Ebook of the Week - The Feminist Promise: 1792 to the Present.

Stansell, Christine. Feminist Promise: 1792 to the Present. New York: Modern Library, 2010.


Stansell's comprehensive history of Western feminism surveys all the ‘promises’ of feminism as an identifiable political identity and movement – the promises that were realized as well as those that were (or remain) unmet. Beginning with the release of Mary Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman and concluding with the connection of modern American feminism to global human rights, Stansell’s sweeping narrative puts the accomplishments of important figures such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Maria Stewart and many others into a larger historical context, and also chronicles organizations and acts of protest that defined feminism in the 20th century. At 528 pages, this volume has sufficient content to be a useful all-purpose general resource for a student of modern European and American feminism.

Previewed by John Breitmeyer.  Click here to read the book.

Ebook of the Week - Do Deficits Matter?

Shaviro, Daniel.  Do Deficits Matter? Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997

Shaviro’s answer to this starkly posed question is that yes, the federal deficit does matter, even though it is often misunderstood by the general public and politicians alike. In this economic analysis, Shaviro discusses concepts such as “tax lag” and “generational accounting” in concluding that while deficits are not in themselves an evil, the present (and this was written fourteen years ago) degree of national deficit formation is unsustainable for much longer. Indeed, he likens American fiscal policy in the last fifty years to a Ponzi scheme that can only be remedied by making choices among tax increases, benefit reductions, debt issuance at higher interest rates, and printing money. Ultimately, Shaviro concludes that Americans will have to adjust to “realistic expectations about what government-provided benefits, at what cost in lifetime taxes” can be had “in a world where resources are finite.” The recent crisis involving the raising of the debt ceiling has brought these issues sharply into focus, but will obviously not be the end of this highly charged debate.

Preview by Jack Ray.  Click here to read the book.

Ebook of the Week - Fast Forward: Ethics and Politics in the Age of Global Warming

Antholis, William and Strobe Talbott.  Fast Forward : Ethics and Politics in the Age of Global Warming. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2010.

“We have no excuse,” write the authors of the Brookings Institute publication “Fast Forward : Ethics and Politics in the Age of Global Warming.”   This bracing statement begins a brief (156 pages) but urgent discussion of global warming that is a combination of science primer, history lesson in the last 20 years of global climate change politics, policy prescription, and ethical treatise. The book recaps what we know and don t know about global warming and why it requires immediate action.  The way forward, the authors argue, is to begin the historically difficult but necessary transition to a global low-carbon economy, and this will require a revolution in our sense of civic responsibility and in standards for international cooperation regarding this issue.
Previewed by John Breitmeyer.  Click here to read the book.

Ebook of the Week -The Fruit, the Tree and the Serpent : Why We See so Well.

Isbell, Lynne A. The Fruit, the Tree and the Serpent : Why We See so Well.

Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 2009.


Lynne Isbell has developed a thesis that exceptional aspects of vision in humans and other primates evolved largely to help detect and avoid venomous snakes. She weaves together facts from anthropology, neuroscience, paleontology, and psychology to explain our emotional connection to snakes. The book is interesting and funny and the author manages to make even complex arguments accessible. Her book should be of great interest to biologists, neuroscientists, psychologists, as well as the lay reader looking for a fascinating read.

Previewed by Joanne Helouvry.  Click here to read the book.

Check Out HathiTrust!

Hathitrust (http://www.hathitrust.org/home), founded in October 2008 by the Committee on Institutional Cooperation and now with over 50 of the largest libraries in the world as members, is the next big thing in online digital books for its members and for the public. Its fast-growing holdings (numbering over 9 million total volumes, about half of which are book titles) include content from the Google Books initiative, Microsoft’s projects to digitize library contents worldwide, and contents from all its member libraries. It indexes both public-domain works and works still in copyright, and – the best part – much of its content is downloadable in full directly from the HathiTrust website. Readers can create permanent labeled collections of titles, complete with a form of catalog records for each title, within the site. (Guests can register for free!)

Hathitrust also includes content from other well-known public digitization projects such as Project Gutenberg (public domain works) and the Internet Archive project (Web content). In doing so, it is creating a massive online archive of all kinds of content while still maintaining a strong commitment to preservation of book and serial titles. Membership in Hathitrust is open to institutions worldwide – let’s hope it grows and prospers!

E-Book of the Week - Anatomy of a Trial : Public Loss, Lessons Learned from The People vs. O.J. Simpson

Hayslett, Jerrianne.  Anatomy of a Trial : Public Loss, Lessons Learned from The People vs. O.J. Simpson.

Columbia : University of Missouri Press, 2008.



The recent trial and acquittal of Casey Anthony in the death of her two-year-old daughter has awakened memories of and evoked comparisons with the 1994-95 murder trial of O.J. Simpson. In both cases media and public attention were riveted upon the proceedings, and in both cases there was a widely-held perception that justice was not done in the end. In this insider account of the Simpson trial, Hayslett, the Los Angeles court’s information officer and media liaison, provides a unique perspective on what she terms “a very public yet poorly understood trial.” Hayslett defends the performance of the much-maligned Judge Lance Ito and discusses how this trial led to the tightening of media access to judicial proceedings. It is worthy of note that one factor that allowed the Anthony trial to go viral is that Florida law allows cameras in courtroom, and hence enabled almost continuous live coverage of the proceedings.

Preview by Jack Ray.  Click here to read the book.

E-Book of the Week - Reel Men at War: Masculinity and the American War Film

Donald, Ralph and Karen MacDonald.  Reel Men at War : Masculinity and the American War Film. Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, 2011.

Reel Men at War examines how depictions of manhood in films about war affect young men. Representations of appropriate codes of manly behavior and behaviors to avoid during war are looked at through 143 scenes of American war in film in the forms of screenplay text, acting, and directing choices. Commentary by psychologist Dr. Karen MacDonald is provided at the end of each chapter analyzing the psychological ramifications of viewing these films.

Previewed by Danielle Johnson.  Click here to read the book.