Osterlind, Steven J. A National Review of Scholastic Achievement in General Education. ASHE-ERIC H ig her Education Report, Volume 25, Number 8. Washington, DC: The George Washington University Graduate School of Education and H uman Development, 1 997. ISBN 1 -878380-80-y. The 1 993 publication of the National Institute of Education's A Nation at Risk served as a wake up call to American higher education . S ince then, community colleges, colleges and universities have all embarked on "assessment" studies, to analyze the skills and knowledge with which their students enter, and the increase in those skills and knowledge gained during the college experience . Steven J. Osterlind, Professor of Educational Psychology/Director of Graduate Studies at the University of Missouri-Columbia reports on one test that provides insight into the quality of education on the national level, and that can give direction to colleges assessing their own effectiveness. The College Basic Academic Subjects Examination (College BASE) "is a criterion referenced achievement test focusing on the degree to which students have mastered particular skills and competencies consistent with the completion of general education coursework. (From the Executive Summary, page iii). It includes scores for nearly 50,000 students tested between 1988 and 1 993 to analyze both cognitive reasoning skills and factual knowledge. The findings were then analyzed by gender, ethnic group, and race. They demonstrate the vast differences in standard knowledge that college freshmen bring with them to higher education institutions. Osterlind repeatedly calls for the selection of a statistically appropriate nationwide sample for further testing. This slim but substantial volume thoroughly analyzes the data acquired from the College BASE. Students were tested in English, mathematics, science, and social studies. Osterlind discusses each section separately, giving sample questions from the test, and stating what can be gathered from the data collected. Although he is not as bleak as the authors of A Nation at Risk, he does point out some alarming deficiencies in college populations across the board, as well as in particular subgroups. This is a volume that should be included in most American education libraries, and should be thoughtfully read by those individuals actively involved in the assessment process. Debbie Bogenschutz is Coordinator of Information Services at the Johnnie Mae Berry Library (http://dogbert.cinstate.cc.oh.us/ library) at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, 3520 Central Parkway, Cincinnati, OH, USA 45223. Phone: (5 1 3) 569- 1 6 1 1 ; Fax: (5 13) 559-0040; E-mail: bogenschutzd @cinstate.cc.oh.us EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3 3o B O O K R E V I E W S Fenske, Robert H., Ch ristine A. Geranios, Jonathan E Keller, and David E. Moore. Early Intervention Programs: Opening the Door to Higher Education. ASHE-ERIC H igher Education Report Volume 25, Number 6. Wash ington, DC: The George Wash ington Un iversity, Graduate School of Education and H uman Development, 1 997. ISBN 1 -878380-78-8. ISSN 0884-0040. $24.00. As this volume notes, the United States has long been known for the high level of education to which it aspires for all citizens. The development of the public school system was an early indicator of this trend. Since the civil rights movement of the 1 960's, public awareness has increasingly focused on equality of educational opportunity. Early intervention programs, defined in this volume as programs designed to affect the persistence of school children to h igh school graduation and enrollment in postsecondary education, provide one approach to addressing this issue. Such programs have increasingly attracted public attention in recent years. This issue of the ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report provides a timely introduction to this topic. In fact, it is as an introduction to and review of such programs that this title excels. The authors acknowledge the impossibility, due to limits on the length of reports in the series, of a thorough analysis of such programs in all their variations. An extensive bibliography provides sources for further research. The focus of this document is on state and institutional programs; less attention is given to federal and private initiatives. The role of business in early intervention is outside the scope of this report. Accepting these limitations, there is little of which to be critical. The book begins with a philosophy and rationale for early intervention programs. Examples of private, federal, state and academic initiatives are provided and an appendix gives a sample list of institutional outreach programs. The traditional separation between K- 1 2 schools and postsecondary education is discussed, along with several organizations which support collaboration among the various levels of education. A section on program evaluation discusses the results of several studies attempting to evaluate early intervention programs, the importance of evaluation, and challenges to the effective evaluation of these programs. The final chapter offers the authors' conclusions and recommendations on how the effectiveness of these programs can be increased and how this document can be used at the institutional level. Current content indicates this volume was printed in a timely manner. This work is recommended for all libraries with an interest in K- 1 2 and higher education programs. Christina Cicchetti is Curriculum/Reference Librarian at LaSierra University Library, 4700 Pierce St., Riverside, CA, USA 925 1 5-8247. Phone: (909)785-2552; Fax : (909) 785-2445 ; E-mail: ccicchet@lasierra.edu Bland Carole J., and William H. Bergqu ist. The Vitality of Senior Faculty Members: Snow on the Roof-Fire in the Furnace. ASHE-ERIC H ig her Education Report Volume 25, No. 7. Washington, DC: The George Washington U niversity, Graduate School of Education and Human Development, 1 997. Discussions about redundancy and the need for downsizing of university faculty almost inevitably include the opinion that there is a need to get rid of dead wood. Implicitly, this is assumed to be older faculty, an assumption underlined by the fact that early retirement packages are the favoured method of downsizing faculty. Dead wood is seen inevitably as old wood. This is no doubt true if we are dealing with forsythia or flowering cherry but in oak or cedar, the old wood is the tree. So how far is it a reasonable assumption that the university is best served by the clearing out of senior faculty? The text under review, a special number of the EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3 ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report, sets out to demolish this assumption, albeit substituting a mixed meteorological-industrial metaphor for my arboreal one. The authors believe that ' institutional vitality' in higher education cannot be maintained merely through the idealism and energy of younger members of faculty and that, to the contrary, such vitality in the new century must lie "in the hands of senior faculty members in their 50s and beyond" who will account for 68% of full-time faculty by the year 2000. These experienced faculty are critical assets, not liabilities inhibiting change. Whilst 8 0 0 K R E V I E W S 31 conceding that studies of the relationship between age and teaching effectiveness offer mixed evidence, nevertheless the authors find no evidence of a large negative relationship between age and the quality ofteaching. Although research productivity tends to decline with age, the quality of scholarly productivity does not. The publish or perish imperative diminishes with age so that "as faculty mature they tend to move from more quickly produced journal articles to longer-term research projects whose ultimate goal is to establish new principles or theories." Bland and Bergquist (respectively a university professor and an independent consultant and teacher) believe that a professionally healthy and vital senior faculty is necessary to the implementation of the major academic and administrative initiatives which will inevitably occur in the immediate future. The energy and idealism of the young are, indeed, necessary to realizing such change, but institutional memory is also crucial to effective and economical radical innovation. Without the wisdom and experience of senior faculty, our institutions will make avoidable mistakes, as they have to relearn forgotten lessons from the past. The continued vitality of senior faculty depends upon two kinds of factors: on the one hand, factors intrinsic to unique individual experience, including academic knowledge, pedagogic skills, research commitments, acquired work habits and the network of colleagues built by the individual both within and outside the institution. But these features intrinsic to the individual which affect commitment and morale are strengthened or debilitated depending also on external factors: "Institutions can enhance faculty members' productivity by establishing clear, coordinated goals and emphasizing core faculty functions (research and teaching), a supportive academic culture, a positive group climate, participative governance, decentralized organization, frequent communication, sufficient and accessible resources, a critical mass of faculty who have been together for a while and bring different perspectives, adequate and fair salaries and other rewards, targeted recruitment and selection ." The authors believe that this institutional environment affecting faculty morale consists too often of a hodgepodge of piecemeal measures and they call for a comprehensive development program addressed to faculty of all ages and at different stages in their careers. Evidence for the claim that the vitality of senior faculty is crucial to the health of higher education is drawn from two different kinds of data - autobiographical and theoretical, and empirical research. Chapter 2 (the chapters are not numbered) uses Joseph Axelrod's case study of Stephen Abbot, "a disguised university professor on a real college campus," already known to students of American higher education from two of Axelrod's earlier books. Abbot's career is profiled through half a century, covering three periods in the history of American education and at three points in his professional life. We see his changing educational ideology and corresponding adoption of different teaching styles as he confronts new generations of students in the context of liberalized admissions procedures. Now approaching his retirement, it is evident that Abbot remains a dedicated and vital member of his academic community. Indeed, the review of his career serves to underline the different "vitalities" appropriate to different stages of an academic career. Chapter 3 discusses the research on senior faculty productivity in teaching and research and concludes that no evidence exists of a large decl ine with age in teaching efficacy or research productivity. Chapters four, five and six look at theories and empirical data which throw light on the nature and the interplay of intrinsic personal and extrinsic institutional factors which sustain academic vitality with aging. Chapter 7 discusses the piecemeal ways in which institutions of higher education have managed the personal and institutional components of faculty effectiveness in the past, and argues for a comprehensive approach to maintenance of the morale and vitality of faculty in face of the momentous challenges facing higher education at the century 's end. This text is entertaining, authoritative, provocative, and persuasive. If one is not completely convinced, it is because of the hint of utopianism underpinning the proposals for a comprehensive approach to faculty management. Perhaps thoughtful, piecemeal approaches (following Popper) to the dilemmas of the modern university are likely to be more acceptable and negotiable avenues to necessary change. The authors have challenging and intelligent things to say on most of the issues which affect institutional and faculty vitality and one does not need to accept them all in order to achieve significant change. As one example, they have cogent things to say on early retirement packages which have been implemented in some institutions with a wanton irresponsibility which has left entire departments gutted for no other reason that their historic development in the institution has left them with a disproportionate number of faculty eligible for early retirement. Whatever one's preference for piecemeal or comprehensive planning and reform, no one who is interested in or responsible for effecting change in institutions of higher education would fail to benefit from reading this monograph. Harold Entwistle, Ph.D. , is professor emeritus in the Education Department at Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada, H3G 1M8 EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3 32 B O O K R E V I E W S Meyer, Katrina A. Faculty Workloa d Studies: Perspectives, Needs, and Future Directions. AS H E -E R I C H ig h e r Education Report Vo l u me 2 6 , N u m be r 1 . Washington, DC: The George Washington University, Graduate School of Education and Human Development, 1 998. ISBN 1 -878380-81 -8. ISSN 0884-0040. Beginning in the 1980s, the workload of college and university faculties has come under increasing attention from the state legislatures that fund higher education. The baby boom echo is reaching college age, and working adults need increased training and retraining (business is taking on more of this role, unhappy with the results of the colleges), and at the same time states are trying to do more with less money. Out of this climate come attempts to make college faculty produce more. According to this report, "over 15 state and three national studies have collected data on faculty workload." Usually these studies find that faculty work long hours, 40-50 hours per week, but that the time spent directly involved with students is significantly less. While legislators talk about increasing faculty workloads, they usually mean by this an increase in the time students spend with their instructors. At the same time, technology is changing to allow students to get more instruction remotely, when they want it, 24 hours a day, with minimal contact with a human instructor. Meyer points out that college facul ty and administrators and state legislators have to give serious thought to what they really want. Colleges and the states must work together to find the solution that best serves society as a whole. Appendices in this report include a survey of faculty workload studies, and a lengthy bibliography. This book should be read and discussed on all campuses throughout America. Debbie Bogenschutz is Coordinator of Information Services at the Johnnie Mae Berry Library (http://dogbert.cinstate.cc.oh.us/ library), Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, 3520 Central Parkway, Cincinnati, OH, USA 45223. Phone: (5 13) 569- 1 6 1 1 ; Fax: (5 13 ) 559-0040; E-mail: bogenschutzd@cinstate.cc.oh.us Blake, Nigel et al. Thinking Again: Education after Postmodernism. Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey, 1 998. Series: Critical Studies in Education and Cu lture. Ed ited by Henry A. Giroux. ISBN 0-89789-5 1 1 -8. (hardcover). $55 US. ISBN 0-89789-51 2-6 (softcover). $ 1 9.95 US. ISSN 1 064-861 5. Postmodernism, poststructuralism, postfoundationalism, post everything ! While this book appears to present a bleak picture of the future of education, it nevertheless presents possibilities. A beginning is seen in the disturbing ideas presented to make us think again and to do so creatively and productively. The world of education is described as being in a state of intellectual paralysis by such postmodernist thinkers as Jacques Derrida, Jacques Lacan, Jean-Francois Lyotard, and Michel Foucault who illuminate puzzling aspects of education, arguing that educational theory is currently at an impasse. The authors of this study see the impasse as a challenge. This book is a challenge to read, and a challenge to educators and educational theorists to create the future out of our current, postmodern state of chaos. Identity issues are held up to a microscope revealing how our prejudices and preconceived ideas EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3 skew our vision, our thoughts, and our ideas. Branding is the result of preconception and is not presented as a good or useful result. Literacy and ethics are covered in separate chapters. How to produce a lesson plan , how to organize and run a learning environment, and how to deal with the unexpected are concepts covered in another chapter. The craft of being a teacher in postmodern times includes the use of narrative. Narrative is legitimized as an important skill and tool, talent and art. The end result of learning and teaching is that we must learn and teach more. The end is the beginning. Memory work and scientific formulas are discarded in favor of more organic methods. "The Learning Pharmacy," as chapter 1 1 is titled, strangely proposes that there is no formula to learning and that spontaneity produces better results than a uniform recipe. Deconstruction of existing rules, ethics, and ideas is the key to B O O K R E V I E W S 33 future thinking, future learning, and the future of education generally. No quick fixes are suggested or offered concerning the state of education at the end of the 20th century. Ful l of p h i l osophical , spir i tual , metap hysical and Shakespearean references, this book is for the serious student of educational theory and philosophy. It is of equal interest to the serious reader of sociological and historical studies. A listing of references, an author i ndex as well as a subject index nicely complete this well presented, thought-provoking study. In keeping with the "thinking" theme the authors end with a chapter of questions designed to ensure that dialogue continues on this topic. Franki Elliott is a consultant and trainer in information research, located in Hudson Heights, QC, Canada. Phone: (450) 458-2636; E-mail: franki @hudson. net Lam, S h u i F o n g . How th e Family Influences Children 's A ca demic Achievement. (Children of Poverty). New York : Garland Publishing, 1 997. 1 24pp. ISBN 0-8 1 53-2620-3. $39.00. The effects of family on children's behavior have been given much attention in literature for well over thirty years. Since not all researchers use the same research model, different conclusions are reached on how the family affects children. Past studies have focused on the family status model, which includes family structure, ethnic background, socioeconomic status, parental ed�Jcational level, and family size. Also explained is the family process model, which refers to behavior, such as parental discipline, aspirations, attitudes, support, and encouragemen t and i nvolvement or interaction with schooling. In contrast, this study "integrates both models, creating a third model, to illustrate the interactive effects of authori tative p arent ing style, family structure, and socioeconomic status on the academic performance of children." In the introduction, a comparison of the effectiveness of the three models in explaining how families influence academic achievement is provided. The author reviews the literature on the influences of the family on children's academic achievement. Evidence of various outcomes are discussed as they relate to family structure (single-parent, stepfamilies, etc.), socioeconomic status and parenting style (monitoring, supporting or psychological autonomy). In the chapter on methodology, the author explains the subject of the sample, the measures, procedures and statistical path analysis. Subsequently, the relationships among family structure, socioeconomic status, authoritative parenting, and children's academic achievement is investigated in a sample of 1 8 1 eighth graders in two inner-city middle schools in the Minneapolis Public School District. The conclusions presented are that researchers need to investigate the effects of both family status and process. Either model studied separately provides incomplete information. The author does a good job of discussing the limitations and strengths of the study and fulfills her stated purpose. This is not an easy book to read. However, both the findings and directions for future research are clear. Authoritative parenting is consistently associated with better developmental outcomes of children. "Authoritarian parents expect mature behavior and set standards, firmly enforce the rules, encourage individuality and independence, provide open communication and recognize the rights of both parents and children." A lack of economic resources in single-mother families is related to the low level of authoritative parenting in these families. Further research using the combined paradigm of family status and family process is needed. The author recommends that schools need to foster more involvement by parents of various family types and socioeconomic backgrounds. For instance, schools can do this by scheduling conferences at times more convenient for working single parents, by providing childcare during those conferences and by being more sensitive when communicating with families, etc. The implications for policy makers are important. They need to address the phenomenon of "feminization of poverty." Ultimately educators, parents and lawmakers need to understand both family processes and status so that they may help create posi tive fami ly environments. The intended audience of this title is interested scholars and professionals in education and related fields. It is recommended for university library collections. Deanna Britton is Education Bibliographer and Head of the Social Sciences Department , The Univers i ty of Georg ia Libraries, Athens, Georgia 30606. Phone : (706) 542-0680; E-mail: dbritton @uga.cc.uga.edu EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL 22, No. 3 34 B O O K R E V I E W S Kridel, C raig ed. Writing Educational Biography: Explorations in Qualitative Research. New York: Garland Publishing, 1 998. Garland Reference Library of Social Scien ce, vol . 1 098. C ritical Education P ractice, vol . 1 3 . ISBN 0 - 81 53-2294-1 (hardcover, alk. paper); 0-81 53-2296-8. (pbk). Biography as a method of educational research has steadily gained in popularity during the past two decades. Included in this emerging genre are studies of pre-service teachers to tomes honoring eminent educators, storytelling, ethnography, case studies, and various narrative methods of inquiry. Crossing the boundaries from anthropology to psychology, and including literary and historical elements, biography appeals to scholars and their audiences because it brings education to life. The editor, Craig Kridel , is curator of the Museum of Education at the University of South Carolina, which offers awards for distinguished biographies. His accomplishments include that of having served as editor for the 1 996 study, Teachers and Mentors: Profiles of Distinguished Twentieth-Centu1y Professors of Education. Kridel credits presentations of the Archival and Biographical Research S pecial Interest Group at American Educational Research Association conferences with inspiring this collection of essays. He asked contributors to "explore the biographical literature and to consider their research in rel(\tion to biography." Kridel hopes this book will prompt others to apply biography to the field of education. It serves as a helpful guide for those who are considering engaging in biographical writing, as well as for those already so engaged. Twenty-five North American scholars, including an elementary school principal and emeriti professors, bring to bear varying points of view. Composed of five parts, Writing Educational Biography covers qualitative research, methodological issues, archival research, dissertation research, and implications for the field of education. Some of the chapter titles are as intriguing as their topics: "Ethnography with a Biographic Eye;" "Black Subject, White Biographer;" "Willing Biographer, Unwilling Subject;" "Is it Fiction or Biography?" and "I Search, You Search, We All Search: Biography and the Public Voice." This work uniformly exudes enthusiasm, most ardently expressed in Louis M. Smith's chronicle of his ten-year biographical labor. His subject is Nora Barlow, Charles Darwin's granddaughter. Readers will delight in envisioning Smith and his wife Marilyn gathering and organizing piles of material in Nora's cluttered study. This book will inform all readers - beginners as well as seasoned professionals. The bibliography directs readers to related works. Recommended for libraries of institutions with colleges of education or with English department faculty interested in biographical writing. Deleyne Wentz is a Reference Librarian at Utah State University, Merrill Library, Logan, UT, USA 84322-3000. Phone: (435) 797- 1479; E-mail: delwen @cc.usu.edu Global Links: A Guide to Key People and Institutions Worldwide. Levy, Cynthia J. , and Jeffrey D. Schultz, eds. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 1 998. ISBN 1 -57356-224-6. Cynthia Levy's and Jeffrey Schultz's Global Links: Guide to Key People and Institutions Worldwide is a useful directory for any researcher seeking information available from government agencies and political leaders worldwide. The guide started as a simple list of government contacts called Levy's Links, which Levy created as a resource for those of her students who were reluctant to call government offices for information . As resources grew and suggestions were made to include information from other countries, Levy 's Links became Global Links: Guide to Key People and Institutions Worldwide. The guide has become an important EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3 resource beyond its original intent of helping students in the classroom. Global Links is arranged alphabetically by country and each entry is organized with specific headings that include: Executives, Ministers, Legislative Leaders , Judicial Officials, Selected Diplomats, Major Political Parties, Central Banks, and Media and Communications. The guide provides telephone prefixes, names, addresses, phone and fax numbers, e-mail addresses and World Wide Web sites (where available) under these headings for each country. Two indexes are listed in the back of the directory for B O O K R E V I E W S 3s quick reference. The first is an index of heads of state, presidents, and prime ministers while the second lists Web sites of ministries and other major government offices for each country. The information provided by Levy and Schultz in this guide makes it easy to communicate with officers of government agencies worldwide. Collecting and publishing data on world governments is a difficult task considering the shifting nature of this type of information as political structures and governments change. The authors caution that the information is accurate as of April 1 998 and that efforts were made to update certain entries in time for publication. Clearly, frequent updates will be necessary. The inclusion of national libraries as an additional and important source of information would be a welcome addition to future editions. This guide is a valuable resource for any library reference collection. Nerissa Nelson is an Information Specialist at Advantage Learning Systems, Inc . , 29 1 1 Peach Street, Wisconsin Rapids, WI, USA 54495. Phone: (7 1 5) 424-3636; Fax: (7 15) 424-4242; E-mail: ninelson@ advlearn.com Ohles, Frederik, Shirley M. Ohles, and John G. Ramsay. Biographical Dictionary of Modern American Educators. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1 997. ISBN 0-31 3-291 33-0 (hardcover). $79.50. The new Biographical Dictionary of Modern American Educators includes entries on 4 1 0 people who made a distinctive mark on education in the United States. Not all of these people were teaching faculty or administrators, nor were all of them famous: but they all had an impact on American education, changed opinions about education, or affected educational practice. Who were these people? They include such names as Margaret Morley, an early leader in sex and birth education for young children; Amos Neyhart , the founder of driver's education; and Margaret H. Doubler, the founder of modern dance as a subject in college curricula. All of them were born before 1 935, or were deceased at the time the Dictionary's authors began writing. Most were professionally active in the middle and early decades of the 20th century, though some were active earlier. They were all nominated for inclusion in the Dictionary by a wide array of educational agencies and colleges throughout the United States, and they are a diverse group of men and women, including ethnic and racial minorities. Like its precursor, the Biographical Dictionary of American Educators (Greenwood, 1 978) , this volume contain s short biographical sketches averaging one page in length. Information provided includes the standard personal dates and family information as well as educational and professional highlights, notable contributions and publications, and honors received. What each person did to affect education is obvious, but information on the ramifications of their impact is necessarily brief. Those who want more detail will need to expand their research, and to this end, the authors have included a list of source references at the end of each entry. The Dictionary has a good index and its appendices allow one to access the educators by place of birth, state of major service, field of work, or birth year. An additional appendix provides a chronological list of important dates in American education from 1635 to 1 995 . The Biographical Dictionary of Modern American Educators is a solid contribution to the field of educational biography and has a place on the shelves of any library providing reference services to a school or college of education. Jeneen LaSee-Willemssen is Education Librarian at Kansas S tate University, 1 200 MidCampus Drive, Manhattan, KS, USA, 66502. Phone : (785) 532-74 1 6; Fax: (785) 532-7 4 1 5 ; E-mail: jeneenw @lib.ksu.edu EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3 I 36 B O O K R E V I E W S Encyclopedia of Women and Sport in America. Ed ited by Carole A. Oglesby with Doreen L. Greenberg, Ruth Lou ise Hall, Karen L. H i ll, Frances Johnston, and Sheila Easterby Rid ley. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 1 998. 360p. ISBN 0-89774-993-6. The Encyclopedia of Women and Sport in America is a comprehensive source of information encompassing the area of women and sport in the United States of America. The encyclopedia includes not only entries about individual women who have made their mark in the world of sport, but also contains narratives, short essays, research articles (with references) and a wealth of information on a range of topics. For example, the text provides information on women's sport organizations, the history of women's sport, dedicated websites, careers in sport, and health issues related to sport and exercise as related to women of all ages and abilities. African American and Asian American women in sport, women's participation in the Maccabiah Games and sport -related careers are also examined. The six editors of this volume have assembled an extensive team of over 70 contributors from varying disciplines. Their backgrounds are described at the beginning of the book. Many have served multiple roles, and some are men. Athletes, scholars, administrators, health professionals, psychologists, mar�eting consultants, advocates of gender equity, coaches, media personnel and researchers are some of the resource people who have contributed to the volume. The list itself reads like a "who's who" of sport. It is not only impressive, but also inspirational, providing further support that prominent roles in society are available to women. Presenting a core of 140 biographies of great women athletes, the main objective of the encyclopedia is to convey information pertaining to women and sport while also articulating a major philosophy, the theme of which is designed to encourage and motivate younger women athletes to pursue their dreams and to believe in themselves. Editor Carole Oglesby states, "Women of uncommon courage simply refused to take ' no' for an answer when it made no sense to do so and persisted in the passionate pursuit of a sport in which mastery was within their grasp (p. xii)." The editors present the field within an historical context with the goal of instilling in the reader an appreciation of the "heroism" and "courage" of those women who have either reached the pinnacle of their respective sports or have made their mark in the world of sport despite obstacles they had to face as female athletes . The encyclopedia is designed to provide role models for young, aspiring athletes. The entries give young girls the vision to see the doors of opportunity which are open to them that a generation ago may not have been there. The accounts not only describe sport -related achievements, but also demonstrate that one can combine a chosen profession with an interest in sport (e.g. a lawyer with the National Basketball Association). The encyclopedia serves not only as a reference source, providing bibliographies, lists of organizations, e-mail and website addresses, and reading lists, but also could be used easily as a history text as related to the field of women in sport in the USA. The entries are well documented. They are educational, and without sounding too redundant, truly inspirational. The editor suggests that users of the encyclopedia could include athletes, coaches, and mothers. Undoubtedly, teachers and students could put this volume to excellent use. If one were to point out any negative aspects of the encyclopedia, it would be its lack of a consistent format. The book is characterized by a melange of narratives, biographical entries, and scholarly papers. However, the present format does not detract from the amount of information that the encyclopedia provides. The weight of this criticism is tempered with the knowledge that this is the first volume of this kind dedicated to the area of women and sport. This encyclopedia is motivated by the seriousness of the editors in providing its readers with a wealth of information. Their only regret is that they could not make the volume more comprehensive. It is their hope that this encyclopedia will generate similar activities and interest in expanding this work. Interestingly, looking for entries in my own field of work, I found none for sport psychology and its related associations (although there exists an article on imagery), nor is there one for martial arts (although there is a suggested reading on Tae Kwon Do). Indeed, women have made extensive contributions to these areas. In conclusion, this volume very competently covers the field as related to women and sport in the USA (note: as a Canadian, I suggest that perhaps a title change be in order !) . The challenge now exists for other countries and/or individual sports to prepare works of similar importance and breadth. Lois J. Baron, Ph .D. , is an Associate Professor of Education, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3G 1M8. Her areas of interest include child development; physical activity; health and well being; and sport psychology. She represented Canada at the 15th World Maccabiah Games in 1 997. E-mail: LBaron @ vax2.concordia.ca EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3 I 8 0 0 K R E V I E W S 37 Adamson, Lynda G. World Historical Fiction : An Annotated Guide to Novels for Adults and Young Adults. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 1 998. ISBN 1 -57356-066-9. $49.50. Lynda Adamson's World Historical Fiction: An Annotated Guide to Novels for Adults and Young Adults is an ambitious guide to over six thousand works of historical fiction set in countries other than the United States. Adamson produced the guide in an effort to update Daniel D. McGarry and Sarah Harriman White's 1 973 reference work of a similar name and scope. Since a great deal of historical fiction has been published since 1 973, the author correctly recognized the need for such an updated guide. Adamson approached the task of selecting titles for inclusion in World Historical Fiction by logging on to the Library of Congress catalog and looking under the LC subject headings "Historical Fiction," "Fiction," "Romantic Suspense Novels," "Detective and Mystery Stories," "Love Stories," "War Stories," and "Christian Fiction." She also examined issues of Library Journal, Publisher's Weekly, and Booklist for additional titles. According to Adamson, most of the books she selected were reviewed, although titles from more recent genres such as Christian Fiction and Romance were not evaluated before inclusion. One of World Historical Fiction's strengths is its logical organization. The book is arranged by country or region and subdivided by specific time periods. Each subdivision, contains titles listed alphabetically by author. If you were interested in identifying novels set in turn-of-the-century England, for example, you would turn to "The British Isles" section and look under the date heading, " 1 860- 1 9 1 8." This category lists more than six hundred titles. The United Kingdom and Ireland are heavily represented in Adamson's guide, while other regions of the world are not so well covered. For each title entry, Adamson has included citation information, a brief summary of the book's plot, and its genre classification. I n addition, i f the title received some sort o f award o r recognition o f quality, that information i s l isted. The genre classifications are defined in the preface and include categories such as "Domestic Fiction ," "War Story," "Ad venture S tory," "Mystery," and "Biographical Fiction." The helpful appendixes and indexes are another strength of World Historical Fiction. Appendix I lists all of the titles that have won awards, while Appendix II lists all of the titles suitable for young adults. Having the award information and suggestions for young adult readers in separate, concise listings is an extremely convenient feature. Even more useful are the five indexes. Adamson wisely chose to add an Author Index, a Title Index, a Genre Index, a Place and Time Index, and a Subject Index. The Place and Time Index offers more detailed access to specific time periods and specific places, while the Subject Index boasts a wide variety of subject headings. For example, if you were looking for novels about the Spanish Civil War, you need only flip to the Subject Index and look in the "S" section under the heading, "Spanish Civil War." Novels involving the conflict are clearly listed. The only real flaw to World Historical Fiction is its lack of evaluative information . Adamson includes plot summaries in each of the title entries, but makes no attempt to evaluate the merits of the titles she has selected. Admittedly, this would be a labor­ intensive task, but would be valuable to the more discerning reader looking to distinguish between literary writers such as Madison Smartt Bell and A.S. Byatt, and romance novelist Barbara Michaels. Some comment on the quality of each book listed would have been helpful. Recommended for high school and public libraries. Tam Hoskisson is Social Science Reference Librarian at Utah State University Libraries, Logan, UT, USA 84322-3000. Phone: (435) 797-2677; E-mail: tamhos@cc.usu.edu EDUCATION LIBRARIES VOL. 22, No. 3