Holiday Reading Link Roundup, and a 20% Discount for Beacon Broadside Readers
December 18, 2009
Several Beacon Press books have made it onto Holiday gift-giving lists. Here's a quick look at a handful of them. You can get 20% off any of these titles, or any other Beacon Press book, at the Beacon Press website by entering the code BROADSIDE at checkout. This discount is good until January 4, 2010.
The Progressive Book Club recommends Nature's Second Chance: Restoring the Ecology of Stone Prairie Farm by Steven I. Apfelbaum on its list of Ten Books to Help You Understand the Climate Crisis.
Telling the story of how a depleted Wisconsin corn farm was transformed into a diverse, self-sustaining ecosystem, the ecologist offers a real-life example of how humans might begin to heal a ravaged planet.
The always amazing Kate Clinton (whose hilarious book I Told You So would itself make a great gift), lists Beyond (Straight and Gay) Marriage by Nancy D. Polikoff as one of her favorite books of 2009 in the Progressive magazine.
[It] was a great read for me-- one of the last unmarried, childless, petless lesbians this side of the Mississippi, who is constantly asked, “Sowhenyagettinmarried?” Polikoff writes a helpful critique of the same-sex marriage movement. After a nifty summary of legal history in marriage and social movements, she argues for greater forms of family diversity and presents concrete proposals to shift legal priorities to individuals, whether in or out of relationships.
Planetizen, a "public-interest information exchange provided by Urban Insight for the urban planning, design, and development community," recommends On Private Property: Finding Common Ground on the Ownership of Land by Eric Freyfogle.
In On Private Property, Freyfogle implores the reader to accept and appreciate the complexity of property rights and put away "the simple story about individual landowners pitted against big government."
Pegasus Bookstore in Berkeley recommends Love in Condition Yellow by Sophia Raday on its nonfiction list.
In this touching, inspiring memoir of her bi-partisan marriage to a conservative Oakland police officer, Raday, a Berkeley peace activist, shows us how difference can strengthen a marriage, and how mutual respect and open communication are keys to making any relationship thrive. A sweet, engaging story!