Edwidge Danticat’s collection of essays, Create Dangerously, originally published in cloth by PUP and now in paperback by Vintage, has been selected for the One Book, One Philadelphia reading program. What this means is that the Free Library of Philadelphia is encouraging all Philadelphians (Is that what they are called?) to read the book and will sponsor a series of events — readings, lectures, film screenings — to foster a dialogue around the issues in the book.

Create Dangerously is a beautiful, moving book that presents Edwidge’s thoughts on what it means to be a writer; what it means to be an immigrant writer; and what it means to be an immigrant writer, writing outside of your homeland. I love the title of this article announcing the selection: “Creating dangerously, reading collectively”, as it really captures one of the themes in the book: an author may write at their own peril in order to bring important ideas about human rights to a global audience.

While I know many will pick up the paperback for economic reasons, I hope some people will opt to purchase the hardback edition. It is such an elegant and provocative package — with a printed case and a little slip of a dust jacket that is hand-printed — that it would be a lovely addition to anyone’s personal library (especially since it can be found on some online retailers for a mere $3-$4 more than the paperback!).

A piece in the Chronicle Review highlights AcademicPub — a new business that allows professors to assemble their own textbooks from a range of materials from book chapters and articles, to white papers and web site posts. Several university presses, including PUP have signed on to the service and you can read more about it here:http://chronicle.com/article/New-Digital-Tools-Let/129309/

What an ingenious way to precisely tailor course materials while lowering textbook costs. I wonder if it will catch on.

This great little blog post, Smart Books vs Less Smart People, riffs on The Poetry Lesson and will make you feel better.

As the writer notes:

It’s undeniable that becoming brighter from reading is a glorious thing; a gift, a wonderful democratic alchemy that liberals go on and on about like it’s an elixir. However, in defense of the less-well-read everywhere, I can’t ignore the stage fright one gets when dealing with material that knows so much more than you do, stuff that’s so complex it’s hard to figure out where it begins let alone how to enter it.

But there is good news in the end and a cautionary note to be patient:

You’re already pretty smart if you’re brave enough to tackle interesting subject matter that stretches you further and asks you to navigate new terrain. Success at this can take time.

I couldn’t agree more. As a publicist at an academic press, I am called upon to represent books that are lightning years outside of my comfort level (Hypoelliptic Laplacian and Orbital Integrals, anyone?) and yet I frequently find myself reading and reading and reading on into books that are supposedly too difficult. Give it a try — start here or here or here.

According to Library Journal’s most recent Best Sellers list, Diane Coyle’s new book The Economics of Enough was the third best-selling book in environmental science. Not too shabby for an economist!

Could this really work? Next spring, Mark Berres, a University of Wisconsin–Madison ornithologist, will release an app called WeBird that identifies birds by call. I can’t wait to give it a try in my backyard! In the meantime, though, studying id books seems to be the way to go, so check out our full catalog of bird books here: http://press.princeton.edu/birds/.

If you happen to be in Princeton tomorrow, please come out to see theoretical psychologist Nicholas Humphrey discuss his new book SOUL DUST: The Magic of Consciousness at the Princeton Public Library at 7:00 PM.

The New York Times Book Review says:
” Soul Dust, Nicholas Humphrey’s new book about consciousness, is seductive–early 1960s, ‘Mad Men’ seductive. His writing is as elegant, and hypnotic, as that cool jazz stacked on the record player. His argument feels as crystalline and bracing as that double martini going down, though you might find yourself a little woozy afterward. And his tone is as warm and inviting as that big, crackling fire, even if the dim flicker does leave things a bit obscure in the corners.”
– Alison Gopnik

Sometimes it seems as if days have themes — or at least days of blog postings have themes. Whacky Shorts Creations asked the authors of Viewpoints for their earliest drawing memories, and in this terrific review of Avian Architecture, Ken at Rosyfinch Ramblings also looks back at his earliest memories of birds and nests. He recalls watching a rooftop “nest” of a nighthawk before he was four years old and other memorable nests since as he presents lovely pages from our book. I hope you will check it out and then share your earliest bird or bird nest memory below.

Over at Whacky Shorts Creations, they speak with the authors of Viewpoints about their earlier memories of drawing and their current work at the intersection of mathematics, drawing, and art:

Today, I’m so, so excited to present to you a new “why people draw” that is such a wonderful example of how drawing is not just art, but is rather a wonderful visualizing, knowledge-sharing, enlightening thinking tool. Mathematicians Annalisa Crannell from Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, PA, and Marc Frantz from Indiana University in Bloomington, IN share their thoughts on drawing, and how they have designed ways to teach math concepts to teachers and college students through drawing! They also discuss how drawing plays a part in their own process of solving problems.

Then go read this notice from the illustrator H. Douglas Pratt. He is hard at work on a new edition for 2013 or 2014, but needs additional resources. If you sponsor one of the illustrations for the book, you will receive the original artwork after the book publishes — this is an amazing opportunity to own a one-of-a-kind painting from one of the leading bird illustrators in the world and also contribute to a new edition of a now classic and revered text.

Want to see samples of the paintings from the earlier version of the book — click here.

Ian Goldin, author of Exceptional People: How Migration Shaped Our World and Will Define Our Future, will be speaking at Blackwell Bookshop on Thursday 13th October at 7pm.

Exceptional People: How Migration Defined our World and Will Define Our Future offers a history of migration, from man’s earliest wanderings in Africa to the present day. Goldin points out that it is odd that there is no global body to oversee the movement of people, as there is with finance and trade. More surprisingly, he also argues that a ‘tipping point’ will be reached soon, which could shift the political debate. Future policies, for good or ill, will dramatically determine whether societies can effectively reap migration’s opportunities while managing the risks of the twenty-first century.

For more information please contact Blackwell’s on +44 (0)1865 792792

Reinventing Discovery by Michael Nielsen is just shipping to stores this week, so the timing couldn’t be better for this terrific review in Nature Physics from Timo Hannay. The first paragraph does a great job of laying out the big picture of the book:

Like so many fields of human activity, science is in the midst of a digital revolution. Yet the changes we have seen so far are no more than a prelude, with much bigger ones still to come. Researchers have generally been slow to embrace new technologies and practices, and this new era of networked science will only reach its potential when it becomes more open, necessitating new incentive structures and a culture of openness throughout research. Those, in short, are Michael Nielsen’s messages. His stated aim is to encourage this transition by “lighting an almighty fire under the scientific community” to inspire “a second open science revolution”. For although this book is ostensibly about science in the Internet age, it is equally a manifesto for openness in research. Is he right, and will he succeed? In my opinion, yes and maybe.

Click through to read the complete article – it is free online until November 1.

Nicholas Humphrey, author of Soul Dust: The Magic of Consciousness, spoke to journalist Kenneth Baker about his original view on consciousness: Humphrey claims that vivid consciousness makes us happy to be alive. This perspective is a result of Humphrey’s specific approach to the “consciousness problem”:

I’ve tried to understand the function of consciousness. Let’s not think about it as a cognitive skill but as a kind of theater, something we lay on in our own heads about who we are and the world in which we’re living. Let’s ask how does consciousness as we experience it affect people’s attitudes toward life… I say that consciousness is a performance we put on, and philosophers who have disparaged the so-called Cartesian theater of the mind have misunderstood the nature of theater. I think the world we make is in no way a simulacrum of the world.