Monday, March 9, 2015

New Nonfiction











The Ancient Olympic Games by Judith Swaddling
This book traces the Olympics’ mythological and religious origins, and describes the events, the sacred ceremony and the celebrations that were an essential part of the Olympic festival. Chapters also cover the diet and medical treatment of athletes, sponsorship, patronage, propaganda and revivals of the Games. –Summary

The Ancient Olympic Games edited by Charles River Editors
“Though not a history of the games themselves, or of the individual athletes, it is a history of the Olympics as they were associated with the early Greeks and Romans. The editors describe what is known about the Olympics from the historical and archeological records and provides some analysis of what those records mean.” –Amazon

The Ancient Olympics by Nigel Spivey
“This is the story of how the Olympic Games were first created. Nigel Spivey brings to life the Greek Olympics as they really were: fierce contests between bitter rivals, in which victors won kudos and rewards, and losers faced scorn and even assault. After reading this book, you are unlikely to view the Olympics in quite the same way again.” –Back Cover

Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin
“In Beyond Magenta, six teens tell what it is like for them to be members of the transgender community. Portraits and family photographs grace the pages, adding immediacy to the emotional and physical journeys of these unwaveringly honest young adults.” –Jacket

The Bitter Harvest of War: New Brunswick and the Conscription Crisis of 1917 by Andrew Theobald
In 1917 Prime Minister Robert Borden assembled a Union Government to support conscription and called an election on the issue. Canada split along ethnic lines: English vs. French.  As Andrew Theobald reveals, New Brunswickers were not spared the tension that arose between the English and French and Irish Catholics and Protestants. In the end, the Conscription Crisis of 1917 fractured the ethnic harmony of New Brunswick, leaving a lasting and tragic legacy. –Summary

The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan
“Landmark, groundbreaking, classic—these adjectives barely do justice to the pioneering vision and lasting impact of The Feminine Mystique. Published in 1963, it gave a pitch-perfect description of ‘the problem that has no name’: the insidious beliefs and institutions that undermined women’s confidence in their intellectual capabilities and kept them in the home. Part social chronicle, part manifesto, The Feminine Mystique is filled with fascinating anecdotes, interviews, and still-fresh insights that continue to inspire and awaken women and men to the fundamental issues of personal engagement and equality.” –Back Cover

Gladiator: The Roman Fighter’s Unofficial Manual by Philip Matyszak
”So you think you’d like to be a gladiator? Find out how to get thousands to idolize you as the strongest, meanest fighter in the Roman empire. Win fame and fortune in one of Rome’s most glamorous locations, in the presence of the emperor himself. Who wouldn't kill for a job like that? This handy guide tells you everything you need to know before you step out to fight for your life in front of a roaring crowd: Combining the latest research with modern reconstructions, helps you experience firsthand the spectacular yet brutal life and death of the most iconic figure of ancient Rome.” –Amazon

The Gladiators: History’s Most Deadly Sport by Fik Meijer
“Superfit, muscled, and macho, the gladiators of ancient Rome were hero-worshiped for their skills and courage as they fought to the death, yet despised for their humble status. For over six centuries, tens of thousands died in the arenas, watched by enthralled crowds screaming for violence.  Fik Meijer has ingeniously pieced together their true stories from contemporary evidence, describing the gladiators' origins, daily life, training, and the odds of their survival pitted against the emperors’ lust for blood and spectacle.”–Publisher

The Greatest Fishing Misadventures edited by Tyler McMahon and Paul Daimond
“Features everyday fishermen, pros, and journalists who tell their stories of freak accidents, fishy attacks, pranks, idiotic decisions, eerie or unexplained incidents, and other calamities.” –WorldCat

The Greatest Hunting Stories Ever Told edited by Lamar Underwood
“The true stories here feature a variety of game, in locations that range from high Yukon Territory mountain peaks to lowland swamps off of Mobile Bay, Alabama. This is an indispensable volume for all lovers and students of the natural world. If your definition of home includes fields and marshes, creeks and river bottoms, plains and mountains, consider this required reading.” –Amazon

Indian School Road: Legacies of the Shubenacadie Residential School by Chris Benjamin
“In Indian School Road, journalist Chris Benjamin tackles the controversial and tragic history of the Shubenacadie Indian Residential School, its predecessors, and its lasting effects, giving voice to multiple perspectives for the first time. Benjamin integrates research, interviews, and testimonies to guide readers through the varied experiences of students, principals, and teachers over the school’s nearly forty years of operation (1930–1967) and beyond.” –Amazon

Trucks: Pickups to Big Rigs by Adrianna Morganelli
“This fun new book features the trucks kids idolize, from pickups to big rigs. Amazing photographs show different types of trucks and explains what they were built to do. Trucks featured include Aussie road trains, tankers, rescue, and construction trucks, monster trucks, and Super Truck and NASCAR's Craftsman Truck racing.” – Amazon