Bonanzas & Borrascas. By Richard E. Lingenfelter. (Norman, Okla. : Arthur H. Clark Co., 2012. 2 vols., 1056pp.)

Recommendation submitted by Gordon Russ, Volunteer, Washington State Library, Tumwater, WA

Bonanzas & Borrascas is a well written two-volume set on mining and mineral investing in the West. The first book is “Gold Lust and Silver Sharks, 1848-1884”, the second book is “Copper Kings and Stock Frenzies, 1885-1918”.  Mining is a very expensive operation requiring large amounts of cash with little or no certainly of making money or even getting your investment back.  To raise the cash mine owners sold stocks or shares offset expenses.  In its simplest form, you’re buying a share in the mine you were eligible to share in its profits.  To develop a mine thousands even millions of dollars were and still is required to place it into operation.  Even then there is a high risk the mine would never have any value.  All these factors played into the hands of disreputable people selling stocks and greedy people buying stocks.  Mr. Lingenfelter does an excellent job of weaving the story of these miners and stock manipulators together. Some are humors, some are heart rendering and most are fools having a good time.  He starts with the 49ers moving into California during the 1849 gold rush and the development of gold and silver mines throughout the west.  The second book is about the corporate movement into the mining business developing names like ASARCO, Kennecott, Phillips Dodge and others developing copper mines.

The Author presents an interesting tightly written story of the people and circumstances that developed the mining industry of the west. He is aided along the way with the audacity of mine owners, and stock brokers and willing buyers participating in any schemes or scams that looked to make unbelievable wealth.  In the world of big money and a few successful players the attraction of money and possible wealth is uncontrollable.  As one Idaho mine owner stated when ask how could he lose a newly made $100,000 so quickly.   He replied,

“A man with good sound judgment and reasonable-sized head does not lose it”, but “A man who begins to feel poor when he gets his first $50,000, a man who constantly and willfully…getting in over his head in the confusing water of speculation, who belittles the size of his pile as he associates with millionaires, joins their schemes, and buys their stock…he it is who loses a hundred thousand dollars”.

At first you start think the sharks are the miners and brokers feeding on the unassuming public then as the stories develop I began to feel the sharks are the public on a feeding frenzy of the tidbits of possibilities provide by the stock brokers.  These people are not ignorant of what they are doing, but guided by the greed of desire for wealth.  As one unscrupulous scoundrel said, “Never appeal to the intelligence of fools….., turn your batteries on the thinking ones and convince them…the unthinking ones will follow.”  This was the case time after time.  In some cases, the craze for mining stocks is so high that stock brokers just registered a mines name and printed stock certificates then sold them in hours without buyers questioning its backing.  The old adage “Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me” the “me” people were in the great majority.

Much legislation was proposed and put into law trying to protect people from themselves not everyone was in agreement it should be done.  Future U.S. President Herbert Hoover, who was a mining engineer, said, “if a mine should fail…” it “is in and of itself not an economic loss.  It simply means …national wealth was transferred from one individual into another…”and “often invested to more reproductive purpose than if it had remained in the hands of the idiots who parted with it.”  In many ways, he is right.  Much wealth that built America in to the country it is today came from these mines and the people who owned or invested in their future wealth.  I would encourage you to give the books a try.  It is very entertaining on many levels from the humors stock broker “Corduroy Bill”  in Baker City, Oregon selling stock on a worthless mine to acquaintances in his home town of Des Moines, Iowa to the  fortunes made by the Guggenheim family and many others.

ISBN: 978-0870629501

Available at the Washington State Library, NW 338.2097 LINGENF 2012
Not available as an eBook, talking book, or Braille edition.

The Hamlet Trap. By Kate Wilhelm. (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1987.)

Recommendation submitted by:
Will Stuivenga, Cooperative Projects Manager, Washington State Library, Tumwater, WA.

For the mystery fan who is also a theater buff, this is the perfect book! Set in Ashland, Oregon, not in the famous Shakespeare Festival proper, but in another nearby theater that specializes in anything other than the Bard, two people end up dead, and police suspicion falls on Ginnie, the talented set designer, who also just happens to be the theater’s owner/producer/impresario’s niece. A retired New York City detective and his Ph.D. psychologist wife are sent in to find the true culprit, and save the day. Well written, with great character development, as per usual with author Kate Wilhelm, this NW mystery is just the ticket for anyone who might have overlooked it back when it first came out.

ISBN: 0-312-94000-9

Available at the Washington State Library, NW 813.6 WILWELM 1987
Available as an eBook, or as a Braille edition.
Not available as a talking book.

The Pacific Northwest: Growth of a Regional Identity By Raymond Gastil and Banett Singer. (Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland & Co., Publishers, 2010. 221 p.)

The Pacific Northwest: Growth of a Regional Identity attempts to distill and define the major themes and players in the Pacific Northwestern literature as they trace the development of both the style and substance of the writing represented in our regional literary tradition.  The book is not a comprehensive review, but does touch upon major ideas such as the importance of the geography and climate on author identity, the balancing tension of early 20th century radicalism against pioneer tradition and historical irony as essential thematic elements in the writing.  The authors of this book blend a serious academic commitment to the subject with a conversational tone, which brightens and propels the reading experience. This analysis of the regional literature makes a valuable contribution to Pacific Northwest literary criticism.

Many acknowledge that this analysis began with the salty rant Status Rerum (1927) written by two renegades named Harold Lenoir Davis and James Stevens. At the time, Davis and Stevens were still struggling writers dismayed with what they deemed an insipid regional literary scene.  They set out to skewer florid, sentimental, and sensationalistic writing that permeated the local writing, attempting to spur on better craft and a more honest representation of life in this land.  Later on, both the authors went on to regional and national acclaim.  H. L. Davis’ Honey in the Horn (1935) remains the only Pulitzer recipient for literature awarded to a Pacific Northwesterner, while Stevens’ Paul Bunyan (1925) help to transform an outlandish lumberjack tale into a beloved piece of American folklore.

Gastil and Singer’s analysis reaches back to place the Lewis and Clark Expedition Journals, The Hudson Bay Company, missionary journalism and correspondence, and Native American oral tradition as precursors to the literary tradition.  They discuss the problems and the merits of apocryphal interpretations of the Chief Seattle “ecology speech” and Col. Charles Erskine Scott Wood’s transcription/embellishment of Chief Joseph’s famous “fight no more” speech.  It also makes a chapter-long case for the appointment of V. L. Parrington, Progressive Historian and founder of the “American Studies” movement, to the University of Washington English Department in 1908 as a catalyst for a Pacific Northwest Literary Tradition.

Throughout the work the authors critique, praise, and set into context all manner of thinkers, novelists, and poets within the canon – individuals such as Zola Ross, Richard Hugo, Frederick Homer Balch, Ella Higginson, Theodore Roethke, Gary Snyder, Louise Bryant, William Stafford, Abigail Scott Duniway, Nard Jones, Ken Kesey, Joaquin Miller, and the aforementioned Stevens and Davis.  Any reader looking for a better sense of the literary tradition, or just looking for a new read, could benefit from reading this engaging book.

ISBN: 978-0786445400

Available at the Washington State Library, NW 979.5 GASTIL 2010
Available as an eBook,
Not available as a talking book, or as a Braille edition.

Today being Valentine’s Day, your thoughts might float off on wings of poesy.  You might even wish you had a good line or two of local poetry to quote.  Well, the Pacific Northwest has long been renowned for its lyric lineage, from Ella Higginson (whose ‘The Opal Sea’ appears below) through celebrity poets, such as Theodore Roethke and Carolyn Kizer, to our current Washington State Poet Laureate, Kathleen Flenniken.

To help you in your quest, the Washington State Library collects a great amount of Pacific Northwest poetry to whet your bardic blade (okay, I promise to stop alliterating now), whether you wish to glean inspiration or just get lost in the play of words.  Perhaps you will even recite one aloud to your loved ones.

To browse away just begin searching in the Washington State Library Catalog by the Poet’s name (last, then first name) or by the subject “Poetry” within the Northwest Collection.  In the meantime, enjoy this classic by one of Washington State’s earliest poets.

By Ella Higginson

Cave of Secrets. By Hal Burton. Lilliwaup, Washington: Hal Burton Publishing, 2002. 224 p.

Recommendation submitted by:
Will Stuivenga, Cooperative Projects Manager, Washington State Library, Tumwater, WA.

Place, specifically the Olympic coast “north of Grays Harbor County, where US Highway 101 turns inland and most of the coastal region along the shores of the Pacific is accessible only by old logging roads and hiking trails” plays a major role in this regional novel. According to the book’s Prologue:

It is speculated, though never proven, that the first explorers to the coastal region of Washington were monks from China. Several accounts have been found in Chinese court records that tell of missionary trips to the Aleutian Islands and as far south as Baja, California.

And on one of those mythical accounts, dating from 499 AD, hangs this tale of adventure and treasure. First off, the story briefly recreates the actual expedition, and what it might have been like for those early intrepid travelers from another continent. Then we shift rapidly to 1981, as Chuck Coolridge, UW PhD student in ancient Chinese history, having found some tantalizing historical records in Taiwan, mounts an expedition to try and locate any possible remnants of the original expedition these many hundreds of years later.

Further complicating the story is the mystery, never solved, of a young man who went missing on the very same stretch of Olympic Peninsula coastline back in the late 60’s. Two of his friends from the time, being familiar with the area, are recruited to help with the current search. Throw in a nosy Seattle newspaper reporter, and a spy working for the current Chinese government (!), and these disparate factors combine for a fast-paced adventure story.

Libraries and librarians often tend to look down their collective noses at self-published books such as this one, and not entirely without justification. While the writing in this book does not always measure up to sophisticated reader’s expectations, the intriguing nature of the story line soon draws the reader in, and the action and suspense carry you on through.

ISBN: 0-9725707-0-5

Available at the Washington State Library, NW 813.6 BURTON 2002.
Available in an eBook edition
Not available as a talking book, or as a Braille edition.

Plume: Poems. By Kathleen Flenniken. Seattle : University of Washington Press, 2012. 70 p.

Recommendation by:
Rand Simmons, Acting Washington State Librarian, Tumwater, WA.

Kathleen Flenniken grew up in Richland, Washington during the Cold War. Richland’s neighbor and reason for existence was the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. Trained as a civil engineer, Flenniken spent eight years working as an engineer and hydrologist, three of those at Hanford.

The poems in Plume trace Flenniken’s perceptions about Hanford from young girl to professional woman. She writes, “every father I knew disappeared to fuel the bomb.” By the 1980s the effect of exposure to radiation was known. Assurance by officials of safety and security of Hanford workers and people in the surrounding area began to unravel. Flenniken narrates the story of Hanford by telling us about her life and that of her childhood friend, Carolyn. The poems are often haunting.

Carolyn’s father died of radiation-induced illness. Flenniken reveals the betrayal of the American public by government and the suppression of the truth. “As a child of ‘Atomic City,’ Kathleen Flenniken brings to this tragedy the knowing perspective of an insider coupled with the art of a precise, unflinching, gifted poet.”

ISBN-13: 978-0295991535

Kathleen Flenniken is the 2012 Washington State Poet Laureate.

Available at the Washington State Library, NW 811.6 FLENNIK 2012
Available as a Screen Readable Digital Book, and as a Braille edition for readers who are unable to read standard print material.
Not avaialble as an eReader edition

Join Washington State Poet Laureate Kathleen Flenniken, and West Region National Student Poet Miles Hewitt, as they share their talents in an evening of conversation and poetry sponsored by the Washington State Library.

http://blogs.sos.wa.gov/library/index.php/2012/11/state-library-to-host-poet-meets-poet-event-nov-29/

Good fish: Sustainable Seafood Recipes from the Pacific Coast. By Becky Selengut. Seattle, Wash. : Sasquatch Books, 2011. 255 p.

Recommendation by:
Rand Simmons, Acting Washington State Librarian, Tumwater, WA.

For those who love to eat fish and seafood; for those who love to cook; and for those who are interested in sustainable harvesting and farming of fish and seafood, Good Fish: Sustainable Seafood Recipes is a must read.

Chef Becky Selengut has written a book that appeals to a broad audience. Now a resident of Seattle, Selengut, a native of New Jersey, journals her life that led to becoming an advocate for sustainability of fish and seafood. She writes that her most formative culinary experience was cooking at the Herbfarm Restaurant in Woodinville, Washington.

Good fish is filled with definitions, information about harvesting seasons, buying tips, questions to ask before you pay, caring for good fish, farming, harvesting and wonderful vignettes. The major sections of the book are shellfish (clams, mussels, oysters, Dungeness crab, shrimp and scallops), finfish (wild salmon, Pacific halibut, black cod, rainbow trout, albacore tuna, and Arctic char), and littlefish & eggs (sardines, squid, and sustainable caviar).

Don’t expect this to be a quick read. While the text is easily read, the richness of the book will take a while to plough through. This is a great home reference.

ISBN-13: 978 1570616624

Available at the Washington State Library,  NW 641.692 SELENGU 2011
Available in an eBook edition
Not available as a talking book, or as a Braille edition.

Envy: An Empty Coffin Novel (Book 1). By Gregg Olsen. New York : Splinter, 2011. 285 p.

Recommendation by:
Rand Simmons, Acting Washington State Librarian, Tumwater, WA.

It begins with a suicide. A young girl, Katelyn, depressed and lonely, slips into a tub of water. Or, was it murder?
Katelyn’s childhood friends, Hayley and Taylor Ryan suspect the latter and set about to prove it so. The twins are the children of a true crime writer and a psychiatric nurse. But, they have gifts beyond those they have learned from dinner table conversation.

Set in Port Gamble, Washington author Gregg Olsen explores the dark side of this company town. The first in Olsen’s Empty Coffin series this is a good read for teens, especially girls ages 15-16. It may well appeal to a wider audience of murder mystery lovers.

Once you’ve read Envy you will hunger for the next in the series, Betrayal.

Editor’s Note: This book was selected by the Washington State Library for the 2012 National Book Festival, held in Washington D. C.

ISBN-10: 1402789572

Available at the Washington State Library, NW 813.6 OLSEN 2011
Available as an eReader edition and as a downloadable talking book.
Not available as a Braille edition.

Hutch: Baseball’s Fred Hutchinson and a Legacy of Courage. Written by Mike Shannon; Illustrated by Scott Hannig. (Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland & Co., 2011. 216 p.)

Recommendation by:
Sean Lanksbury, NW and Special Collections Librarian, Washington State Library

Mike Shannon and Illustrator Scott Hannig’s graphic novel biography of professional baseball player and manager Fred Hutchinson is a detailed graphic novel, complete with bibliography, index, and copious notes.  The duo trace Hutch’s entire life: his family history and childhood  in Seattle’s Brighton neighborhood, his up and downs in both major and minor league baseball (including two stints with the Seattle Rainiers of the Pacific Coast League), enlistment in the United States Navy for the majority of World War II, return to a mostly winning career as baseball manager, and his battle with cancer that ultimately took his life in 1964.

To many readers, Hutch’s name is synonymous with the Cancer Research Center founded in 1975 by his brother, Seattle Surgeon Dr. William Hutchinson.  Thoroughly researched and cleanly illustrated, this quick read will delight sports fans and fill in the outline for those unfamiliar with one of the Pacific Northwest’s early professional sports heroes.

ISBN-13: 978 0786446254

Another book on Hutch, Fred Hutchinson and the 1964 Cincinnati Reds, by Doug Wilson was released in 2010 and is also recommended reading.

Available at the Washington State Library, NW 796.357 SHANNON 2011
Available as an eReader edition.
Not available as an talking book, or as a Braille edition.

Little Century: A Novel. By Anna Keesey. (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2012. 336 p.)

Recommendation by:
Carolyn Petersen, CLRS Project Manager, Tumwater, WA.

18 year old Chicago born Esther Chambers found herself entering a different world when she accepted her cousin’s offer of help after her mother’s death.  The vast emptiness of the high desert of Oregon where her cousin’s cattle ranch is located challenges her.

Even though the year is 1900 a range war between the sheep men and the cattlemen still divides the tiny settlement of Century.  Esther finds herself drawn to two men, each on a different side of the conflict.

Anna Keesey’s debut literary novel paints a lyrical picture of the settling of Eastern Oregon.  Readers will find the characters fully realized and the story compelling.

ISBN-13: 978-0374192044