A few additional books on early American History

This post could also be labeled as “books that did not make it into the display case” for the “Celebrate American Independence” display we are currently presenting. If you have an interest in the politics of the early days after the United States gained its independence or just the period in general, then some of these may be of interest. The books, unless otherwise noted, are located in the library’s third floor General Stacks. I have listed them in call number order.

• Kenneth C. Davis, America’s Hidden History: Untold Tales of the First Pilgrims, Fighting Women, and Forgotten Founders Who Shaped a Nation. Davis, the best-selling author of works like Don’t Know Much About History, returns with a collection of tales about little-known people and overlooked historical episodes that helped shape the American nation.  For instance, find out who the real first Pilgrims to America were (and they were not British). E 178 .D26 2008 (this one is located in the second floor’s Bestseller Collection).
• Nancy L. Rhoden and Ian K. Steele, eds., The Human Tradition in the American Revolution. This collection of essays looks at the American Revolution from various points of view by looking at 19 lives of patriots, neutrals, and loyalists. E 206 .H88 2000.
• Don Higginbotham, Daniel Morgan: Revolutionary Rifleman. Morgan was illiterate, uncultivated, and contentious,  but he was also a resourceful frontiersman who went on to be a great tactician and leader. This is a story of a man rising from humble origins to become a hero. E 207 .M8 H5 1979.
• Gordon S. Wood, The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin. This is a selective biography of Benjamin Franklin that looks at how Franklin became an American.  E 302 .F8 W 84 2004.
• Joanne B. Freeman, Affairs of Honor: National Politics in the New Republic. This book gives readers a look at the very tumultuous politics of early America, a time when if you had differences with a political opponent, you called them out to a duel. Read about men like Jefferson, Hamilton, and Burr. Some of the narrative may seem relevant today when you read how gossip and rhetoric were used as weapons of political combat. E 310 .F85 2002.
• James Roger Sharp, American Politics in the Early Republic. Sharp argues that the rise of the nation was not as harmonious as most people think. It was contentious, and the animosity between Federalists and Republicans almost led to the nation falling apart. E 310 .S48 1993.

Library Features Display Celebrating U.S. Independence

Signing of Declaration of Independence

The Robert R. Muntz Library is featuring a library display to “Celebrate American Independence.” This coming Saturday is the 4th of July holiday commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence. We have chosen to create a month-long display of books about the Declaration of Independence, the Revolutionary War, and Early American history. Come visit the library and see the display in the third floor display cases.

Like all our displays, this one is open and free to the public. It is viewable during library regular hours.

We have placed the following books in the display case along with other materials, including the text of the Declaration of Independence for our visitors to read.  All books are usually located in the library’s General Collection in the third floor, unless otherwise noted. The list is in call number order:

• Cokie Roberts, Founding Mothers: the Women Who Raised Our Nation. This one is part of the Bestseller Collection, located in the second floor Reading Room. E 176 .R63.
• Ray Raphael, A People’s History of the American Revolution. E 208 .R25 2002.
• Gordon S. Wood, The Radicalism of the American Revolution. E 209 .W65 1993.
• Christopher Hibbert, Redcoats and Rebels: the American Revolution through British Eyes. E 230 .H31 2002. A look at the war from the British perspective.
• H.T. Dickinson, Britain and the American Revolution. E 249.3 .B69 1998.
• Charles Royster, A Revolutionary People at War: the Continental Army and American Character, 1775-1783. E 259 .R69 1996
• Sylvia R. Frey, Water from the Rock: Black Resistance in a Revolutionary Age. A look at Blacks in the war. E 269 .N3 F74 1992.
• Thomas Jefferson, The Portable Thomas Jefferson. A small collection of his major writings, including the Declaration of Independence. E 302 .J442 1975.
• Bernard Bailyn, To Begin the World Anew: the Genius and Ambiguities of the American Founders. E 302.1 B16 2004.
• Edward G. Lengel, General George Washington: a Military Life.  E 312.25 .L46 2005.
• David McCullough, John Adams. The biography by the prominent historian who has also written about Harry Truman. E 322 .M38 2001.
• Ralph Ketcham, James Madison: a Biography. E 342 .K46 1990.
• Rand McNally Atlas of the American Revolution. This atlas is usually found in the Reference Collection, 2nd Floor. REF G 1201 .S3 N4 1974.
• The Federalist Papers. The writings of Madison, Jay, and Hamilton in support of the U.S. Constitution. JK 154 1966.

Except for the reference book above, all these books are available to be checked out. If you look them up in the catalog, and they show as checked out, they are “checked out” to our display case. Just let us know at the reference desk, and we will be happy to open the case so you can take the book and read it. We really want people to read our books, which is why we display them. As for the reference book, if you really want to check it out, let us know. We can probably work something out.

I would like to remind our readers that if they have any questions on this or other topics, they can visit our reference desk, or visit the library’s website to access our resources. You can also find complete contact information in our website so you can call us, e-mail us, or chat with a librarian.

Learn More About Canada Day

Flag of Canada

July 1st is the Canada’s National Holiday, Canada Day. Formerly known as Dominion Day, this holiday celebrates the anniversary of the British North America Act, also known as the Constitution Act, enacted on July 1, 1867. The act is a major part of the Canadian Constitution, and at the time united Canada as a single country of four provinces. There are organized celebrations in and out of Canada. Many Canadians in the United States will gather to observe the holiday as well on or near this date.

Here are some links so you can learn more about the holiday and the nation of Canada:

• Here are some basics about Canada from the CIA World Factbook.
• If you wish to travel to Canada, here is some travel information about Canada, via the U.S. Department of State.
• Learn about the history of Canada Day in this series from the CBC.
• And here is the official portal page of the Canadian Government.

I would like to remind our readers that if they have any questions on this or other topics, they can visit our reference desk, or visit the library’s website to access our resources. You can also find complete contact information in our website so you can call us, e-mail us, or chat with a librarian.

Learn More About the Honduran Coup

Flag of Honduras

There has been a coup d’etat in Honduras. With some of the recent news of celebrity deaths, this political event may have gotten lost in the shuffle. However, if you wish to learn more, here are some sources:

• The University Libraries of the University of Colorado at Boulder have an excellent guide to Honduras as part of their Foreign Information series. There are great links to geographical, cultural, political, and even statistical sources. Please note that some of the information sources here are in Spanish.
• Here is the direct link to the Honduras page on the CIA World Factbook. This is always very good source of accurate information on countries. In fact, we have featured the CIA World Factbook as a Reference Book of the Week in this blog.

We would also like to point our users to the following Robert R. Muntz Library Resources:

• Our Research Guide on Political Science. This will lead you to links to our databases that you can use to find articles on Honduras and related topics, as well as other links of interest. Do note that for databases, you have to be affiliated to the university (faculty, student, staff) to use them.
• The Global Road Warrior is one of our recent database additions. It was featured on this blog here. This subscription-based database provides information for 175 topics on a variety of subjects.

As always, if you have any questions on this or other topics, feel free to visit our reference desk, or visit the library’s website to access our resources. You can also find complete contact information in our website so you can call us, e-mail us, or chat with a librarian.

Reference Book of the Week: Encyclopedia of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender History in America

Welcome to another edition of Reference Book of the Week. We continue honoring LGBT Pride Month with another selection from our reference collection. This week we are featuring the three volume set Encyclopedia of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender History in America. This excellent work covers more than 500 entries and looks at more than 400 years of historical developments. LGBT history and culture are dynamic. The scholarship in this reference book reflects how thinking on LGBT issues, nature, identities, culture, and history has changed over time. The work focuses on the United States, including the colonial era. There are other works that focus on the rest of the world; this one provides more in-depth focus on the United States. Some of the subjects covered include people, politics, arts, academic disciplines, identities, communities and cultures, geography, law and public policy, civil rights, economics and labor, sex and sexuality, religion and spirituality.

The encyclopedia is designed for the general reader as well as the scholar wishing to start research on LGBT topics in the U.S. You can find a list of entry terms in the first volume. The first volume also features a chronology of events with cross-references to entries in the work. Entries are organized alphabetically, and they include bibliographical references as well as suggested terms for further research. This is a useful feature for readers who wish to do further research on a particular topic. Bibliographical reference can give you other works to consider while the suggested terms (labeled as “see also”) can give you terms you can use on a database as well as look up in the encyclopedia. At the end of the third volume, there is a directory of LGBT libraries and archives in the United States and Canada. There is also a comprehensive index at the end of the third volume and a directory of contributors.

The reviews have been positive on this work. In 2004, Booklist said of this reference work that it is “an exceptional work that should be useful for academic and public libraries. General readers, students, researchers, and members of the LGBT communities alike will find this to be a most welcome resource.” Library Journal said that “this invaluable work isn’t just a fascinating read; it goes a long way toward alleviating the dearth of basic resources in the burgeoning field of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender studies.”

Thus we have chosen the Encyclopedia of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender History in America as our Reference Book of the Week.

Reference Book of the Week: The Dictionary of Homophobia

Welcome to this week’s edition of Reference Book of the Week at The Patriot Spot. June is Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month. Let me take a moment to remind readers to please visit our display in the library, which can be viewed throughout the month of June in the third floor.

In honor of the observance, we are featuring a work of LGBT History. Our reference book this week is The Dictionary of Homophobia: A Global History of Gay and Lesbian Experience by Louis-Georges Tin. Professor Tin has published several books on sexuality and works at the University of Orleans in France. Professor Tin is also an activist recognized for his work by several humanitarian awards.

Originally published in France in 2003 as Dictionnaire de l’homophobie, this work is now available in an English translation. The original edition, though in French, received excellent reviews from various countries including Japan, Italy, Brazil and the United States. In fact, in 2003, the Lambda Book Report in its April 2003 issue reviewed the French edition, reaching the following conclusion: “But the book’s international scope and acuity make it an invaluable addition to the bookshelf of every reader of French, until some smart American press decides to have it translated.” Well, actually, Marek Redburn, a resident of Montreal completed the translation in 2008, which was published by Canadian publishing house Arsenal Pulp Press.

The Dictionary of Homophobia is the result of “the work of seventy-six esteemed researchers in fifteen countries, the goal of which was to document the social, political, medical, legal, and criminal treatment of homosexuals throughout history to present-day” (from the Publisher’s Note). The volume includes over 160 entries covering various aspects of gay rights and homophobia. While the book was originally published in French, it does provide excellent coverage of LGBT issues around the world. I do mention the French origin because some of the essays in the book do have a specific focus on French persons, events, and circumstances. The book is designed to provide an overview of the problematics associated with homophobia.

Articles in the book are arranged in alphabetical order, and they fall within these broad categories. Here are some examples of topics:

• Theory: communism, feminism, multiculturalism, otherness.
• History: Ancient Greece, ghetto.
• Countries and regions: the Balkans, Japan, Portugal, North America (including the United States).
• Environments and institutions: workplace, family, marriage, military.
• Rhetorical themes: rhetoric, censorship.

This is a very accessible work with features that are useful to readers. For instance, all entries include keywords at the end. Keywords can be useful because they provide ideas for further research on a topic. You could read an article in this book, make a note of some keywords, then type them into a research database to find further information on your topic. In addition, when you see a word in bold in an article, it means that word or concept has its own entry in the dictionary.

I will end quoting from the review I linked above, “leave it to the French to offer us some timely information about homophobia — what it is, where it comes from and how to think about it.” That, in essence, is that what this book does: it looks at the experience of homophobia around the world and provides a tool of education and research.

Some additional reading for LGBT Pride Month 2009

I was fortunate that I had a good number of books on LGBT issues to place in our display cases on the third floor of the library. There were some books I was not able to put in the case, but that I think are important as well. The list includes a couple of books on the gay military experience among others. So, I am listing them in this post. All books are located in the library’s General Collection stacks in the library’s third floor. As always, if you need any assistance locating any material on this or any other topic, feel free to visit us at the Reference Desk or contact us. Our full contact information is on our library’s website (http://library.uttyler.edu). You can also access our various resources via our website.

The list that did not make it into the display case this time around but are still very cool (books are listed in call number order):

• Allan Bérubé, Coming Out Under Fire: The History of Gay Men and Women in World War Two. D 769.2 .B46 1990.
• Brooke Kroeger, Passing: When People Can’t Be Who They Are. HM 1068 .K76 2003. This one is not only for LGBT people. In our society, many people “pass” in one way or another: Blacks for Whites, gays for straights, so on. If you wish to learn more about this author, Brooke Kroeger has her own website here.
• Russell Leong, ed., Asian American Sexualities: Dimensions of the Gay and Lesbian Experience. HQ 76.2 .U5 A75 1996. This book looks at the the connections between the LGBT experience, the Asian American movement, and Asian American studies.
• Gerald P. Mallon, Gay Men Choosing Parenthood. HQ 76.2 .U5 M313 2004.
• Ritch C. Savin-Williams, The New Gay Teenager. HQ 76.25 .S 395 2005. This book won the Distinguished Book Award from the American Psychological Association in 2005. This is a very good look at teenagers and sexuality, and Professor Savin-Williams concludes that “teenagers may think a lot about sex, but they don’t think that sexuality is the most important thing about them. And adults, he advises, shouldn’t think so either” (from the publisher’s description).
• Samuel R. Delany, Times Square Red Times Square Blue. HQ 146  .N7 D45 1999. Professor Delany is widely known for his science fiction in works such as Babel-17 and The Einstein Intersection, both winners of the Nebula Award. In this memoir, Delany looks at Times Square, discussing changes in social and sexual interactions. Personally, I was fortunate to meet him when I was a presenter at the Science Fiction Research Association’s Annual Conference some years ago while in graduate school.
• David K. Johnson, The Lavender Scare: The Cold War Persecution of Gays and Lesbians in the Federal Government. JK 723 .H6 J64 2004.
• Steve Estes, Ask & Tell: Gay and Lesbian Veterans Speak Out. UB 418 .G38 E77 2007. This is one of our newest acquisitions in LGBT studies and military history. The book draws on more than 50 interviews with gay and lesbian veterans telling about their experiences. “These veteran voices–harrowing, heroic, and on the record–reveal the extraordinary stories of ordinary Americans, men and women who simply did their duty and served their country in the face of homophobia, prejudice, and enemy fire. Far from undermining national security, unit cohesion, or troop morale, Estes demonstrates, these veterans strengthened the U.S. military in times of war and peace” (from the publisher’s description).

ATTENTION: Off Campus Access to Library Resources has CHANGED

Effective this Summer I semester, the Library will be migrating the remote, OFF CAMPUS login to our databases to the Patriot Account Login.  This is the same account that is utilized for the new Blackboard version 8, POPS, Patriot Air, Patriot Email (students), Patriot Webspace, the computers in the Campus Computing Center in BUS101, the Library,  the Communications Lab, the Technology Lab, the Nursing Lab, and the Engineering Labs.

In addition to providing a uniform means of authentication across these numerous services, this change will allow the Library to more promptly provide access for our faculty, staff and students to our databases at the start of each semester.

We apologize in advance for any inconveniences this change may cause.

Every student, faculty member and staff member has been provided a Patriot Account.  Your Patriot Account can be activated from either the Blackboard link (http://ccs.uttyler.edu/blackboard/) or the student email link (http://ccs.uttyler.edu/email/) found at the bottom of the UT Tyler homepage.

Additional assistance is available from the Campus Computing Center located in BUS101 or via email at itsupport@patriots.uttyler.edu.

Learn more about Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor

President Obama has nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. She would be the first Latina woman to the court should she be confirmed. There is a lot of interest in Judge Sotomayor, so I have rounded up a few sources that can help readers learn more about the judge.

• The Law Library of the Library of Congress has put together a selective bibliography Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. There are a lot of good links here.
• When a judge is nominated to a federal bench, whether it be a district court or the Supreme Court, they have to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary has all nominees fill out a questionnaire. Here is that questionnaire, so you can see the actual questions. This link includes Sotomayor’s answers.
• The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has issued report on Sonia Sotomayor. (link to press release; link to the full report. Note the full report is 88 pages in PDF). This report is fairly comprehensive and looks at the judge’s record on civil rights issues such as racial justice, voting rights, women’s rights, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion.
• The Alliance for Justice has issued what it labels as an in-depth report of Sonia Sotomayor’s record. The report’s title is “Access to Justice.” Link to the AFJ’s press release here. Direct link to the report itself here (Note: PDF file; the report is 14 pages). This report is part of a series of reports that AFJ is providing. This particular one covers the following:  “access to justice issues encompass a number of procedural questions including justiciability, preemption, court-stripping, sovereign immunity, attorneys’ fees, interpretation of statutes of limitation and class-action certification. The report examines Judge Sotomayor’s record in each of these key areas and is based on her record both as a district and appeals court judge.” If you visit the website, you can find other reports. AFJ is a public interest group, and it describes itself as “a national association of environmental, civil rights, mental health, women’s, children’s, and consumer advocacy organizations.”

Note that you can also do your own research on Sonia Sotomayor with the databases Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe and Campus Research (Westlaw). Both of these are available in the library’s homepage on the databases page here. These two databases are susbcription-based resources, and you do have to be affliliated with the university to use them.

If you need assistance for using the databases, or with any other research needs, you can visit our reference desk. You can also contact us via the  phone (903-566-7343), via email (library AT uttyler DOT edu), or use the UT System Ask a Librarian.

Some information on car dealer closings

There has been a lot of coverage in the news about the bankruptcies of major American automakers. One of the issues is auto dealers losing their franchise from GM or Chrysler as the two big auto companies attempt to restructure. The corporate websites do have some information on the companies’ plans to restructure. Here are some additional pieces of information about the auto dealerships which may be of interest.

• The official website of the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA). According to the website, NADA was “founded in 1917, represents more than 19,700 new car and truck dealers, both domestic and international, with more than 43,000 separate franchises.” NADA provides lobbying for the automobile dealer industry as well as research for the industry and various programs for dealers. They do offer membership for auto dealers, but the site does have a good wealth of information free to the public.
• Intellichoice offers a small article on “How does a dealership work?” The article provides a small overview of how exactly does an auto dealership work from the moment you enter the lot to how dealer financing works. You get a simple explanation of what each department in a dealership does. This comes from the Intellichoice website, which is a consumer resource for researching cars. If you are considering a car purchase, you can research a vehicle on this site. The site also features articles on topics related to car buying such as a survey of hybrid vehicles and information on car financing and insurance.
• The Atlanta Journal-Constitution featured an article recently with a good Q&A on why the car companies need to cut ties with dealerships. The article’s title is “Meltdown 101: Why GM, Chrysler Want Fewer Dealers” by Bree Fowler. Note that newspaper links to specific articles can expire. If you try the link, and it does not work, let us know. We can often get the article from one of our electronic databases.
• And if you are buying a car, but you are worried that your dealership may be closing, Consumer Reports has some advice. The post’s title is “What you need to know about car dealership closures.” Unlike the newspaper article above, this article deals with what the consumer needs to keep in mind when buying a car (or getting service for a car) from a dealership. Consumer Reports also has a fairly comprehensive section on their website with good information on the “Chrysler and GM Restructuring: How it affects you.” There are some very good FAQ’s here for the public. Overall, although the Consumer Reports magazine is not freely available in the website, the website still has a lot of free information for the public.

These are just some places to get you started if you want to learn more about this issue. As always, if you have any additional questions, feel free to visit our library or visit the library’s website. You can also contact the library reference desk at 903-566-7343 or via e-mail at library AT uttyler DOT edu (just replace with the appropriate symbols).