practical coping skills for regulating their levels of tension or emotional arousal. Module 5, in which the therapist inquires about trauma history other than partner abuse, serves to identify other trauma issues that may need to be addressed and gives clients additional opportunities to discuss or disclose other emotionally charged memories or issues.

PTSD psycho-education (module 6) sets the stage for the exposure homework by giving clients a strong rationale for the often difficult work of experiencing abuser – and abuse-related reminders. Therapists assign exposure homework (module 7) early enough in therapy to be confident that clients will have sufficient time to overcome abuse – or abuser-related avoidance issues before the end of CTT. Module 8, on learned helplessness and how to overcome it, is an extension of the PTSD education module in which clients learn why PTSD may not diminish with the passage of time.

Module 9 of Treating PTSD in Battered Women, which provides psycho-education about negative self-talk. When negative self-talk remains high, PTSD symptoms almost always remain at relatively high levels too. With heightened motivation to break negative self-talk habits, most clients are able to reduce negative self-talk to an insignificant level by the end of therapy.

The guilt intervention (module 10) also addresses exposure and avoidance issues. For example, the guilt incident debriefings often require clients to revisit experiences of abuse, and here too, clients often cry while discussing and disclosing painful events from the past. The module on challenging ‘supposed to’ beliefs or guiding fictions (module 11) is usually conducted directly after the guilt work because one of this module's goals is to put to rest any residual guilt about not having left an abusive partner sooner – an extremely common guilt issue among formerly battered women.

Building assertiveness skills (module 12) provides clients with practical self-advocacy skills for dealing with interpersonal conflict and getting their needs met in relationships. An important aspect of this is to avoid getting involved in abusive relationships in the future. To that end, module 13, on managing mistrust, teaches clients about some clues that are likely to indicate someone can't be trusted. Module 14 teaches clients additional ways to tell whether someone is likely to become abusive. Module 15, on managing contacts with former abusers, builds directly on the assertiveness skills developed in modules 12 and 13.

The final module (Self-Advocacy Strategies Revisited) in Treating PTSD in Battered Women is in some respects a review or compila­tion of everything covered in earlier modules. The self-advocacy exercise in this module is typically uplifting for clients, as it heightens their awareness of how much they have overcome, learned, changed, and grown psychologically as a result of their experiences with CTT.

… This manual is a crucial resource for anyone treating women traumatized by intimate-partner violence and abuse. – Josef I. Ruzek, Ph.D., acting director of the Education Division, National Center for PTSD, VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Menlo Park, CA

Finally, a manual that describes a highly effective cognitive-behavioral treatment for PTSD in formerly battered women – boasting a 90 percent recovery rate – with such detail that even helpers with no prior psychotherapy training have used it successfully. …Highly recommended for every clinician who treats trauma, and essential reading for therapists who treat battered women. – Irene G. Powch, Ph.D., psychologist on the PTSD Clinical Team at the Portland Veterans Administration Medical Center

At last! A book that addresses the unique struggles of battered women in their battle to reclaim their dignity and personal power. … This concise, well organized guide is a must-read for anyone in the field of domestic violence. – Aphrodite Matsakis, Ph.D., practicing psychologist

Written by clinical scientists, this volume is an excellent resource for clinicians from all disciplines who are interested in learning specific strategies for addressing problems associated with surviv­ing domestic violence…. While the treatment of battered women has been of clinical interest for many years, this text is one of the first to present treatment strategies based on empirical findings. This important text will definitely be an asset to practitioners who are new to this area, as well as experienced providers in the field. – Victoria M. Follette, Ph.D., chair of psychology and professor of clinical psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno

Treating PTSD in Battered Women offers therapists, counselors, and social workers an effective new tool for treating the lingering effects of domestic violence and abuse in women. Most procedures are described in such great detail, they can be literally read or paraphrased by therapists – thereby facilitating ease of learning and delivery and making the book a valuable resource for community health providers and other individuals who counsel battered women, but who may not have advanced higher education.

Kubany and Ralston‘s systematic approach to the treatment of PTSD in bat­tered women is firmly grounded in empirically-supported principles of cognitive behavioral therapy. This approach is comprehensively described in this procedural guide, which is complete with client handouts and homework forms. Their data on the efficacy of this approach, provides yet another reason to consider this volume as an outstanding source of information on treatment in this area.

Health, Mind & Body / Self-Help / Women’s Issues

Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips by Kris Carr, with a foreword by Sheryl Crow (skirt!)

I love Kris’s book because it made me feel so many things. Familiar things. It made me laugh and reflect. And thank God she has the courage and generosity to share her experience. This book will be a comfort to so many who are going through the experience or who have graduated to survivor. – from the Foreword by Sheryl Crow, nine-time Grammy-winning American blues rock singer, guitarist, bassist, and songwriter, also a breast cancer survivor

For Kris Carr, as told in Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips, news of ‘the big C’ came on Valentine's Day. After a week of partying at Florida's Sarasota Film Festival, where a film she was in premiered, she returned home to New York City ready to detox, shape up, and live healthier. She kicked off her new regime with a kick-ass yoga class, and wound up feeling as if she had been hit by a truck. When the pain got worse, Carr called her doctor. On February 14, 2003 the young photographer and actress, best known for playing Marilyn Monroe's ghost in an Arthur Miller original and a ‘Bud Girl’ in Super Bowl commercials, was diagnosed with a rare cancer . . . Epithelioid Hemangio-endothelioma, (and according to Carr it was better known as, "Holy Shit! Try to say that one five times fast!") It was Stage IV. And it was incurable. At 31, Carr wasn't ready to ‘watch and wait’ for the tumors covering her liver and lungs to declare their intentions. So, when her doctor threw her a crumb – to focus on building up her immune system through diet and lifestyle – she vowed to turn it into a cake.