Columbia College Today

Flowers: How They Changed the World by William Burger ’53

Flowers: How They Changed the World by William Burger ’53. The author examines flowers from stem to stigma, proving them to be not merely the pretty faces of the plant world but ecosystem essentials (Prometheus Books, $23).

Frog in the Well: Portraits of Japan by Watanabe Kazan 1793–1841 by Donald Keene ’42, Shincho Professor of Japanese Literature and University Professor Emeritus. Titled after the insular nature of most Tokugawa scholars and artists, this book’s subject is the opposite — a figure who sought out Western ideas and hoped to better Japanese society (Columbia University Press, $24.50).

Liv Ullman: Interviews edited by Robert Emmet Long ’56. Considered “the actress most favored by Ingmar Bergman,” Liv Ullman is an iconic figure in film and is captured here as a vivid woman, mother, thinker and director (University Press of Mississippi, $20).

On the Town: One Hundred Years Of Spectacle In Times Square by Marshall Berman ’61. The author recounts how Times Square has been a “continuous carnival” throughout the years, including how it has affected and has been affected by art and music (Random House, $25.95).

The Future Of The Wild: Radical Conservation for a Crowded World by Jonathan S. Adams ’83

The Future Of The Wild: Radical Conservation for a Crowded World by Jonathan S. Adams ’83. The author argues that for wilderness conservation to succeed, the plan must incorporate science and grass-roots movements, presenting a new approach called “ecoregional conservation” that integrates “human and non-human communities together into an ecologically and socially functioning whole” (Beacon Press, $27.95).

Home Long-Term Oxygen Treatment in Italy: The Additional Value of Telemedicine edited by RW Dal Negro and AI Goldberg ’64. One of the first books published on its subject, this volume describes the development and management of a new therapy for chronic disease (Springer, $79.85).

Love your Neighbor and Yourself: A Jewish Approach to Personal Ethics by Elliot N. Dorf ’65. Tackling contemporary ethical conundrums from a traditional standpoint, the author uses the Torah as a guide for his philosophy (The Jewish Publication Society, $25).

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, translated by Peter Tuttle ’71, introduction by Robert Hanning, professor of English. Working with Hanning and Professor Emeritus of English George Stade, editorial director of this series of classics, Tuttle offers a new translation of the Core Curriculum favorite with modernization of Chaucer’s language (Barnes & Noble Classics, $5.95).

Divas Don’t Yield by Sofia Quintero ’90

Divas Don’t Yield by Sofia Quintero ’90. Considered an important voice of the new “Chica Lit” genre, the author tells a story of four friends who set out on a road trip that evolves into four personal journeys (One World Books, $13.95).

Modern Physics and Ancient Faith by Stephen M. Barr ’74. Uniting science and religion, the author and physicist uses his scientific expertise to support his belief that the universe is best explained by divine design, pressing evolutionary theory for a plausible account of the origin of what quantum physics demands — a conscious observer (University of Notre Dame Press, $18).

Jewish Holiday Origami by Joel Stern ’75. Combining his passions for religion and origami, the author’s designs are an educational and unique way to celebrate the Jewish calendar’s most important days (Dover Publications, $5.95).

Persons, Humanity, and the Definition of Death by John P. Lizza ’80. The author challenges the legal definition of death as the ceasing of all brain activity, instead suggesting a view that encompasses biological, ontological and cultural meanings of death (Johns Hopkins University Press, $45).

The Scandal of Empire: India and the Creation of Imperial Britain by Nicholas Dirks, vice president for arts and sciences, dean of faculty and Franz Boas Professor of Anthropology

The Scandal of Empire: India and the Creation of Imperial Britain by Nicholas Dirks, vice president for arts and sciences, dean of faculty and Franz Boas Professor of Anthropology. The author explores the essentiality of the East India Company to Britain’s success and position as a world power, despite the company’s questionable practices (Belknap Press, $27.95).

American Movie Critics: An Anthology from the Silents Until Now edited by Phillip Lopate ’64. It’s the critic who counts in this collection of film writing, ranging from thoughts on the first silent films through well-known modern writers such as Pauline Kael, A.O. Scott and Roger Ebert (The Library of America, $40).

Bo’s Arts by Jamie Berger ’86. Bo, the author’s beagle, inspired an art show, bringing together artists of different backgrounds and mediums at San Francisco’s Adobe Books and Backroom Gallery to show the works depicted in this book (Evil Twin, $15).

American Dreams and Nazi Nightmares by Kristen Fermaglich ’92. Taking a controversial look at such figures as Betty Friedan and Stanley Milgram, the author examines the effects of the Holocaust on Jewish liberal thinkers (Brandeis University Press, $29.95).

Power, Plain English, And The Rise Of Modern Poetry by David Rosen ’93. The author examines how characteristics of modern poetry and “plain English” are strongly based on Romantic poets and their efforts to present themselves as voices of power and morality (Yale University Press, $32.50).

On Late Style: Music and Literature Against the Grain by Edward W. Said, University Professor of English and Comparative Literature

On Late Style: Music and Literature Against the Grain by Edward W. Said, University Professor of English and Comparative Literature, introduction by Michael Wood, professor of English. This posthumous book by the writer and critic was inspired by his Columbia graduate seminar and examines the last works of famous artists (Pantheon, $25).

The K Street Gang: The Rise and Fall of the Republican Machine by Matthew Continetti ’03. As a Weekly Standard staff writer, the author has followed the controversial views and role of lobbyists and offers his perspective on the way they have shaped Capitol Hill decisions (Doubleday, $24.95).

Fair Trade For All: How Trade Can Promote Development by Joseph E. Stiglitz, University Professor of Economics and Andrew Charlton. Nobel laureate Stiglitz and Charlton explore issues and inequalities of the current global trading system, its disastrous effects on poor countries and reforms in practices and procedures that should be made to promote development in these countries (Oxford University Press, $28).

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