Cengage Learning. Gale Virtual Reference Library. 2011. www.gale.cengage.com/gvrl REF
In a time of Go digital or go home, Gale Virtual Reference Library (GVRL) is the perfect product for accomplishing just this in the reference environment. It allows librarians to build digital reference collections title by title, just as we’ve done for decades with print collections. Representing more than 80 publishers, GVRL offers more than 7000 digital reference books from the classic to the contemporary. A recent upgrade makes the product even more appealing. The opening page offers an updated single-box tool that now searches a select range of fields for a broad, all-purpose search. The advanced search offers further limiters, including ISBN, edition, and entire document. An easy-to-use help file is present at all times in the upper-right corner. Users can search the entire digital collection, a given series, or a chosen title. Multivolume sets are browsable by volume. Index volumes are included and feature hyperlinked entries. PowerSearch allows cross-searching with other Gale products such as Infotrac and certain InContext products. Presentation is the biggest visible change in the upgrade. The interface is now prettier, offering book cover images and a new two-page view. Easier to read with search terms highlighted, articles can be printed, emailed, and downloaded as PDFs and MP3s. Users may view selected material in 34 languages and use text-to-speech translation in 19 languages. BOTTOM LINE This versatile product allows an unlimited number of patrons to search reference works by keyword in seconds, anyplace, anytime. For all audiences.‚ Lura Sanborn, St. Paul’s Sch., Hopkinton, NH
Cawthon, Elisabeth A. Famous Trials in History. Facts On File. 2011. 528p. bibliog. index. ISBN 9780816081677. $85. Online: Infobase eBooks REF
Cawthon (history, Univ. of Texas; Medicine on Trial: A Sourcebook with Cases, Laws, and Documents ) collects 100 significant legal trials that date from the time of Socrates to today. While some of these trials are certainly significant, they are also obscure, except perhaps to legal scholars and historians, and consequently information on them is difficult to find. Ranging in length from two to several pages, the legalese-free entries provide a discussion of the key issues of the trial under examination, a history of the case, argument summaries, and the verdict. Also featured are the significance of the case and a brief further-reading list. There is also a selected bibliography and chronological and topical lists of the trials (although the years are not part of the list). BOTTOM LINE College users and legal history buffs will find Cawthon’s book a useful starting point for research and a helpful adjunct to Scott P. Johnson’s Trials of the Century (ABC-CLIO, 2010).‚ Beth Bland, Milwaukee
Kipfer, Barbara Ann (text) & Kyle Kipfer (illus.). The Culinarian: A Kitchen Desk Reference. Wiley. 2011. 640p. illus. index. ISBN 9780470554241. pap. $19.99. REF
Although Barbara Ann Kipfer is not a professional chef, her experience as a nonfiction writer and her considerable expertise in the editing and authoring of dictionaries, thesauri, and other reference works serve her well in this friendly volume. The book is intended to provide a handy compendium of foods, methods, equipment, and expressions‚ it eschews recipes‚ and largely succeeds. Anyone confused by label terms, yields, or international expressions and measures will appreciate the Opening Helpful Information section. The entries that follow describe, in about equal measure, techniques, equipment, and ingredients from the basic to the exotic ends of the culinary spectrum. A guide to flavor pairings ends the title, encouraging creative cooking and saving readers from wondering what to do with the eggplant in the back of the fridge. The layout is occasionally awkward, and there are some inconsistencies in how entries are formatted, but this does not detract from the quality of the content. Soft pencil illustrations by the author’s son do not provide the precise visuals of photographs, but they do lend the book a warm, down-home feel. BOTTOM LINE While not as comprehensive as the classic Larousse Gastronomique (Librarie Larousse), the compact Culinarian provides excellent reference in a more manageable package than its unwieldy competitor. A useful, appealing, and accessible reference for established foodies and budding chefs alike.‚ Lauren de Bruin, Alberta Lib., Edmonton
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The following titles are reviewed in the January print issue. Visit our Reviews Center (Beta) for the full reviews.
Health & Medicine
Drugs of Abuse. 320p. ISBN 9780761479444.
Substance Abuse, Addiction, and Treatment. 352p. ISBN 9780761479437. ea. vol: Marshall Cavendish. 2011. photogs. bibliog. index. $85.64. Online: www.marshallcavendishebooks.com REF
Morrow, John Andrew. Encyclopedia of Islamic Herbal Medicine. McFarland. 2011. 235p. bibliog. index. ISBN 9780786447077. pap. $55. Online: EBL, ebrary, MyiLibrary & Netlibrary REF
History
Bracks, Lean’tin. African American Almanac: 400 Years of Triumph, Courage and Excellence. Visible Ink. 2012. c.560p. illus. ISBN 9781578593231. pap. $22.95. REF
Lansford, Tom. 9/11 and the Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq: A Chronology and Reference Guide. ABC-CLIO. 2011. 350p. maps. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781598844191. $89. Online: ABC-CLIO eBook Collection REF
Lewandowski, Elizabeth J. The Complete Costume Dictionary. Scarecrow. 2011. 622p. illus. bibliog. ISBN 9780810840041. $125. Online: NetLibrary, Overdrive, MyiLibrary, EBL & Questia REF
Language & LInguistics
Berkshire Manual of Style for International Publishing. Berkshire Pub. 2011. 188p. illus. index. ISBN 9781614729938. pap. $22.95. REF
Literature
World Literature in Spanish. 3 vols. ABC-CLIO. 2011. 1048p. ed. by Maureen Ihrie & Salvador A. Oropesa. bibliog. index. ISBN 9780313337703. $350. Online: ABC-CLIO eBook Collection REF
Political Science
Hillstrom, Kevin. U.S. Health Policy and Politics: A Documentary History. SAGE. 2011. 744p. illus. bibliog. index. ISBN 9781608710263. $185. Online: SAGE Reference Online REF
Religion
CEB Bible Map Guide: Explore the Lands of the Old and New Testaments. Common English Bible. 2011. 48p. photogs. maps. index. ISBN 9781609260743. pap. $12.95. REF
Encyclopedia of Global Religion. 2 vols. SAGE. 2011. c.1528p. ed. by Mark Juergensmeyer & Wade Clark Roof. index. ISBN 9780761927297. $325. Online: SAGE Reference Online REF
Gassmann, Günther & others. Historical Dictionary of Lutheranism. 2d ed. Scarecrow. 2011. c.560p. bibliog. ISBN 9780810872325. $90. Online: NetLibrary, Overdrive, MyiLibrary, EBL, & Questia REF
Dunmore, Tom. Historical Dictionary of Soccer. Scarecrow. 2011. 338p. bibliog. ISBN 9780810871885. $70. Online: NetLibrary, Overdrive, MyiLibrary, EBL & Questia REF
About Henrietta Thornton-Verma
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