The Orlando Sentinel from Orlando, Florida • Page 97

The Orlando Sentinel, Sunday, October 18, 1992 F-9 Huge wit in Doyle's novel 'Go All about numbers The novel has no plot to speak of the father's identity is speculated upon, Jimmy Sr. can't decide whether to be embarrassed by Sharon's situation, various Rabbittes have rows with friends and neighbors but Doyle's writing is so good the reader cares not a whit. The Snapper is about the mixed feelings and changing relationships generated in the Rabbitte household by Sharon's pregnancy, and Doyle, writing almost entirely in deadon, ribald Irish dialogue is spelled has captured them with enormous wit and good humor. Few novels depict parent-child relationships healthy relationships, no less better than this one, and few men, one suspects, could write more sensitively about pregnancy. FROM THE KINGFISHER CHILDREN'S ENCYCLOPEDIA The Snapper By Roddy Doyle Penguin, $10, 216 pages, paperback Reviewed by Chris Goodrich LOS ANGELES TIMES Roddy Doyle was virtually unknown in this country a year ago, before the release of the film based on his first novel, The Commitments.

He's still virtually unknown here, but his second book should change all that. The Snapper concerns the large Rabbitte family, headed by Jimmy and focuses on the pregnancy of Sharon Rabbitte (sister of Jimmy the manager of the soul band that starred in The Commitments) by a man she refuses to name. 1h CHRISTMAS GIFT Come check out this show Sr AAA fw.nffiiir IfffTnftffffl i il rei.m.in.'a'.iiirfiii'l?.'.,i'iwi.Mii,i'iM i Ji li sKjU1-' 1 im I III If came a buzzword, for example, author Thorstein Veblen, in his 1899 book The Theory of the Leisure Class, coined the term "conspicuous consumption." The term was used "to identify that ostentatious personal expenditure which satisfies no physical need but rather a psychological need for the esteem of others. Goods may be purchased not for their practical use but as 'status symbols' and to 'keep up with the About 150 new entries have been added to this fifth edition to account for the latest developments in economic theory, including industrial organization, game theory and welfare economics. In addition to economic terms, you'll also find selected entries on individual economists such as John Maynard Keynes, the 20th-century British economist who challenged the generally accepted idea that lowering interest rates and wages during a recession would automatically stimulate business investment and bring about great employment.

The entries are concise, thorough and contain extensive cross references. Earlier this year, when Notable Black American Women was published in hardcover, editor Jessie Carney Smith said she wanted the weighty, reference profiling 500 black women to be in as many homes as Alex Haley's Roots. Not surprisingly, public and academic libraries have been the biggest buyers of the $75 volume, prompting Smith to create a smaller, more affordable volume. Epic Lives: One Hundred Black Women Who Made a Difference (Visible Ink Press, $18.95, paperback) details the lives of some famous and not-so-famous women from colonial times to the present. While the women's backgrounds vary, their stories share a common inspirational thread; each woman has made significant achievements despite struggles and discrimination along the way.

For example, when civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer challenged a "white only" practice at a bus terminal in Winona, in the early 1960s, she was arrested for disorderly conduct and thrown in jail. Dur- By Jill Simser OF THE SENTINEL STAFF Finding the average daily balance on your credit card or eTJ converting li. ters to Dints need not cause VOU to fret fin Figure! The Numbers You Need for Everyday Life (Visible Ink Press, $16.95, paperback) guides you through some of the most common numerical questions you're likely to encounter. In one day, for example, you may need to compute a monthly pay- ment on a refinanced mortgage, order enough flxr tile to cover 100 square feet, and consider the odds of being dealt a straight flush at the weekly poker game. Before Go solving such diverse numerical puzzles would require you to consult three different sources.

But this mathematical tool kit of sorts contains an ample supply of tables, statistics, definitions, examples and those long-forgotten formulas from math class. Chapters are arranged by topics related to daily life consumer and financial issues, health and fitness, weather and the environment, odds and probabilities, sports statistics and scoring, and hobbies. Readers eager to expand on the information from the chapters can refer to three appendices. One provides more tables and graphs and explains how to use them. A second appendix defines more units of measurements, and the third contains additional mathematical formulas regarding money.

Speaking of money, in the world of economics, the experts and analysts often seem to speak another language. Fortunately, a quick consultation with The Penguin Dictionary of Economics (Penguin, $13, paperback) may clear up any misunderstandings. The 452-page reference guide is aimed at both students and general readers who want to follow economic discussions or whose profession requires them to be familiar with economic terms. Long before "yuppie" ever be Fiction WEARABLE ART DISPLAY and get a jump start on BERNINA COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS ONLY TU ES. SAT.

AT 1 1 :00 2:00 bernina CHRISTMAS Personalize Xmas Cards Heirloom stitched Xmas stocking Xmas napkins 333 weapon only JsqoDTHRio24j day-by-day accounts of what took place on every front, and a final section describes the post-war years, ending in June 1950 when the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union was confirmed with the beginning of war in Korea. Part Two describes the weapons and equipment used during World War II, breaking them into three categories: land, sea and air warfare. Mom and Dad may be making fewer trips to the library this school year if The Kingfisher Children's Encyclopedia (Kingfisher Books, $29.95) is added to the reference collection at home. For students ages 7 and older, the 780-page volume is an excellent and affordable resource for those simple research projects. More than 1,300 entries are arranged alphabetically in large, oversized type for young researchers.

Entries are written in plain English and cover a variety of topics, including such world concerns as the unification of Germany, the breakup of the Soviet Union and AIDS. Aside from the entries, the pages offer a mixture of interesting tidbits of information, at-a-glance boxes and color illustrations. For example, one tidbit paired with an illustration explains how in other parts of the world, the Red Cross has different names and symbols. In some Muslim countries, for example, it is known as the Red Crescent. While the single volume is no substitute for a full-set of enyclo-pedias, its user-friendly qualities will make it a sure-fire hit at home.

UUUV OIUIT 'BLUE 1E0 Anytnm.laceor AT IcAl 'O fabric with blue ii 25 SERVICE AND REPAIR ANY MAKE SEWING ON THE PREMISES (60-DAY WARRANTY). ft BOOK JACKET DETAIL ing Hamer's lock-up, she was permanently injured after two black male prisoners, on order from white prison guards, beat her with a leather clutch loaded with metal. Later, as vice-chairperson of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, Hamer gained national attention as she testified about her beatings and the other atrocities she suffered in her home state, including her loss of employment because of her attempts to register to vote. Certainly the quiet, understated volume would not be complete without profiles on talk show host Oprah Winfrey, underground railroad conductor Harriet Tubman and politician Shirley Chisholm, three well-known and influential American women. But this book also recognizes lesser-known but no less important African-American women, including Lucille Gunning, a pediatrician who established a developmental center for Down's syndrome children, and Aileen Hernandez, a feminist and labor relations specialist.

The 50th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor last December sparked renewed interest in World War II and many new books on the subject. The World Almanac of World War II (Pharos Books, $18.95, paperback), a comprehensive single-volume reference on the war, has been reprinted and makes a great companion to refer to while reading those other books. The first section is a chronology of major events leading up to the war, beginning in June 1919, when the Treaty of Versailles was concluded. The heart of the section documents The further adventures of Amelia P. The Snake, The Crocodile and The Dog By Elizabeth Peters Warner Books, $19.95, hardcover, 340 pages Reviewed by Myron Beckenstein BALTIMORE SUN To a high-spirited person, adventure can be addictive.

At the beginning of Elizabeth Peters' latest report on the doings of Amelia Peabody, the eminent British Victorian archaeologist is moaning about how quiet things have become. Several times before the novel ends, she comes close to regretting that thought. Clearly, the adventure that befalls her when she and her husband, Emerson, return to Egypt is more than she bargained for. After all, she is merely adventure-loving, not psychotic. The Snake, The Crocodile and The Dog is a reprise, in a way, of some of the couple's past six adventures, with old friends, enemies and locales playing key parts.

Complicating everything is that Amelia's gruff, difficult-at-best husband is abused by villains to the point of partial amnesia. He can remember most things, but not her or their 12-year marriage. Clearly more than she bargained for. But not to be deterred was she ever? Amelia sets out to solve that problem while she and her husband try to solve all the other problems, too. The main problem is that someone keeps trying to kidnap them to learn the secret they uncovered in the last book (The Last Camel Died at Noon) but won't reveal.

Amelia is still her proper, British, enlightened feminist self, while generously making allowances for those unfortunates who didn't have the benefit of being born British. Each chapter is preceded by a quotation from "The Collected Works of Amelia Peabody Emerson" (8th edition), such as, "When one is striding bravely into the future, one cannot watch one's footing," and "Martyrdom is often the result of excessive gullibility." The Snake, The Crocodile and The Dog is Amelia at her best. 1. The Tale of the Body Thief, by Anne Rice (Knopf, $24). The vampire Lestat embarks on a dangerous enterprise.

2. The Stars Shine Down, by Sidney Sheldon (Morrow, $22 50). 1 A beautiful tycoon's empire is threatened by the vengeance of a discarded lover. 3. The Secret History, by Donna Tartt (Knopf, $23).

Close friends at a 4 small college must deal with the consequences of a crime they committed. 4. The Pelican Brief, by John Grisham (Doubleday, A woman 3 law student seeks to discover the truth about the murder of two Supreme Court justices. 5. Waiting to Exhale, by Terry McMillan (Viking, $22).

The friendships 2 and romances of four black women in Phoenix. 6. Where Is Joe by Jimmy Buffett (Harcourt Brace 5 Jovanovich, A couple on a wild chase through the Caribbean on the trail of a deceased rock star who has been sighted there. 7. Sabine's Notebook, by Nick Bantock (Chronicle, The continuation of the mysterious correspondence between an artist and a stamp designer.

8. Gerald's Game, by Stephen King (Viking, Twenty-eight hours 10 of horror suffered by a woman handcuffed to a bedpost. 9. All That Remains, by Patricia Cornwell (Scribners, $20). Searching for 6 the truth behind the strange deaths of five young couples in Virginia.

BARGAIN Fff2 Century's FIT if sinoeb I WE MACHINE 10. The Volcano Lover, by Susan Sontag (Farrar, Straus Giroux, $22). The story of Lord Nelson, his lover Emma Hamilton and her spouse. Last week Rush Limbaugh (Pocket, $22). 1 me iam oiiuvy uuoi.

2 (Random House, $16). The of menopause for today's Kennedy, by Richard E.Burke former member of Schuster, $30). A biography 5 9 mjm (Doubleday, $25). The life It's only been a few weeks since Hurricane Andrew swiftly tore through South Florida. But amid the wreckage and confusion, Non-fiction 1.

The Way Things Ought to Be, by Anecdotes ana opinions oiieieu uy 2. It Doesn't Take a Hero, by Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf (Bantam, $25). An autobiography by the Desert Storm general.

3. Every Living Thing, by James Herriot (St. Martin's Press, Continuing the memoirs of the Yorkshire veterinarian. the editorial staff of the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel has thoughtfully and thoroughly chronicled the terror and the aftermath of Andrew in a glossy, full-color, 96-page softcover book, Andrew! The Most Savage Storm. The Silent Passage, by Gail Sheehy psychological and social significance 5.

The Senator: My Ten Years with Ted (St. Martin's, An account by a the senator's staff. 6. Truman, by David McCullough (Simon ot the 33ro presiaeni. 7 Harvey Penick's Little Red Book, by Harvey Penick and Bud Shrake (Simon Schuster, $19).

Anecdotes and tips about playing golf by a legendary teacner. Through vivid photography and provocative writing, this volume provides you with an instant history of natural disaster, as well as a social portrait of the storm's victims. It's a history book, a science lesson and a story of anguish, compassion and hope, all in one book. So order this riveting chronicle of nature's fury today. Just send in the coupon or call the number below.

All Sentinel books also available in The Orlando Sentinel main lobby at 633 N. Orange Ave. 8 The Te of Piglet, by Benjamin Hoff (Dutton, $16). Aspects of Taoist philosophy explained through the actions of A.A. Milne's character Piglet.

9 Are You the One for Me? by Barbara DeAngelis (Delacorte Press, i rnrrrr in Irtwa anH marriana $21). How to cnoose ana Keep img 10. The Last Tsar, by Edvard Radzinsky and deatn ot Nicnoias u. Ranking is from Publishers Weekly. News Service.

Please send me Andrew! The Century's Most Savage Synopses are from The New York Times Storm book(s) for Si 2.59 (includes tax, postage and handling) eac Name Address CityStateZip Phone These books not on the best-seller list have been recommended recently by Orlando Sentinel reviewers: Bailev's Cafe, by Gloria Naylor (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, A visionary novel about the outcasts who gather at a neighborhood eatery. (Reviewed 1004). Up in the Old Hotel, by Joseph Mitchell (Pantheon, A collection of non-fiction pieces by a master prose stylist. (920). Young Men and Fire, by Norman Maclean (University of Chicago Press, An elegant investigative account of the 1949 Mann Gulch, Montana wildfire, in which 13 smokejumpers perished.

(913). To charge your order by phone with MasterCard or VISA, call 407420-5521 Make check payable to and send to: The Orlando Sentinel P.O. Box 211 Orlando FL 32802.