Difference between revisions of "Newest Reference Reviews"

From TheBookbag
Jump to navigationJump to search
 
(93 intermediate revisions by 3 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
 
[[Category:New Reviews|Reference]]
 
[[Category:New Reviews|Reference]]
[[Category:Reference|*]] __NOTOC__ <!-- Remove -->
+
[[Category:Reference|*]]__NOTOC__ <!-- Remove -->
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author= David and Ben Crystal
+
|isbn=1394159544
|title= Oxford Illustrated Shakespeare Dictionary
+
|title=Recycling for Dummies
|rating=4.5
+
|author=Sarah Winkler
|genre=Reference
+
|rating=5
|summary= David Crystal, renowned linguist, writer, editor, lecturer and broadcaster has collaborated with his son Ben, Shakespearean actor, author, director and producer to create an eye catching, exquisitely detailed, carefully colour coded and incisive reference guide. It is extensive and meticulously researched- a fusion of the Crystals’ Shakespearean knowledge, linguistic skill and theatrical enthusiasm. Lavishly illustrated by Kate Bellamy, who favours a bright, attractive primary colour palette, this dictionary is a treasure trove for any student of Shakespeare. This would be a five star review but for a minor quibble- it is missing an index of characters which would have been useful for pupils assigned character studies as they could have cross referenced the explanatory entries with quotes or themes. It also only concentrates on Shakespeare’s twelve most performed plays so it is not an exhaustive treatment of his work.
+
|genre=Lifestyle
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0192737503</amazonuk>
+
|summary=''Recycling one ton of plastic can save up to 16.3 barrels of oil.''
}}
+
 
{{newreviewplain
+
''Recycling one ton of paper can save 17 trees from being cut down.''
|title=The Economist Style Guide: 11th Edition
+
 
|rating=4.5
+
If you send an apple core to landfill, it will take between 6 months and 2 years to decompose.  A glass bottle will take up to 1 million years.
|genre=Reference
+
 
|summary=If you don't ''write'' what you mean, how will people ''know'' what you mean?
+
As a just-post-WWII baby, I faced a dilemma: reducing, reusing and recycling is part of my DNA.  NEVER throw away anything that might ''possibly'' come in handy now or in the future. NEVER buy anything if you can cobble together something that would serve the purpose.  Almost everything can be used one more time and any purchase must pass the test of 'Is this absolutely essential?'  On the other hand, I suspected I was guilty of wishcycling: assuming that something must be recyclable (toothpaste tubes - I'm looking at you) and dropping it in the kerbside bin.  Yes, I could go searching on the internet - and get conflicting advice - but what I needed was a recycling bible.s
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781253129</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author=Jen Green and Wesley Robins
+
|isbn=1913750353
|title=Oceans in 30 Seconds
+
|title=Britannica's Word of the Day
 +
|author=Patrick Kelly, Renee Kelly and Sue Macy
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Popular Science
+
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
|summary=Oceans in 30 Seconds is the latest book in the innovative series from Ivy Press, which aims to give an informative and entertaining overview of a given subject in bite-sized chunks. Each given subject has its own two-page spread, with a concise description on the left, covering all of the main points, and a colourful illustration on the right hand page, complete with extra snippets of information. Each chapter also has a handy 3-second sum up, which further condenses the main idea of the chapter into a single sentence.
+
|summary=''Britannica's Word of the Day'' has a sub-title: ''366 Elevating Utterances to Stretch Your Cranium and Tickle Your Humerus'' which probably tells you all that you need to know about this brilliant book.  It starts on January 1st with ''Razzmatazz'', tells you how to pronounce it (''raz-muh-TAZ''), gives you a definition and then includes the word in a sentence so that you know how it should be used.  You also get an engaging and frequently amusing illustration too. I don't think I've ever encountered a word which uses the letter Z four times before!
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>178240239X</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author=Daniel Hahn
+
|isbn=suppl_stafl
|title=The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature
+
|title=Supply Chain 20/20: A Clear View  on the Local Multiplier Effect for Book Lovers
|rating=5
+
|author=Kim Staflund
 +
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=When I was a child, some sixty and more years ago, there were not many books for children or, indeed, much money to buy what was availableForty years ago, when my daughter was a child there were more and the libraries were relatively well stockedBut in the last thirty years children's books have flourishedI'm no great fan of [[J K Rowling's Harry Potter Books in Chronological Order|Harry Potter]] but even the most hardened cynic would have to admit that the wizard has brought a lot of children to reading - and to enjoying it tooIn the same period we've seen books tackling ''difficult'' subjects become mainstream and the rise of young adult fiction.  From near-famine we've moved to feast, but what we need now is guidance.
+
|summary=So, you've finished writing your book and you think the hard work is all done?  You're convinced that all you need to do now is get it published and the money will start rolling in?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0199695148</amazonuk>
+
 
 +
Wrong and wrong againYou presumably wrote the book because you wanted to - and you had a talent for delivering the written wordYou knew your subject back to frontNow you're going to have to get to grips with the book supply chain, which even parts of the publishing industry believe to be wrong but it's too difficult to change and no one wants to be the first to tryThen, when you ''finally'' have a copy of the book in your hands, you're going to have to work out how to sell it - because it ''is'' going to be down to you.
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
 
|author=Philip W Errington
+
{{Frontpage
|title=J.K. Rowling: A Bibliography 1997 - 2013
+
|author=Frederic Gros
 +
|title=A Philosophy of Walking
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Reference
+
|genre= Politics and Society
|summary=Just occasionally it's necessary to begin by saying what a book ''isn't'': ''J.K. Rowling: A Bibliography 1997 - 2013'' isn't the latest book ''by'' J K Rowling - she had no part in the writing of the book and doesn't profit from it financiallyIt isn't, actually, ''about'' J K Rowling other than indirectly.  It ''is'' a book about her writings, bibliographic details of each edition of ALL her books, pamphlets, and contributions to published works.  It is ''not'' a book for the reader who loved the [[J K Rowling's Harry Potter Books in Chronological Order|Harry Potter books]] and wishes that Rowling had written many more, but rather the definitive text about the books which will be consulted by scholars, book dealers and collectors, auction houses and researchers.  The most obvious comparison for me is [[Stamps of the World 2013 by Stanley Gibbons|Stamps of the World by Stanley Gibbons]].  It is of that class.
+
|summary= I confess I picked this one up from the library in my pre-lockdown forage of random stuff.  Now I have to go out an buy my own copy so that I can turn down the pages I have marked and return to its varying wisdom when I need to.  Some books draw you in slowlyThis one had me in the first two pages, wherein Gros explains why ''walking is not a sport''.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849669740</amazonuk>
+
|isbn=1781688370
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author=Kjartan Poskitt
+
|isbn=1788037812
|title=Everyday Maths for Grown-Ups: Getting to Grips with the Basics
+
|title=The Fraternity of the Estranged: The Fight for Homosexual Rights in England, 1891-1908
 +
|author=Brian Anderson
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Reference
+
|genre=Biography
|summary=We all need maths - or so it says on the back of ''Everyday Maths for Grown Ups'' and whilst you could ''exist'' without a basic knowledge, life is going to be so much easier if you can check receipts, do the calculations for that spot of DIY or work out if the 'bargain' you've been offered really is one.  Kjartan Poskitt reckons that very few people are really confident with figures, but hopes that he can offer some help.
+
|summary=Originally passed in 1885, the law that had made homosexual relations a crime remained in place for 82 years. But during this time, restrictions on same-sex relationships did not go unchallenged. Between 1891 and 1908, three books on the nature of homosexuality appeared. They were written by two homosexual men: Edward Carpenter and John Addington Symonds, as well as the heterosexual Havelock Ellis. Exploring the margins of society and studying homosexuality was common on the European Continent, but barely talked about in the UK, so the publications of these men were hugely significant – contributing to the scientific understanding of homosexuality, and beginning the struggle for recognition and equality, leading to the milestone legalisation of same-sex relationships in 1967.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>178243335X</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author=Michelle Finlay
+
|isbn=1912242052
|title=Everyday English for Grown-Ups: Getting to Grips with the Basics
+
|title=O Joy for me!
|rating=4
+
|author=Keir Davidson
|genre=Reference
+
|rating=3
|summary=It can seem a long time since we learned the nuts and bolts of the English language when we were at school.  At the time the niceties of colons and intricacies of apostrophes weren't really that relevant to our lives and it's only when we miss out on a good job because our English isn't up to scratch or someone makes a scathing remark about our abuse of the language that we realise that we could do with an urgent and discreet brushup.  Step forward ''Everyday English for Grown-ups'' - and it's aimed at native and non-native English speakers.
+
|genre=Art
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782433341</amazonuk>
+
|summary='' Oh Joy for me!'' gives Coleridge credit for being ''the first person to walk the mountains alone, not because he had to for work, as a miner, quarryman, shepherd or pack-horse driver, but because he wanted to for pleasure and adventure.  His rapturous encounters with their natural beauty, and its literary consequences, changed our view of the world''.
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author=June Andrews
+
|isbn=1072549271
|title=Dementia: The One-Stop Guide: Practical advice for families, professionals, and people living with dementia and Alzheimer's Disease
+
|title=The Simple Act of Self-Publishing With Amazon: A Simple Step by Step Guide
|rating=5
+
|author=Georgianne Landy-Kordis
|genre=Reference
+
|rating=4.5
|summary=Worldwide there are probably as many as 44.4 million people who suffer from dementia and many times that number of family, friends, carers and relatives who are affected by what is happening to the sufferer.  There's no cure, but it's not terminal and the symptoms (memory loss would seem to be the most common, but in some cases there are hallucinations, sexual or verbal disinhibition, not being able to work things out, difficulty in learning something new, finding your way about, or coping with the normal symptoms of aging) affect everyone involvedIf you talk to people who are aging then it's not uncommon for them to say that they'd rather have cancer than dementia as you're unlikely to be an endless burden on other people.
+
|genre=Business and Finance
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781251711</amazonuk>
+
|summary=I frequently meet authors who are struggling to be published by the traditional houses, but when I suggest self-publishing they explain that they don't have the big bucks required to go down that road with Author Solutions or Matador or their like.  I then ask if they've considered Kindle and the answer is, inevitably, that they wouldn't know where to start.  I can empathise with that.  Despite having used a computer for about thirty years, running most of my life ''and'' a website online, I'm still nervous when it comes to starting something new.  I like someone to hold my hand as I go through it for the first time.  That was why I was very interested when ''The Simple Act of Self Publishing With Amazon'' came across my desk...
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Higashida_Fall
|author=Dee Blick
+
|title=Fall Down Seven Times, Get Up Eight: A Young Man's Voice From the Silence of Autism
|title=The Ultimate Guide to Writing and Marketing a Bestselling Book - on a Shoestring Budget
+
|author=Naoki Higashida and David Mitchell
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Reference
+
|genre=Home and Family
|summary=I've always thought that [http://nanowrimo.org/ NANOWRIMO] is a brilliant idea.  The nights are longer, the weather uninspiring: what better time to get the first draft of your novel written with support from a lot of other people who are all trying to do the same thing?  There is a downside for reviewers though: far too many people think that this is the end of their labours and the fledgling manuscript is uploaded onto Kindle and there's disappointment when the book is either not well received or doesn't sell - or sometimes both. Knowing which book it is that you have in you is a great start - but after that you need a structured plan of action and sound advice as to what you need to do to turn your work into a bestseller.
+
|summary=Naoki Higashida was only 13 years old when he wrote the international best-seller ''The Reason I Jump''. The book was popular because it gave a rare glimpse into the workings of the autistic mind, as told from the unique perspective of a teenager with non-verbal autism. Naoki communicates by using an alphabet grid, or by tracing letters on the palm of a transcriber. Despite this slow and laborious method of writing, he has published several books in his native Japan and manages to give public presentations to raise awareness of his condition. Fall Down 7 Times Get up 8 reintroduces us to Naoki as a young adult in his 20s and explains how his perspectives on life have changed since writing his first book.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1910125040</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Julia Cresswell (Editor)
 
|title=Little Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Reference
 
|summary=Derived from the ''Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins'', the Little Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins tells the stories behind a thousand words, divided into a hundred themes from ''Adventure'' through to ''Writing'' by way of the rest of the alphabet. For each word within a theme we're told in which language the it originated and its original meaning - thus for ''Infant'' we find that it comes from the Latin  ''in'' meaning ''not'' and ''fari'' for ''speaking''.  The two parts put together tell of someone who has not yet reached legal majority rather than a child who has not yet learned the value of the word 'Why?'  In Italian ''infante'' means ''youth'' as well as ''foot soldier''. From this came ''infanteria'', which English adopted as ''infantry'' in the sixteenth century.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0199683638</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Jenkins_100
|author=Elizabeth Knowles (Editor)
+
|title=Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations
|title=Oxford Dictionary of Quotations
+
|author=Simon Jenkins
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Reference
+
|genre=Art
|summary=I have known people to be just a little snooty about the fact that I have had a copy of the current edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations on my bookshelf for over forty years, suggesting that it was a book for people who hadn't read the original books.  I long ago accepted that I would never have the time to read all the books I (might) want - or feel I ought - to read and I've found the dictionary an invaluable work of reference and source of inspiration for half a century.  Where else would you find over 20,000 quotations, covering centuries, every subject, with wit, wisdom and food for thought?  Yes - I know they're probably all there on the internet - somewhere, but I've got them in one volume on the shelf in front of me.
+
|summary=In the mid-twentieth century, the railway was something which harked back to the Victorian age with trains being supplanted by cars and planes, but steam was being replaced by oil, even then and in the twenty-first-century oil is giving way to electricity. It's cleaner, more environmentally friendly and the stations which we'd all rushed through as quickly as possible, keen to escape their grime, were restored and became places to be admired, possibly even lingered in. Simon Jenkins has chosen his hundred best railway stations.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0199668701</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Taylor_Owls
|author=Patrick Scrivenor
+
|title=Owls: A Guide to Every Species
|title=I Used to Know That: English
+
|author=Marianne Taylor
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Reference
+
|genre=Animals and Wildlife
|summary=I doubt that there can be anything more unnerving than reviewing a book written by someone who is an expert in written English.  I've even worried about that first sentence. But at school I loved English Grammar and a good deal of it has stuck. I'm conscious of being pedantic about mistakes other people make - but increasingly aware that there are gaps in my own knowledge which should be plugged. This book seemed like the ideal opportunity, but I'll confess that the subtitle 'Stuff You Forgot From School' made me nervous I was going to be back to reading a school textbook.
+
|summary=I feel like I am being watched. A huge pair of piercing orange eyes are staring right at me, locking me into their gaze. In contrast with the hardness of the deep-amber eyes, soft grey feathers fan out into the surrounding area, intricate, detailed and beautiful. An enigma; harsh and gentle at the same time, the owl is beckoning the reader to turn the pages and take a closer look inside...
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782432566</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=JVDK_ELO
|author=Chris Waring
+
|title=Electric Light Orchestra: Song by Song
|title=I Used to Know That: Maths
+
|author=John Van der Kiste
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
|genre=Reference
+
|genre=Entertainment
|summary=Maths teacher Chris Waring starts this book with the basics and gradually works his (and our) way through to about the level of GCSE. It's only 192 pages, so you can't expect it to be exhaustive but the great thing is that it isn't ''exhausting''.  Waring explains concepts clearly and with humour but most importantly he shows why the subject is important and how it can be applied to life, covering such subjects as winning - or failing to win - the lottery and the chances of being dealt a royal flush at poker. It's not just the examples which are new - it's a major improvement on the 'you will learn this because I'm telling you that you have to' approach which blighted the subject for so many of us.
+
|summary=My memories of pop music in the early sixties revolve around guitars and drums, sometimes the piano with only occasional excursions into strings and brass. Pop music rarely stands still and it wasn't long before the basic instruments were seen as constraints and The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Beach Boys began to experiment, with other groups following where they led. Amongst these groups was The Move and their lead guitarist and songwriter, Roy Wood. Wood wanted to develop the group's sound by adding more instruments but was prevented from achieving what he wanted by cost limitations and because the rest of the group didn't really share his enthusiasm.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782432558</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 +
{{Frontpage
 +
|isbn=Hendrix_PBHell
 +
|title=Paperbacks from Hell: A History of Horror Fiction from the '70s and '80s
 +
|author=Grady Hendrix
 +
|rating=4.5
 +
|genre=Horror
 +
|summary=Demonic possession, murderous babies, man-eating moths… for these books, no plot was too ludicrous, no cover art too appalling, no evil too despicable. Now horror author Grady Hendrix risks his soul and his sanity (not to mention the reader's!) to relate the true, untold story of a fascinating and often forgotten era in publishing.
  
{{newreview
+
Read the synapse-shattering story summaries!<br>
|author=Orin Hargraves
+
See the horrific hand-painted cover imagery!<br>
|title=It's Been Said Before: A Guide to the Use and Abuse of Cliches
+
And learn the true-life tales of the writers, artists, and publishers who gleefully violated every literary law but one – never be boring.
|rating=4
 
|genre=Reference
 
|summary=I don't usually start a review by telling you what a book ''isn't'', but in this case it's important.  This isn't a light-hearted look at the subject, such as we found in [[Cliches: Avoid Them Like the Plague by Nigel Fountain]] and which - laughing and blushing in equal measure -  we shelved under 'trivia'.  This book will be shelved under 'reference': it's a rigorous look at the problem with the clichés divided not by subject matter, but grammatically and with an introduction to each section which gives all the information you need to help in making judgements about your own writing.  This isn't a book to ''amuse'' you, but to help you to improve your use of words.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0199315736</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Browne_Many
|author=William Poundstone
+
|title=The Many Faces of Coincidence
|title=How to Predict the Unpredictable: The Art of Outsmarting Almost Everyone
+
|author=Laurence Browne
|rating=4
+
|rating=3.5
|genre=Reference
+
|genre=Popular Science
|summary=William Poundstone believes that we are all in the business of predicting, whether it be something as minor as playing rock, paper, scissors to pay a bar bill though to anticipating how the housing or stock markets are going to move. Now, I'm not particularly competitive - if whatever it is means ''that'' much to someone else then I'd rather let them have it - so this book didn't appeal to me on the basis of doing better than someone else, but I was interested in how it might be possible to predict what is going to happen. So, care to predict how it stacked up?
+
|summary=Browne does not mislead with this choice of title; he does without a doubt explore the many faces of coincidence.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1780744072</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=1903385679
|author=The Economist
+
|title=The 100 Best Novels in Translation
|title=Pocket World in Figures 2015
+
|author=Boyd Tonkin
|rating=4.5
+
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=There are people who don't understand the joy of raw data: no accompanying analysis (or spin) - just a collection of figures relevant to a particular circumstance. If you're one of those people then this book will mean little to you, but if you want a pocket (well, certainly handbag or briefcase) work of reference then this book will be a treasure. I once gave a copy to a diplomat and he kept his wife awake until the early hours as he came across another gem which she had to know without delay.  The 2015 edition is the twenty fourth in the series - and diplomatic (and similar) spouses everywhere should prepare themselves for the onslaught.
+
|summary=Consider, if you will, translated fiction. Some say it's impossible – that if a book was so good in one tongue it could never survive being put into another. Samuel Beckett must have laboured over ever syllable and ''Breath'', but he could translate his own works, and other equally complex pieces can cross borders. It's a market that has actually doubled in sales volume between 2000 and 2016 (thanks, ''Millennium Trilogy''). Novels, in particular, in translation, are – as the introduction here so smartly puts it – ''a privileged means of passing border posts, a sort of universal passport issued by that Utopian state, the Republic of Letters''. We here at the 'Bag regularly try and give equal credit to the translator, without whom we wouldn't be reading what we have in our hands. But all that said, do we really need one of those list books about the subject? I got given a book the other year detailing 1001 places to go to before I die, and I might even then have missed out a zero. It would take as long as a fortnight's holiday to wade through, and even though this is not as long as your typical Bolano housebrick, it's not a short thing. Should it take our time?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781252734</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Fry_Mythos
|title=The Bee: A Natural History
+
|title=Mythos: A Retelling of the Myths of Ancient Greece
|author=Noah Wilson-Rich
+
|author=Stephen Fry
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
|genre=Animals and Wildlife
+
|genre=Reference
|summary=Bees have been making a bit of a media splash of late, due to heightened concern about their declining numbers and general welfare. Governments have been urged to do more to protect these important creatures, with a recent EU ban on neonicotinoid pesticides hailed as a 'victory for bees'. There is no doubt that these prolific pollinators are a vital part of our ecosystem, and the human fascination with bees goes back to our ancient history. But just why do we find these hardworking insects so fascinating?
+
|summary=The Greek Myths are, arguably, the greatest stories ever told. So old and influential they cast a shadow over western tales and traditions, yet remain relatable and readable millennia later. Here comedian, actor, television presenter, actor and author Stephen Fry brings his considerable talent to these special stories and recreates them with a wit, warmth and humanity that brings them into the modern age whilst still giving the honour and respect that such ancient and influential stories deserve.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782401075</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Alannah Moore
 
|title=Create Your Own Online Store (using WordPress) in a Weekend
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Business and Finance
 
|summary=I've run a website for over eight years now but I've always shied away from any inclusion of e-commerce on the site.  It seemed like too large a subject, too much complexity and choice and the possibility of problems which could go disastrously wrong.  I first encountered Alannah Moore when I read [[The Creative Person's Website Builder by Alannah Moore|The Creative Person's Website Builder]] and was impressed by the way that she approached her subject, so when I had the opportunity to see how to create an online store in a weekend, I jumped at the chance.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781571430</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Mahnke_Lore
|author=Dan Waddell
+
|title=The World of Lore, Volume 1: Monstrous Creatures
|title=Who Do You Think You Are?: The Genealogy Handbook
+
|author=Aaron Mahnke
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=The celebrity genealogy programme ''Who Do You Think You Are?'' celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. The makers, Wall to Wall Media, were fortunate enough to ride the ripple of family tree fascination, helping to turn it into the hobbyist tidal wave that remains today.  For those not familiar with the format, each episode allows us to accompany a household name as they discover secrets, scandals and surprises about an ancestor or two.  Thus we aren't only entertained; we're encouraged to delve into our own pasts, BBC TV publications acting as tutor and motivator via this handy little reference guide.
+
|summary=Every country, every town, every village has a folktale – a story passed down through generations that often focuses on the dark and unexplained. No matter how the modern world moves on, there's a still a part of everyone that is vulnerable to a good tale. From ghosts to werewolves, by way of wendigos and elves, author Aaron Mahnke delivers the reader legends from all over the world, whilst examining how they've become part of our collective imaginations, still striking fear into the hearts of many of us today.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849908249</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Fowler_Forgotten
|author=Michael Fogden, Marianne Taylor and Sheri L Williamson
+
|title=The Book of Forgotten Authors
|title=Hummingbirds: A Life-Size Guide to Every Species
+
|author=Christopher Fowler
|rating=4.5
+
|rating=5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=I've always been fascinated by hummingbirds - delicate, colourful, beautifully and brilliantly adapted to extract nectar from flowers.  Perhaps most of all for me it's their acrobatic flight - the ability to hover and manoeuvre which has me hooked: I could watch them for hours, amazed that birds whose weight can only meaningfully be given in ounces can do so much. I was drawn to this book as soon as I saw it, for a number of reasons.
+
|summary=''Absence doesn't make the heart grow fonder''. It makes people think you're dead.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1782400893</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
  
{{newreview
+
There's truth in that statement, you know, but there's a conundrum when it's applied to authors. Shakespeare is dead: Dickens is dead, but we haven't buried what they've written: that lives on until... when? Is it until fashion decrees that they should be no more? Or is it, as in the case of some children's authors that they are on life support through licensing deals and astute marketing? Christopher Fowler has unearthed (exhumed?) ninety-nine authors who were once hugely popular, but whose works have disappeared, sometimes quite literally.
|title=Top 10 of Everything 2015
 
|author=Paul Terry
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Children's Non-Fiction
 
|summary=The Top 10 of Everything 2015 is, as the title implies, a compilation of 'top ten' lists covering a wide variety of topics including the natural world, pop culture, sport and technology. The style of the book will appeal to its target audience of pre-teens with its use of bright colours, vibrant images, fun facts, puzzles and quizzes.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0600628868</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Angell_Triang
|author=Stanley Gibbons
+
|title=Tri-ang Collectables
|title=Great Britain Concise Stamp Catalogue 2014
+
|author=Dave Angell
|rating=5
+
|rating=3.5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=When I began collecting GB stamps back in the early seventies ''Collect British Stamps'' was my bible and I eagerly awaited each new edition. After a while I came to realise that I needed a little more depth, but not to the level provided by the [[Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue 2013: Commonwealth and Empire Stamps 1840 - 1970 by Hugh Jefferies|Specialised Catalogue Series]] not least because I was still at the stage of spending the money on stamps rather than books about them. There is something to fill the gap though and that's the Great Britain Concise catalogue.  It's designed to meet the needs of the dedicated amateur rather than the specialist or the casual collector and treads a very fine line between providing too much detail and too little information with elegance.
+
|summary=A guide to the trains produced by the Tri-ang company from its inception until the company became Hornby. A very personal guide to the collecting of model trains.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0852599145</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Chase_Orchids
|author=John Sutherland
+
|title=The Book of Orchids: A life-size guide to six hundred species from around the world
|title=How to be Well Read: A guide to 500 great novels and a handful of literary curiosities
+
|author=Mark Chase, Maarten Christenhusz and Tom Mirenda
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=Being well read is rather like having good manners: it's something that we all aspire to but there's always a nagging doubt that there's something lacking in what we've achievedThat is, of course, why a book with the title ''How to be Well Read'' pulled me in so successfully with its promise of being a guide to five hundred great novels and a handful of literary curiositiesWas I going to find that ultimate list of books which I would have to read to ensure that I could think of myself as well read?  No - I was going to find something far more useful and interesting.
+
|summary=One in seven flowering plants on earth is an orchid: there are 26,000 species in 749 genera.  They flourish in remarkable habitats such as deserts and the Arctic circle, in fact, all areas but the most inhospitable.  There's a wide range of colours, shapes and scents: they're dramatic, delicate and ingenious in the ways that they've developed not just to survive but to thriveTom Mirenda describes them as ''masters of manipulation'' and ''famous for lying and cheating their way to their many evolutionary successes'', yet his love of them is as obvious as his respect for the insight they give us into the processes which shaped our worldHe hopes that understanding how that has come about will inspire us to conserve what we have.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847946402</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=Edwards_Story
|title=A Sting in the Tale
+
|title=The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books (British Library Crime Classics)
|author=Dave Goulson
+
|author=Martin Edwards
 
|rating=5
 
|rating=5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=It seems that Dave Goulson, founder of the incredibly successful Bumblebee Conservation Trust, did not always have natural aptitude for helping wildlife if his early recollections are anything to go by. Despite boundless enthusiasm and a passion for the natural world, his childhood efforts to give nature a helping hand quite frequently ended in some sort of gory aftermath. For example, there was the incident with the drowned bumblebees, in which a young Goulson unwisely decided to dry the bedraggled victims out on the hotplate of the electric cooker. Then there was the time he accidentally dropped a live electrical heater into his aquarium, frying the poor fish instantly. I could go on to mention the beheading of the footless quail, the snake wrapped in sticky tape and the countless taxidermy experiments, but alas, time does not permit. Suffice to say that despite this unpromising start in life, things did eventually improve...
+
|summary=It's easy to be confused by the various 'ages' of crime writing: if you have an interest in the genre you'll almost certainly have heard of the Golden Age of Crime, generally acknowledged as being the period between the first and second world wars. 'Classic Crime' on the other hand extends the time frame at either end and covers books published in the first half of the twentieth century. Throughout my adult life, there's been just one genre of books which has fascinated me, and that's crime, so I could hardly resist the chance of reading ''The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books'' particularly as the author, Martin Edwards is an accomplished author within the crime genre and an acknowledged expert on the subject.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0099575124</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
{{Frontpage
{{newreview
+
|isbn=DK_Childrens
|title=Colorstrology
+
|title=Children's Illustrated Thesaurus
|author=Michele Bernhardt
+
|author=DK
|rating=4
+
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|genre=Reference
|summary=First impressions of this book left me slightly worried that I would have little to go on to write any kind of helpful review; it was basically a little book of colour swatches, resembling something of a home décor paint guide. Flicking through, I saw that each page represented a day, allowing the reader to refer to their birthday to gain information relating to their character, rather like a horoscope. So all I had to go on was, effectively, a painting guide to star signs. With this is mind (and with fairly low expectations) I began reading from the beginning, refraining from jumping straight in to analyse my birthday characteristics.
+
|summary=One of the most valuable literary skills which children can learn is how to use reference books.  As a child every question which I began with ''how do you spell...?'' would be answered with ''EXACTLY as it says in the dictionary''.  This was fine, but the family's Collins Little Gem Dictionary didn't encourage exploration, not least because the font was small and difficult to read.  Fortunately, those times have now changed and reference book for children are now much more inviting. Not every book comes with a set of instructions but it's worth studying the ''How to...'' section, not least because similar systems are used in other reference books.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1594746915</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
  
{{newreview
+
Move on to [[Newest Science Fiction Reviews]]
|title=The Autistic Brain
 
|author=Temple Grandin and Richard Panek
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Reference
 
|summary=Temple Grandin is a lady of many labels: professor of animal science, bestselling author, consultant, activist, engineer, public speaker and subject of an award-winning biopic. She also happens to be autistic, a label she earned at a very early age back in the days before the majority of people knew what autism was. She describes the timing of her diagnosis as fortuitous; only a few years later and the accepted ‘treatment’ for autistic children was removal from their parents and life in an institution.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1846044499</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Neil Davey
 
|title=The Bluffer's Guide to Chocolate (Bluffer's Guides)
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Cookery
 
|summary=I've always been a little bit nervous about the ''Bluffer'' series, on the basis that I would be sure to come out with a clever-sounding phrase, only to be found out when someone asked the follow-up question.  Better, I thought to stay silent and appear ignorant than to open my mouth and prove myself a fool.  But then ''The Bluffer's Guide to Chocolate'' came my way and I couldn't resist - any more than I've ever been able to resist chocolate.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1909937045</amazonuk>
 
}}
 

Latest revision as of 10:30, 9 September 2023

1394159544.jpg

Review of

Recycling for Dummies by Sarah Winkler

5star.jpg Lifestyle

Recycling one ton of plastic can save up to 16.3 barrels of oil.

Recycling one ton of paper can save 17 trees from being cut down.

If you send an apple core to landfill, it will take between 6 months and 2 years to decompose. A glass bottle will take up to 1 million years.

As a just-post-WWII baby, I faced a dilemma: reducing, reusing and recycling is part of my DNA. NEVER throw away anything that might possibly come in handy now or in the future. NEVER buy anything if you can cobble together something that would serve the purpose. Almost everything can be used one more time and any purchase must pass the test of 'Is this absolutely essential?' On the other hand, I suspected I was guilty of wishcycling: assuming that something must be recyclable (toothpaste tubes - I'm looking at you) and dropping it in the kerbside bin. Yes, I could go searching on the internet - and get conflicting advice - but what I needed was a recycling bible.s Full Review

1913750353.jpg

Review of

Britannica's Word of the Day by Patrick Kelly, Renee Kelly and Sue Macy

5star.jpg Children's Non-Fiction

Britannica's Word of the Day has a sub-title: 366 Elevating Utterances to Stretch Your Cranium and Tickle Your Humerus which probably tells you all that you need to know about this brilliant book. It starts on January 1st with Razzmatazz, tells you how to pronounce it (raz-muh-TAZ), gives you a definition and then includes the word in a sentence so that you know how it should be used. You also get an engaging and frequently amusing illustration too. I don't think I've ever encountered a word which uses the letter Z four times before! Full Review

Suppl stafl.jpg

Review of

Supply Chain 20/20: A Clear View on the Local Multiplier Effect for Book Lovers by Kim Staflund

4.5star.jpg Reference

So, you've finished writing your book and you think the hard work is all done? You're convinced that all you need to do now is get it published and the money will start rolling in?

Wrong and wrong again. You presumably wrote the book because you wanted to - and you had a talent for delivering the written word. You knew your subject back to front. Now you're going to have to get to grips with the book supply chain, which even parts of the publishing industry believe to be wrong but it's too difficult to change and no one wants to be the first to try. Then, when you finally have a copy of the book in your hands, you're going to have to work out how to sell it - because it is going to be down to you. Full Review

1781688370.jpg

Review of

A Philosophy of Walking by Frederic Gros

5star.jpg Politics and Society

I confess I picked this one up from the library in my pre-lockdown forage of random stuff. Now I have to go out an buy my own copy so that I can turn down the pages I have marked and return to its varying wisdom when I need to. Some books draw you in slowly. This one had me in the first two pages, wherein Gros explains why walking is not a sport. Full Review

1788037812.jpg

Review of

The Fraternity of the Estranged: The Fight for Homosexual Rights in England, 1891-1908 by Brian Anderson

5star.jpg Biography

Originally passed in 1885, the law that had made homosexual relations a crime remained in place for 82 years. But during this time, restrictions on same-sex relationships did not go unchallenged. Between 1891 and 1908, three books on the nature of homosexuality appeared. They were written by two homosexual men: Edward Carpenter and John Addington Symonds, as well as the heterosexual Havelock Ellis. Exploring the margins of society and studying homosexuality was common on the European Continent, but barely talked about in the UK, so the publications of these men were hugely significant – contributing to the scientific understanding of homosexuality, and beginning the struggle for recognition and equality, leading to the milestone legalisation of same-sex relationships in 1967. Full Review

1912242052.jpg

Review of

O Joy for me! by Keir Davidson

3star.jpg Art

Oh Joy for me! gives Coleridge credit for being the first person to walk the mountains alone, not because he had to for work, as a miner, quarryman, shepherd or pack-horse driver, but because he wanted to for pleasure and adventure. His rapturous encounters with their natural beauty, and its literary consequences, changed our view of the world. Full Review

1072549271.jpg

Review of

The Simple Act of Self-Publishing With Amazon: A Simple Step by Step Guide by Georgianne Landy-Kordis

4.5star.jpg Business and Finance

I frequently meet authors who are struggling to be published by the traditional houses, but when I suggest self-publishing they explain that they don't have the big bucks required to go down that road with Author Solutions or Matador or their like. I then ask if they've considered Kindle and the answer is, inevitably, that they wouldn't know where to start. I can empathise with that. Despite having used a computer for about thirty years, running most of my life and a website online, I'm still nervous when it comes to starting something new. I like someone to hold my hand as I go through it for the first time. That was why I was very interested when The Simple Act of Self Publishing With Amazon came across my desk... Full Review

Higashida Fall.jpg

Review of

Fall Down Seven Times, Get Up Eight: A Young Man's Voice From the Silence of Autism by Naoki Higashida and David Mitchell

5star.jpg Home and Family

Naoki Higashida was only 13 years old when he wrote the international best-seller The Reason I Jump. The book was popular because it gave a rare glimpse into the workings of the autistic mind, as told from the unique perspective of a teenager with non-verbal autism. Naoki communicates by using an alphabet grid, or by tracing letters on the palm of a transcriber. Despite this slow and laborious method of writing, he has published several books in his native Japan and manages to give public presentations to raise awareness of his condition. Fall Down 7 Times Get up 8 reintroduces us to Naoki as a young adult in his 20s and explains how his perspectives on life have changed since writing his first book. Full Review

Jenkins 100.jpg

Review of

Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations by Simon Jenkins

5star.jpg Art

In the mid-twentieth century, the railway was something which harked back to the Victorian age with trains being supplanted by cars and planes, but steam was being replaced by oil, even then and in the twenty-first-century oil is giving way to electricity. It's cleaner, more environmentally friendly and the stations which we'd all rushed through as quickly as possible, keen to escape their grime, were restored and became places to be admired, possibly even lingered in. Simon Jenkins has chosen his hundred best railway stations. Full Review

Taylor Owls.jpg

Review of

Owls: A Guide to Every Species by Marianne Taylor

5star.jpg Animals and Wildlife

I feel like I am being watched. A huge pair of piercing orange eyes are staring right at me, locking me into their gaze. In contrast with the hardness of the deep-amber eyes, soft grey feathers fan out into the surrounding area, intricate, detailed and beautiful. An enigma; harsh and gentle at the same time, the owl is beckoning the reader to turn the pages and take a closer look inside... Full Review

JVDK ELO.jpg

Review of

Electric Light Orchestra: Song by Song by John Van der Kiste

4.5star.jpg Entertainment

My memories of pop music in the early sixties revolve around guitars and drums, sometimes the piano with only occasional excursions into strings and brass. Pop music rarely stands still and it wasn't long before the basic instruments were seen as constraints and The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Beach Boys began to experiment, with other groups following where they led. Amongst these groups was The Move and their lead guitarist and songwriter, Roy Wood. Wood wanted to develop the group's sound by adding more instruments but was prevented from achieving what he wanted by cost limitations and because the rest of the group didn't really share his enthusiasm. Full Review

Hendrix PBHell.jpg

Review of

Paperbacks from Hell: A History of Horror Fiction from the '70s and '80s by Grady Hendrix

4.5star.jpg Horror

Demonic possession, murderous babies, man-eating moths… for these books, no plot was too ludicrous, no cover art too appalling, no evil too despicable. Now horror author Grady Hendrix risks his soul and his sanity (not to mention the reader's!) to relate the true, untold story of a fascinating and often forgotten era in publishing.

Read the synapse-shattering story summaries!
See the horrific hand-painted cover imagery!
And learn the true-life tales of the writers, artists, and publishers who gleefully violated every literary law but one – never be boring. Full Review

Browne Many.jpg

Review of

The Many Faces of Coincidence by Laurence Browne

3.5star.jpg Popular Science

Browne does not mislead with this choice of title; he does without a doubt explore the many faces of coincidence. Full Review

1903385679.jpg

Review of

The 100 Best Novels in Translation by Boyd Tonkin

3.5star.jpg Reference

Consider, if you will, translated fiction. Some say it's impossible – that if a book was so good in one tongue it could never survive being put into another. Samuel Beckett must have laboured over ever syllable and Breath, but he could translate his own works, and other equally complex pieces can cross borders. It's a market that has actually doubled in sales volume between 2000 and 2016 (thanks, Millennium Trilogy). Novels, in particular, in translation, are – as the introduction here so smartly puts it – a privileged means of passing border posts, a sort of universal passport issued by that Utopian state, the Republic of Letters. We here at the 'Bag regularly try and give equal credit to the translator, without whom we wouldn't be reading what we have in our hands. But all that said, do we really need one of those list books about the subject? I got given a book the other year detailing 1001 places to go to before I die, and I might even then have missed out a zero. It would take as long as a fortnight's holiday to wade through, and even though this is not as long as your typical Bolano housebrick, it's not a short thing. Should it take our time? Full Review

Fry Mythos.jpg

Review of

Mythos: A Retelling of the Myths of Ancient Greece by Stephen Fry

5star.jpg Reference

The Greek Myths are, arguably, the greatest stories ever told. So old and influential they cast a shadow over western tales and traditions, yet remain relatable and readable millennia later. Here comedian, actor, television presenter, actor and author Stephen Fry brings his considerable talent to these special stories and recreates them with a wit, warmth and humanity that brings them into the modern age whilst still giving the honour and respect that such ancient and influential stories deserve. Full Review

Mahnke Lore.jpg

Review of

The World of Lore, Volume 1: Monstrous Creatures by Aaron Mahnke

4.5star.jpg Reference

Every country, every town, every village has a folktale – a story passed down through generations that often focuses on the dark and unexplained. No matter how the modern world moves on, there's a still a part of everyone that is vulnerable to a good tale. From ghosts to werewolves, by way of wendigos and elves, author Aaron Mahnke delivers the reader legends from all over the world, whilst examining how they've become part of our collective imaginations, still striking fear into the hearts of many of us today. Full Review

Fowler Forgotten.jpg

Review of

The Book of Forgotten Authors by Christopher Fowler

5star.jpg Reference

Absence doesn't make the heart grow fonder. It makes people think you're dead.

There's truth in that statement, you know, but there's a conundrum when it's applied to authors. Shakespeare is dead: Dickens is dead, but we haven't buried what they've written: that lives on until... when? Is it until fashion decrees that they should be no more? Or is it, as in the case of some children's authors that they are on life support through licensing deals and astute marketing? Christopher Fowler has unearthed (exhumed?) ninety-nine authors who were once hugely popular, but whose works have disappeared, sometimes quite literally. Full Review

Angell Triang.jpg

Review of

Tri-ang Collectables by Dave Angell

3.5star.jpg Reference

A guide to the trains produced by the Tri-ang company from its inception until the company became Hornby. A very personal guide to the collecting of model trains. Full Review

Chase Orchids.jpg

Review of

The Book of Orchids: A life-size guide to six hundred species from around the world by Mark Chase, Maarten Christenhusz and Tom Mirenda

5star.jpg Reference

One in seven flowering plants on earth is an orchid: there are 26,000 species in 749 genera. They flourish in remarkable habitats such as deserts and the Arctic circle, in fact, all areas but the most inhospitable. There's a wide range of colours, shapes and scents: they're dramatic, delicate and ingenious in the ways that they've developed not just to survive but to thrive. Tom Mirenda describes them as masters of manipulation and famous for lying and cheating their way to their many evolutionary successes, yet his love of them is as obvious as his respect for the insight they give us into the processes which shaped our world. He hopes that understanding how that has come about will inspire us to conserve what we have. Full Review

Edwards Story.jpg

Review of

The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books (British Library Crime Classics) by Martin Edwards

5star.jpg Reference

It's easy to be confused by the various 'ages' of crime writing: if you have an interest in the genre you'll almost certainly have heard of the Golden Age of Crime, generally acknowledged as being the period between the first and second world wars. 'Classic Crime' on the other hand extends the time frame at either end and covers books published in the first half of the twentieth century. Throughout my adult life, there's been just one genre of books which has fascinated me, and that's crime, so I could hardly resist the chance of reading The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books particularly as the author, Martin Edwards is an accomplished author within the crime genre and an acknowledged expert on the subject. Full Review

DK Childrens.jpg

Review of

Children's Illustrated Thesaurus by DK

4.5star.jpg Reference

One of the most valuable literary skills which children can learn is how to use reference books. As a child every question which I began with how do you spell...? would be answered with EXACTLY as it says in the dictionary. This was fine, but the family's Collins Little Gem Dictionary didn't encourage exploration, not least because the font was small and difficult to read. Fortunately, those times have now changed and reference book for children are now much more inviting. Not every book comes with a set of instructions but it's worth studying the How to... section, not least because similar systems are used in other reference books. Full Review

Move on to Newest Science Fiction Reviews