Promotions - Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles 2017 -

This succinct biography of Schweitzer (1875-1965) joins the many other biographies of this great 20th-century humanitarian. Although one might legitimately argue against the need for another Schweitzer biography, Obermann's differs from its predecessors by introducing previously unavailable material and information from interviews. Obermann (ethics, Leuphana Univ., Germany) documents virtually all of his factual claims with numerous notes (in the case of some chapters, more than 100), making for solid scholarship that can stand up to scrutiny. The author refrains from overengaging in polemics regarding questionable claims by other biographers, but he does address some of the more controversial issues regarding Schweitzer's personal motivations and political persuasions. The result is a fair and balanced assessment of this most complex and remarkable of human beings. Schweitzer was a theologian, philosopher, musician, physician, humanitarian, and much more. It is no mean accomplishment that this biography does justice to all these aspects of the man's persona without portraying him as a god. Excellent bibliography.Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers.

Its classification as literature notwithstanding, this witty, well-written, provocative book is not intended for scholars of literature. It will not replace such key works of criticism as Gillian Beer's Darwin's Plots (1983) or George Levine's Darwin and the Novelists (CH, Feb'89, 26-3141). What Ruse (Florida State Univ.) offers is a fascinating, thoroughly enjoyable analysis written from the perspective of a philosopher who has published more than 50 books and spent much of his career exploring the history and philosophy of science, particularly the influence of Darwin. The book's breadth emerges as its most distinctive feature, as Ruse seeks to provide an overview of the interplay between Darwinian thought and literature--primarily in England and in the US but also at times touching on major European writers. Ruse's thesis is succinct: as thought systems Darwinism and Christianity have a great deal in common, and in the West Darwinism can be regarded as a secular (and considerably darker) replacement for Christianity. While discussing this, Ruse provides a broad range of literary examples from the Victorians to the present. His thoughtful engagement with Thomas Hardy's fiction and poetry is a particular highlight.Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers.

This is a wonderful and extraordinary book on a neglected subject, the afterlife of medieval manuscripts in the late medieval period. Rudy (Univ. of St. Andrews, Scotland) focuses on 15th-century manuscripts, especially books of hours, from the northern Netherlands. During that period, manuscripts were often produced to standard types, rather than being specially commissioned, and then sold. Rudy's immensely scholarly but fascinating and beautifully written book shows how the manuscripts were subsequently adapted, and often readapted, to suit specific owners. Rudy discusses changes that did not require any rebinding (because the alterations were confined to margins or blank pages); changes that involved insertions and rebinding; and changes that were so extensive as to amount to an "overhaul" of the book. This fresh, engrossing study marks the beginning of a major trend in scholarship, a great achievement. The study is also unusual as a publication. The publisher makes it available in various formats--digital and print--and one of the digital versions is offered gratis in both PDF and HTML. The digital versions have a major advantage over the print because many of the illustrations discussed are available only online. The digital formats provide an URL in a footnote, and a click takes readers directly to the image being discussed; from the print version, readers need to key a long URL into a browser.Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.

In this sequel to his Book of Trees (CH, Jul'14, 51-5974), Lima (fellow, Royal Society of Arts, UK)--who is renowned for his work in visualizing data--showcases diagrams and data visualizations that use circular formats. Like its predecessor, this is a beautifully produced book with amazing illustrations. Lima provides historical background to give context to the multitude of illustrations of mostly contemporary work by information designers. A taxonomy of 21 families of diagrammatic forms furnishes a structure for displaying the works. One might wish for a bit of critique concerning the relative advantages and disadvantages of the various families or of circularity as a class. For instance, this reviewer would have welcomed some discussion of how circular diagrams, although inherently beautiful, hide or mask certain relationships within data. Nevertheless, this book will be invaluable for those studying or interested in graphic design, information design, statistics, or data visualization. As Creativity magazine predicted in 2009, Lima is quickly taking his place next to Edward Tufte--author of, among other titles, Envisioning Information (CH, Nov'90, 28-1398) and Beautiful Evidence (2006)--as a high priest of the diagram.Summing Up: Essential. All readers.

Dinerstein (English, Tulane Univ.) delivers that rare kind of book, one that is both academically sound and deserving of a large readership beyond colleges, universities, and discerning intellectuals. The subject is inherently fascinating. The book looks at how "cool" developed in common parlance and culture in the US following WW II. Weaving micro-biographies into a coherent analytical framework, Dinerstein offers telling presentations of musical, cinematic, and literary greats who exuded antiheroic qualities in some manner. Included in the discussion are such musicians as Lester Young, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Sonny Rollins, and Miles Davis; film stars on the order of Humphrey Bogart, Marlon Brando, and James Dean; and such writers as Albert Camus, Simone de Beauvoir, and Lorraine Hansberry. The Origins of Cool focuses particularly on jazz, noir, and existential literature and how they intersected, drawing on black-and-white roots. Appropriately, the book closes with a look at John F. Kennedy and Paul Newman, exemplars of cool in their own fashion. This brief review hardly does justice to this enthralling study. Pinpointing highlights is difficult because the book is replete with them. Happily, too, it is a good read.Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers.