Cultural Books - Page 3

"Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?": A Psychologist Explains the Development of Racial Identity

Beverly Daniel Tatum

Amazon Price: $10.85 List Price: $15.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Basic Books Amazon Marketplace: 151 new & used starting at $3.02

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Anthropology -> Cultural
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Sociology -> General
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Sociology -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 79 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Walk into any racially mixed high school and you will see black youth seated together in the cafeteria. Of course, it's not just the black kids sitting together-the white, Latino, Asian Pacific, and, in some regions, American Indian youth are clustered in their own groups, too. The same phenomenon can be observed in college dining halls, faculty lounges, and corporate cafeterias. What is going on here? Is this self-segregation a problem we should try to fix, or a coping strategy we should support? How can we get past our reluctance to talk about racial issues to even discuss it? And what about all the other questions we and our children have about race? Beverly Daniel Tatum, a renowned authority on the psychology of racism, asserts that we do not know how to talk about our racial differences: Whites are afraid of using the wrong words and being perceived as "racist" while parents of color are afraid of exposing their children to painful racial realities too soon. Using real-life examples and the latest research, Tatum presents strong evidence that straight talk about our racial identities-whatever they may be-is essential if we are serious about facilitating communication across racial and ethnic divides. We have waited far too long to begin our conversations about race. This remarkable book, infused with great wisdom and humanity, has already helped hundreds of thousands of readers figure out where to start.

A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn: The Last Great Battle of the American West

Jim Donovan

Amazon Price: $30.39 List Price: $39.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Tantor Media Amazon Marketplace: 28 new & used starting at $18.00

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> History -> Americas -> Native American -> Plains
Subjects -> History -> Americas -> Native American -> General
Subjects -> History -> Americas -> Native American -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 55 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A good read... not the final word... must be read with caution 3 out of 5 stars.
10 of 14 people found this review helpful.

I am 3/4 of the way through this book. Yes, it reads well. Yes, there are some errors and even some questionable use of source material (in my opinion). But still, it is a good story that Donovan tells. But it should be read in conjuction with other books on the topic and not as the final word. And Donovan does slant things against Reno. Yes, Reno may be guilty of not fulfilling his duty that day (and quite honestly, not being a war veteran, I don't feel completely comfortable criticizing the guy) but the following is a clear example of how Donovan clearly has it in for him:
p. 461 (bottom)-- Captain Thomas French told a New York Times reporter that Reno had been DRUNK during the hilltop fight and had hidden himself from the command..." NY Times, January 19, 1879.
Now here are the actual words from that newspaper clipping:
"Capt. French, of the Seventh Cavalry, who is credited with great bravery at the battle of Little Big Horn, and a coming witness before the Reno Court of Inquiry at Chicago, stated today that he saw nothing of Major Reno from the evening of June 25 until noon of June 26; that Reno was out of sight, and that he (French) could not find any one who did see him; in other words, that Reno slunk away in a hole and left the command to Benteen."

Please, will someone tell me where French said Reno was drunk?

Again, the book must be read with caution and with so many footnotes, many that are hard to confirm without seeing the original material, it is a painstaking task!!!

9-25-08
Well, I have finished reading this book a couple of days ago. My rating remains the same. I have located several errors (including an error in his bibliography giving credit to an author for a book he didn't write and some errors of fact elsewhere in the book). However, seeing as my initial review has not received a warm welcome with two "not helpful" votes, I prefer to let those who enjoy wallowing in their own lack of knowledge continue to do so. The book was a valiant effort but falls short of being a classic (in its current state) in my opinion. I have suggestions, but again, my thoughts appear to be unwelcome.

Editorial Review:

Brimming with authentic detail and an unforgettable cast of characters---from Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse to Ulysses Grant and Custer himself---this is history with the sweep of a great novel.

Don't Sleep, There Are Snakes: Life and Language in the Amazonian Jungle

Daniel L. Everett

Amazon Price: $17.79 List Price: $26.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Pantheon Amazon Marketplace: 32 new & used starting at $11.79

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Anthropology -> Cultural
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Anthropology -> General
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Anthropology -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

A riveting account of the astonishing experiences and discoveries made by linguist Daniel Everett while he lived with the Pirahã, a small tribe of Amazonian Indians in central Brazil.

Everett, then a Christian missionary, arrived among the Pirahã in 1977–with his wife and three young children–intending to convert them. What he found was a language that defies all existing linguistic theories and reflects a way of life that evades contemporary understanding: The Pirahã have no counting system and no fixed terms for color. They have no concept of war or of personal property. They live entirely in the present. Everett became obsessed with their language and its cultural and linguistic implications, and with the remarkable contentment with which they live–so much so that he eventually lost his faith in the God he’d hoped to introduce to them.

Over three decades, Everett spent a total of seven years among the Pirahã, and his account of this lasting sojourn is an engrossing exploration of language that questions modern linguistic theory. It is also an anthropological investigation, an adventure story, and a riveting memoir of a life profoundly affected by exposure to a different culture. Written with extraordinary acuity, sensitivity, and openness, it is fascinating from first to last, rich with unparalleled insight into the nature of language, thought, and life itself.

Hungry Planet: What the World Eats

Peter Menzel, Faith D'Aluisio

Amazon Price: $26.40 List Price: $40.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Ten Speed Press Amazon Marketplace: 52 new & used starting at $13.45

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Photography -> How-to -> General
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Photography -> How-to -> General AAS
Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Photography -> Photo Essays

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 43 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

interesting read 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

this book is facinating if you are at all interested in how the rest of the world lives

Superb reading!! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I couldn't put this book down! I was drawn to it because it mixed my loves of both food and culture into one superb read.The photography is stunning,the cultural facts immersing and the reading about different families addictive.

Hungry Planet 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Everyone I have shown this book to has been fascinated. The photos are stunning.

Great book! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

An through and interesting way to present the food of different cultures. The book not only shows a picture of what a week's worth of food looks like across the globe, but puts how much it costs and in USD. The book also elaborates on the eating habits, culture, and daily life of the people. There are also recipes! A great book with an eye opening perspective of people all over the world.

Outstanding 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Hungry Planet is a moving look at what families of the world live on...it combines incredible photography, well chosen statistics and outstanding commentary to clearly portray the diversity and real life economic situations of our fellows on planet earth. I love this book for the way it influences my children to see compassionately and with greater gratitude (and me too!)

Editorial Review:

This photographic study of families from 24 countries reveals what people eat during the course of one week. Each family's profile includes a detailed description of their food purchases and their community.

Buying In: The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are

Rob Walker

Amazon Price: $19.77 List Price: $29.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: BBC Audiobooks America Amazon Marketplace: 21 new & used starting at $14.99

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Marketing & Sales -> Consumer Behavior
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Marketing & Sales -> Marketing -> General
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Marketing & Sales -> Marketing -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 20 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Bought In 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

The great thing about this book is that unlike most marketing and business related reads--this one is actually enjoyable. I didn't want to put it down. Rob has a way of capturing his points in a personal, conversational manner that draws your interest and keeps it.

As a designer, I typically disregard books related to marketing because I believe that things have changed so much that most of them are missing the mark. Traditional marketing is a dinosaur. Buying In goes beyond Communication 101 and points out how little control companies have over the marketplace now. Consumers play a large part in defining a brand and therefore build the relationships that Marketer's could only dream of and don't fully understand themselves.

A few of the examples used could be considered cliche, but they are used because their stories are so powerful that it would be blasphemous to leave them out of a book like this. Most of them were insightful and many were new to me.

This isn't an instruction book on how to make money and doesn't give you the answers to any great business problems, but it creates an important conversation that should be held by anyone looking to continue building relationships with their customers. This book serves as great inspiration to those who are willing to change the way they do business and think about other avenues of communicating who they are to potential audiences. But most of all I think the book benefits the consumer in ways that draw better insight into why they buy what they do, and how it represents who they are.

Great read, very enjoyable and inspiring.

Editorial Review:

An Intrepid Business Journalist's Counterintuitive Look at the Convergence of Marketing and Culture in Contemporary Life.

Using fascinating profiles of companies and products old and new, including Red Bull, the iPod, Timberland, and American Apparel, New York Times "Consumed" columnist Rob Walker demonstrates that modern consumers are likely to embrace marketing and use brands to craft and express their political, cultural, and even artistic identities. Combine this with marketers' new ability to blur the line between advertising, entertainment, and public space, and you have dramatically altered the relationship between consumer and consumed.

Presented unabridged on 8 CDs, narrated by Robert Fass.

The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific

J. Maarten Troost

Amazon Price: $10.36 List Price: $12.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Broadway Amazon Marketplace: 128 new & used starting at $3.00

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Anthropology -> Cultural
Subjects -> Travel -> Australia & South Pacific -> General
Subjects -> Travel -> Australia & South Pacific -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 100 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

At the age of twenty-six, Maarten Troost—who had been pushing the snooze button on the alarm clock of life by racking up useless graduate degrees and muddling through a series of temp jobs—decided to pack up his flip-flops and move to Tarawa, a remote South Pacific island in the Republic of Kiribati. He was restless and lacked direction, and the idea of dropping everything and moving to the ends of the earth was irresistibly romantic. He should have known better.

The Sex Lives of Cannibals tells the hilarious story of what happens when Troost discovers that Tarawa is not the island paradise he dreamed of. Falling into one amusing misadventure after another, Troost struggles through relentless, stifling heat, a variety of deadly bacteria, polluted seas, toxic fish—all in a country where the only music to be heard for miles around is “La Macarena.” He and his stalwart girlfriend Sylvia spend the next two years battling incompetent government officials, alarmingly large critters, erratic electricity, and a paucity of food options (including the Great Beer Crisis); and contending with a bizarre cast of local characters, including “Half-Dead Fred” and the self-proclaimed Poet Laureate of Tarawa (a British drunkard who’s never written a poem in his life).

With The Sex Lives of Cannibals, Maarten Troost has delivered one of the most original, rip-roaringly funny travelogues in years—one that will leave you thankful for staples of American civilization such as coffee, regular showers, and tabloid news, and that will provide the ultimate vicarious adventure.

The Way We'll Be: The Zogby Report on the Transformation of the American Dream

John Zogby

Amazon Price: $17.16 List Price: $26.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Random House Amazon Marketplace: 60 new & used starting at $13.75

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Economics -> Economic Conditions
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Marketing & Sales -> Consumer Behavior
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 21 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

According to super pollster John Zogby, whom The Washington Post calls “the maverick predictor,” the conventional wisdom about the United States–that we’re isolated from the world, politically fragmented, and inclined toward material pleasure–isn’t just flawed; it may be 180 degrees from the truth. In this far-reaching and illuminating look at contemporary American life, Zogby reveals nothing less than The Way We’ll Be. Drawing on thousands of in-depth surveys conducted especially for the book, Zogby points out where we’re headed–politically, culturally, and spiritually.

The American dream is in transition; it is rapidly being redefined by four meta-movements: living with limits as consumers and citizens; embracing diversity of views and ways of life; looking inward to find spiritual comfort; and demanding authenticity from the media, our leaders, and leading institutions. Spearheaded by today’s eighteen-to-twenty-nine-year-olds–the “First Global” generation–Americans are becoming more internationalist, consensus-oriented, and environmentally conscious and less willing to identify themselves by the things they do to earn or spend their money. But this is more than a youth tide. Americans of all ages are moving beyond old divides–red state/blue state, pro-life/pro-choice, beer drinker/wine connoisseur–to form a new national consensus that will shape the nation for decades to come.

Zogby’s cogent analysis of the data yields an astonishing perspective on Americans’ thoughts, feelings, and beliefs, now and in coming years. Understanding this emerging reality will be key for

• leaders in all fields who want to reach audiences that are more media-savvy, better informed, and more technologically enabled than ever before

• individuals in search of rewarding and fulfilling careers in tomorrow’s growth fields

• politicians and CEOs looking to marry policies and practices to the rising demand for social responsibility

• anyone who wants to market to the emerging new American consensus

Beyond telling a fascinating story, the conclusions in this book are a must-read for everyone from Main Street to Madison Avenue to Capitol Hill. Filled with expert analysis and insight from one of today’s most successful predictors and trend spotters, The Way We’ll Be will redefine how we view America’s future.

The Library at Night

Alberto Manguel

Amazon Price: $18.15 List Price: $27.50 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Yale University Press Amazon Marketplace: 50 new & used starting at $14.69

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> History -> Historical Study -> History of Ideas
Subjects -> Literature & Fiction -> Books & Reading -> General
Subjects -> Literature & Fiction -> Books & Reading -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Inspired by the process of creating a library for his fifteenth-century home near the Loire, in France, Alberto Manguel, the acclaimed writer on books and reading, has taken up the subject of libraries. “Libraries,” he says, “have always seemed to me pleasantly mad places, and for as long as I can remember I’ve been seduced by their labyrinthine logic.” In this personal, deliberately unsystematic, and wide-ranging book, he offers a captivating meditation on the meaning of libraries.

 

Manguel, a guide of irrepressible enthusiasm, conducts a unique library tour that extends from his childhood bookshelves to the “complete” libraries of the Internet, from Ancient Egypt and Greece to the Arab world, from China and Rome to Google. He ponders the doomed library of Alexandria as well as the personal libraries of Charles Dickens, Jorge Luis Borges, and others. He recounts stories of people who have struggled against tyranny to preserve freedom of thought—the Polish librarian who smuggled books to safety as the Nazis began their destruction of Jewish libraries; the Afghani bookseller who kept his store open through decades of unrest. Oral “memory libraries” kept alive by prisoners, libraries of banned books, the imaginary library of Count Dracula, the library of books never written—Manguel illuminates the mysteries of libraries as no other writer could. With scores of wonderful images throughout, The Library at Night is a fascinating voyage through Manguel’s mind, memory, and vast knowledge of books and civilizations.

(20080423)

The Practice of Everyday Life: Vol. 2

Luce Giard, Pierre Mayol, Michel De Certeau

Amazon Price: $22.50 List Price: $22.50 Usually ships in 24 hours By: University of Minnesota Press Amazon Marketplace: 29 new & used starting at $15.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Anthropology -> Cultural
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Customs & Traditions
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Sociology -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 7 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Enigmatic and enlightening 5 out of 5 stars.
112 of 114 people found this review helpful.

Sometimes I am simply proud that I have read a book. This slim volume falls into that category. The fourteen short chapters explode with new ideas, fresh perspectives, and tantalizing viewpoints. To summarize these riches is unlikely to do them justice, yet I will try.

De Certeau inverts social values and cultural hierarchies. His hero metaphor is not the exemplar, but rather the ant. Wisdom resides not in the pronouncement of expert or philosopher, but in the routine discourse between ordinary people. To De Certeau the definitional constraints imposed by the experts result in artificial distinctions. Only the discourse of ordinary people is firmly rooted in experience and embraces the varieties and logical complexities of living.

Among these complexities of life is the amazing adaptive capacity of the ordinary. Even the most oppressive and controlling of cultures cannot eradicate the subversive agency of the peasant. This subversive agency is expressed through mythic stories, common proverbs, and verbal tricks. De Certeau refers to the adaptive capacity of the ordinary as tactics of living, and these tactics may be best exemplified when the worker does the personal while on the clock.

The distinction between strategy and tactics is central to De Certeau's thought. Strategy refers to the top-down exercise of power to coerce compliance. Tactics refer to the opportunistic manipulations offered by circumstance. The conflict between strategies and tactics is ironic - as strategic forces expand to increase dominance, there is a corresponding increase in opportunity for tactical subversion.

De Certeau relates his ideas to the theoretical work of Foucault and Bourdieu, and continues his inverted perspective by looking anew at the concept of city, commuter travel by rail, story telling, writing, reading, and believing.

This book is more of a riddle than a narrative; de Certeau provides glimpses of his meaning from time to time, but deliberately avoids propositional clarity. This style requires that the reader take an unusual stance toward this book. Instead of expecting the author to communicate, the reader must content himself with hints and suggestions of meaning. I am convinced that these hints and suggestions are more than worth the reader's investment of time. Find a quiet place and enjoy!

Editorial Review:

In this incisive book, Michel de Certeau considers the uses to which social representation and modes of social behavior are put by individuals and groups, describing the tactics available to the common man for reclaiming his own autonomy from the all-pervasive forces of commerce, politics, and culture.

The Education of Little Tree

Forrest Carter

Amazon Price: $10.17 List Price: $14.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: University of New Mexico Press Amazon Marketplace: 99 new & used starting at $2.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Biographies & Memoirs -> General
Subjects -> Biographies & Memoirs -> General AAS
Subjects -> Children's Books -> Ages 4-8 -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 203 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Education of Little Tree tells of a boy orphaned very young, who is adopted by his Cherokee grandmother and half-Cherokee grandfather in the Appalachian mountains of Tennessee during the Great Depression.

“Little Tree” as his grandparents call him is shown how to hunt and survive in the mountains, to respect nature in the Cherokee Way, taking only what is needed, leaving the rest for nature to run its course.

Little Tree also learns the often callous ways of white businessmen and tax collectors, and how Granpa, in hilarious vignettes, scares them away from his illegal attempts to enter the cash economy. Granma teaches Little Tree the joys of reading and education. But when Little Tree is taken away by whites for schooling, we learn of the cruelty meted out to Indian children in an attempt to assimilate them and of Little Tree’s perception of the Anglo world and how it differs from the Cherokee Way.

A classic of its era, and an enduring book for all ages, The Education of Little Tree has now been redesigned for this twenty-fifth anniversary edition.