Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Psyche is a book about how not only does America export modern cultural trends such as strip malls and fast food chains, but it's prevalent maladies from anxiety disorders and depression to anorexia and schizophrenia. The author Ethan Watters is an anthropologist who went to research medical trends in several countries around the world. Watters noticed the re-occurrence of anorexia in Hong Kong, schizophrenia in Zanzibar and depression in Japan. He also discusses how the treatment of these illnesses, whether experimental or otherwise, clashes with the local cultures that fall prey to these trends. Watters feels that the American medicalization of other societies threatens traditions of these cultures: "We should worry about the loss of diversity in the world's differing conceptions of treatments for mental illness in the same way we worry about the loss of biodiversity in nature."

Issues of identity and social life can complicate adolescence for adopted teens. Fortunately for families, there is lots of information at the library and support in the community. Check out Adoptive Families magazine in which the March-April issue has the article "Between Worlds" by Fran Eisenman. In Ann Arbor, a new group is beginning for adopted teens, "Connections," co-led by an adoptive mother/psychologist and her 22 year old daughter. The group will be a place to reflect on challenges, opportunities, relationships and adoption. For details, call Kristine Freeark, 668-0140 or email kfreeark@gmail.com.

A Southern debut novel sparkling with humor, heart and feminine wisdom, Beth Hoffman's Saving CeeCee Honeycutt* is about a vulnerable young girl who loses one mother and finds solace in the “perfume world of prosperity and Southern eccentricity, a world that seems to be run entirely by women".

12 year-old CeeCee Honeycutt finds it hard to grieve for her mother (a loony former beauty queen) who walks in front of an ice cream truck. Her father offers no comfort. In fact, he promptly packs her off to Savannah to live with Great Aunt Tootie.

In this Steel Magnolias (1989) meets The Secret Life of Bees, Saving CeeCee is "packed full of Southern charm, strong women, wacky humor, and good old-fashioned heart. It is a novel that explores the indomitable strengths of female friendship", and the promise of new beginnings. A feel-good read with wide appeal.

Teens will find it easy to relate to CeeCee's struggle to reclaim a "normal" childhood, anger of abandonment, and her yearning for a place to call home. Recommended. (100,000 first printing)

* = Starred review

While friendship stories are commonplace in women's fiction, one that depicts 4 slave women set in the mid -1850s is still a rarity.

Wench* traces the friendship between Lizzie, Reenie, Sweet and Mawu at an Ohio resort where Southern men bring their slave women. Over the course of three summers, these women came together to bare their souls, contemplate their future and support each other through sorrows and occasional joy.

First-time novelist Dolen Perkins-Valdez draws on research about the resort that eventually became the first black college Wilberforce University for the setting while she explores the complexities of relationships between these women and their white owners.

"Compelling and unsentimental", "heart-wrenching, intriguing, original and suspenseful, this novel showcases Perkins-Valdez's ability to bring the unfortunate past to life". ~Publishers Weekly. A good readalike for Cane River by Lalita Tademy.

For further reading on women in slavery, we suggest: Ar'n't I a Woman? : Female slaves in the Plantation South by Deborah Gray White and Labor of love, Labor of Sorrow : Black women, work, and the family from slavery to the present by Jacqueline Jones.

* = Starred review

bankruptcy

Whether a major medical event, loss of a job or a house sunk you, bankruptcy won’t be a shining moment in your life, but it is an opportunity to get your financial life back on track. Not much free legal help is available in Washtenaw County so it is important to know as much as possible about the process and that is where the Ann Arbor District Library is a real help.
The library has a large selection of up-to-date books on the topic that you can find here: Bankruptcy
The library also has books that give great advice on how to proceed after bankruptcy that you can find here: Credit Repair
In order to file you have to pay your attorney up front, so if you are receiving a tax return soon, this could be a very good time to plan your strategy.
It is never easy to admit defeat. Just know that you have now joined a select club that includes Francis Ford Coppola, Walt Disney, Mark Twain, Wayne Newton and Donald Trump. Except for Trump's hair, they all ended up doing better than ok!

MLK

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a day when we should look forward and backward -- backward into history to appreciate how far we have come as a country and the hard work of those who brought us here, and forward to the challenges we still have to face in order to bring about true equality. Here are some good books to help you get a good understanding of the history of the Civil Rights Movement and Martin Luther King Jr.:

Who Was Martin Luther King Jr.? provides a concise biography of its titular subject and background on the issues underlying the Civil Rights Movement, such as Jim Crow Laws and the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision. My Brother Martin, written by Christine King Farris, tells the story of Martin Luther King Jr.'s childhood, for a more human picture of the great man. Did you know that he was quite the prankster as a child? I Have a Dream presents Dr. King's famous speech in manageable bites, accompanied by evocative illustrations.

For those who want to learn more about the Civil Rights Movement itself, Nobody Gonna Turn Me 'Round presents a very understandable, illustrated history of the major events of the movement. A Dream of Freedom provides a more in-depth look at the issues, from Emancipation to the Black Panther Party. In Freedom's Children activists like Claudette Colvin and Ruby Bridges share their experiences of growing up during those tumultuous times. Finally, The Civil Rights Movement for Kids combines history with activities, like skits, songs, speeches and even recipes, to really bring history home.

These are not your high school history teacher's textbooks.

Sex with the Queen: 900 Years of Vile Kings, Virile Lovers, and Passionate Politics, and its male consort Sex with Kings: 500 Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry, and Revenge, are both written by a namesake descendant of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Eleanor Herman.

In these two luscious books, Herman outlines the auspicious--and more often ominous--adulteries of European royalty, from the middle ages up until the modern Prince Charles and Princess Diana.

As you might expect, they cover many subjects not often touched by history teachers. But, probably for that reason, they are entertaining while still being factually correct. Perhaps a guilty pleasure to read, you will nevertheless be assured that they are not simply fabricated for your enjoyment.

The two books offer intriguing insight into the act of adultery among nobility--its origins and outcomes--with a pinch of feminism and a heaping spoonful of wit. Herman explains not only political and social risings among the mistresses and lovers of kings and queens, but also the fashions and foods inspired by them. They cover nearly all of Europe, from Britain and France to the cold reaches of Russia, and they span from five to nine decades.

She also offers a book on a papal puppetry by a woman, called Mistress Of The Vatican: the True Story of Olimpia Maidalchini, the Secret Female Pope, which Publisher's Weekly called "a window into an age of empire, nepotism and intrigue that rivals any novel for fascinating reading."

If you're looking for a painstakingly-researched read that delves into social and political history, but don't want to be reading yourself to sleep, take a look at these.

If you haven't added Zeitoun by Dave Eggers to your must-read list, please do so immediately. This amazing piece of non-fiction made me laugh, cry, shake with rage, smile with triumph, and recoil in horror and disbelief. For me, it was definitely the best book I have read this year.

After copious research, Eggers shares the story of Abdulrahman Zeitoun, a successful Syrian-born painting contractor, who decided to stay in his New Orleans home during Hurricane Katrina while his wife Kathy and their family fled. Egger's text, simple yet incredibly eloquent, recounts Zeitoun's experiences in such a riveting way, I often forgot that it wasn't Zeitoun himself telling his story. He describes the water filling the city, when the levees first broke, as beautiful and crystal clear, giving everything a surreal, sparkly, otherworldly quality. You, the reader, can easily imagine the scene of him paddling around the city in his canoe, rescuing neighbors and feeding stranded pets. Zeitoun's story takes a horrifying and heart-breaking turn when he is arrested, accused of being a member of Al Qaeda, and thrown into an injust Bush administration/bureaucratic nightmare. The ending of this book kept me up late into the night, unable to go to sleep until I found out what happened to Zeitoun and his frantic family. Out of one family's tragedy does come something positive: Proceeds from the sale of this book go towards supporting the Zeitoun Foundation, formed in 2009 by the Zeitoun family, Dave Eggers, and McSweeney's.

national outburst

Congressman Joe Wilson, Serena Williams and Kanye West bestowed upon the world the first National Outburst Week, as treating people with dignity and respect seems to have gone out the window. It is a major concern of our time, both in private and work life. A recent book, The Cost of Bad Behavior by Christine Pearson, delves into this timely issue by trying to quantify the effects of rude, uncivilized behavior in the workplace. Just what happens when you’ve been verbally assaulted by a coworker or a customer, tried to communicate with someone while they are texting, or made to feel left out of the loop during a team project? It can cause stress, health problems and weakened commitment.

Pearson looks at companies with strong leadership that implemented policies designed to create an environment where civilized behavior, dignity and respect are taken very seriously. And guess what? When the talk is walked from the top down companies can quantify the positive effects to their bottom line. Three cheers for dignity and respect!!!

Today, September 6, is the birthday of social reformer Jane Addams, who was born in Cedarville, Illinois in 1860. On a trip to Europe, she visited a settlement house in London where more well-to-do people lived with residents in a poor neighborhood. This new way of helping the poor impressed Addams so much that on her return, she leased a large house in a low income area in Chicago and established Hull House which still exists today. In less than two years, over 2,000 people had visited Hull House and many used their services which eventually included not only child and health care but also a kindergarten, a social club for older kids, an art gallery, gym, library and labor museum.

Addams was also a champion for women's rights and peace, opposing the U.S. entrance into World War I. She founded what later became the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom. One of their missions was to establish, in conjunction with The Jane Addams Peace Association a children's book award for a book that exemplifies Addams's ideals of international peace and justice. One of the winners of the 2009 award is Planting the Trees of Kenya by Claire A. Nivola. Addams won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931.