april07c.indd


George M. Eberhart N e w  P u b l i c a t i o n s  

Angler’s Guide to Fishes of the Gulf of Mexi­
co, by Jerald Horst and Mike Lane (444 pag­
es, September 2006), provides colorful illus­
trations of Gulf fishes that the recreational 
angler might catch. In addition to identifying 
physical and behavioral characteristics, the 
guide indicates the food value for each spe­
cies and includes similar species that are less 
tasty or only useful as bait. $35.00. Pelican. 
ISBN 978­1­58980­388­6. 

The Avenger Takes His Place: Andrew John­
son and the 45 Days That Changed the Na­
tion, by Howard Means (286 pages, Novem­
ber 2006), examines conditions in the United 
States in the weeks after Abraham Lincoln’s 
assassination and the confusing muddle of 
questions that the new president had to 
contend with—what to do about Southern 
leaders (especially Jefferson Davis), when to 
restore constitutional rights to the ex­Con­
federate states, whether to appease or defy 
the congressional radicals who called for a 
severe punishment of the defeated South, 
and how to handle the issue of suffrage for 
the newly freed slaves. Rather than exoner­
ate Andrew Johnson, who clearly had major 
failings, Means tries to show what he was up 
against. Herman Melville hoped he would 
be an avenger of the wrongs committed by 
the South, but Johnson simply was incapable 
of meeting the challenges that Lincoln might 
have overcome. $25.00. Harcourt. ISBN 978­
0­15­101212­1. 

The Enlightenment and the Book, by Rich­
ard B. Sher (815 pages, February 2007), 
looks closely at the authors of the Scottish 
Enlightenment in 1746–1800, their publish­
ers in London and Edinburgh, and the Dub­
lin and Philadelphia reprinting houses that 
created a wider audience for David Hume, 
Adam Smith, James Boswell, Robert Burns, 

George M. Eberhart is senior editor of American 
Libraries, e-mail: geberhart@ala.org 

and many other Scots literati. Sher identifi es 
the 18th­century book 
trade as the “neces­
sary component in the 
creation and develop­
ment of the Scottish 
Enlightenment” and 
examines the role of 
such publishers as 
William Strahan, Wil­
liam Creech, Robert 
Bell, and Robert Aitkin 
in the spread of the movement. $40.00. Univer­
sity of Chicago. ISBN 978­0­226­75252­5. 

The Impact of Technology on Asian, African, 
and Middle Eastern Library Collections, ed­
ited by R. N. Sharma (278 pages, October 
2006), offers some interesting perspectives 
on libraries in the developing world. Fifteen 
essays cover such topics as technology in 
Chinese and Vietnamese libraries, univer­
sity libraries in India, the role of libraries in 
combating information poverty in Africa, the 
partnership of West Virginia State University 
with the Université Nationale du Benin, and 
computer­based information in Egypt and 
the Middle East. $50.00. Scarecrow. ISBN 
978­0­8108­5448­2. 

Iranian Cinema and the Islamic Revolution, 
by Shahla Mirbakhtyar (200 pages, August 
2006), follows the new Iranian cinema be­
fore and after the Islamic Revolution of 1979. 
Mirbakhtyar, an actress herself in at least 
two of the films she discusses, uses Persian 
rather than Western reviews and published 
criticism. She draws the line with fi lms re­
leased before 1997, when the moderate 
president Mohammed Khatami was elected, 
lifting some of the restrictions on social and 
cultural issues in cinema. $35.00. McFarland. 
ISBN 978­0­7864­2285­2. 

Ledyard: In Search of the First American 
Explorer, by Bill Gifford (331 pages, Janu­

258C&RL News April 2007

mailto:geberhart@ala.org


ary 2007), explores the little­known life of 
traveler John Ledyard (1751–1789), who 
accompanied Captain Cook on his fi nal 
expedition to the South Pacific and trav­
eled across Russia from St. Petersburg to 
Yakutsk. He died in Cairo during prepa­
rations for an expedition across North 
Africa. Gifford, who personally retraced 
Ledyard’s route through Siberia, calls Le­
dyard the archetypal American wanderer 
who “embodies that uniquely American 
urge to pull up stakes and go.” $25.00. 
Harcourt. ISBN 978­0­15­101218­3. 

Nicknames of Places, by Adrian Room 
(357 pages, September 2006), tracks the 
origins and etymologies of some 4,600 
alternate names for cities, states, coun­
tries, and topographical features world­
wide. Well­organized and comprehensive, 
the book comes out several notches bet­
ter than a Google search or Wikipedia 
in my extremely informal test. Room, a 
noted British toponymist with 40 refer­
ence books to his credit, cites examples 
of usage where possible and provides ap­
pendices on regional nicknames (the Ber­
muda Triangle), road and street nicknames 
(the Mother Road), Romany names (Tudlo 
tem), renamed countries (Dahomey), Ro­
man names for European cities (Lugdu­
num), English county names (Salop), and 
astronomical names (Gaia). $75.00. Mc­
Farland. ISBN 978­0­7864­2497­9. 

Out Front with Stephen Abram: A Guide 
for Information Leaders, compiled by 
Judith A. Siess and Jonathan Lorig (203 
pages, January 2007), brings together the 
musings and mentations of prolifi c writer, 
blogger, and speaker Abram, currently 
vice president for innovation at Sirsi­
Dynix, formerly president of the Canadian 
Library Association, and president­elect of 
the Special Libraries Association. Topics 
include the value of libraries, 32 tips to in­
spire innovation, competing with Google, 
Millennials, and preparing for next­gener­
ation libraries. Filled with bite­sized and 

nourishing nuggets of inspiration. $40.00. 
American Library Association. ISBN 978­0­
8389­0932­4. 

Stories in Stone: Conserving Mosaics of 
Roman Africa, edited by Aïcha Ben Abed 
(188 pages, December 2006), was pub­
lished to coincide with an exhibition at 
the J. Paul 
Getty Museum 
from Octo­
ber 26, 2006, 
to April 30, 
2007—the fi rst 
major U.S. ex­
hibition solely 
devoted to an­
cient Tunisian 
mosaics. Ro­
man mosaics 
in Africa reflected the interests and artis­
tic sensibilities of private citizens, as op­
posed to Rome, where the official art was 
ideological. In addition to a history and 
thematic treatments, this well­illustrated 
volume offers chapters on conserving mo­
saics in situ and lifting them from fl oors 
for exhibition. $75.00. Getty Conservation 
Institute. ISBN 978­0­89236­803­7. 

General collections might instead choose 
Ben Abed’s Tunisian Mosaics: Treasures 
from Roman Africa (138 pages, Decem­
ber 2006), which is a wider examination of 
mosaic sites throughout Tunisia, including 
the treasures at the Bardo Museum. $29.95. 
Getty Conservation Institute. ISBN 978­0­
89235­857­8. 

Technology Made Simple: An Improve­
ment Guide for Small and Medium Li­
braries, by Kimberly Bolan and Robert 
Cullin (213 pages, September 2006), ex­
plains how small libraries with little or no 
IT staff can plan and implement technical 
improvements. Although geared for pub­
lic libraries, small independent research 
libraries will find some helpful advice. 
$40.00. American Library Association. 
ISBN 978­0­8389­0920­5. 

April 2007  259 C&RL News