Editors’ Picks for July 2025

10 reviews handpicked from the latest issue of Choice.

Posted on July 10, 2025 in Editors' Picks

book covers

Highly recommended for reform-minded preservice and practicing elementary school teachers.

—D. M. Moss, formerly, University of Connecticut

Ammentorp, Louise. Let nature be your teacher: integrating nature-based learning in the elementary classroom, by Louise Ammentorp and Helen M. Corveleyn. Rowman & Littlefield, 2024. 174p bibl index ISBN 9781538161616, $90.00; ISBN 9781538161623 pbk, $32.00; ISBN 9781538161630 ebook, contact publisher for price.

Grounded in the ideologies underpinning Nature-Based Learning (NBL), this well-researched book offers readers thoughtful strategies and resources for blurring the lines between a traditional indoor classroom and more holistic learning outcomes stemming from incorporating nature into everyday teaching. Drawing on rich cultural and interdisciplinary educational approaches to learning, the authors illustrate how interconnectedness and environmental stewardship are enduring outcomes of their approach. Each chapter stands alone and addresses topics that will interest a broad coalition of stakeholders, including teachers, administrators, and parents. For example, chapter 4 explores gardens, native plants, and agriculture, which are topics that offer endless possibilities for learning pathways for young children and would easily dovetail with school gardens and curriculum most likely in place at the elementary level. Chapter 8 encourages the adoption of a student-as-scientist model wherein authentic field data collection and analyses serve to inspire students to immerse themselves in the natural world in purposeful ways. Each chapter includes lessons and activities that can readily be adopted and serve as a catalyst for further exploration of NBL. Highly recommended for reform-minded preservice and practicing elementary school teachers. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Undergraduates through faculty; professionals. —D. M. Moss, formerly, University of Connecticut

The broader conclusions Dye draws from Trenchard’s wartime experience make his book one that libraries specializing not only in the First World War or the history of military aviation but also in matters of leadership will want to add to their shelves.

—M. Klobas, Scottsdale Community College

Dye, Peter. The birth of British airpower: Hugh Trenchard, World War I, and the Royal Air Force. Naval Institute, 2024. 302p bibl index ISBN 9781682471821, $39.95; ISBN 9781682478639 ebook, contact publisher for price.

The Birth of British Airpower covers more than its title promises. Drawing on the diaries of Maurice Baring, a member of Hugh Trenchard’s staff during the First World War, and other sources, Dye (independent scholar) uses Trenchard’s service during the war as a lens for not only studying the emergence of the Royal Air Force as an independent service but also considering the more general characteristics of successful leadership. Trenchard was an inarticulate man who struggled academically, but his abilities ensured his rise in the prewar British Army and contributed to his success as a commander during the war. Dye finds within Trenchard’s friendship with Baring, a man his opposite in many ways, an important factor for his success. Baring complemented Trenchard’s leadership by compensating for many of his deficiencies. Such partnerships, Dye concludes, often prove key to leadership success both in the military and more generally. The broader conclusions Dye draws from Trenchard’s wartime experience make his book one that libraries specializing not only in the First World War or the history of military aviation but also in matters of leadership will want to add to their shelves. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. —M. Klobas, Scottsdale Community College

This brilliantly researched ethnohistory is a cautionary tale of how non-Indians came to view Hopis like Atlas, holding the world on their shoulders.

—J. H. Rubin, emeritus, University of Saint Joseph

Haley, Brian D. Hopis and the counterculture: traditionalism, appropriation, and the birth of a social field. Arizona, 2024. 328p bibl index ISBN 9780816553662, $100.00; ISBN 9780816553655 pbk, $35.00; ISBN 9780816553679 ebook, $35.00.

Hopis and the Counterculture explores a persistent challenge for Native peoples who endure intratribal factionalism where generational, political, blood quantum, and other fault lines divide tribal nations. Haley (SUNY, Oneonta) presents a case study of the Hopi from the 1940s through the 1970s when a marginalized “Traditionalist” faction confined to one Hopi village allied with non-Indians, hippies, New Age spirituality, and “neo-Indians”—non-Indians who reinvented themselves as Natives—to proselytize a “true Hopi” prophecy of apocalypse, purification, and collective redemption. This cultural appropriation embraced a primitivist, romantic distortion of Hopi creation stories, sacred rituals, and spirituality, promoted by the hippie counterculture in publications and mass media. It held the promise of individual and collective salvation during an era beset by fears of nuclear annihilation, militarism, and materialism. Chapters investigate Ammon Hennacy’s work as a publicist to create a multiethnic coalition to address the concerns of the H-bomb. Neo-Indian Craig Carpenter succeeded Hennacy by positing a universal “Great Spirit,” forging a pan-Indian alliance. The Book of Hopi (1963) by Frank Waters (also a neo-Indian) became “the Hopi Bible” for New Age groups seeking the redemptive power of a romanticized Native mysticism. This brilliantly researched ethnohistory is a cautionary tale of how non-Indians came to view Hopis like Atlas, holding the world on their shoulders. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers through faculty; professionals. —J. H. Rubin, emeritus, University of Saint Joseph

This biography of Mitchell, who has been virtually forgotten by history, is essential reading for scholars to understand the early days of the modern civil rights struggle.

—D. R. Jamieson, Ashland University

Knapp, John Morris. Carpetbagger in reverse: Arthur W. Mitchell, America’s first Black Democratic congressman. Alabama, 2024. 318p bibl index ISBN 9780817322151, $110.00; ISBN 9780817361754 pbk, $34.95; ISBN 9780817395353 ebook, contact publisher for price.

Arthur W. Mitchell (1883–1968), the first Black Democratic Congressman, served four terms in the House (c. 1935–43), leading the Black migration to the Democratic Party. Elected from Chicago, he fought racism, advocating for civil rights and an end to lynching. Mitchell was born to former slaves in Alabama and fled north during the Great Migration, yet later encouraged Black people to stay in or return to the South to own land and improve their social position. A strong supporter of FDR and the New Deal, he was vilified for not attending to the needs of his Chicago constituency as he labored to create substantive change at the national level. While traveling by train, a conductor refused to allow him to use his first-class Pullman coach ticket. He sued the railroad, ultimately winning—Mitchell v. United States (1941)—using the commerce clause rather than the 14th amendment, which set the stage for the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision. This biography of Mitchell, who has been virtually forgotten by history, is essential reading for scholars to understand the early days of the modern civil rights struggle. Unfortunately, it is too narrow for undergraduates or general readers. Summing Up: Essential. Graduate students and faculty. —D. R. Jamieson, Ashland University

This book is groundbreaking in studying the sociological aspects of epidemics.

—C. A. Sproles, University of Louisville

Ogilvie, Sheilagh. Controlling contagion: epidemics and institutions from the black death to Covid. Princeton, Princeton, 2025. 544p bibl index ISBN 9780691255569, $45.00; ISBN 9780691267418 ebook, contact publisher for price.

Ogilvie (Oxford Univ.) presents a unique analysis in the spread of contagions, examining epidemics from a sociological perspective. She focuses on six major societal institutions—“the market, the state, the community, religion, occupational association, and the family.” These institutions dictate how we respond to epidemics. Sometimes the institution responds positively, sometimes negatively. Often, the societal response to epidemics is deeply entwined with economic factors, such as the focus to reopen stores during the COVID pandemic. Ogilvie argues even though science and technology have offered proven ways to combat the spread of disease, these methods are often rejected. For example, during pandemics governments institute quarantines, promote cleanliness, and encourage vaccination. On the other hand, the same governments censor information concerning the disease. Whether certain methods are employed or not depends on the institutional framework. For example, even though vaccines are proven to prevent the spread of disease, this practice is rejected by certain institutions, such as entire families. This work identifies which institutional responses best stop the spread of contagion and how coordination of the various institutions affect the best mitigation of epidemics. This book is groundbreaking in studying the sociological aspects of epidemics. Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduates through professionals.—C. A. Sproles, University of Louisville

It captures the discussion of Congress’s power over Native lands through both Supreme Court precedent and statutory enactments, while never losing sight of the impact these changes had on tribal communities.

—G. Christensen, Stetson University College of Law

Richotte, Jr., Keith. The worst trickster story ever told: Native America, the Supreme Court, and the U.S. Constitution. Stanford, 2025. 296p bibl index ISBN 9781503641648, $30.00; ISBN 9781503641655 ebook, contact publisher for price.

The Worst Trickster Story Ever Told is the story of the federal government’s assumption of plenary power over Indian affairs. The text reflects Richotte’s training in both Indigenous studies and law, and could not have been written without drawing on substance and pedagogy from both disciplines. It is indispensable to scholars approaching the question of plenary power from both perspectives. Richotte (Univ. of Arizona) uses the literary and cultural device of the trickster to examine, explain, and then critique Congress’s assumption of control over Indian country. The text is separated into five chapters, which more or less follow a chronology of history and law. It captures the discussion of Congress’s power over Native lands through both Supreme Court precedent and statutory enactments, while never losing sight of the impact these changes had on tribal communities. Richotte both explains and critiques the underlying assumptions on which plenary power is based, ultimately relying on international law and the most recent Brackeen decision to suggest that now is the time to be honest about the origins of plenary power and rethink the relationship between tribal sovereigns and the federal government. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. —G. Christensen, Stetson University College of Law

Overall, this text is highly recommended for readers in the field of K–12 education, either in preservice or in-service status.

—G. Moreno, Northeastern Illinois University

School rethink 2.0: putting reinvention into practice, ed. by Frederick M. Hess, Michael B. Horn, and Juliet Squire. Harvard Education Press, 2025. 232p bibl index ISBN 9781682539408, $37.00.

School Rethink 2.0 offers a thoughtful and comprehensive analysis of approaches to updating traditional K–12 education. Comprising chapters from various authors, the text walks readers through various components affecting students, faculty and staff, administration, and the overall educational experience. From topics such as contemporary pedagogy (e.g., core curriculum, use of artificial intelligence in academic instruction), delivery models (e.g., homeschooling, micro-schools), students with diverse needs (e.g., special education, English language learners), and reconsideration of administrative roles (e.g., educational leadership beginning in the classroom), the authors provide a concise text focused on explanations of new approaches in education. Additionally, several chapters offer unique insight into how such shifts in educational paradigms advance the educational experience for all students and help position the American education system more competitively. While the text focuses on interrelated topics, the authors make a commendable effort to explain complex issues and jargon for a nominally knowledgeable general readership. Overall, this text is highly recommended for readers in the field of K–12 education, either in preservice or in-service status. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and professionals. —G. Moreno, Northeastern Illinois University

Learned, provocative, and in some ways groundbreaking, this book will matter to students studying post-Soviet elites and their lingering domination of the societies whose fabric they have damaged grievously.

—K. Tölölyan, emeritus, Wesleyan University

Shirinian, Tamar R. Survival of a perverse nation: morality and queer possibility in Armenia. Duke, 2024. 304p bibl index ISBN 9781478026877, $104.95; ISBN 9781478031116 pbk, $27.95; ISBN 9781478060109 ebook, contact publisher for price.

Shirinian (Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville) superbly performs two difficult tasks. First, she depicts the failures of governance by the predatory, oligarchical capitalism that emerged in the three decades of post-Soviet Armenian existence, 1988–2018. Simultaneously, she exposes and gently criticizes the victimized society for attributing much of its misery to a range of “Queer” dissident behaviors that transgressed against “proper” sexual and reproductive behavior, thereby implicitly challenging traditional norms. Shirinian astutely analyzes old myths that enshrine “natural” patriarchal norms. She displays impressive scholarship in Armenian studies, feminism, queer studies, and the critical analysis of capitalism. Though occasionally undercut by an overconfident deployment of Lacanian theory, the book valuably exposes how the brutal appropriation of communal wealth under predatory capitalism develops an “intricate relationship” with a mythic representation of national reproduction said to be threatened by forms of behavior that can be labeled “queer.” Learned, provocative, and in some ways groundbreaking, this book will matter to students studying post-Soviet elites and their lingering domination of the societies whose fabric they have damaged grievously. Equally, it is an inspiring and often persuasive analysis of forms of resistance to societies that represent resistance as sexually deviant, queer, or feminist. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty. —K. Tölölyan, emeritus, Wesleyan University

This book invites readers to think critically about environmental culture and activism.

—P. Venkateswaran, Nassau Community College

Stanley, Ben Jamieson. Precarious eating: narrating environmental harm in the Global South. Minnesota, 2024. 272p bibl index ISBN 9781517915797, $112.00; ISBN 9781517915803 pbk, $28.00; ISBN 9781452972121 ebook, contact publisher for price.

In the opening paragraph of Precarious Eating, readers are introduced to the egregious Farm Acts, passed in India in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, to establish the book’s central concern: the collusion between government and corporations to deprive farmers of remuneration for their labor, availability of non-GMO seeds, farmers’ unions, and food to sustain their bodies. Ironically, a progressive narrative of modernity does not explain the hungry bodies in a decolonized India or South Africa. Stanley (Univ. of Delaware) illustrates hunger and resistance in his analysis of consumption literature, such as Mahasweta Devi’s “Shishu” and Zoe Wicomb’s Playing in the Light. Fiction, film, and cookbooks, where protagonists and the subject matter are figures of nature—food, water, air, land, seeds, and topography—compel readers’ attention. Through his literary analysis, Stanley links the dynamic collusion of climate change, uneven globalization, apartheid, and gender oppression to sabotage the most vulnerable of those whose well-being may be sacrificed to capitalism. How can one be vegan without being complicit with an organic movement that is accessible only to the rich? How do people have culturally sensitive food practices without endangering climate? This book invites readers to think critically about environmental culture and activism. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers. —P. Venkateswaran, Nassau Community College

This reviewer was particularly impressed by Stepien’s application of interreligious thinking to reveal the continuing Christo-centric bias in Western scholarship.

—F. J. Hoffman, MCU IBSC

Stepien, Rafal K. Buddhism between religion and philosophy: Nāgārjuna and the ethics of emptiness. Oxford, 2024. 416p bibl index ISBN 9780197771303, $120.00; ISBN 9780197771334 ebook, contact publisher for price.

The author’s track record of research at famous universities around the world shows his global research prowess, and this book follows the success of his edited collection Buddhist Literature as Philosophy, Buddhist Philosophy as Literature (2020). In this volume, Stepien (Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria) demonstrates command over an enormous amount of material, and he often critiques the understandings of other scholars. For a Nagarjuna scholar going on a long trip, this volume could well be regarded as essential reading. This reviewer was particularly impressed by Stepien’s application of interreligious thinking to reveal the continuing Christo-centric bias in Western scholarship. Stepien holds that it is not the English language per se but the conceptual scheme embedded in it that causes confusion in interpreting Nagarjuna. Nagarjuna’s philosophy, as viewed in this volume, is inextricably religious (Buddhist) but not less promising as philosophy. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Graduate students through faculty. —F. J. Hoffman, MCU IBSC

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