IN-DEPTH, THOUGHTFUL BIO of the talented, troubled singer/songwriter Elliott Smith. Some great interviews. SOLID B

TORMENT SAINT
Bloomsbury USA
2013

INTRIGUING HISTORICAL WESTERN never quite gels; two-perspective structure proves unwieldy in the end. SOLID B

THE OUTCASTS
Little
2013

B-MOVIE AUTEUR Roger Corman celebrated in a gorgeous coffee-table book. Great pics, insightful commentary. B PLUS

CRAB MONSTERS, TEENAGE CAVEMEN, AND CANDY STRIPE NURSES : ROGER CORMAN: KING OF THE B MOVIE
ABRAMS
2013

A FARMER’S MEMOIR AND MANIFESTO: a nice mix of common sense, family history, and heritage farming techniques. B PLUS

WHY I FARM: RISKING IT ALL FOR A LIFE ON THE LAND
Bona Fide Books
2013

It might not be surprising that a third-generation farmer can make an eloquent case about getting back to his own roots, but Gary Romano’s Why I Farm: Risking It All for a Life on the Land goes far beyond that, creating a persuasive argument that small family farms are a crucial element in American society—and one that’s currently at risk.

Romano’s book is that rare thing, a successful hybrid of memoir and manifesto. He grounds his ideas in his own experience of family farming, and in the changes he’s had to make to adapt to a different economy, and environment, than the ones in which his parents and grandparents farmed for decades.

Romano draws on his family traditions in creating a new model of farming; he says “growing organically was just the way the old Italians farmed anyway,” but in today’s market, organic certification can give smaller farms a competitive edge. Similarly, he looks back to a youth spent at the old-school farmers’ markets when reinventing a local distribution culture.

One of the most convincing arguments Romano puts forward in his enlightening and entertaining book is about the serious impact that regulations and subsidies favorable to big agribusiness, and unfavorable to small farms, have had on America’s food culture. This is the piece that’s too often missing from public discourse about food production, and Romano has some important insights to add to the debate.

A FARMER’S MEMOIR AND MANIFESTO: a nice mix of common sense, family history, and heritage farming techniques.

MARVELOUSLY PLOTTED HISTORICAL mystery has gorgeous 1920s details and a fierce, enchanting heroine. B PLUS

THE IMPERSONATOR
Minotaur Books
2013

BRILLIANT, OFTEN WHIMSICAL guide to what we do and don’t know about human evolution. Enlightening fun! A MINUS

THE ACCIDENTAL SPECIES: MISUNDERSTANDINGS OF HUMAN EVOLUTION
University Of Chicago Press
2013

THRILL-A-MINUTE NOVEL MIXES science fiction, action, and suspense. Tight plot with lots of twists and turns! B PLUS

THE CURE
Forge Books
2013

A DOCTOR’S LOOK AT alternative medicine focuses on ineffective and even dangerous treatments. Lots of data. SOLID B

DO YOU BELIEVE IN MAGIC?: THE SENSE AND NONSENSE OF ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
HarperCollins Publishers
2013