Social Science
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AGATE/BOLDEN
Twisted: The Dreadlock Chronicles
by Bert Ashe (June 9, paper, $15, ISBN
978-1-932841-96-1). Ashe, director of
African American Studies at the College of
the Holy Cross, delivers a witty and
unprecedented account of black male identity as seen through our culture’s perceptions of hair, in the process telling a larger
story about the truths and biases present in
how we perceive ourselves and others.
ATRIA/BEYOND WORDS
BASIC
Shame: How America’s Past Sins
Have Polarized Our Country by Shelby
Steele (Feb. 24, hardcover, $25.99, ISBN
978-0-465-06697-1). A conservative
scholar traces the post-1960s divisions
between the right and the left, and offers a
scathing critique of American liberalism.
All of America’s well-intentioned social
programs have not only failed, Steele
argues, but have actively harmed America’s minorities and poor, and only a return
to “our founding principles” of individual
freedom and merit-based competition can
redeem us. 40,000-copy announced first
printing.
BEACON
Detained and Deported: Stories
of Immigrant Families Under Fire by
Margaret Regan (Mar. 10, hardcover,
$25.95, ISBN 978-0-8070-7194-6). Jour-
nalist Regan argues that increasingly
draconian detention and deportation poli-
cies have broadened police powers and
enriched an industry whose profits are
derived from human incarceration. Draw-
ing on interviews with those in detention,
Regan offers a timely, humanizing glimpse
into the lives of those caught up in the U. S.
immigration enforcement cycle, with spe-
cial attention given to the separation of
families and the treatment of women.
Enabling Acts: The Hidden Story of
How the Americans with Disabilities
Act Gave the Largest U.S. Minority Its
Rights by Lennard Davis (July 14, hard-
cover, $24.95, ISBN 978-0-8070-7156-
4). The first significant book on the his-
tory and impact of the Americans with
Disabilities Act, the widest-ranging
piece of civil rights legislation ever passed
in the history of the United States,
published for the 25th anniversary of the
legislation.
BERRETT-KOEHLER
Intelligent Disobedience: Doing
Right When You’re Told to Do Wrong
by Ira Chaleff (July 7, paper, $18.95, ISBN
978-1-62656-427-5). Abu Ghraib prison.
Enron. Abuse in the Catholic Church. NSA
surveillance of blameless citizens. Chaleff
uses dozens of examples involving major
historical events and everyday situations to
explore when and how to disobey orders,
and how to disagree in intelligent, helpful,
and ethical ways.
The Sisters Are Alright: Changing the
Broken Narrative of Black Women in
America by Tamara Winfrey Harris (June
15, paper, $15.95, ISBN 978-1-62656-
351-3) takes aim at “negative propaganda”
about black women in such areas as mar-
riage, career, motherhood, health, sexuality,
beauty, and more, showing how real black
women are pushing back, and asserting the
truth of the black female experience.
; The Boy Who Could Change the World: The Writings of Aaron Swartz
Aaron Swartz, intro. by Lawrence Lessig. New Press, May 26
; Creative Schools: The Grassroots Revolution That’s Transforming Education
Ken Robinson and Lou Aronica. Viking, Apr. 21
; The End of College:
Creating the Future of Learning and the University of Everywhere
Kevin Carey. Riverhead, Mar. 3
; It’s Not Over:
Getting Beyond Tolerance, Defeating Homophobia, and Winning True Equality
Michelangelo Signorile. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Apr. 7
; The Road to Character: The Humble Journey to an Excellent Life
David Brooks. Random House, Apr. 21
; Spinster: Making a Life of One’s Own
Kate Bolick. Crown, Apr. 21
; Spring Chicken: Stay Young Forever (or Die Trying)
Bill Gifford. Grand Central, Mar. 17
; This Is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things:
Mapping the Relationship between Online Trolling and Mainstream Culture
Whitney Phillips. MIT, Apr. 10
; Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be: An Antidote to the College Admissions Mania
Frank Bruni. Grand Central, Mar. 17
; The World Beyond Your Head: On Becoming an Individual in an Age of Distraction
Matthew B. Crawford. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Mar. 31
PW’S TOP 10: SOCIAL SCIENCE