A June Book Sense Pick: “This is one of the most important—and
readable—books written about the price of freedom in a democracy. Do
we want to pay for our freedom and security with our free speech Timely and
urgent, this is an essential book for citizens, politicians, and government
officials to read and embrace.” —Alicia Greene, Olsson’s Books
& Records, Washington, DC
Plain Secrets,
Joe Mackall, June 2007, cloth, $24.95, 978-0-8070-1064-8
Courting
Equality, Patricia A. Gozemba and Karen Kahn, cloth, May 2007,
$34.95, 978-0-80706620-1
Improper Bostonian, review in the May 30th-June 12th issue: “The
pictures of protests and rallies—both the pro and anti-forces swarming
with energy—make you feel like you’re witnessing a combination of
the American Revolution and a sizzling Red Sox game. Marginalized no more,
these gay couples (in both senses of the word) are photographed goin’
to the chapel, hugging kids, looking joyful, homey, even rather Hallmark mainstream—at
last.”
Widening
the Circle, Mara Sapon-Shevin, paperback original, March 2007, $14.00,
978-0-8070-3280-0
Teachers College Record, review in the May 4th issue: “There's
a disarming, almost folksy quality to this easy to read book, and you find
yourself getting stirred up by the common sense logic of how inclusion presents
an opportunity to students without disabilities to get to know, support, and
share experiences that will benefit them throughout their lives . . . We need
more books like this one.”
In the News:
Lambda Literary News:
Beacon Press in Boston is launching Queer Action/Queer Ideas, a trade series
that will actively address the interests and needs of the general LGBT reader.
The series is edited by Michael Bronski, and the first two books in the series
are Come Out and Win: Organizing Yourself, Your Community, and Your World
by activist leader Sue Hyde (of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force)
and Out Law: What LGBT Youth Should Know about Their Legal Rights by
award-winning journalist Lisa Keen (former executive editor of the Washington
Blade).
Just Released:
“They
Take Our Jobs!”, Aviva Chomsky, paperback original, July
2007, $14.00, 978-0-8070-4156-7
Print:
Tikkun, recommended book, May/June issue
ColorLines, review forthcoming
Coverage forthcoming in The Nation, Chronicle of Higher Education,
and Mother Jones
Publishers Weekly, review in the April 2nd issue: “Chomsky
presents an agile blend of the history of race and immigration in the U.S.
with current events.”
Blurbs:
“An indispensable guide to the current debate on immigration. If you
are at all uncertain about how to deal with anti-immigrant arguments, you
will find Chomsky’s book a perfect response. She makes her points with
clarity and uses unassailable evidence while offering constructive short-
and long-term solutions.” —Howard Zinn, author of You Can’t
Be Neutral on a Moving Train
“You’ve heard it all before: Immigrants take away jobs from Americans.
They drive down wages, don’t pay taxes and yet benefit from public services.
But as Chomsky demonstrates, these are all myths, if not outright lies. She
not only demolishes virtually every myth about immigrants and immigration
to the U.S., she offers policymakers and activists solutions for tackling
many of the issues created by globalization and an immigration policy grounded
in falsehoods, and in so doing destroys the greatest myth of all: that nothing
can be done.” —Robin D. G. Kelley, author of Freedom Dreams:
The Black Radical Imagination
“Finally, a concise and comprehensive breakdown of the most prevalent
misconceptions about immigration. Avi Chomsky provides not only practical
ammunition for the pundit wars, but also real thinking about the intersection
of migration and the history of race and rights in the U.S. It’s the
definitive field guide to today’s immigration debate.” —Tram
Nguyen, executive editor of Colorlines magazine and author of We Are All
Suspects Now
Author Appearances:
Feed Your Head Books (Salem, MA), Saturday, July 14th at 2 p.m.
Unitarian Universalist Church of Great Lynn, Friday, September 14th at
7:30 p.m.
Odyssey BookShop (South Hadley, MA), Thursday, September 20th at 7 p.m.
Cornerstone Books (Salem, MA), Saturday, September 22nd, time TBD
The Bookstore of Gloucester, Thursday, September 27th at 7 p.m.
Jamaica Plain Forum (Boston, MA), First Church, October 4th at 7 p.m.
Advertising:
The Nation, July/August
The Progressive, August
Dissent Magazine, summer issue
NACLA: North American Congress on Latin America, Sep/Oct issue
Labor: Studies in Working Class Histories of the Americas, summer
issue
Awards and Honors:
AAUP Best of the Best Program: Titles chosen are presented annually
at the Summer ALA. Public and secondary school librarians present their favorite
picks form the new edition of the University Press Books Selected for Public
and Secondary School Libraries to an audience of their colleagues. This year,
two Beacon titles will be highlighted:
“Not graphic or preachy, this book belongs in any high school that
has students struggling with issues of identity and gender!” —Terri
Lent (AASL), Patrick Henry High School, Ashland, VA
“Jennings, founder of GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Educational
Network, recounts his experiences with bigotry, fear, strength and inspiration
within his immediate family, among school peers and in society in general.
This work is an engaging account of a boy conflicted who goes on to lend vital
support to other young people across the country.” —Carla Bauman-Franks
(PLA), Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, IN
“Through her meticulous research and an engaging narrative, Pybus
provides a superb collective biography of those slaves during the American
Revolution who dared to pursue their dreams of freedom. This book would be
an appropriate addition to either African-American History or Revolutionary
War collections.” —Clark E. Heath (AASL) Southfield Lathrup High
School, Lathrup Village, MI
“This book shines because of Ms. Cassandra Pybus’s stellar research.
Her description of the upheaval surrounding the American Revolution is sound
. . . Cassandra Pybus’s book adds much needed historical documentation
to a group of people who have largely been forgotten by history. Every school
and public library should own a copy of this book.” —Christina Maria
Beaird (PLA), Plainfield Public Library District, Plainfield, IL
Beacon Press is a department of the