Best of
Americana

1974

The Glory and the Dream: A Narrative History of America 1932-72


William Manchester - 1974
    It encompasses politics, military history, economics, the arts, science, fashion, fads, social change, sexual mores, communications, graffiti - everything and anything indigenous that can be captured in print.Masterfully compressing four crowded decades of our history, The Glory and the Dream relives the epic, significant, or just memorable events that befell the generation of Americans whose lives pivoted between the America before and the America after the Second World War. From the Great Depression through the second inauguration of Richard M. Nixon, Manchester breathes life into this great period of America's growth.

The Memory of Old Jack


Wendell Berry - 1974
    Bringing the earthiness of America's past to mind, The Memory of Old Jack conveys the truth and integrity of the land and the people who live from it. Through the eyes of one man can be seen the values Americans strive to recapture as we arrive at the next century."Few novelists treat both their characters and their readers with the kind of respect that Wendell Berry displays in this deeply moving account . . . The Memory of Old Jack is a slab of rich Americana." —The New York Times Book Review

Praise the Human Season


Don Robertson - 1974
    A love story about two septuagenarians on an auto trip.

The Gypsy's Curse


Harry Crews - 1974
    

Hard Scrabble: Observations on a Patch of Land


John Graves - 1974
    This text takes its title from the author's farm, Hard Scrabble where he lived and worked as a farmer and writer, since the 1950s.

The Sports Encyclopedia Baseball, 1996


David S. Neft - 1974
    This is probably the one reference book in the field that I use the most, and would recommend the most wholeheartedly.--Bill James.

How to Build and Furnish a Log Cabin: The Easy, Natural Way Using Only Hand Tools and the Woods Around You


W. Ben Hunt - 1974
    Ben Hunt's classic has earned a reputation as the authentic handbook since it was first published in 1939. Updated in 1974, it remains the only step-by-step guide to building log cabins and log furniture -- pioneer style.

The New York Head Shop and Museum


Audre Lorde - 1974
    Lorde's fouth book of poems (1974).

How Indians Use Wild Plants for Food, Medicine Crafts


Frances Densmore - 1974
    In this book those traditions are captured, providing a wealth of new material for those interested in natural food, natural cures, and native crafts.In separate sections describing the major areas of use, Miss Densmore, an ethnologist with the Smithsonian Institution, details the uses of nearly 200 plants with emphasis on wild plants and lesser-known uses. For those interested in natural foods she gives extensive coverage to the gathering and preparation of maple sugar and wild rice, as well as preparations for beverages from leaves and twigs of common plants, seasonings including mint and bearberry, the methods of preparing wild rice and corn, cultivated and wild vegetables, and wild fruits and berries. On Indian medicines she tells the basic methods of gathering plants and the basic surgical and medical methods. Then she gives a complete list of the plants with their botanical names, uses, parts used, preparation and administration, and other notes and references. Also covered are plants used as charms, plants used in natural dyes, and plants in the useful and decorative arts including uses for household items, toys, mats, twine, baskets, bows, and tools, with special emphasis on the uses of birch bark and cedar. This section will be especially useful for supplying new and unusual craft ideas. In addition, 36 plates show the many stages of plant gathering and preparation and many of the artistic uses. While a number of the plants discussed are native only to the Great Lakes region, many are found throughout a wide range.Those studying the Indians of the Great Lakes region, or those trying to get back to nature through understanding and using natural materials, will find much about the use of plants in all areas of community life. Because of Miss Densmore’s deep knowledge and clear presentation, her study remains a rich and useful source for learning about or using native foods, native cures, and native crafts.

The Wanderers


Richard Price - 1974
    The classic novel of 1950s New York by the author of Clockers and Samaritan

The Adventurer: The Fate of Adventure in the Western World


Paul Zweig - 1974
    The description for this book, The Adventurer: The Fate of Adventure in the Western World, will be forthcoming.