Occult America in 1920's

Jaher, David.  The Witch of Lime Street: Seance, Seduction, and Houdini in the Spirit World. 
         New York: Crown Publishers, 2015.  ISBN: 978-0-307-45106-4

In 1920's America, jazz, bootleggers, and the occult filled the headlines.  Arthur Colin Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes, visited America several times in the 1920's, preaching the gospel of Spiritualism.  The Ouija board was a popular parlor device.   Visits to mediums were common among many who had lost loved ones to the Great War or the influenza epidemic.  A number of scientists were investigating the occult trying to prove scientifically whether spirits were real or just fakes perpetrated by the mediums.  In the midst of this fervor, Scientific American magazine put up a purse of $2,500 for documented physical phenomena and a matching purse for spirit photography.  It was this contest that brought Harry Houdini, escape artist and stage magician, together with Margaret Crandon, one of the most heralded mediums of the time.

David Jaher does an excellent job of introducing the characters and setting the stage for his tale of 1920's occult America.  He lets the details of the story slowly unfold so that the reader is caught up in the atmosphere of the 1920's.  Only then does the build-up for the struggle between Houdini and Margaret commence.  The final section of the book closes with a synopses of Harry Houdini's and Margaret Crandon's latter years.  Selected sources are provided along with the location of more extensive collections on the topics covered in the List of Sources.  If 1920's America, the occult, Harry Houdini, or Margaret Crandon peaks your interest, The Witch of Lime Street is likely to satisfy.

Parasites and Free Will

McAuliffe, Kathleen.This Is Your Brain On Parasites: How Tiny Creatures Manipulate Our
      Behavior and Shape Society.  Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016.
      ISBN: 978-0-544-19222-5

Are you interested in learning about zombified cockroaches? How about suicidal ants?  Or maybe cat-loving mice?  Round worms in human, anyone?  If you answered yes any of these question or you just want to find out what is going on inside your body, read This Is Your Brain On Parasites.  You will be informed, maybe entertained, and likely creeped out.

McAuliffe opens the book with an Introduction on how she stumbled on this topic.  It was an Internet post about a single-celled parasite that targets rat brains and reverses their innate fear of cats into an attraction to cats.  The first five chapters concentrate on the negative affects parasites can have on their hosts.  These are the chapters that deal with zombified cockroaches, suicidal ants, cat-loving rats, and possible effect on humans.  Chapters 6, 7, and 8 examine gut bacteria and its effect on weight and emotions.  The final four chapters delve into more esoteric concerns such as disgust, prejudice, piety, and free will.

This Is Your Brain On Parasites is an interesting grab-bag of parasitical science research.  McAuliffe provides a readable discussion not just on the negative effects of  parasites, but also how they benefit their hosts and maybe have shaped human society.  If you are intrigued or freaked out by this research, read and become informed.

Nerds versus The Batman

Weldon, Glen.  The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture.  New York: Simon &
            Schuster, 2016.  ISBN: 978-1-4767-5669-1

Batman has been in the public eye since his debut in 1939 in Detective Comics #27. In The Caped Crusade, Glen Weldon explores why Batman has endured, what his cultural impact has been, and the Bat's relevance to today's culture.

In the Introduction, Weldon opens by discussing a 30 year cycle of gritty to campy Batman through its 70 year history, the myth of Batman's reliability, and the rise of nerds in general culture.  He then dives into the history of Batman in nine chapters.  He opens with the first appearances of Batman and discusses his origins and how Robin turned the Lone Vigilant into the Dynamic Duo.  The Comic Book Panic with Dr. Wertham and how it affected Batman is covered in some detail next.  The 1960's television show and its effect on the comic and culture is explored in Chapter 3, followed by the backlash of the comic creators and fans.  There are chapters on the various movies and cartoon shows intermingled with the changing comic book scene covering to close to the present day.  Mingled throughout the chapters is the development of the nerd fan culture and its reaction to the multiple incarnations of Batman over the years.

Weldon has provided a nice history of Batman that places the character in context of his changing fan base.  He provides plenty of informed commentary with informational asides that make this a smooth read.  He lets slip his preferences while still presenting the other side of the argument.  If you like Batman, comics, or the rise of fan culture, you are likely to enjoy The Caped Crusade!

A Soup to Nuts Science Look at War-Fighters

Roach, Mary.  Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War.  New York: W. W. Norton, 2016
          ISBN: 978-0-393-24544-8

 Mary Roach provides a brief and informative look at the science involved in keeping U.S. military personnel intact, awake, sane, uninfected, and uninfested. In fourteen chapters, she looks at clothing, vehicles, hearing issues, stink bombs, sleep, maggot flies, and many other interesting topics.

Each chapter has Mary Roach investigating how science and the U.S. military interact.  In "Second Skin," she visits Natlick to find out how military uniforms are tested.  In "Sweating Bullets," she endures a heat tolerance test alongside a Army Ranger.  There are chapters that deal with diarrhea, medical devices, maggot flies, training medics under combat conditions, shark repellent, submarines, and what the dead can do for the living.  Each chapter provides a brief look at the issues and what the military is doing to help, improve, or understand the science and make the end product or process more usable. 

Mary Roach writes in a straightforward style that is engaging and entertaining.  She provides footnotes that add little details that can make the reader laugh, giggle, or go "Huh?"  She provides a bibliography of sources for further research.  While Grunt has much to offer, it does suffer from quick changes of subject, and sketchy topic coverage in the last few chapters. The lack of a conclusion is also a drawback.  But if you are interested in the U.S. military, you are likely to enjoy Grunt.

Centennial Essays on the First World War

Strachan, Hew.  The Oxford Illustrated History of the First World War.  New York: Oxford
         University Press, 2014.  New edition.  ISBN: 978-0-19-966338-5

If you are looking for an readable, easily comprehensible digest of the First World War, you could do much worse than reading the new edition of The Oxford Illustrated History of the First World War.   In the book, you will find discussions on tactics, strategy, examinations of the various fronts alongside munitions, technology, peace negotiations, and memory

Hew Strachan once again brought together a group of historians writing essays in 24 chapters.  The book opens with "The Origins of the War" and closes with "Memory and the Great War".  In between are essays on aerial warfare,  Central Power and Entente Power strategies, economics, women, politics, propaganda, and peace.  The one new essay is Robert Gerwarth's "No End to War" which examines when the conflict actually ended, especially in the East and Middle East.  Several of the essays have new authors and most have been updated in light of new scholarship.

The Oxford Illustrated History of the First World War (New Edition) is worth reading for its own sake.  But do libraries need to replace their 1998 edition?  That is a decision each library would need to make based on its circumstances and budget.  But if a library or reader is looking for a quick way to review the First World War, The Oxford Illustrated History of the First World War will fulfill that need.

A Fan Looks at Karen Carpenter

Samberg, Joel.  Some Kind of Lonely Clown: The Music, Memory, and Melancholy Lives of Karen
       Carpenter.  Albany, GA: BearManor Media, 2016.  ISBN: 9781593938697

Joel Samberg combines biography with memories and musical analysis in Some Kind of Lonely Clown.  This mixture provides a melange of memory for a singer who left too soon.

Some Kind of Lonely Clown is Joel Samberg's take on Karen Carpenter's life filtered through his memories, memories of those who knew her whom he interviewed, published documents, public interviews, viewings of concerts, and a leavening of professional analysis of her mental state and physical condition.  He provides a reasonable short biography spliced between chapters on her professional life/career.  He provides at least the highlights of The Carpenters as a group and a chapter on Karen Carpenter's one solo album.  Not content to just provide facts, Samberg examines the music, rating albums and songs, while using the music sang to interpret Karen's internal struggle.

If you enjoy The Carpenters, you are likely to find something to like and/or dislike in  Some Kind of Lonely Clown.  If you have not caught The Carpenters fever, what are you waiting for?  Listen to some Carpenters' music and see what you think.

Stirred, But Not Shaken

Daub, Adrian, and Charles Kronengold.  The James Bond Songs: Pop Anthems of Late Capitalism.
         New York: Oxford University Press, 2015.  ISBN: 9780190234522

Have you ever wondered why the James Bond theme songs are so different over the fifty year run of the series.  Why so many many artists?  Why so many styles?  And what do the songs actually do?  The answers to those and other unasked questions are explored in The James Bond Songs: Pop Anthems of Late Capitalism. 

The James Bond Songs takes a academic approach to the theme songs of the James Bond movies.  Daub and Kronengold open the book by delving into "Skyfall" the latest theme song when the book was written.  They tear apart the lyrics, deconstruct the interaction of the song and the opening sequence, plus try to find the relationship between the song and the movie itself. The other seven chapters examine the interplay of the theme songs to their respective movies as well as to the other songs in the Bond canon and the pop music of the time.  The book ends with the authors' musings on what future Bond songs will be like and who will be writing/playing them.

The James Bond Songs: Pop Anthems of Late Capitalism is readable example of academic writing on movie music.  The authors write seriously about a subject that many would consider frivolous or marginal.  But for students wanting opinions on Bond music for a paper or speech, Daub and Kronengold provide plenty of material.