Too bright to hear too loud to see

by Juliann Garey    (Get the Book)
In her debut, screenwriter Garey delivers a commanding portrait of a Hollywood studio executive who so tires of covering up his bipolar disorder that he abandons his lucrative career and his family, traveling the world for decades. Told in snippets and in nonlinear format, the story of Greyson Todd's spectacular flameout encompasses touring as a relic pilgrim in Rome, becoming the victim of a scam perpetrated by Bedouins, engaging in sexual escapades in Thailand, and entering into marriage with the widow of an AIDS victim in Africa. Through it all, Greyson is haunted by memories of his father, who also suffered from bipolar disorder and who went on extravagant spending sprees that decimated his family's finances. When Greyson finally ends up in a psychiatric ward in New York City, undergoing 12 sessions of electroshock treatments, he begins to lose some of his most cherished memories, especially those of the wife and daughter he abandoned, and yet the novel ends on a hopeful note as Greyson strives to achieve stability in his life. A vividly written chronicle of one man's attempt to conquer his mental illness. --Booklist

Klansville, U.S.A. : the rise and fall of the civil rights-era Ku Klux Klan

by David Cunningham    (Get the Book)
With the growing momentum of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement came a concomitant rise in white-supremacist domestic terrorism, specifically (if not exclusively) in the form of a revived Ku Klux Klan, whose first incarnation dated to 1866 Tennessee. Centering his analysis on North Carolina--a "progressive" state that nevertheless accounted for over half the membership of the United Klans of America (UKA) in 1965-66--Brandeis University sociologist Cunningham (There's Something Happening Here) offers a fascinating case study of the complexities of U.S. reactionary movement culture. Scrupulously examining the membership, leadership, highly placed allies, organizational and recruitment strategies, internecine feuds, and popular appeal of the Klan, as well as official responses to it, Cunningham demonstrates that the UKA's phenomenal growth in North Carolina occurred amid a relative absence of grassroots and establishment resistance to desegregation.Protestantism, nativism, and white supremacy had fertilized the growth of the KKK since 1915, and once again these served as basic elements of reactionary ideology. Moreover, Southern segregationism complemented the era's feverish anticommunism. Cunningham's study is a solid addition to the field and a worthy contribution to current debates about domestic terrorism. --Publishers Weekly

Y : a novel

by Marjorie Celona     (Get the Book)
Set on Vancouver Island, Celona's compelling first novel opens with a desperate young mother abandoning her newborn girl on the front steps of the Victoria YMCA. Passed back and forth, cradled in one set of arms then another, the child is first granted the name Shandi, then Samantha, and later, Shannon. One foster mother rewards Shannon with a cube of cheese if she manages to sit still, but the restless three-year-old is more often met by abuse and eventually banished to live with another family. At age five, Shannon is adopted by Miranda, a single mother whose only expectations of her daughter are fairness, kindness, and respect. While Shannon thrives living in this caring household, she struggles to reconcile the pain of her unknown past. Humorously self-deprecating (I'm not hideous, but I'm definitely a cross between Shirley Temple and a pug), teenage Shannon embarks on an odyssey of self-discovery. This is at once a moving coming-of-age story full of fresh starts, a haunting family story full of heavy disappointments, and an extraordinarily quiet story full of hope. --Booklist

Things I wish I'd known : cancer caregivers speak out

by Deborah Cornwall    (Get the Book)
Having served for more than 20 years as a leadership volunteer and board member of the American Cancer Society, Cornwall has a wealth of knowledge about cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers. The stress of caregiving is the main topic of this comprehensive book, and she discusses how to advocate for one's patient, help children with cancer, understand "pull-aways" among family and friends, and manage expectations for medical professionals. She includes helpful chapters on seeking normalcy and enjoying time together after a loved one's death. A much-needed support tool for an ever-growing portion of the population. --Library Journal

The painted girls

by Cathy Marie Buchanan    (Get the Book)
The struggle of three sisters in 19th-century Paris blossoms into the rich history of Marie van Goethem, model for Edgar Degas's controversial statue, Little Dancer, Aged Fourteen, in Buchanan's new novel (after The Day the Falls Stood Still). When their father dies, teen sisters Antoinette, Marie, and Charlotte are left to fend for themselves, since their mother's meager wages often dissolve into absinthe. Knowing their best chance for advancement lies in the ballet, Antoinette, an extra at the Opera, get her sisters auditions. Both are accepted as "petit rats," but to everyone's surprise, bookish Marie actually shows talent for dance, and pays for food and private lessons by modeling for the mysterious Edgar Degas. Meanwhile, Antoinette, who has been guardian to her sisters, begins a love affair with Emile Abadie, a young man of questionable character. As Marie's modeling for Degas leads to the interest of a patron of the ballet, Emile is arrested for the murder of a local tavern owner, driving a wedge between the devoted sisters. Though history loses track of Emile Abadie, implicated in three murders, and Marie Van Goethem after Degas's statuette is criticized as "ugly" with the "promise of every vice" on the girl's face, Buchanan captures their story in this engrossing depiction of belle epoque Paris.  --Publishers Weekly

Violence and mental health in everyday life : prevention and intervention strategies for children and adolescents

by Daniel J. Flannery    (Get the Book)
Flannery (psychology, Institute for the Study of Prevention of Violence, Kent State Univ.) weaves a tapestry of current thinking, research, and vignettes on how children and adolescents cope with violence and how to support their mental health. Looking at his subject from a developmental perspective, the author examines aggression, bullying, delinquency, conduct disorders, and violence (in dating, gangs, and the media). After reviewing brain development, he explores how nature, socialization, exposure to violence, and parenting impact a child's potential for violence. He is concerned about the stress of exposure to violence--both as a witness and as a victim--and in that connection he discusses the Children Who Witness Violence Program. He also discusses school safety and looks at the rates of homicide, suicide, school violence, and bullying. Flannery summarizes clues to identifying youth who plan to attack others at school and discusses how school disciplinary policies that are rooted in punishment and exclusion can contribute to violence. By way of guidance, he includes suggestions for practice and policy that may help those working with child violence and its consequences (post-traumatic stress, suicide risk, and depression). These include supporting resilience through problem solving, hope, and self-efficacy. --Choice

The aviator's wife : a novel

by Melanie Benjamin   (Get the Book)
Benjamin (Alice I Have Been; The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb) examines the life of a woman whose story has frequently been overshadowed by that of a more famous man. A starstruck Anne Morrow is thrilled when Charles Lindbergh proposes marriage shortly after his famous transatlantic flight. Initially overjoyed to serve as the dashing young aviator's "crew," she soon discovers a dark side to her husband's ambitions and yearns to break free of his rigid expectations for her. Benjamin's primary focus is on Anne's evolution from submissive helpmate into the author of the feminist classic Gift from the Sea. Her extremely unsympathetic portrayal of Charles may startle readers expecting more of a love story. Anne's life provides plenty of material to hold interest, including on her days as a pioneering aviatrix, her heartbreak following the kidnapping and murder of her infant son, and the controversy surrounding Charles's unpopular political views during the buildup to World War II. VERDICT Well-researched and paced, this novel will certainly spark readers' interest in learning more about this famous couple. --Library Journal

Cultural fault lines in healthcare : reflections on cultural competency

by Michaell C. Brannigan    (Get the Book)
This book provides an opportunity for students and health care practitioners to reflect upon the philosophical meaning of "cultural competency." Using examples/scenarios from different cultures, Brannigan (College of Saint Rose) offers insights as a bioethicist on how to unveil the essence of cultural competency through the cultivation of presence. This intriguing work is important because American society consists of at least 66 diverse racial and ethnic groups with multiple values and worldviews. When members of diverse groups access the Western biomedical health care system, multiple clashes and conflicts can occur. To bridge these differences in cross-cultural communication, Brannigan offers insight from his work with multicultural patients and their families and caregivers. Chapter 1 discusses the challenges of colliding worldviews in pluralistic American society and health care. Chapter 2 defines cultural competency, and three critical values to understand culture: space, time, and modes of communication. In the final three chapters, Brannigan advocates for the cultivation of a "face-to-face engagement or being-with the patient" as an approach to improve patient-provider interactions. Strategies to cultivate presence in health care interactions may include active listening, pace, and reciprocity. A valuable resource for students and health care practitioners interested in the subject of cultural competency. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through graduate students and professionals/practitioners. --Choice

Tenth of December : stories

by George Sanders    (Get the Book)
Saunders, a self-identified disciple of Twain and Vonnegut, is hailed for the topsy-turvy, gouging satire in his three previous, keenly inventive short story collections. In the fourth, he dials the bizarreness down a notch to tune into the fantasies of his beleaguered characters, ambushing readers with waves of intense, unforeseen emotion. Saunders drills down to secret aquifers of anger beneath ordinary family life as he portrays parents anxious to defang their children but also to be better, more loving parents than their own. The title story is an absolute heart-wringer, as a pudgy, misfit boy on an imaginary mission meets up with a dying man on a frozen pond. In Victory Lap, a young-teen ballerina is princess-happy until calamity strikes, an emergency that liberates her tyrannized neighbor, Kyle, the palest kid in all the land. In Home, family friction and financial crises combine with the trauma of a court-martialed Iraq War veteran, to whom foe and ally alike murmur inanely, Thank you for your service. Saunders doesn't neglect his gift for surreal situations. There are the inmates subjected to sadistic neurological drug experiments in Escape from Spiderhead and the living lawn ornaments in The Semplica Girl Diaries. These are unpredictable, stealthily funny, and complexly affecting stories of ludicrousness, fear, and rescue. --Booklist

The honored society : a portrait of Italy's most powerful Mafia

by Petra Reski     (Get the Book)
German investigative journalist Reski explores the far-reaching influence of the various Mafia clans, from the Sicilian Cosa Nostra to the Calabrian 'Ndrangheta, in this intriguing if scattered account of the power of organized crime. While the Cosa Nostra may be the most publicly recognizable Mafia organization, it's the 'Ndrangheta that is behind more international drug running and weapons dealing, among other illegal activities. Spurred on by the August 2007 murders in Germany of six 'Ndrangheta members-which finally shed light on the organization's lethal ways-Reski crisscrosses Italy in search of the group's and others' origins. The Cosa Nostra is organized vertically, with power consolidated at the top in a few key individuals, while the 'Ndrangheta is structured horizontally, meaning that should one of its members decide to cooperate with the police, he or she could not betray anyone higher up. Reski continually stresses the Mafia organizations' insidious nature in Italy and abroad as she visits town after town where the mob controls everything from politics to the church. While her expertise is never in doubt, Reski's mixture of personal anecdotes and reportage often leaves the reader wishing she'd commit to one or the other. --Publishers Weekly

The blood Gospel

by James Rollins     (Get the Book)
Rollins, noted for his fast-paced thriller-adventure novels, often decorated with religious iconography, and Cantrell, a writer of historical mysteries with Nazi Germany as the backdrop, combine their talents for this mash-up of thriller and paranormal. After an earthquake destroys the Israeli fortress of Masada, the race is on to find a Jesus gospel that two groups suspect is in the rubble. One is the striogi, soulless, vampirelike creatures, led by evil, tortured Bathory, doing the bidding of Him. The other is the Sanguines, priests protected by the blood of Christ, called to battle the striogi. When Masada falls, archaeologist Erin Granger is there to find artifacts in the destruction. She and Sergeant Jordan Stone, an American soldier, meet the Vatican representative (and Sanguine extraordinaire) Father Rhun Korza, and after that, all hell breaks loose. This could have been an unholy mess, but as in Rollins' previous books, the pacing is heart-pounding and the conceit irresistible. At first, the introduction of ghouls seems gimmicky, but the authors suck you in and make it work. The Da Vinci Code meets vampires. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: This first in the Order of the Sanguines series has one hot-name author, one warm one, and a big marketing campaign backing it up. --Booklist

The fire next door : Mexico's drug violence and the danger to America

by Ed Galen Carpenter    (Get the Book)
The drug war across the U.S.-Mexico border has exacted a tremendous toll, according to Carpenter (Smart Power), a senior fellow for defense and foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute. Using government data, the author reveals that in 2009 the Mexican drug cartels earned nearly $34 billion from their trafficking in North America, using their wealth to buy off the Mexican public and to corrupt politicians who dare to stand in their way (those who refuse bribes are assassinated). Comparing war-torn Mexico to a "Latin American Somalia," Carpenter says the powerful cartels often donate food, clothing, and medical care to impoverished locals and are seen as "cultural folk heroes." The author balances Mexican assertions that the cartels' weapons are bought from U.S. gun shops with U.S. officials' denial of these charges. The spike in violence has hit farmers, ranchers, innocent civilians--and increasingly Americans, both tourist visitors to Mexico and border police. In the end, this is a devastatingly frank probe of the cartels and their corrosive influence on both sides of the border. --Publishers weekly

Kinsey and me : stories

by Sue Grafton   (Get the Book)
What could be better, while waiting for the twenty-third mystery in Grafton's alphabet series, than this revelatory collection of stories featuring both Grafton's alter ego, PI Kinsey Millhone, and the author herself? The volume includes 9 stories with Kinsey as protagonist (8 were published in 1991 in a very limited edition for family and friends); 13 short-short stories about Kit Blue, a younger version of Grafton; an introduction; and an essay, which bridges the two sections of the book, about the development of the private-eye mystery. In the Kit Blue stories, Grafton lays bare the pain of growing up with an alcoholic mother who died too young of cancer yet also credits her mystery writer and lawyer father (also alcoholic) and mystery-reading mother for making her the writer she became. Readers are likely to revel most in the wonderfully concise Kinsey stories, 2 of which, The Parker Shotgun and A Poison That Leaves No Trace, are award winners. Also especially intriguing are The Lying Game, written for Land's End's fortieth anniversary catalog in 2003, and Falling off the Roof, in which members of a mystery book club take their passion for murder beyond the printed page. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: To whet fans' appetites for W Is for . . . , the Kinsey Millhone mystery coming in 2013, Grafton offers a selection of Millhone and Kit Blue short stories. Kinsey fanatics, sensing the coming end of the landmark series, will be thrilled to read this nonalphabetic extra. --Booklist

Living with guns : a liberal's case for the Second Amendment

by Craig R. Whitney    (Get the Book)
Is there any way past the impasse on gun control that pits supporters of the Second Amendment against those concerned about escalating gun violence in the U.S.? Whitney, a reporter, self-described conservative liberal, and member of the National Rifle Association, aims to find common ground between the polarities that steer elections and fund lobbying campaigns. He examines the Second Amendment, why interpretations of it are so divergent, and why the right to bear arms is enshrined in the Bill of Rights. He explores Supreme Court decisions, state laws throughout the nation (except Illinois and the District of Columbia) that permit individuals to own guns, controversial stand-your-ground laws, and violent shootings, which add fuel to both sides of the gun control debate. Whitney gives equal time to gun enthusiasts, from collectors to hunters, who are among the 60 million Americans who own more than 300 million guns, a third of them handguns. This is a very thoughtful, well-researched, and well-reasoned argument in favor of the right to bear arms within reasonable limitations and an appeal to responsible gun ownership. --Booklist

A hope undaunted : a novel

by Julie Lessman    (Get the Book)
It's the summer of 1929, and Katie O'Connor knows exactly what she wants: marriage to rich, rakish, albeit spoiled Jack Worthington, and a law career. When Jack and others in her circle of self-centered, privileged friends deliberately humiliate a soda jerk, Katie is embarrassed. Then she breaks curfew too many times, and her father sentences her to work as a summer volunteer at the Boston Children's Aid Society. Raised on the wrong side of the tracks, Luke McGee has worked his way through law school, and even though he's now an attorney, he fills in at the soda counter for a friend, only to become the brunt of Jack and the gang's cruelty. When Luke becomes assistant director of the Boston Children's Aid Society, his life becomes intertwined with Katie's, perhaps forever. A rich girl and a poor boy find that love can be the great equalizer in Lessman's engrossing tale, which has more awareness and sizzle between the hero and heroine than your average inspirational romance. This is the first book in the Winds of Change series. --Booklist

The world until yesterday : what can we learn from traditional societies?

by Jared M. Diamond     (Get the Book)
In the broader scope of evolution, it was only yesterday 11,000 years ago when we progressed from hunter-gatherer groups to modern states. Along the way, we've changed the ways we resolve disputes, raise children, care for the old, practice faith, nourish ourselves, communicate, and a host of other mundane and monumental human activities. Diamond, author of the highly acclaimed Guns, Germs, and Steel (1999) and Collapse (2005), offers a penetrating look at the ways we have evolved by comparing practices of traditional societies and modern and industrialized societies. Diamond draws on his fieldwork in New Guinea, the Amazon, Kalahari, and other areas to compare the best and most questionable customs and practices of societies past and present. Diamond does not idealize traditional societies, with smaller populations and more interest in maintaining group harmony than modern societies organized by governments seeking to maintain order, but he does emphasize troubling trends in declining health and fitness as industrialization has spread to newly developing nations. In this fascinating book, Diamond brings fresh perspective to historic and contemporary ways of life with an eye toward those that are likely to enhance our future. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Publicity and television and media appearances will be full-throttle for Diamond, an acclaimed scholar and best-selling writer and opinion-shaper. --Booklist

Dream eyes

by Jayne Ann Krentz   (Get the Book)
Gwen Frazier knows Evelyn Ballinger was murdered because Evelyn told Gwen so herself. Unfortunately, most police departments do not consider ghosts to be credible witnesses. In fact, the police chief of Wilby, Oregon, seems more convinced that Gwen has something to do with Evelyn's death, especially since Gwen was around several years earlier, when two members of a paranormal research study group organized by Evelyn were murdered. All of which means that if Gwen is going to bring Evelyn's killer to justice, she is going to need help from someone who specializes in paranormal investigative work. In other words, someone exactly like Judson Coppersmith. Writing with her signature sharp wit, Krentz (Copper Beach, 2012) flawlessly juggles a richly imaginative, paranormal-tinged plot fueled by an abundance of high-adrenaline danger and an engaging pair of protagonists whose combustible sexual chemistry threatens to permanently singe readers' fingers. The end result is another perfect fusion of suspense and romance from an author at the top of her game. --Booklist

1356 : a novel

by Bernard Cornwell    (Get the Book)
Although definitely a stand-alone, Cornwell's latest foray into the dark days of the Hundred Years' War features the reappearance of the rascally Thomas of Hookton, aka Le Batard, the main character of his enormously popular Grail Quest trilogy. As Thomas and his band of not-so-merry mercenaries roam the ravaged French countryside in search of pillage and plunder, they are bidden by the Earl of Northhampton to unearth the lost sword of Saint Peter, a mythic weapon purported to bestow on its owner tremendous powers for either good or evil. Naturally, the French are also seeking this holy relic, and all roads lead to Poitiers, where the badly outnumbered English forces wage a fierce battle against their enemies, resulting in one of the most improbably astounding victories of the protracted conflict. In addition to carving out another action-packed martial adventure, Cornwell spotlights one of the most significant but often overlooked battles of the era. High Demand Backstory: Cornwell, the master of martial fiction never lacks an audience and the reappearence of the engaging hero of the Grail Quest provides an added incentive to revisit the pivotal Battle of Poitiers. --Booklist

The Tuscan sun cookbook :recipes from our Italian kitchen

by Frances Mayes and Edward Mayes

In all of Frances Mayes’s bestselling memoirs about Tuscany, food plays a starring role. This cuisine transports, comforts, entices, and speaks to the friendly, genuine, and improvisational spirit of Tuscan life. Both cooking and eating in Tuscany are natural pleasures. In her first-ever cookbook, Frances and her husband, Ed, share recipes that they have enjoyed over the years as honorary Tuscans: dishes prepared in a simple, traditional kitchen using robust, honest ingredients.

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Bullied: What every parent, teacher and kid needs to know about ending the cycle of fear

by Carrie Goldman

When the author, a blogger for the online community of the Chicago Tribune, posted about her six-year-old daughter being bullied at school because she was sporting a Star Wars backpack and water bottle, cyberspace rose to her defense with a flurry of posts, e-mails, and letters. Goldman decided to delve more deeply into the subject, discovering that 160,000 children stay home every day from school because of bullying, 42% of kids have been bullied online, and one in five teens has been bullied at school in the previous year ("bullycides" are also an alarming trend). Although progress has been made, Goldman and the experts and parents she interviews reveal that there's more work to do. Goldman identifies kids who are at high risk for bullying (i.e., "geeks"; children with disabilities; gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual students; and kids who do not choose gender-specific toys). In this informative book, Goldman also addresses prevention, intervention and reconciliation, helping parents recognize the warning signs of emotional distress and offering techniques for dealing with bullies (who also need help).

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Classic hikes of North America: 25 breathtaking treks in the United States and Canada

by Peter Potterfield

Classic Hikes of North America is a beautifully photographed and eminently practical account of the best backcountry journeys in the United States and Canada. Peter Potterfield, an experienced hiker and photographer, has analyzed and graded these spectacular wilderness experiences with both beginners and avid hikers in mind.

Included in the book is helpful information, such as: level of difficulty, trail conditions, recommended seasons, potential hazards and difficulties, resource information, and detailed maps of hiking routes. Illustrated with more than 200 color photographs and hiking directions, here is inspiration and information in a single volume. There are routes in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Big Beaver–Little Beaver Loop in the North Cascades National Park of Washington State, and the Slate Range in the Canadian Rockies, Alberta and British Columbia, and many more.

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How it began: a time-traveler's guide to the universe

by Chris Impey Einstein at first dismissed its advocate as a preacher of abominable physics, but George Lemaitre's theory that the universe originated in a big bang has opened exciting new horizons. To explain those horizons, Impey takes his readers on a dizzying journey. By traveling back through billions of years, readers listen in on the tremendous primal bang (amusingly likened to the last chord of the Beatles' A Day in the Life ), then watch as the echoes of that bang summon forth the radiant stuff of nebulae, stars, and planets and the maddennigly invisible but pervasive black matter. By visiting the furthest reaches of space, from the Methuselah planet near the globular cluster M4 to the black hole-powered radio galaxy jets in M87, readers learn just how many astrophysical mysteries scientists have already penetrated and how many more they hope to unravel with daring new grand unified theories of the universe. But what will especially impress readers is just how entertaining Impey can make science as he regales them with his own piquant experiences as a researcher and translates arcane mathematics into metaphors (guitar strings, apple pies, Tootsie Pops) drawn from everyday life. Readers will never find more intellectual adventure packed into fewer pages. Check Our Catalog

Triumphs of experience: the men of the Harvard Grant study

by George E. Vaillant
Human social and emotional development does not peak at age 30 but continues throughout one's life. A person's upbringing does not set them on an inescapable path toward a happy or unhappy life. These are two of the major findings of the Harvard Grant Study, which has surveyed the physical and mental health of an original cohort of 237 Harvard undergraduate men beginning in the late 1930s. Using case studies as illustrations, former director Vaillant (Aging Well) reviews the results of research investigating mental health, longevity, alcoholism, resilience, and spirituality over time. Especially interesting are his observations on the changing issues, methods, and priorities throughout the project's history. The Grant Study remains the longest ongoing longitudinal study of human development continuing to track survivors (68 of the original group were still living as of March 2012) as they approach 100 years.
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Food lovers' guide to Vermont & New Hampshire :the best restaurants, markets & local culinary offerings

by Patricia Harris and David Lyon

The ultimate guide to Vermont and New Hampshire's food scene provides the inside scoop on the best places to find, enjoy, and celebrate local culinary offerings. Written for residents and visitors alike to find producers and purveyors of tasty local specialties, as well as a rich array of other, indispensable food-related information including: food festivals and culinary events; specialty food shops; farmers’ markets and farm stands; trendy restaurants and time-tested iconic landmarks; and recipes using local ingredients and traditions.

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How much is enough: money and the good life

by Robert Skidelsky and Edward Skidelsky

A provocative and articulate discourse on the dismal science and moral philosophy. Eminent economic historian Robert Skidelsky and his philosopher son Edward recall when John Maynard Keynes predicted that, in his grandchildren's days, no one would need to work much more than a few hours a week to satisfy our shared human needs. As the great economist expected, production soared, but work increased as well. What happened to the dream of Keynes? Though he thought needs were finite, the sought-after good life expanded. Needs may be satisfied, but not wants or the insatiable desire for more. In seeking to find suitable goods for the blissful life, the authors conflate economic theory with philosophy. They cite Marx and Marcuse, Aristotle and Adam Smith, happiness economists and ecological economists, the dharma sutra and story of Faust. In sum, they posit certain requirements: health, security, respect, individuality, harmony with nature, friendship and leisure. Individually and as a society, we should value these, not perpetual growth. With a statement likely to attract notice, the Skidelskys write, "the capitalist system in our part of the world is entering its degenerative phase." As an alternative to avarice and excess, the authors propose "non-coercive paternalism," including basic income payments to all (as in Alaska), reduction of advertising (how else would we choose our presidents?), a graduated use tax and, possibly, some sumptuary laws. Not for libertarians or the Fox News crowd, but the authors deliver powerful, timely material for Wall Street occupiers, public intellectuals, policy wonks and op-ed columnists. - Booklist Review

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