Offers brief, critical reviews of recent scholarly and general works of interest to reference workers in university libraries. Titles covered include dictionaries, databases, religion, literature, music, dance, art and architecture, business, political science, social issues, and history. Brief descriptions of new editions and supplements for…

Reviews three special interest publications: (1) "Learning Readiness: Promising Strategies," a directory of model programs addressing social problems that impede learning; (2) "Standards for Quality School-Age Child Care," about quality standards for before- and after-school child care programs; and (3) "Hostile Hallways: The AAUW Survey on Sexual…

Reviews "Quality Work with Young People" (John Huskins, 1996) and other writings of the 1990s concerned with outdoor adventure education, youth work, "risk," and risk management. Compares these works with those of the 1970s. Criticizes deterministic trends in adventure education "interventions" and the present-day…

Features comments from Robert L. Hampel, William R. Johnson, Diane Ravitch, and David N. Plank on David Tyack and Larry Cuban's book, "Tinkering toward Utopia: A Century of Public School Reform." The book argues that educational reformers in the 20th century have attempted large-scale systemic reforms instituted from the top down. (MJP)

Mike Davis's book presents a history and current sociology of Los Angeles from a socialist perspective, arguing that inequalities in the distribution of power and wealth underlie the area's serious, growing problems: ethnic fear and discrimination, social disinvestment and withdrawal by the "haves," and an epidemic of youth violence. (SV)

These books are, in many ways, companion volumes addressed to educators working on curricular issues and educational reform. Both consider how postmodernism, feminism, and cultural studies contribute to contemporary educational theory and social criticism. The authors make a convincing case for critical "border pedagogy" that examines…

"The Bell Curve" by Richard Herrnstein and Charles E. Murray has created a great deal of controversy because of its assertion that the key to explaining inequality and social problems in the United States is stratification by a unitary entity called intelligence, or cognitive ability, as measured by the intelligence quotient (IQ). Their…

Examines research on racial bias, focusing on the discretionary decision-making junctures of the juvenile court system. Research and statistics continue to suggest that the public, the police, the prosecution, and the jury all treat blacks more unfairly based to a large extent on race. (SLD)

Lawrence C. Stedman's comments on the book "The Manufactured Crisis" focus on a small portion of its arguments and ignore the real evidence in support of the achievements of America's schools. The schools are more the victims, than the perpetrators, of American social problems. (SLD)

Reviews two books for experienced teachers and administrators on national issues for care of infants and toddlers: "Caring for Infants and Toddlers in Violent Environments" (Osofsky and Fenichel, editors) and "Starting Points: Meeting the Needs of Our Youngest Children" (Carnegie Corporation). (JW)

Contends that the end of slavery, women's suffrage, and the civil rights movement were watershed events of social justice in U.S. history. Provides reviews of two media-based sets of instructional materials that can help students understand the struggle by disenfranchised groups to become full participants in society. (CFR)

Compares and contrasts the issues presented in two books pertaining to child poverty, policy, and welfare reform: "The Welfare of Children" (Duncan Lindsey) and "Rethinking Child Welfare in Canada" (Brian Wharf, Editor). Both provide excellent analysis and recommendations but lack attention to tracking systems that place children in different…

Reviews five books on child poverty and welfare reform: (1) "Living on the Edge: The Realities of Welfare in America"; (2) "Welfare System Reform: Coordinating Federal, State and Local Public Assistance Programs"; (3) "Single Mothers and Their Children in the Other America"; (4) "Rethinking Social Policy: Race, Poverty and the Underclass"; and (5)…