Synopsis
An encyclopedia of geographical features in the Americas and Europe (west of the Ural Mountains) with historical and cultural significance. Entries contain geological, geographical, and historical information, plus cross-references and b&w photos. Some entries discuss myths and legends surrounding particular geographical features, and deal with environmental issues. Includes b&w maps. For students of geology, geography, and history. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.
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About the Author
James Penn
James R. Penn 's an ass'stant professor of geography and anthropology at Southeastern Lou's'ana Un'vers'ty.
Reviews
This fascinating work is a reflection on the history of geographical features that have significantly influenced human life. The author, an assistant professor of geography and anthropology at Southeastern Louisiana University, treats the geography of North, South, and Central America, and all of Europe, including parts of Russia west of the Ural Mountains. He does not include towns, cities, counties, duchies, principalities, states, or countries as primary entries (this is not a gazetteer or a geographical dictionary), and only treats those battlefields where water or terrain was significant to the outcome of the battle.
The 166 A^-Z entries focus on the land or water area and its geological, geographical, and human history. Some entries, such as Atlantic Ocean, legendary islands of, and Hy-Brazil (an imaginary island off the coast of Ireland), deal with mythological places; others, such as Hadrian's Wall and Mason Dixon Line, discuss features that are man-made. Among the other locations covered are the Alpine passes, the Black Forest, Cape Horn, the Galapagos islands, the Mexican plateau, Salisbury Plain, the Ukrainian steppe, and the Zuider Zee.
The volume makes good use of cross-references. Most entries end with a suggestion or two for further reading; because a number of these are quite old, they will be hard to find in the average public and high-school library. The introduction defines most of the common geographical terms used in the entries (fjord, massif, etc.). Entries are generally 200^-1,800 words long. There are black-and-white photographs liberally placed throughout, none larger than one third of the page. The bibliography lists the titles cited in the further reading lists, divided into general and reference works, and regional studies. The index is thorough and accurate, listing names, books, and concepts discussed in the entries, introduction, and preface. The writing is as entertaining as it is informative, and approaches geography from a unique perspective. Historians will be delighted to have this in their personal libraries. It is recommended for high-school, public, and college libraries.Gale has added two more CD-ROMs to its DISCovering program, enabling users to delve into various aspects of the study of fiction. The works include titles and authors studied in high-school and college literature courses, with a few appropriate to the middle-school curriculum. Exploring Novels focuses on 60 novels, including The Bell Jar, The Color Purple, The Joy Luck Club, The Heart of Darkness, and Wuthering Heights. Among the 100 stories examined in Exploring Short Stories are works by Toni Cade Bambara, John Cheever, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Bobbie Ann Mason, and Edgar Allan Poe. Users can easily access plot summaries, author biographies, characters, and essays on theme, style, and historical context. Much of the text is from Gale's print editions. Each CD-ROM contains an encyclopedia of literary terms and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th edition, each of which is completely searchable.
Navigation in each program is user-friendly, with hyperlinks to different sections and the reference works, and on-screen access to previous screens, occurrences of the highlighted keyword searched, the main menu, and a search history. A split-screen allows the student to see the text, multimedia icons, and a list of related articles at all times. User options from the main menu include full-text keyword searching, title, author, character, literary encyclopedia, and a time line that covers historical and literary events (1660^-1997 for Novels, 1776^-1997 for Short Stories). Custom searching is also available, but users can access the material more easily from any of the other options. From any screen, users can find information on plot summaries; brief biographies and comparisons of characters with their relation to the plot; essays on themes/subjects, style, and historical context; and additional resources which include information from Gale's What Do I Read Next? In addition, Exploring Novels includes previously published literary criticism.
Multimedia features include sound, video, and illustrations or photographs. These can be searched through the Multimedia Gallery or identified by icons on the text screen. Exploring Novels contains 11 video excerpts from documentaries, author interviews, or re-enactments; 166 pictures; and 18 readings of scenes from several works. Exploring Short Stories has 12 videos excerpted from Films for the Humanities presentations, 160 pictures, and 31 excerpts read aloud with on-screen text.
Documentation is plentiful and includes teacher's guides with sample lessons in hard copy and on the CDs, user's guides for technical information, and a help card with searching tips to place next to the computer. The full programs are available on a 30-day preview, but the print and save features are disabled.
Each program is geared to curricula in English but can also be used in other subject areas, and with any curriculum that includes literature-based interdisciplinary units. High-school, public, and academic libraries that have the print editions of Gale's literary titles might want the electronic versions as an additional resource. Those libraries that do not have the print version will certainly want these.
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Encyclopedia of Geographical Features in World History: Europe and the Americas
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Hardcover. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0874367603I3N00