Bookshelf

A Is for American
Letters and Other Characters in the Newly United States
Jill Lepore, J87
Alfred A. Knopf

A Is for American tells the story of seven Americans who tried to use alphabets, syllabaries, signs, ciphers, codes and signals to strengthen the new American nation-to bind it together with chains of letters, dots, dashes and cables of wires, or to break those chains and reach out to the wider world. Lepore, an associate professor of history at Boston University, looks at Noah Webster, who hoped to strengthen the nation by codifying its spelling, Sequoyah, who devised a non-alpabetic writing system for Cherokees to aid them in resisting assimilation,Thomas Gallaudet, who brought French sign language to the deaf in America, believing it to be humanity's natural "universal language," as well as William Thornton, Ibrahima Abduhl al-Rahahmen, Samuel F. B. Morse and Alexander Graham Bell.

Alumni Authors

Sites of Memory: Perspectives on Architecture and Race
Felecia Davis, J83, et al., Craig E. Barton, Editor
Princeton Architectural Press

Sites of Memory explores the historic and contemporary effects of race upon the development of the built environment. It offers a complex view of the intersection of race and cultural identity, and their representation on the American landscape. The essays focus on historically black colleges, civil rights monuments, the architecture of the South, and the visible and invisible boundaries created by the policy of separate but equal. Davis, an assistant professor at Cornell University School of Architecture, contributes a chapter entitled "Uncovering Places of Memory: Walking Tours of Manhattan."

Henry David Thoreau and the Moral Agency of Knowing
Alfred I. Tauber, A69
University of California Press

Tauber, a professor of philosophy and medicine, and director of the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University, shows why Thoreau seems so relevant today-more relevant in many respects than he seemed to his contemporaries. Although Thoreau has been skillfully and thoroughly examined as a writer, naturalist, mystic, historian, social thinker, transcendentalist and lifelong student, readers may find in Tauber's portrait a richer characterization that binds all these aspects of his career together. Thoreau is portrayed as a man whose moral vision, from his college years at Harvard to his death in 1862, guided his life's work. Each of his endeavors reflected a self-proclaimed "metaphysical ethics," an articulated program of self-discovery and self-knowing.

Brain Trust: A Body of Evidence Thriller Starring Jenna Blake
Christopher Golden, A89
Pulse

Golden brings readers another installment in his popular Body of Evidence series set at a fictional New England school based on Tufts. This time it's spring break, prime time for R&R, fun in the sun and all things low-key. So when Jenna Blake goes to Florida with her roommate, Yoshiko, the last thing she's expecting to find is another mystery. A series of seemingly natural deaths turn out to be suspicious when each of the bodies proves to have mysterious growths of some kind. Needless to say, despite Yoshiko's concerns that her roommate is missing the point of a vacation, Jenna can't stay away from this case.

Managing From Clarity:
Identifying, Aligning and Leveraging Strategic Resources
James L. Ritchie-Dunham and Hal T. Rabbino, A85
John Wiley & Sons

As the business world becomes increasingly complex, the importance of a clear vision and well-thought-out strategy has become nothing short of essential. Adapting old tools to these new demands, managers are falling behind the pace of change. In their new book, Ritchie-Dunham and Rabbino, co-founder of the consulting firm Strategic Clarity, provide leaders with a new and practical look at how to manage this complex challenge. The book uses two case studies from different arenas to guide the reader through each step of the Managing from Clarity process.

Saturn's Return to New York
Sara Gran, J93
Soho Press, Inc.

When one of her best friends gives her a complete astrological reading for Christmas, Mary Forrest is a bit disappointed. She was hoping for a Coach purse, or maybe something in cashmere. But despite Mary's skepticism, the reading proves prophetic. This is the year of Mary's Saturn Return, the year she is 29, when the planet Saturn returns to the exact place it was the year of her birth. Her issues must be faced now or else she'll have to wait another 29 years to resolve them. Gran, who lives in Brooklyn, gives readers, in her debut novel, the story of a quintessential New York heroine fulfilling her destiny.

Letters to Khatami: A Reply to the Iranian
President's Call for a Dialogue Among Civilizations
Anthony J. Dennis, A85
Wyndham Hall Press

Letters to Khatami is a collection of letters replying to Iranian President Mohammad Khatami's call for a "dialogue among civilizations." Issues addressed include relations between the Western and Islamic world, the future of U.S.-Iranian relations, the role of religion in public life and the significance of Khatami's presidency. Dennis, a lawyer and independent scholar, brings together letters from, among others, two former U.S. diplomats held hostage during the Iran Hostage Crisis, two well-known Iranian expatriates, an editor in chief of a respected U.S. magazine and two pro-Israeli activists.

Share the Dream, Build the Team: Ten Keys for Revitalizing Your Church
Donald Morgan, A50
Baker Books

Is there anything a pastor can do when church attendance declines and enthusiasm dwindles? Is there any hope for a stagnant church whose members resist renewal and change? Morgan, a retired pastor and church consultant, says yes. As a pastor, Morgan transformed a historic, declining New England church into one of the largest and most vital congregations in the Northeast. He offers pastors and church leaders ten principles and practical application to transform any church, anywhere, into a lively, dynamic, effective place of worship.

The Money Mentor: A Tale of Finding Financial Freedom
Tad Crawford, A76
Allworth Press

The Money Mentor tells the story of Iris, a young woman who turns her misfortune to good fortune following her chance meeting with the wise and unusual Saidah Samuels, a "financial planner from the heart." Under Saidah's gentle tutelage, Iris makes an inspiring journey to personal knowledge and financial freedom. Crawford, the author of a dozen books on business for creative professionals, motivates readers to emulate Iris' success and follow her step-by-step process to eliminate debt, increase income and begin to save.

Faculty Authors

Simone de Beauvoir, Philosophy, and Feminism
Nancy Bauer
Columbia University Press

In her introduction to The Second Sex, Simone de Beauvoir notes that "A man never begins by establishing himself as an individual of a certain sex; his being a man poses no problem." Bauer, an assistant professor of philosophy, begins her book by asking, "Then what kind of problem does a woman pose?" Bauer's aim is to show that in answering this question The Second Sex dramatizes the extent to which being a woman poses a philosophical problem. She illustrates that Beauvoir's magnum opus, written a quarter century before the development of contemporary feminist philosophy, constitutes a meditation on the relationship between women and philosophy that remains profoundly undervalued.

The Cage Keeper: And Other Stories
Andre Dubus III
Vintage Books

Passion and betrayal, violent desperation, ambivalent love that hinges on hatred and the quest for acceptance by those who stand on the edge of society are some of the hard-hitting themes in the re-released first short story collection of the author of House of Sand and Fog. Dubus, a writing instructor in the English department, writes of a vigilant young man working in a halfway house who finds himself unable to defend against the rage of one of the inmates in the title story. In the award-winning "Forky," an ex-con is haunted by the punishment he receives just as he is being released into the world. With these stories, Dubus travels deep into the heart of the elusive American dream.

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the Sun
Kenneth R. Lang
Cambridge University Press

The sun is our powerhouse, sustaining life on earth, energizing our plant and fueling the engine of life. Its warmth drives our weather, lifting water from the seas and producing winds that drive clouds over the continents. Lang, a professor of astronomy in the physics and astronomy department, has written an up-to-date reference source of information about this life-enhancing star, covering everything from basic facts to detailed concepts. Organized thematically, chapters include the properties of the sun as a star, the sun's place in the galaxy and the universe, the science of the sun's interior, the sun's visible disk and what makes the sun shine. Lang also explains solar flares and the solar wind, and their impact on the earth.

Abnormal Pap Smears:
What Every Woman Needs to Know
Dr. Lynda Rushing and Dr. Nancy Joste
Prometheus Books

For most women, the follow-up for an abnormal Pap smear involves long periods of anxious waiting as well as unfamiliar procedures and examinations. Few women understand the significance of their abnormal results or know that abnormalities on a Pap smear are linked to infections by the human papillomavirus (HPV). Rushing, a clinical assistant professor in pathology at Tufts Medical School, and Joste, in clear and concise language, cover the various Pap smear diagnoses, ranging from "atypical" to cervical cancer. New technologies that promise better testing are critically examined and "lifestyle" changes that may lead to minimizing a woman's risk of developing cervical cancer are discussed.

Some of Us: Chinese Women Growing Up in the Mao Era
Xueping Zhong, Wang Zheng and Bai Di, Editors
Rutgers University Press

What does it mean to have grown up female in China during the Mao era? Stories of persecution, violence, victimization and sexual repression often define this period between 1949 and 1976. But were these horror stories a universal experience for all Chinese women? Zhong, an associate professor of literature, and the other editors offer a collection of surprising memoirs by nine Chinese women who grew up during the Mao era and now live in the United States. Their life stories add a new, more uplifting dimension to Mao-era literature and offer insight into a place and time when life was much more complex than Westerners have allowed.

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