Why America Lost the War on Poverty – and How to Win it (Posted on Sept. 24, 2008)

By Frank Stricker *74

(University of North Carolina Press) This book assesses the causes of American poverty and unemployment between 1950 to the present. Stricker asserts that no true change has occurred — since the 1970s, U.S. poverty rates have remained around 11 percent. His...

Is Milton Better Than Shakespeare? (Posted on Sept. 24, 2008)

By Nigel Smith

(Harvard University Press) The author argues that it’s John Milton, not Shakespeare, who speaks to us today, particularly those who live in the United States. Milton, the author says, addressed eloquently the “big issues” — free will, freedom and slavery,...

A Brief History of the Late Ottoman Empire (Posted on Sept. 24, 2008)

By M. Sükrü Hanioglu

(Princeton University Press) In this history of the late empire between 1789 and 1918, the author examines the imperial struggle to centralize amid powerful opposition from local rulers, nationalist and other groups, and foreign powers. He also explores the...

How and Why Species Multiply: The Radiation of Darwin’s Finches (Posted on Sept. 24, 2008)

By Peter R. Grant and B. Rosemary Grant

(Princeton University Press) Nearly 175 years have passed since Charles Darwin made Galapagos finches famous, yet this text proves we aren’t done learning from them. Rosemary and Peter Grant have studied on the islands for three decades; here, they show how...

Patriotism and Other Mistakes (Posted on Sept. 24, 2008)

By George Kateb

(Yale University Press) This study discusses the role that nonrational psychic forces play in political life and their moral consequences. It urges vigilance, cautioning against commitments to ideals of religion, nation, race, ethnicity, manliness, and...

Singing in Style: A Guide to Vocal Performance Practices (Posted on Sept. 24, 2008)

By Martha Elliott

(Yale University Press) Covering the Baroque period to the present, this historical overview of vocal performance practice and style provides an introduction to how such issues as ornamentation, vibrato, rubato, portamento, articulation, tempo, language, and...

No Way Home: The Decline of the World’s Great Animal Migrations (Posted on Sept. 23, 2008)

By David S. Wilcove

(Island Press) The author explores the great migrations — how animals travel and why — and the growing threats to long-distance travelers, due to issues including climate change, overdevelopment, and pollution. The abilities of fish to swim the oceans, of...