by T.D. Thornton '90,
PublicAffairs, 2007.

Thornton, a journalist and racetrack announcer, has written a gritty, engaging narrative on the world of thoroughbred racing and East Boston's Suffolk Downs, including the lives and obsessions of the jockeys, trainers, owners and pressbox "degenerates."

by Lois Kelly '77,
Amacom, 2007.

Although aimed at marketing professionals, this book will interest any consumer curious about new marketing models in an age of MySpace, blogs and podcasting.

by Elise Juska '97G,
Pocket Books, 2007.

Juska's clever, charming third novel examines family dynamics as protagonist Claire Gallagher struggles to re-define herself in the wake of her mother's death and a failed marriage.

by Timothy Hillmer '91G,
University of New Mexico Press, 2007.

Hillmer, who is a teacher and consultant for the Colorado Writing Project, knows that all sorts of desperate souls inhabit high schools. In his richly imagined second novel, which is told from multiple points of view, and takes place over the course of one day, he shows how that desperation can explode into violence.

by Carl Vancelette '68,
SQueeZe Books, 2006.

Vancelette learned how to play bridge at UNH in the '60s as a member of the TKE fraternity, and is now a seasoned tournament player as well as a bridge teacher. His knowledgeable, light-hearted book is constructed around 75 bridge hands that he played as he struggled to learn the game, and would be entertaining and inspirational for anyone who plays the game, or aspires to learn it.

by Allen Lessels '76,
Plaidswede Publishing, 2006.

This is the story of a season at New Hampshire's Speedway by someone who loves to go there. And, as Lessels shows, he isn't alone. He profiles racetrack owners, drivers and fans, and captures what draws thousands of people to the racetrack every year. As one of them says, "I just love it. I love the spectacle. I love the helicopters coming in. I love the color of it. The advertisements. The speed."

by Michael T. Fournier '99,
Continuum, 2007.

Fournier teaches the history of punk rock at Tufts University and writes about music for various publications. This book is one volume in the publisher's on-going "33 1/3" series—each volume takes a seminal album and unpacks it. Fournier's subject is the punk band, The Minutemen's double album, which was released in 1984. Fournier's book includes thoughtful readings of the lyrics, and interesting interviews with the musicians and their fans. He shows how the Minutemen "used the infrastructure and ethos of punk rock but were light years away from the scene's musical orthodoxy."

by Don Silva '57, '65G,
Ingestre Press, 2006.

The author is professor emeritus from the Thompson School, and writes stories about the Madeira Islands (a group of islands off West Africa between the Azores and the Canary Islands) where his family has lived since the 15th Century; he delivers a public lecture annually at the Frederico de Freitas Museum in Funchal, Madeira. This novel takes place in the late 19th Century during the reign of King Dom Carlos, and examines the restrictive conditions that plagued young Madeiran Portuguese, who were subject to the church, the military and a feudal dictatorship.

Soloist Jean Danton, pianist Thomas Stumpf, lyrics by Elizabeth Kirschner '79G, Albany Records, 2007,

See at emusic.com

Robert Schumann's Dichterliebe song cycle was originally set to texts by German poet Heinrich Heine. In this recording, poet Elizabeth Kirschner, who has published three volumes of poetry with Carnegie University Press, has created a new set of texts that seeks to communicate with words what Schumann created in music: his tumultuous feelings about his relationship with Clara Wieck, who eventually became his wife.