Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, December 26, 1993 TAG: 9312260113
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
By Barbara J. Logue. Lexington Books. $24.95.
In not so ancient history, birth control was illegal in America and that\ stance reflected the prevailing moral climate. A privileged few had access\ to information but they were few indeed. How times have changed! By analogy,\ Logue argues for Death Control. The time has come for a change in our attitude toward death and dying, she says, and the climate is ripe for a revolution. While the words "Death Control" have a certain chill, implying euthanasia or suicide, the author's intent is not nearly so restrictive. For most, control is more likely to mean advance directives, living wills and sensitive communication among patient, family and care-giver.
The time is probably right. Scarcely a week goes by without another exploit by Dr. Death himself, Jack Kevorkian. While his methods and quirky personality endear himself to few, still the issues he raises are as real and troublesome as the man himself. And those issues are ignored at our peril.
The book is complete in its coverage, setting forth both the pros and cons of the argument, statistics to bolster the affirmative and tales of misery to counteract the negative. There are ethical considerations, demographic data, cultural considerations, etc. The issues are heavy - heavy with possibilities, heavy with meaning and implications. Unfortunately, the prose is heavy, even leaden at times. The book may be aptly suited to an academic environment, read over a semester or for a dissertation. It is not, however, a book to be picked up and put down again casually.
The topic and time are right but "Last Rights" is not quite right.
- SIDNEY BARRITT JR.
The Traveler: An American Odyssey in the Himalayas.
Text by Eric Hansen. Photographs by Hugh Swift. Sierra Club Books. $25.
"The Traveler" is a beautiful book, but unlike many other books on\ travel, it is not all Shangri-La innocence and escape. Eric Hansen wrote the\ book as a tribute to the late Hugh Swift who went to South Vietnam in 1965 as a\ conscientious objector to teach English for two years. Afterwards he spent the\ rest of his adult life commuting between his home in the United States and the\ Himalayas. He was regarded as one of the great Himalayan travelers of our time.\ His photographs of the region have appeared in Smithsonian, National Geographic\ and Natural History magazines.
This book, however, is not a tribute to Swift's considerable knowledge of the Himalayas, or to his skill of artistry as a photographer. It was Swift's genuine love of the land, its culture and its people that moved Hansen. He, too, is a lover of that land of awesome beauty, and he skillfully draws the reader into the wonder and mystery of the place.
The book is finally a plea for intelligent and sensitive concern for an\ exquisite, fragile environment that is being loved to death by the thousands of\ travelers who covet the experience of walking the trails and climbing the\ heights. He quotes Swift: "We always destroy the places we love."
This is a book to savor and share, but more than that, it is a voice to\ heed.
- MARIE S. BEAN
Scarlet Angel.
By Elizabeth Palmer. St. Martin's. $19.95.
When a conservative and seemingly confirmed bachelor such as George\ Marchant impulsively marries, his friends and family react with understandable\ surprise and amazement. But when the new Mrs. Marchant, the former Camilla\ Vane, comes from Rome to Marchants, the family estate in rural England, her\ appearance and demeanor multiply the family's misgivings. Camilla Marchant is\ an exotic, beguiling women, replete with an air of mystery, who at once sets the complacent though complicated Marchants on edge.
Within a year occur a death, a suicide attempt and a destroyed marriage as\ Camilla, a "taker" in life, stalks her goals. The plot bubbles along with\ satisfying twists and turns that are dominated two memorable women - Camilla\ and her recently-widowed mother-in-law Sarah Marchant. These characters are\ remarkable as is Elizabeth Palmer's prose, frequently and deftly employing wry understatement. Already a best-seller in England, "Scarlet Angel" should captivate American audiences as well.
- HARRIET LITTLE
From So Simple a Beginning.
By Philip Whitfield. Macmillian. $40.
In this beautifully produced book, theories of evolution and natural selection are explained using lucid text, photographs, and graphics. The book's size and production values seem to point it toward the coffee table, but the book's subject and text require a more through examination than standard coffee table fare. If natural selection must be learned, this volume would, at least,\ make the task pleasant.
- LARRY SHIELD
\ Sidney Barritt is a Roanoke physician.\ Marie S. Bean is a Roanoke reviewer\ Harriet Little teaches at James River high school\ Larry Shield trains dogs and horses in Franklin County.
by CNB