Library Journal's Reader's Shelf

Learning for Pleasure: Narrative Nonfiction's Appeal

The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival By Vaillant, John 2010-08 - Knopf Publishing Group 9780307268938 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title A haunting, gripping exploration of predators and prey, and an intimate portrait of a remarkable animal increasingly threatened by interaction with humans, this work recreates the hunt for a man-eating tiger across the forbidding landscape of Russia's Far East. …More

Fur, Fortune, and Empire: The Epic History of the Fur Trade in America By Dolin, Eric Jay 2010-07 - W. W. Norton & Company 9780393067101 Check Our Catalog From the bestselling author of "Leviathan" comes this sweeping narrative of one of America's most historically rich industries. …More

The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements By Kean, Sam 2010-07 - Little Brown and Company 9780316051644 Check Our Catalog The infectious tales and astounding details in "The Disappearing Spoon" follow carbon, neon, silicon, and gold as they play out their parts in human history, finance, mythology, war, the arts, poison, and the lives of the frequently mad scientists who discovered them. …More

Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void By Roach, Mary 2010-08 - W. W. Norton & Company 9780393068474 Check Our Catalog BookPage Notable Title Space is a world devoid of the things we need to live and thrive: air, gravity, hot showers, fresh produce, privacy, beer. Space exploration is in some ways an exploration of what it means to be human. How much can a person give up? To answer these questions, space agencies set up all manner of quizzical and startlingly bizarre space simulations. As Roach discovers, it's possible to preview space without ever leaving Earth. …More

Wildwood: A Journey Through Trees By Deakin, Roger 2009-01 - Free Press 9781416593621 Check Our Catalog In the late British nature writer's glorious meditation on what he has called the fifth element, or wood--as it exists in nature, in the soul, in culture, and in life--the reader is swept along on a quest through the woods in search of what lies behind humankind's profound and enduring connection with trees. …More

The Wild Marsh: Four Seasons at Home in Montana By Bass, Rick 2009-07 - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) 9780547055169 Check Our Catalog In his account of life in Montana, Bass emerges not just as a writer but as a father, a neighbor, and a gifted observer, ensuring that though the wilderness is increasingly at risk, the voice of the wilderness will not disappear. …More