Algora Publishing

The "good soldier" on trial; a sociological study of misconduct by the US military pertaining to Operation Iron Triangle, Iraq.

Within the contemporary US "war on terror," traditional understanding of the primary responsibility for war crimes lying with the chain of command have been overturned such that low-level soldiers are now held to account when war crimes are exposed while higher-ranking officers largely escape consequences, argues Mestrovic (Texas A&M U.), who here focuses on the court-martial of American soldiers for the killing of eight Iraqi prisoners during Operation Iron Triangle, a May 2006 assault on suspected "insurgents" near the city of Tikrit in the Iraqi province of Salah ad Din. Documenting the case in detail, he argues that the court-martial of the soldiers resulted out of a situation in which American soldiers are socialized to obey orders but are held culpable if the orders are unlawful, military law officials engage in cover-ups and other unlawful behavior, and the soldierly values of honesty and integrity work against the soldiers when investigators and commanders engage in deceit towards them. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

The making of the American dream; an unconventional history of the United States from 1607 to 1900; 2v.

American marketing and business professional Kaplan offers a new configuration and interpretation of established facts about the history of the US government and economy. He argues that every war the country has engaged in was about land or its acquisition. He begins with the first English settlements in North America; progresses through independence, the War of 1812, and the Mexican War; and closes the first volume in the middle of the 19th century. The second volume picks up the history at the Civil War, and carries it through industrial growth, political scandals, populist and labor opposition, and US imperialism through the Spanish-American War. The two volumes are paged separately; no index is provided. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Nietzsche on war.

German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) never directly addressed the question of war in a sustained way and of course was not around to witness the unprecedented destruction of warfare in the 20th century, but if he had turned his attention to the question of hostile, violent war, argues Peery (formerly philosophy and religious studies, Radford U.), "his interpretation of the destructive, corrosive nature of such war would have matched his critique of Christianity in both substance and intensity." She seeks to construct a Nietschean critique of war that especially builds upon his ideas concerning power, values, nature, contrariety, language or words, truth and deception, religion, experience, and sexuality and sexual politics while also bringing in the ideas of writers whose thinking appears relevant. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Noise wars; compulsory media and our loss of autonomy.

Though the freedom of media corporations to barrage people with anything anywhere anytime has been sanctified by US courts, veteran American business journalist Freedman argues that digital media differs considerably from print and broadcast media, and should be treated — and regulated — separately. Among his topics are gas station TV, profit versus rights, other people's sell phones, the loudest urban environment on earth, the usurpation of autonomy, privacy filters, and inadvertent captivity. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

The rights of my people; Liliuokalani's enduring battle with the United States 1893-1917.

A lawyer in Washington DC, Proto has represented Hawaii as counsel in dealing with the US government since 2003. Here, he combined his legal knowledge with his study of history to describe how the queen ousted by the 1893 coup d'etat fought legally for the return of rents and proceeds from the Crown lands on which she had lived in her former public life. From the beginning, he says, she blamed the US government for the overthrow of the constitutional monarchy and her sustenance. Among his chapters are the prescience to draw lines, the constitutionalists, the trial of Liliuokani, the principled imperative of the claim, on hallowed ground, the disquieting charade, and without counsel in the Grand Salon. The battle took place in courtrooms in Hawaii, San Francisco, and Washington. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Sacred wells; a study in the history, meaning, and mythology of holy wells and waters, 2d ed.

Since he completed the 2002 first edition, Varner has visited many more sacred sites around the world — some of them wells — and written several more books on folklore, mythology, and the history and environment of religion. This experience informs the second edition. Among the wells and other sites he examines are the Chalice Well in Glastonbury, St. Nectan's Falls in Tintagel, St. Bridgid's Well in Ireland, Lourdes, the birthplace of Buddha, the holy springs and water lore of Ethiopia, and Cenotés and other sacred waters of the Americas. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Socrates and Jesus; the argument that shaped western civilization.

American scholar of literature and communications Hattersley argues that the confluence of, yet tension between, Greek thought and Judeo-Christian religion has been the engine driving Western civilization. He begins by reviewing the biography, legend, and teachings of the two iconic figures, then traces how the philosophies have merged and orbited down the centuries through the Roman Empire, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Protestant Reformation, the Enlightenment, Romanticism, and the 20th century. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

William McGuffey; mentor to American industry.

Skrabec (business, U. of Findlay) provides a biography of William McGuffey (1800-1873), who wrote the McGuffey Readers, originally published in the 1830s, used in schools, and influencing many American industrialists and presidents. Within the readers, he connects morals, religion, and virtues with basic lessons about kindness, honesty, courage, duty, thrift, and other ideals. Skrabec traces McGuffey's life, education, involvement in the intellectual group called the "College of Teachers," and teaching and administrating roles at colleges in the Midwest. He explores McGuffey's impact on the American Industrial Revolution, the development of capitalism, and American culture, and why leaders were impacted by the readers. He describes his beliefs in property rights, thrift, moralistic education, political free education, hatred of taxes, state rights, charity, and common schools. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)