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RADICAL

Name: RADICAL
Author: Kate Pickert
ISBN: 978-0-316-47032-2

THE SCIENCE, CULTURE, AND HISTORY OF BREAST CANCER IN AMERICA

by Kate Pickert ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2019

A useful text on a well-known cancer bolstered by the author’s personal perspective as a survivor.

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In-depth coverage of breast cancer from a health care journalist and survivor.

“In addition to being the most public of all the cancers,” writes Pickert (Journalism/Loyola Marymount Univ.), “carcinoma of the breast may be the most thoroughly studied malignancy in human history.” In her first book, the author explores the history of the disease and its many variations, the progression of treatment regimes, and the cultural awareness that has developed thanks to individuals and big corporations participating in pink-ribbon campaigns. As a health care journalist, Pickert was interested in the subject, but it became even more important when she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of the cancer at the relatively young age of 35. She interweaves the story of her own treatment schedule with the historical, cultural, and scientific data she collected on this well-documented carcinoma. The narrative is informative and personable and thankfully never maudlin or melodramatic. One of the more controversial topics Pickert explores is mammograms: how early women should begin having them, how often, and whether there is a better way to identify cancer cells at an early stage so women can get the best treatment possible. Readers learn about the extremely radical surgeries performed in the late 1880s, which often left women deformed, as well as the latest studies, which provide treatment based on an individual’s genetic and family history. Pickert addresses the development of effective drugs, including both synthetics and those derived from plant and tree bark. “As I type this sentence,” she writes, “1,823 federally registered breast cancer clinical trials are actively recruiting patients.” She also includes information on men with breast cancer, an underdiscussed topic. Though not comprehensive, the book provides readers with a wide range of information to help those with breast cancer and their support groups make the most effective decisions for their own treatment.

A useful text on a well-known cancer bolstered by the author’s personal perspective as a survivor.

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019

ISBN: 978-0-316-47032-2

Page Count: 304

Publisher: Little, Brown Spark

Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2019

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.