Paper Tiger: A NovelBy Olivier Rolin, Translated by William Cloonan “[S]uperbly translated by Cloonan.”—Publishers Weekly “Martin, an aging French radical from the 60s, wonders where it all went and why. One night in 2000, when this rushing stream of a book is set, he broods out loud while driving around (and around and around) Paris with Marie, the 24-year-old daughter of his best friend from ‘the Cause.’ . . . [T]here are also treats that make the car ride worth taking, some serious (like Rolin’s observations—often pessimistic—about the human condition) and others delightfully comic (like the young revolutionaries’ many botched … Continue reading Praise for Paper Tiger

"At Close Range with National Geographic," NET Television‘s documentary on UNP author Joel Sartore, will be televised nationally on PBS February 5 at 9 pm CST.  If the anticipation is too much, here is the audio from the Nebraska: Under a Big Red Sky launch party back on On November 30, 2006.  Sartore speaks about his current projects, the rigors of wildlife photography, the ups and downs of digital photography, and the challenges of getting the perfect shot. Continue reading An Evening with Joel Sartore

n February 1, 2007, Showtime will begin airing the Bud Greenspan documentary Pride Against Prejudice: The Larry Doby Story.  Larry Doby was the second black baseball player to cross the color line when he joined the Cleveland Indians, soon after Branch Rickey signed Jackie Robinson to the Brooklyn Dodgers. Lee Lowenfish, author of Branch Rickey: Baseball’s Ferocious Gentleman, (UNP, April 2007) is featured in the film.  Famed Sportscaster and actor Bob Costas remarked, "[j]ust about everyone knows that Branch Rickey played a major role in modern baseball’s most important development, the breaking of the color line. Yet, even if you … Continue reading UNP Author in Bud Greenspan Documentary

The Complete Letters of Henry James, 1855–1872: Volumes 1 and 2Edited by Pierre A. Walker and Greg W. Zacharias “These extraordinary, profoundly welcome volumes are the first fruits of an epic undertaking by two heroic American scholars, Pierre Walker and Greg Zacharias. . . . The two volumes here contain 161 painstakingly   edited, spaciously presented letters (52 previously unpublished). The total number of James letters known to be in existence today is 10,423. . . . The editors coolly estimate that ‘this project will produce at least 140 individual volumes.’ A comprehensive edition is overdue. . . . [T]hese early … Continue reading Praise for The Complete Letters of Henry James

few years ago, when there was only talk of a movie of The Lord of the Rings being made, a friend of mine went to a Halloween party dressed as Gandalf the Grey. The first guess made, "Are you Moses?" I doubt the same mistake would be made today. It has been about two years since The Return of the King came out and I am just about ready to read them again. Yes, I am one of the fans, ever since I was about twelve. I used to read them every year or two along with The Hobbit, The … Continue reading There and Back Again

The Struggle for Self-Determination by David R. M. Beck “Beck skillfully synthesizes the downward spiral of the Menonimee economy, but he also admirably documents their successful legal fight to restore their tribal status and maintain their cultural values. Utilizing a vast array of sources, including numerous interviews with Menominees and their tribal records, he has produced the best single book on the subject.”—CHOICE Continue reading Praise for The Struggle for Self-Determination

The National Grasslands by Francis Moul “[A]s this book shows, it might be wise to take a side trip to spend some hours in the total serenity of the National Grasslands. Moul writes with the passion and poetry needed to stimulate the traveler to look beyond the bold and the gaudy and see into the very heart of the American continent. The photographs by Georg Joutras are seductive enough to lure any traveler seeking a less hectic pace. . . . This book is the first to describe each of the National Grasslands in a manner that emphasizes their value … Continue reading Praise for The National Grasslands

Dining with Marcel Proust and Pampille’s Table by Shirley King “The At Table series published by the University of Nebraska Press provides several welcome additions to the culinary library. Shirley King’s Dining with Marcel Proust, first published in 1979, is a natural, given what even someone who has not read Proust knows about him: master of the evocative, sensory life and, of course, the source of that famous passage about those madeleines. . . . King has translated the work of one author spoken of with reverence by Proust: Marthe Daudet, author of the 1919 Les Bons Plats de France. … Continue reading Praise for Dining with Marcel Proust and Pampille’s Table

True to the Roots by Monte Dutton “The book’s golden.” —Booklist “True to the Roots is an engaging . . . account of Americana as it is lived today, a breezy read, evocative of the kinds of places many of us will never know.”—Music and Letters Continue reading Praise for True to the Roots