Reviewed Elsewhere

Reviewed Elsewhere ADAMS, ABIGAIL AND LOUISA The Adams Women: Abigail and Louisa Adams, Their Sisters and Daughters. Paul C. Nagel. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 310. $19.95. Reviewed by Jan Lewis. The New York Times Book Review, October 25, 1987, p. 23. "In this worthy sequel to 'Descent From Glory,' his study of the Adams men, Paul C. Nagel again proves himself a shrewd psychologist and a gifted biographer, honing on what is unique to each of the many Adams women whose destinies he charts. He has his opinions, but prefers to allow his readers to appreciate the complexity of past lives and to wonder for themselves why it was that the experiences of these talented seemingly insightful women came so much to resemble the novels of betrayal and loss they read as cautionary tales." ALCOTT, LOUISA MAY The Selected Letters of Louisa May Alcott. Edited by Joel Myerson, Daniel Shealy, and Madeleine B. Stern. Boston: Little Brown, pp. 315. $24.95. Reviewed by Jonathan Kirsh. The Book Review, The Los Angeles Times, August 16, 1987, pp. 3, 10. "Alcott comes across as a distinctly modern figure, especially in terms of her conception of literature as a tool for celebrity and wealth." Reviewed by Barbara L. Packer. The New York Times Book Review, October 25, 1987, p. 45 "Alcott may have had, in the modest privacy of her heart, some longing for immortality , but she claimed only 'the inspiration of necessity.' Readers of this brave and vivid life in letters will find that inspiration enough." ALEIXANDRE, VICENTE Los cuadernos de Velintonia: Conversaciones con Vicente Aleixandre. Jose Luis Cano. Barcelona: Seix Barrai, 1986. pp. 285 160 biography Vol. 11,No. 2 Reviewed by Andrew P. Debicki. Hispanic Review, Autumn 1987, pp. 550-551. The volume consists mainly of notes taken after the author's meetings with Aleixandre at the latter's house between 1951 and 1984. The book offers many useful insights into Aleixandre, some of which are biographical: his loves and his attitudes toward them; his agnosticism; his efforts to maintain a liberal political stance in opposition to the Franco regime; his illnesses; his bouts of depression; his friendship and affection for his contemporaries, Dámaso Alonso, Rafael Alberti and Jorge Guillen. This book provides indispensable information to the critic, the teacher, and the student of contemporary Hispanic letters. ALVARADO, ELVIA Don't Be Afraid, Gringo: A Honduran Woman Speaks from the Heart. Translated and edited by Medea Benjamin. San Francisco: Institute for Food Development Policy, 1987. pp. 146. $9.95 paper. Reviewed by Linda A. Rabben. Women's Review of Books, vol. 5, no. 3, December 1987, pp. 23-24. "[E. A.'s] autobiography is so vivid and exciting that a reader's response can't help being hopeful. What statistics and surveys cannot do, the voice of one extraordinary woman can." BARNES, ALBERT C. The Devil and Dr. Barnes. Howard Greenfeld. New York: Viking, pp. 306. $19.95. Reviewed by Arthur C. Danto. The New York Times Book Review, November 22, 1987, pp. 13-14. "There could be no fairer portrait of this eccentric personage than Howard Greenfeld, the author of a number of books about artists and musicians, has given in this sympathetic and forebearing life. 'The Devil and Dr. Barnes' is in no sense an official biography , for Barnes's prickly and churlish personality is embodied in the institution he created . . . Mr. Greenfeld was not given access to its archives . . . [Nonetheless] it is a very satisfying book." BARTON,CLARA Clara Barton: Professional Angel. Elizabeth Brown Pryor. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, pp. 444. $24.95. Reviewed by Susan Reverby. The New York Times Book Review, October 11, 1987, p. 44. "Throughout, Ms. Pryor, the author of Clara Barton National Historic Site and presently a Foreign Service officer assigned to South Africa, writes with clarity and sympathy about Barton's foibles and problems, making even the most mundane organizational difficulties seem suspenseful." BEAUVOIR, SIMONE DE Simone de Beauvoir: A Life . . . A Love Story. Claude Francis and Fernande Gontier. Translated by Lisa Nesselson. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1987. pp. 412. $18.95 hardcover. Simone de Beauvoir. Judith Okeley. New York: Pantheon, 1986. pp. 175...