BOOKS BY AND FOR MEMBERS

by Ruth Winter

The Women's Heart Book: The Complete Guide to Keeping Your Heart Healthy by Frederic J. Pashkow, MD, and Charlotte Libov (NASW), published by Hyperion.

The book is the result of a unique collaboration between Libov, a Bethlehem, CT freelance, who underwent open heart surgery, and her doctor, the medical director of the Queens Medical Center Heart Institute in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is the former medical director of Cardiac Rehabili-tation at the Cleveland Clinic. Libov writes in her preface: "The news that there was something wrong with my heart came as a complete shock. I'd always considered myself to be robustly healthy . . ." Her heart problem led her to research and then write a book about the number-one killer of women in the United States. She and her co-author toll readers what they can do to prevent the onset of cardiac problems. They provide the latest information about:

• How to calculate the risk for heart disease
• How to find a good doctor
• How to detect congenital defects
• What a pregnant woman needs to know about potential heart problems
• State-of-the art treatments, surgery, and drug therapies
• The facts about the cost of heart care, health insurance coverage, and more

In addition, the book features an effective diet and exercise life plan that can reduce the risks of heart disease, especially in women. Libov can be reached by phone at 203-266-5904 or e-mail at char@libov.com. The PR for the book is Christine Ragasa at 212-456-0175 or www.hyperionbooks.com.

Microbes and People: An A-Z of Microorganisms in Our Lives by Neeraja Sankaran (NASW), published by Oryx Press.

Sankaran is a science writer and a Ph.D. student in the history of medicine and science at Yale University. She has written a reference guide designed to help users find their way in the vast-and sometimes bewildering-world of living things too small to be discerned with the naked eye. Entries cover environmental, industrial, and food microbiology. It also, of course, covers microbiology of health and disease. The scientific techniques used for studying microorganisms are described and biographies of key individuals are provided. A chronology of infections and disease epidemics, from 430 BC to the present, is included as an appendix. Throughout the book, tables, maps, and photos accompany the text. Sankaran can be reached by phone at 203-624-8624 or by e-mail at neeraja@nasw.org.

Mountain of Madness: A Scientist's Odyssey in Antarctica by John Long, published by John Henry Press.

A first-person account of paleontologist John Long who went fossil-hunting in the coldest place on earth-the Transantarctic Mountains of Antartica. A researcher at the Australian National University and the University of Tasmania, his objective was to find specimens of fossilized fish from the Devonian period, when fish were the dominant form of life in the ocean. As a human being, he went seeking adventure-and ended up changing his life forever. Through many dangerous, occasionally comical, but always genuinely moving experiences, his life is fundamentally altered. It is the story of how real science is practiced in a unique and demanding setting. Rather than a presentation of his research findings, his book recounts what life is like in the field, where scientists come close to sacrificing their lives for the sake of advancing human knowledge. The PR for the book is Robin Pinnel at 202-334-1902 or rpinnel@nas.edu.

Atrial Fibrillation: My Heart, The Doctors and Me by E.A. Butler, published by King of Hearts Publishing Co., Utah.

This is the story of an intelligent, inquisitive man who develops an irregularity of heart rhythm. It details his diagnosis and treatment, his interface with his health care providers and his feelings about being a heart patient. During his research he discovered there are more than 4 million people in this country and Europe who have atrial fibrillation/flutter, and it has been estimated that there are some additional 15 million people who are undiagnosed and likely to discover that have it when a stroke or heart problem occurs. Butler can be contacted by phone at 518-793-4375 or e-mail at adb2530@ix.netcom.com.

Dr. Folkman's War: Angiogenesis and the Struggle to Defeat Cancer by Robert Cooke (NASW), published by Random House.

Veteran Newsday science writer Robert Cooke chronicles the story and scientific achievements of Judah Folkman, M.D., who turned his back on a golden career in surgery to embark on a lifelong pursuit of a cure for cancer. It was in a US Navy lab in 1961, that the young doctor saw something while doing medical research that gave him his first idea about the growth of new blood vessels and their relationship to tumors. He speculated that tumors secrete a molecule that stimulates new blood vessels to grow, a process he began to refer to as angiogenesis. Folkman became convinced that there had to be a way to block the growth of those blood vessels in order to starve the tumor and save the patient. Initially, his ideas were considered preposterous and he struggled to fund his research. He started his research alone. Ultimately, his ideas created a new field of study and today hundreds of labs around the world are working on angiogenesis with more than two dozen antiangiogenesis drugs in development or in clinical trials. PR for the book is Alexa Cassanos at 212-572-2696 or acassanos@randomhouse.com.

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Send material about new books to Ruth Winter, 44 Holly Drive, Short Hills, NJ 07078, or e-mail ruthwrite@aol.com. Include the name of the publisher's PR and appropriate contact information as well as how you prefer members to get in touch with you.