Alum Authors 2022
The 2022 Alumnae/i Authors Event will take place on Friday, May 27 at 3:00 pm. Books will be on display throughout the weekend in the bookshop, and may be purchased in store or on this website.
Can College Level the Playing Field?
by Sandy Baum BMC '72
Why higher education is not a silver bullet for eradicating economic inequality and social injustice
We often think that a college degree will open doors to opportunity regardless of one's background or upbringing. In this eye-opening book, two of today's leading economists argue that higher education alone cannot overcome the lasting effects of inequality that continue to plague us, and offer sensible solutions for building a more just and equitable society. Sandy Baum and Michael McPherson document the starkly different educational and social environments in which children of different races and economic backgrounds grow up, and explain why social equity requires sustained efforts to provide the broadest possible access to high-quality early childhood and K-12 education. They dismiss panaceas like eliminating college tuition and replacing the classroom experience with online education, revealing why they fail to provide better education for those who need it most, and discuss how wages in our dysfunctional labor market are sharply skewed toward the highly educated. Baum and McPherson argue that greater investment in the postsecondary institutions that educate most low-income and marginalized students will have a bigger impact than just getting more students from these backgrounds into the most prestigious colleges and universities. While the need for reform extends far beyond our colleges and universities, there is much that both academic and government leaders can do to mitigate the worst consequences of America's deeply seated inequalities. This book shows how we can address the root causes of social injustice and level the playing field for students and families before, during, and after college.#Actuallyautistic Guide to Advocacy
by Jennifer Brunton BMC '92
The #ActuallyAutistic Guide to Advocacy takes an in-depth look at the key elements of effective, respectful, inclusive advocacy and allyship. Every topic was chosen, shaped, and informed by #ActuallyAutistic perspectives.
The step-by-step guide discusses various aspects of how autism is perceived, explores how best to speak up for individual needs, and introduces advocacy for the wider autistic community. Each step outlines one vital aspect of advocacy and allyship, such as emphasizing acceptance, avoiding assumptions and assuming competence. The advice and strategies laid out in this guide center the wisdom and experiences of Autistic people and enable the reader to confidently speak up with insight and understanding.Knowing is a Branching Trail
by Alison Hicks BMC '82
Knowing Is a Branching Trail is a poetic investigation of the many ways in which we know and come to understanding. In this collection of poetry, selected winner of the 2021 Birdy Poetry Prize, by Meadowlark Press, the poems engage with the work of thinkers and artists, from Charles Darwin and Samuel Beckett to Margaret Atwood and the anonymous paints of the Lascaux caves.
Themes range from pandemic and illness, childhood and parenting, observing and engaging with the natural world, and creating art. Poems in the book have previously appeared in Poet Lore, Blood Orange Review, Green Hills Literary Lantern, and Vox Poetica, and other journals.
In this book, we witness an artist's pause, an extraction of poetry from the ordinary beat of life.
You Who Took the Boat Out
by Alison Hicks BMC '82
Primary Politics
by Elaine Kamarck BMC '72
The 2020 presidential primaries are on the horizon and this third edition of Elaine Kamarck's Primary Politics will be there to help make sense of them. Updated to include the 2016 election, it will once again be the guide to understanding the modern nominating system that gave the American electorate a choice between Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton.
In Primary Politics, political insider Elaine Kamarck explains how the presidential nomination process became the often baffling system we have today, including the "robot rule." Her focus is the largely untold story of how presidential candidates since the early 1970s have sought to alter the rules in their favor and how their failures and successes have led to even more change. She describes how candidates have sought to manipulate the sequencing of primaries to their advantage and how Iowa and New Hampshire came to dominate the system. She analyzes the rules that are used to translate votes into delegates, paying special attention to the Democrats' twenty-year fight over proportional representation and some of its arcana.
Drawing on meticulous research, interviews with key figures in both parties, and years of experience, this book explores one of the most important questions in American politics--how we narrow the list of presidential candidates every four years.
Don't Say a Word
by Elizabeth Marcus BMC '67
Edna and Leo, a perpetually warring, tyrannical pair in their 80s, begin wintering In Mexico, where they abandon their usual prudence to embrace adventure and a bevy of sketchy new friends. Soon, Edna adopts a pair of shyster builders whom she trusts over her own architect-daughter Elizabeth, and a farcical house results. Blithely indifferent to the calamities that result, the pair refuse all help from their too-compliant only child. Later, following her mother's sudden death, Elizabeth's wise, principled father attempts to fill his late wife's shoes with a string of loopy, live-in housekeepers--with privileges, he hopes. Before it is over the Mexican escapade will bring down the kind of disasters commonly found in pulp fiction. Why can't Elizabeth stop any of this from happening? No matter the madness, she cannot confront her parents any more than she ever could. In the end, the surprising way in which they come undone reveals just what they spent their lives trying to hide, thereby setting her free. Though unique in its loony details, Don't Say A Word! will resonate with beleaguered adult-children everywhere who will recognize the special misery of watching, helpless, as stubborn, diminished parents careen precariously toward the end of life.
Between Persecution and Participation
by Penny Milbouer BMC '67
Life of Saint Eufrosine
by Amy Ogden BMC '92
Adapted from a Latin source, this saint's life dates to about 1200 CE. Devout yet erotic, lyrical yet didactic, it blends hagiography with romance and epic in order to engage and inspire a broad audience. The tale invites readers to rethink preconceived notions of the Middle Ages, the relation between spiritual and secular values, and ideas about the history of sexuality, identity, and family.
Only fragments of the poem have been previously translated. This edition includes the first full translation alongside the Old French original as well as a glossary and other supporting material.
Rebelwing
by Andrea Tang BMC '12
Adaptations
by Emily Pinkerton BMC '07
ADAPTATIONS is an exercise in envisioning the worst case scenario and asking, What next? It explores concepts of alienation and survival in a world that's largely inhospitable, and what it means to be human once traditional mechanisms of control and safety cease to exist.
Poetry.