In addition to teaching and research, many Washington State University faculty make time to write books, and not just text books.
On average, one to two books are published every season (fall/winter and spring/summer) that WSU faculty have written, said Michael Pritiken, general books manager at the Bookie, which has a designated section featuring mostly non-textbooks written by WSU faculty, staff and alumni.
Two of the most popular faculty books among buyers are “Real People Don’t Own Monkeys,” by J. Veronika Kiklevich, an instructor in the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, and “Common Errors in English Usage,” by English professor Paul Brians.
Following is a list of those and other top-selling tomes at the Bookie that are penned by faculty and staff.
• “Real People Don’t Own Monkeys” looks into the world of veterinary medicine, animals and pet owners. It stories are heart wrenching, catastrophic or funny, everything from pet iguanas (and their owners) to a cat that needs to be microwaved.
This book is a compilation of the experiences of Kiklevich and her husband, Steven Austad, professor of zoology at the University of Idaho.
• “Common Errors in English Usage,” based on Brians’ website, http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors, is perfect for writers who need help and for those who love words. In addition to going beyond the basics found in the Associated Press Stylebook, this work is humorous and enjoyable.
• “Pathologist On Call,” by Harry Chinchinian, adjunct professor in the Pharmaceutical Sciences Department, is also a favorite of Pritiken. This is the second book in Chinchinian’s Pathology Mystery Series. It features his alter ego, Hank Whipple, who appeared earlier in “Pathologist in Peril.”
Chinchinian accompanies the novel with more than 30 of his own illustrations and the cover art.
Pritiken said, “I enjoy the down-to-earth way Harry writes, and how humble he is as a published author.”
• Author Lillian A. Ackerman, adjunct faculty member in the Anthropology Department, wrote “A Necessary Balance;” an account examining power and responsibility among men and women of the Columbia Plateau Indians.
• “Lipstick and Other Stories,” a 2002 American Book Award winner, was written by Alex Kuo, interim chair of the Comparative Ethnic Studies Department. It examines themes of repression, censorship, ideology, state terrorism and dissidence.
Pritiken encourages faculty and staff to let the Bookie know when they have a newly published book.
Signings set for new books
Two WSU professors will sign their new books locally and in Seattle in the next two months.
Mark Graham, assistant professor of art education, illustrated “Where is Little Reynard,” a children’s book by Joyce Carol Oates.
He will sign copies at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 6, at Ravenna Third Place Books, 6505 20th Ave. NE, Seattle; three hours before the home football game kickoff Saturday, Nov. 8, at the Bookie; and at noon Sunday, Nov. 9, at BookPeople in downtown Moscow.
Both the Seattle and Moscow signings will include a slide presentation.
Pamela Bettis, assistant professor in the College of Education, will sign copies of “Cheerleader! An American Icon,” at the Bookie three hours before home football game kickoff Saturday, Nov. 15, and at noon on Saturday, Dec. 6, at BookPeople in downtown Moscow.
Tracing the history of cheerleading from a male leadership activity, through the sexual era epitomized by the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, to its current incarnation as a physically demanding sport, the book is an in-depth look at the significance of school, leadership and peer groups among adolescent girls.
It explores how cheerleading represents the nation’s shifting beliefs about gender, sports, entertainment, race and national identity.
