Virginia Tech Magazine Books

BOOKS BY FACULTY, STAFF, AND ALUMNI

FICTION

English instructor Carl Bean's latest thriller, Dust to Dust, weaves a suspenseful tale about one woman's dogged attempt to solve an abduction. While walking to her school-bus stop, 12-year-old Angela Robles is kidnapped by two men who indicate connections with a militia group in their ransom note. Angela's parents refuse to cooperate with FBI agent Kathryn Stone's investigation. Intrigue heightens as Stone begins to suspect the parents know more than they're telling.

The book is published by Onyx, 375 Hudson St., Dept. 602, New York, NY 10014, (212) 366-2203.

Once again, Appalachian traditional ballads have given Sharyn McCrumb (English M.A. '85) a starting point for a mystery that winds through the hills where North Carolina and Tennessee meet. In The Ballad of Frankie Silver McCrumb looks at an 1832 murder that resulted in the first hanging of a woman in North Carolina. Frankie Silver was found guilty of killing and dissecting her husband. McCrumb readers will recognize Sheriff Spencer Arrowood, a present day law-enforcement officer who has second thoughts about Silver's guilt as he looks at the historic crime in comparison to several more modern murder mysteries. Present and past, folklore and legend, truth and fiction are woven into this story.

The book is available through Dutton, a member of Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, N.Y. 10014 or on the Web at Penguin Putnam

POETRY

Jeff Mann, Appalachian studies and English instructor, has published a moving collection of 18 poems in Bliss. The poems are an exploration of emotions, inextricably woven into the powerful, sensory images of nature. Spring brings joyful discovery while summer's heat finds deeper feelings; falling leaves coincide with separation, betrayal and rejection. Finally, winter's chill leaves the poet contemplating the temporary connections of passion. Compounding the difficult journey are the risks inherent in a relationship between two men.

The book is published by Stonewall Books, a division of Brickhouse Books Inc., 541 Piccadilly Rd., Baltimore, MD 21204.

COOKING

If Jerry Seinfield made eating cereal an any-time-of-day activity, Deborah Maugans Nakos (management, housing, and family development '74) takes the former breakfast food one step further, using it in over 200 innovative recipes in her new cookbook Beyond the Bowl. From a chapter called "Things to Eat While You Are Making Them" to "The Icing on the Cereal," Nakos offers tasty recipes interspersed with kitchen hints, a history of cereal, and witty cultural observations.

Nakos is the owner of Southern Food Consultants in Birmingham Ala., where she develops recipes for Southern Living, Cooking Light, and Health. Beyond the Bowl is available from Contemporary Books, 4255 West Touhy Ave., Lincolnwood, Ill. 60646-1975.

Jean C. Robbins (human nutrition and foods Ph.D. '81), whose extension work in the Roanoke area spanned 23 years, teamed with Barbara Blauvelt Morlang to create Kitchen Memories: A Collection. The authors collected hundreds of recipes from friends and relatives, then selected those most versatile, tasty, and easy to prepare. The cookbook's introductory material includes a substitutions table, a dietary fiber guide, menus for entertaining, and instructions for modifying recipes to reduce cholesterol and saturated fats. Helpful hints are listed throughout.

The book is published by Cookbooks by Morris Press, P.O. Box 2110, Kearney, NE 68848, (800) 445-6621.

GARDENING

In The Chinese Garden, architecture professor Joseph Wang views classical Chinese gardens as practical "settings for a good life," works of art, and expressions of ideals. Wang explains how three types of gardens--imperial, private, and natural--evolved with Chinese culture. This small, well-illustrated volume includes 16 pages of color photographs. A chronological chart of early dynasties provides sketches of gardens from various historical eras.

The book is published by Oxford University Press (China) Ltd., 18/F Warwick House, Taikoo Place, 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong.

HISTORY

Earl Hastings Jr. (aerospace engineering '51) and David Hastings have written Pitiless Rain, which claims to be the first full-length treatment of the 1862 Battle of Williamsburg. Packed with dramatic anecdotes, the book aims to redeem from relative obscurity the two-day battle that was part of General George McClellan's Peninsula Campaign and involved more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers. The book is illustrated with maps, photographs of commanders, and sketches of battle sites.

The book is published by White Mane Publishing, 63 W. Burd St., Shippensburg, PA 17257-1259, (717) 532-2237.

Thomas Jefferson's Travels in Europe, 1784-1789, by retired history professor George Shackelford, is now available in paperback. Originally published in 1995, the book details Jefferson's travels during his service as minister to the court of Louis XVI. Jefferson would return to America from his five-year journey with an appreciation for European fine and practical arts. Illustrated with over 60 images of places and people Jefferson visited, the book shows the future president's metamorphosis "from a talented provincial to traveled sophisticate."

The book is published by Johns Hopkins University Press, 2715 North Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21218-4363, (410) 516-6889.

MEMOIR

Rocket Boys an autobiographical novel by Homer H. Hickam Jr., (industrial engineering '64), began as a magazine article for Smithsonian Air and Space. When Hickam's piece drew international interest and a movie offer, the aerospace engineer decided to make a novel of the story of 14-year-old Sonny Hickam and his pals growing up in Coalwood, W.Va., in the 1950s. Interacting with a cast of characters that includes preachers, prostitutes, and bootleggers, the boys learn how to build sophisticated rockets that shoot miles into the sky and how to sustain optimism in a town where only tough and hardened people have survived.

Soon to be made into a motion picture, Rocket Boys is available from Delacorte Press of the Bantam, Doubleday, Dell Publishing Group Inc., 1540 Broadway, New York, NY 10036.

NUTRITION

Dining out can be a minefield of hidden fat and calories. In her new book Dining Lean: How to Eat Healthy in Your Favorite Restaurants Joanne Valinski Lichten (nutrition M.S. '80) puts the consumer back in control of the menu. Chapters divided by food type--burgers, breakfast, Chinese--offer nutritional statistics from nearly 100 nationally known restaurants. In her guidelines for eating out, she recommends: ordering a luncheon or appetizer sized portion, taking a doggy bag home, and ordering sauces on the side. Lichten also answers questions concerning portion size. What is a slice of cake? Are all muffins created equal?

The book is published by Nutrifit Publishing, P.O. Box 690452, Houston, TX 77269-0452, (281) 955-6216.

PUBLIC POLICY

The Global Commons: An Introduction by Susan J. Buck (public administration and policy analysis '83) examines the environmental and political issues surrounding the management of the global commons--Antarctica, the atmosphere, the oceans, and outer space--now that technology has advanced to allow exploitation of these areas. Buck, an environmental policy expert, defines in plain language the legal terms and general assumptions of her analysis. The book is rich in historical background and suggestions for further reading.

The book is published by Island Press, 1718 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20009.

REGIONAL

Christina Motley Maccerone (communications '90) has written The Greater Roanoke Region: Your Open Door to Technology, Education, and Scenic Beauty, a coffee-table book presented by the Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce and supported by local businesses. Lively photographs capture daily life in the Roanoke region, including scenes from the Blue Ridge Mountains, various arts and culture festivals, sporting events, and Virginia Tech activities.

The book is published by Platinum Publishing Company Inc., 7 Old Solomon's Island Road, Annapolis, MD 21401, (800) 783-1238.

If you are an alum, faculty member, or staff member and have written or edited a book that you would like to have considered for review in the Virginia Tech Magazine, send an e-mail to vtmag@vt.edu. Please include your name, the book title and publisher, and let us know how we can obtain a copy (include name and phone number of person who can get us a review copy.)