2009-11-11

World War II in Their Own Words by Brian Lockman ()

Thirity-three Pennsylvania veterans talk about their experiences during World War II in a book that’s a companion volume to a popular TV series on Pennsylvania Cable Network.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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World War II materials in the Library of Congress
More about the author, Brian Lockman
The Pennsylvania Miiitary Museum in Boalsburg recently acquired a significant WWII memento, the guns of the U.S.S. Pennsylvania.

2009-10-28

The Fellowship by Roger Friedland and Harold Zellman ()

Frank Lloyd Wright is celebrated as America’s pre-eminent architect--but his personal life was complicated and stormy. The Fellowship tells the story of the landmark training program Wright created for young apprentices--and the overbearing way in which he directed their professional development.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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About today’s Taliesin program for architects
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
More books by author Roger Friedland

2009-10-21

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak ()

Director Spike Jonze has turned a children’s book with just 300 words into a feature-length Hollywood movie. As “Where the Wild Things Are” hits theatres, it’s worth a look at the book to see how it holds up in its original format, more than 40 years after it was first published.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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PBS profiled Maurice Sendak as part of its “American Masters” series.
Hard to believe: People once hated Where the Wild Things Are
As a kid, Spike Jonze loved the book.

2009-10-14

Measuring America by Andro Linklater ()

Never mind the American Revolution; author Andro Linklater’s thesis is that democracy was launched by an innovative tool for surveying land.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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Read a review in “The Guardian”
Make your own Gunter’s chain!
More about Edmund Gunter

2009-10-07

Bacardi and the Long Fight for Cuba by Tom Gjelten ()

NPR international correspondent Tom Gjelten has written a history of Cuba using the story of the Bacardi family (famous for their rum) as a framework. Successful capitalists and guerilla revolutionaries, the Bacardis played a role in every stage of Cuba’s fight for independence.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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The book website
About NPR’s Tom Gjelten
A review in the New York Times

2009-09-30

Ice Cream U by Lee Stout ()

If you’re a Penn State alum--or a football fan--a visit to the University Park campus probably is not complete without a trip to the Penn State Creamery. A generously illustrated new book from Penn State Press gives fans the history of this venerable institution.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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Check out the ice cream exhibit at Penn State’s Pattee Library
Take a virtual tour of the Penn State Creamery

2009-08-05

Mifflin County (Images of America) by Forest K. Fisher (Reviewer Bill Pencak)

Written by a former president and historian Forest K. Fisher, this book on Mifflin County offers a unique glimpse into one of the historic areas of Pennsylvania. Pictures, letters, and detailed descriptions of influential people and places map out the county’s past from its founding in 1789. Whether you are a history buff, or just a curious Pennsylvania resident, this book has some interesting facts to offer.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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The Mifflin County Historical Society
Learn more about Mifflin County

2009-07-29

Can Poetry Save the Earth? A Field Guide to Nature Poetry by John Felstiner (Reviewer Bob Myers)

This book, recently featured on NPR’s Morning Edition, examines the Earth through a multifaceted lens. On one level, John Felstiner has compiled a noteworthy collection of nature poems and poets, many of whom are from Pennsylvania. On another level, the author takes a breathtaking look at the environmental threats currently facing the natural world. These elements combine in a book designed to spark the desire to preserve, appreciate, and protect our planet.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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Listen to Felstiner’s book featured on NPR
Brief bio of the author
Another review of Can Poetry Save the Earth?

2009-07-22

The Creation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth by E.O. Wilson (Reviewer Heidi Mullendore)

This small book by renowned entomologist and humanist E.O. Wilson asks some big questions. What happens when science and religion are necessary to save creation (both the spiritual and natural kind)? Couched in a letter to an imaginary Southern Baptist Preacher, Wilson sends a plea not only to the religious world, but also to the universe. He asks that we put aside differences in thought and bring great minds together—to save the one Earth we all inhabit.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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Another review of The Creation
E.O. Wilson’s website
Biography of E.O. Wilson

2009-07-15

The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz (Reviewer Alexis Kumasaka)

This Pulitzer Prize winning tale of overweight “ghetto nerd” Oscar Leon is Junot Diaz’s debut novel. In a narrative rich in Spanglish, history and culture, it spans the lives of Oscar and several of his family members as they struggle with the family curse of fuku. Fuku stems from actual Dominican folklore Junot grew up with, and its effects can be seen throughout the book as the characters pay dearly for the choices in love, and life, they’ve made. 


BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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New York Times review
Junot Diaz’s website
An interview with the author

2009-07-08

This Organic Life: Confessions of a Suburban Homesteader by Joan Dye Gussow (Reviewer Anne Corr)

This book follows the life of nutritionist turned author Joan Dye Gussow as she embarks on a journey to create a life based on sustainable agriculture. By farming her own soil, she produces healthy, organic produce, and creates some interesting recipes (included in the book) geared toward her new crops. This Organic Life is an aspiring tale of one woman’s goal to live off the land, and the hazards and triumphs she faces because of it.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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Another review of This Organic Life
A Biography of Joan Gussow
Tips on sustainable living from Joan Gussow

2009-07-01

We Are Our Mothers’ Daughters by Cokie Roberts (Reviewer Grace Fala)

This re-issue of the essay collection by NPR personality Cokie Roberts spans generations of women in every field and occupation imaginable. Roberts paints pictures of strength, heroism and courage. The vignettes both inspire and prove that regardless of sex, race ,or age, a goal can be achieved if you set your mind to it.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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NPR biography of Cokie Roberts
Another review of We Are Our Mothers’ Daughters

2009-06-24

Gilead: A Novel by Marilynne Robinson (Reviewer Sarah May Clarkson)

The human desire to leave behind something lasting is the concept behind this novel. The narrator, Reverend John Ames, knows his health is failing; as an inheritance for his seven-year-old son, he pens the intricate story of his life. Marilynne Robinson’s tale illuminates the difficulties of fatherhood and family, and the ties that bind us all together.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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New York Times Description
Interview with Marilynne Robinson
About the author

2009-06-17

Heartwood by P.J. Picirillo (Reviewer Jack Day)

Award-winning author P.J. Piccirillo is no stranger to the land and history of Pennsylvania. As a native of the state, he has taken his expertise and experiences and crafted an inspiring debut novel of two men in a small logging town in the Alleghany Plateau. Heartwood follows John Blesh and Tobias Meier as they each try to find their way through life, and reflects the impact that the land and Pennsylvania culture has on them during their journey.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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Learn more about the author
P.J. Picirillo’s website
History of the PA lumbering industry

2009-06-10

Five novels for middle school students by (Reviewer: Dotty Delafield)

Memory Boy by Will Weaver (HarperTeen, 2003) Under a War-Torn Sky by L,M Elliott (Hyperion, 2003) Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix (Aladdin, 2006) Under the Persimmon Tree by Suzanne Fisher Staples (Square Fish, 2008) Blood Trailby Nancy Springer (Holiday House, 2006)
As summertime rolls around again, your child’s urge to become a couch potato greatly increases. To combat this summer lethargy, Dotty Delafield has chosen a list of books that will engage and distract even the most stubborn reader. With her concise, engaging pitches, called “Sound Bite Book Talks,” she pulls listeners in, and inspires the urge to pick up a book instead of the remote.

BookMark features weekly book reviews submitted by anyone who likes to read and lives within the WPSU-FM listening area.

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Interview with Nancy Springer, author of Blood Trail
Another review of Under A War Torn Sky by L.M. Elliot
A collection of children’s reviews of Among the Hidden