Library Journal articles from October 2007

Library Journal archives from October 2007

Grad school confidential: placement offices should come clean about their efforts and results.(editorial)
October 15, 2007... THE GOOD NEWS IN THE 2007 PLACEMENTS & Salaries survey is that women graduates of library and information studies programs--at least those in the cohort responding to our survey--have finally broken through the $40,000 entry-level ceiling...

The endowment's purpose: let's spend some of ALA's millions.(blantant berry)(American Library Association)
October 15, 2007... I AM ALWAYS PLEASED WHEN THE AMERICAN Library Association (ALA) does well. I've been a member for decades--so long, in fact, that I have some kind of permanent member status now that I'm deep in my dotage. So it was good news to hear from ALA...

Correction.(feedback)(Correction notice)
October 15, 2007... In LJ's Library by Design (Fall 2007, p. 38), the "Expert Opinion" respondent for JCJ Architecture was Barbara Joslin, not Jon Schlesinger.

Lost in the stacks.(front desk)(a band made of Brooklyn Public Library's employees)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Lost in the Stacks, a band of Brooklyn Public Library staffers, plays rock, pop, and jazz standards, especially at library events. On the morning of September 27, they performed at the Central Library's newly...

Get carded.(front desk)(library cards)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] The Berkeley Public Library, CA, offers diverse options for new library cards, among them (clockwise) one in tie-dye, which is particularly apt considering the city's counterculture history; a flying boy from a...

Heard.(front desk)
October 15, 2007... "Publishing is a sales game, nothing else. Publishing is about selling books, not disseminating literary masterpieces to the world.... I don't blame the publishing world for the success of the O.J. [Simpson] book. I blame the tens of...

The failure of municipal WI-FI.(front desk)
October 15, 2007... "Real public infrastructure costs real public money. --Columbia Law School professor Tim Wu in Slate, September 27, 2007; www.slate.com/id/2174858"

The UC disconnect.(STAT WATCH)(University of California)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... 75% of faculty agree that "the rise in journal prices increasingly is a burden to my institution" 19% of faculty say they "deliberately" publish in affordable journals Source: Faculty Attitudes and Behaviors Regarding...

IMLS announces grants: leadership projects emphasize digital libraries.(lj news)(Institute of Museum and Library Services)
October 15, 2007... The federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) announced 43 recipients of its National Leadership Grants for 2007, among them libraries, universities, museums, and other cultural institutions. The total funding will be...

"Libraries for the Future" returns.(lj news)(Americans for Libraries Council renamed )(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... It was one of the more unwieldy name changes in libraryland, but the Americans for Libraries Council (ALC), the name under which Libraries for the Future (LFF) operated from 2004 to 2007, is no more: the LFF is back in the saddle again. ...

Minority jobs at academic libs.? New report recommends increased focus, single recruitment resource.(lj news)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... If academic libraries hope to increase the number of minority librarians on staff, a single comprehensive recruitment and public awareness resource should be developed to channel professionwide efforts to one place--taking a lead from other...

BLC, OCA join in digitization effort: new digital library would involve 19 Boston-area institutions.(lj news)(Boston Library Consortium, Inc and Open Content Alliance)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... The Boston Library Consortium, Inc. (BLC), has announced a major partnership with the Open Content Alliance (OCA) to "build a freely accessible library of digital materials from all 19 member institutions." With the move, BLC becomes the...

ARSL finds WebJunction home.(lj news)(Association for Rural and Small Libraries)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... The Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) has found a new home on Web Junction, the four-year-old online resource for library professionals largely underwritten by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and OCLC. The collaboration was...

Legislation aims at NSL abuses: ALA, privacy advocates hail proposed tightening of Patriot Act.(lj news)(National Security Letters and American Library Association)(National Security Letter Reform Act of 2007)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... A bipartisan group of Senators has introduced legislation aimed at tightening the FBI's use of National Security Letters (NSLs), administrative subpoenas issued with no judicial oversight, deployed under the USA PATRIOT Act. The Campaign for...

Ban on religious services stands: U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear appeal; new challenges coming?(lj news)(Contra Costa Public Library ban on Faith Center Church Evangelistic Ministries's services)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... A library can still bar a church from holding religious services in its meeting rooms, as a federal appeals court said last year, overturning a lower court ruling. The U.S. Supreme Court on October 1 refused to hear an appeal, letting the...

Contest yields rare manuscripts: fruits of digitization to appear in online British Library gallery.(lj news)
October 15, 2007... A 12th-century manuscript containing the earliest record of the English language, a war record of life on the home front during World War II, and a Scottish illuminated manuscript detailing a "blood-curdling" right of excommunication are...

LJ seeks award nominations.(lj news)
October 15, 2007... The LJ editors are seeking nominations for the 20th annual Library Journal Librarian of the Year Award to honor a professional librarian for outstanding achievement and accomplishments reflecting the loftiest service goals of the library...

Happy endings back at MS PL.(lj news)(Jackson-George Regional Library System and the circulation of Happy Endings: The Tales of a Meaty-Breasted Zilch)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Following the September 25 recommendations of a review committee, the Jackson-George Regional Library System, MS, returned comedian Jim Nortoffs volume Happy Endings: The Tales of a Meaty-Breasted Zilch (Simon Spotlight Entertainment) to...

Alumna leaves big gift to Emporia State.(lj news)(Martha Kruse Furber of Emporia State University)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... By living frugally and investing wisely, librarian Martha Kruse Furber was able to leave her alma mater, Emporia State University (ESU), KS, $1.875 million, the largest ever single gift to the school. The funds will be used for scholarships...

BiblioTemps now runs in the black.(lj news)(Central Massachusetts Regional Library System)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... BiblioTemps, a library temporary staffing service created and managed by the Central Massachusetts Regional Library System (CMRLS), Shrewsbury, now runs in the black some three years after its inception. "It's the first year we were able to...

$19m cost to repair UConn law library.(lj news)(University of Connecticut )(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Just over a decade after the 1996 opening of a beautiful $24 million law library, University of Connecticut (UConn), Storrs, officials have approved a $19 million renovation because the original project has been plagued by potentially...

Bulk access to copyright data?(lj news)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... The heads of the Digital Library Federation, Association of Research Libraries, and major academic libraries have asked Registrar of Copyrights Marybeth Peters to "provide bulk access to the U.S. copyright catalog of monographs, documents,...

University of California.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Sharon Farb has been named Associate University Librarian for Collection Management and Scholarly Communication at the University of California, Los Angeles. Farb most recently was Head of Digital Collection Services.

Cochise County Library District.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Lise Gilliland has been appointed Director of the Cochise County Library District, Bisbee, AZ. She most recently was the Director of the Southeast Steuben County Library, Coming, NY.

Glendale Public Library.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Sue Komernicky has been appointed Director of the Glendale Public Library, AZ. She most recently was the library's Foothills Branch Manager.

Lexington Public Library.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Susie Lawrence has been named Central Library Manager at the Lexington Public Library, KY. She is the former Director of the Jessamine County Public Library, Nicholasville, KY.

Hedberg Public Library.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Bryan McCormick will become the new Director of the Hedberg Public Library, Janesville, WI, effective October 22. He currently is Director of the Martin County Library System, Fairmont, MN.

Carol Starr, County Librarian of the Marin County Free Library.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Carol Starr, County Librarian of the Marin County Free Library, San Rafael, CA, for the past ten years, is retiring, effective October 30.

Eve Tallman, former Director of the Grand County Public Library, Moab, UT (LJ/Gates Foundation 2007 Best Small Library in America) has a new job.(people)(Mesa County Public Library District)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Eve Tallman, former Director of the Grand County Public Library, Moab, UT (LJ/Gates Foundation 2007 Best Small Library in America) has a new job. She is Director of the Mesa County Public Library District, Grand Junction, CO.

Lexington Public Library.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Martha White has been named Assistant Director for Library Services at the Lexington Public Library, KY. She previously was Assistant Director of Public Services, Columbus Metropolitan Library, OH.

Virgil Grissom Library.(people)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Deborah Wright has been appointed Supervising Librarian of the Virgil Grissom Library, part of the Newport News Public Library System, VA. Wright previously was the library's Supervising Librarian for Family and Youth Services.

Obituary.(people)
October 15, 2007... Lee Eaton, longtime Director of the Beekman Library, Poughquag, NY, died recently after a sudden illness; she was 76. She began working at the library in 1965. The library is part of the Mid-Hudson Library System, Poughkeepsie, NY. ...

Ebooks and downloadable audio making progress: vendors/publishers increasing access and adding hotter titles to lure readers.(infotech)(OverDrive, Harlequin, Ingram Digital Group's MyiLibrary unit and Joint Information Systems Committee)
October 15, 2007... Though it seems like we've been hearing about the ebook and downloadable audiobook revolution for years, it still has yet to truly take off. Progress, however, is being made: vendors continue to develop new products, and a top genre publisher...

Gale debuts literature Criticism Online.(infotech)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Gale (www.galegroup.com) continues its push for its lit products with the debut of Literature Criticism Online, an amalgam of ten of the publisher's top literary series Gale said that the database offers centuries of analysis--the scholarly...

Grokker adds muse tool.(infotech)(Muse Content Machine)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Groxis is incorporating MuseGlobal's (MG) Muse Content Machine into its Grokker visual information management and discovery tool. MG said that its Muse Content Machine "provides source management, access management, search integration, and...

Oxford library selects SFX.(infotech)(Oxford University Library Services)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Oxford University Library Services (OULS) has installed Ex Libris's SFX link resolver to manage its more than 22,500 journals and even larger collection of ebooks. OULS selected the vendor's SFX subscription service whereby Ex Libris provides...

UP using Olive for digitization.(infotech)(University of Pennsylvania Libraries and Olive Software's ViewPoint)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... University of Pennsylvania Libraries (UP) has selected Olive Software's ViewPoint solution for a project to digitize many of its rare and special collections into a fully indexed and searchable online archive. Materials include UP's...

Feds OK EOS.Web handicap status.(infotech)(United States Department of Transportation and the website of EOS International)(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has deemed EOS International's (www.eosintl.com) EOS.Web OPAC as "handicap accessible," pursuant to the agency's Section 508 requirements. "The EOS.Web OPAC was created to help libraries and their...

Open source metasearch.(DIGITAL LIBRARIES)(LibraryFind)(Website overview)
October 15, 2007... SOFTWARE THAT SEARCHES multiple remote sources and merges the results for the user has been available for several years. Whether called federated searching, cross-database searching, or metasearching, it aims to make it as easy as possible...

Triumphing over opacity.(THE TRANSPARENT LIBRARY)(Discussion)
October 15, 2007... WE RECENTLY HEARD FROM A "librarian in the trenches" who copied our recent column on transparency ("The Open Door Director," LJ 7/07, p. 29) for colleagues but was chastised by the library director for being too open with "lower levels of...

Consuming information: we're all learning how to create new web content, but what are the best and fastest ways to process it?(INFOTECH FEATURE)
October 15, 2007... While librarians and users have been inundated with advice on how to produce content for MySpace, blogs, and other Web 2.0 services, there's been much less discussion about using newer technologies to consume all this new content efficiently....

What's an MLIS worth? A picture of overall growth is marred by fissures in job outlook.(PLACEMENTS & SALARIES 2007)
October 15, 2007... It was a banner year for women in 2006. Their average annual starting salary finally cracked through the $40,000 glass barrier, increasing to $40,566 for all women and with a substantial gain of 11.3% for women in the Southwest. There was...

Learning gardens: New York's GreenBranches program links the library to the street.
October 15, 2007... To the individual, gardens area link to the natural world, offering solace, refuge, inspiration, and purpose. To a low-income neighborhood, where often the only greenery sprouts from between cracks in concrete, their impact can be monumental,...

All work and no play?(NEXTGEN)(librarians)
October 15, 2007... LIBRARIANS ARE UNREPENTANT copycats. In our ongoing search for identity as a discipline, we have looked to big business for management and marketing practices, to law and education for models of professional licensure, and even to computer...

Prepub alert.
October 15, 2007... FICTION Banks, Russell. The Reserve. HarperCollins. Feb. 2008. 240p. ISBN 978-0-06-143025-1. $24.95. lrg. prnt. CD: HarperAudio. Even as she snares a rich if leftish artist, incorrigible heiress Vanessa Cole starts spinning out of...

Romance.(books)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... COMFORT AND... With everything from hard-driving, "blood-on-the-snow" adventures and action-packed tales with a dash of the paranormal to lively romps and homey family-oriented stories with a miraculous touch, this year's holiday romances...

Al-Mohaimeed, Yousef. Wolves of the Crescent Moon.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Al-Mohaimeed, Yousef. Wolves of the Crescent Moon. Penguin. Jan. 2008. c.179p. tr. from Arabic by Anthony Calderbank. ISBN 978-0-14-311321-8. pap. $14. F In his short, poetic debut, Saudia Arabian-born Al-Mohaimeed explores the lives of...

Anam, Tahmima. A Golden Age.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Anam, Tahmima. A Golden Age. Harper: HarperCollins. Jan. 2008. c.288p. ISBN 978-0-06-147874-1. $24.95. F Mother love is at the heart of this impressive first novel by the Bangladeshi-born, American-educated Anam. Protagonist Rehana Haque...

Armstrong, Derek. The Last Troubadour.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Armstrong, Derek. The Last Troubadour. Kunati, dist. by Independent Publishers Group. (Song of Montsegur, Bk. 1). Oct. 2007. c.384p. ISBN 978-1-80164-010-9. $24.95. F A handsome troubadour with a beguiling voice leads an astonishing...

Ashford, Lindsay Jayne. Strange Blood: A Crime Novel.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Ashford, Lindsay Jayne. Strange Blood: A Crime Novel. Thomas Dunne Bks: St. Martin's. Dec. 2007. c.240p. ISBN 978-0-312-35580-7. $23.95. F A housewife is found viciously stabbed, wearing the morbid signature of a sadistic killer, a...

Attenberg, Jami. The Kept Man.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Attenberg, Jami. The Kept Man. Riverhead: Penguin Group (USA). Jan. 2008. c.304p. ISBN 978-1-59448-952-5. $24.95. F Short story writer Attenberg (Instant Love) successfully demonstrates her talent and experience in her debut novel. Her...

Baldacci, David. Stone Cold.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... * Baldacci, David. Stone Cold. Grand Central. Nov. 2007. c.388p. ISBN 978-0-446-57739-7. $26.99. F Revenge is a dish best served "stone cold." In Baldacci's third novel in "The Camel Club" series--after The Camel Club and The...

Berry, Steve. The Venetian Betrayal.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Berry, Steve. The Venetian Betrayal. Ballantine. Dec. 2007. c.464p. ISBN 978-0-345-48577-9. $25.95. F Bookseller/former intelligence officer Cotton Malone can't stay out of trouble in his third adventure (after The Alexandria Link s and...

Bradford, Barbara Taylor. The Heir.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Bradford, Barbara Taylor. The Heir. St. Martin's. Nov. 2007. c.496p. ISBN 978-0-312-35462-6. $25.95. F This second novel in the insipid trilogy that Bradford started last year with The Ravenscar Dynasty picks up where Dynasty left off in...

Chabon, Michael (text) & Gary Gianni (illus.). Gentlemen of the Road.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... * Chabon, Michael (text) & Gary Gianni (illus.). Gentlemen of the Road. Ballantine. Oct. 2007. c.224p, illus. ISBN 978-0-345-50174-5. $19.95. F Having tackled alternate history and hardboiled mystery in The Yiddish Policemen's Union, the...

Donnelly, Jennifer. The Winter Rose.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Donnelly, Jennifer. The Winter Rose. Hyperion. Jan. 2008. c.720p. ISBN 978-1-4013-0103-3. $23.95. F The second book in a planned trilogy (after The Tea Rose), this story of notorious East London criminal Sid Malone (formerly Charlie...

Doyle, Gerry. From the Depths.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Doyle, Gerry. From the Depths. McBooks Pr. Nov. 2007. c.256p. ISBN 978-1-59013-141-1. $23.95. F The crew of a North Korean submarine tries to defect, later to be found slaughtered in their vessel in U.S. waters. CIA forensic scientist...

Elliott, Chris (text) & Amy Elliott Andersen (illus.). Into Hot Air: Mounting Mount Everest.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Elliott, Chris (text) & Amy Elliott Andersen (illus.). Into Hot Air: Mounting Mount Everest. Weinstein. Nov. 2007. c.288p. ISBN 978-1-60286-007-0. $23.95. F Carl Hiaasen meets Jack London with a dash of James Bond in this sophomore...

Hardy, Charlotte. Meg.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Hardy, Charlotte. Meg. Severn House. Oct. 2007. 217p. ISBN 978-0-7278-6526-7. $27.95. F Hardy's latest (after Sarah) has an old-fashioned appeal with its romantic story of a young woman and her first love in pre-World War II France. Meg...

Itani, Frances. Remembering the Bones.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Itani, Frances. Remembering the Bones. Atlantic Monthly. Jan. 2008. c.320p. ISBN 978-0-87113-977-1. $24. F Georgie, an 80-year-old Canadian widow, is heading to the airport for the trip of a lifetime: Queen Elizabeth II has invited her...

Dark Delicacies II: Fear.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Dark Delicacies II: Fear. Carroll & Graf. Oct. 2007. c.288p, ed. by Del Howison & Jeff Gelb. ISBN 978-0-7867-1950-1. $26.99; pap. ISBN 978-0-7867-1951-8. $16.99. inferno. Tor. Dec. 2007. c.384p, ed. by Ellen Datlow. ISBN 978-0-7653-1558-8....

Hill, Joe. 20th Century Ghosts.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... * Hill, Joe. 20th Century Ghosts. Morrow. Oct. 2007. c.320p. ISBN 978-0-06-114797-5. $24.95. HORROR When Hill's first novel (Heart-Shaped Box) was published, there was much buzz when it was revealed that he was the son of Stephen King....

From shelf to screen: "Vampire" authors talk about making the TV transition.(FICTION)
October 15, 2007... Authors Bram Stoker (Dracula) and Anne Rice (Interview with a Vampire) often get the most credit for creating the sinister allure of the immortal, bloodsucking vampire, but in recent years writers like Charlaine Harris, Tanya Huff, and Jim...

Langfield, Martin. The Malice Box.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Langfield, Martin. The Malice Box. Pegasus. Nov. 2007. c.432p. ISBN 978-1-933848-48-4. $25. F After receiving an unusual copper puzzle box by mail from an old Cambridge friend, Robert Reckliss finds himself embroiled in a life-and-death...

McCormack, Louisa. Six Weeks to Toxic.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... McCormack, Louisa. Six Weeks to Toxic. Key Porter, dist. by Firefly. Oct. 2007. c.271p. ISBN 978-1-55283-885-9. pap. $13.95. F In fashion journalist McCormack's debut, readers meet Maxi and Bess, friends for 16 years. Maxi, a journalist...

McGinniss, Joe Jr. The Delivery Man.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... McGinniss, Joe Jr. The Delivery Man. Black Cat: Grove. Jan. 2008. c.288p. ISBN 978-0-8021-7042-2. pap. $14. F A few chapters into this debut novel, readers are so inundated by repeated references to drug use, prostitution, and sudden...

Nersesian, Arthur. The Swing Voter of Staten Island.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Nersesian, Arthur. The Swing Voter of Staten Island. Akashic. Oct. 2007. c.271p. ISBN 978-1-933354-34-7. $22.95. F All Uli knows is that he's supposed to shoot Dropt outside Cooper Union, then get back to Kennedy to catch the next flight...

Parker, T. Jefferson. L.A. Outlaws.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Parker, T. Jefferson. L.A. Outlaws. Dutton. Feb. 2008. c.384p. ISBN 978-0-525-95055-4. $25.95. F Who doesn't love an outlaw, especially one who donates to charity and never injures a soul? Believing herself a direct descendant of the...

Grimwood, Jon Courtenay. End of the World Blues.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Grimwood, Jon Courtenay. End of the World Blues. Bantam. Oct. 2007. c.368p. ISBN 978-0-553-58996-2. pap. $12. SF AS the proprietor of Pirate Mary's, Tokyo's best Irish pub, Kit Nouveau is content to wait out the rest of his life and the...

Harvey, Colin, The Silk Palace.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Harvey, Colin, The Silk Palace. Swimming Kangaroo Bks. Oct. 2007. c.460p. ISBN 978-1-934041-42-0. pap. $17.99. FANTASY The city-state of Whiterock, with its Silk Palace formed from nearly indestructible spiderwebs, is perched atop a high...

Johnson, Alaya Dawn. Racing the Dark.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Johnson, Alaya Dawn. Racing the Dark. Agate. Oct. 2007. c.468p. ISBN 978-1-932841-28-2. $24. FANTASY Like the other women dwelling on their seismically active island, Lana plans to become a diver for the jewels within the fish of the...

Lackey, Mercedes. Reserved for the Cat.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... * Lackey, Mercedes. Reserved for the Cat. DAW, dist. by Penguin. (An Elemental Masters Novel). Oct. 2007. c.336p. ISBN 978-0-7564-0362-1. $25.95. FANTASY Ninette Dupond's fortunes undergo a dizzying series of highs and lows as she finds...

Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword and Sorceress XXII.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword and Sorceress XXII. Norilana. Nov. 2007. c.272p. ed. by Elisabeth Waters. ISBN 978-1-934169-90-2. pap. $9.95. FANTASY From Esther M. Friesner's heartfelt tale of a woman's choice to do right rather than...

McKiernan, Dennis L. Once Upon a Dreadful Time.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... McKiernan, Dennis L. Once Upon a Dreadful Time. ROC: NAL. Oct. 2007. c.418p. ISBN 978-0-451-48172-8. $23.95. FANTASY The four children of King Valeray and Queen Saissa, who together rule the domain of the Seasons in the realm of Faerie,...

Moore, James A. & Jeff Strand. The Haunted Forest Tour.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Moore, James A. & Jeff Strand. The Haunted Forest Tour. Earthling. Nov. 2007. c.285p. ISBN 978-0-0805054-2-3. $45. HORROR Overnight without warning, a forest sprang up amid a small New Mexico town, killing most of the inhabitants before...

Reaves, Michael & Steve Perry. Star Wars[R]: Death Star.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Reaves, Michael & Steve Perry. Star Wars[R]: Death Star. Del Rey: Ballantine. Oct. 2007. c.382p. ISBN 978-0-345-47742-2. $25.95. SF Fans of the Star Wars[R] cycle of movies, novels, and other media know the Death Star as the moon-sized...

Robson, Justina. Selling Out.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Robson, Justina. Selling Out. Prometheus. Oct. 2007. c.288p. ISBN 978-1-59102-597-9. pap. $15. SF In Robson's second book of the "Quantum Gravity" series (following Keeping It Real), it is the new millennia, and the world has opened up...

Powers, Kim. Capote in Kansas: A Ghost Story.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... * Powers, Kim. Capote in Kansas: A Ghost Story. Carroll & Graf. Oct. 2007. c.256p. ISBN 978-0-7867-2033-0. $23.99. F In his exceptional first novel, Emmy and Peabody Award winner Powers presents us with Truman Capote in the last year of...

Rosoff, Meg. What I Was.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Rosoff, Meg. What I Was. Viking. Jan. 2008. c.224p. ISBN 978-0-670-01844-4. $23.95. F Growing up is tough to do. The narrator of Rosoff's foray into adult literature has been shuffled through two upper-class boarding schools and now is...

Ryan, Arliss. How (Not) To Have a Perfect Wedding.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Ryan, Arliss. How (Not) To Have a Perfect Wedding. Sourcebooks. Nov. 2007. c.352p. ISBN 978-1-4022-0974-1. pap. $14. F The skillful use of multiple narratives elevates this novel above the usual women's wedding fiction. It's Allison and...

Wagenstein, Angel. Farewell, Shanghai.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Wagenstein, Angel. Farewell, Shanghai. Handsel: Other. Nov. 2007. c.404p. tr. from Bulgarian by Elizabeth Frank & Deliana Simenova. ISBN 978-1-59051-254-8. $24.95. F A large cast of characters inhabits this historical novel by decorated...

Wander, Fred. The Seventh Well.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Wander, Fred. The Seventh Well. Norton. Dec. 2007. c.192p. tr. from German by Michael Hoffman. ISBN 978-0-393-06538-1. $22. F Wander, who was born in Vienna and died in 2006, has crafted a series of tales that make up this novel based on...

Young, Leevon Jr. Thug Mrs.: A Woman's Sacrifice.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Young, Leevon Jr. Thug Mrs.: A Woman's Sacrifice. Around the Way. Nov. 2007. c.226p. ISBN 978-0-9755342-4-3. pap. $15. F LJ's review of K'wan's Hood Rat noted that, before the bullets began flying and the clothes dropping, the author...

Silva, Ulises. Solstice.(Brief article)(Book review)
October 15, 2007... Silva, Ulises. Solstice. Tragical Mirth Pub. Oct. 2007. c.352p. ISBN 978-0-9794513-0-0. pap. $13.95. SF On an alternate Earth, words have real power, and Scribes are the wizards of words. What they write comes to pass, and it falls to a...