Faculty and alumni: Please send review copies of your books published during the last year or CDs recorded during the last year to: SF State Magazine, University Communications, 1600 Holloway Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94132.
All books/professional recordings will be considered for the New Releases Department (in the printed magazine or on its Web site), with the exception of self-published books.
Self-published books will be considered only for the Class Notes Department (in the printed magazine or on its Web site).
English professor and writing consultant Janis Bell (attended '72 - '74) highlights only the most prevalent mistakes in American sentences -- nothing more -- in "Clean, Well-Lighted Sentences: A Guide to Avoiding the Most Common Errors in Grammar and Punctuation" (W.W. Norton & Co.).
Paul Hoover, professor of creative writing, edited and translated with the Vietnamese poet Nguyen Do "Black Dog, Black Night: Contemporary Vietnamese Poetry" (Milkweed Editions, '08), an anthology that includes the poetry of fellow faculty member Truong Tran (M.F.A., '95).
Author and photographer Jennifer Sauer (B.A., '84) invites readers to sit down for tea with experts whose traditions span the globe in "The Way to Tea: Your Adventure Guide to San Francisco Tea Culture" (Earth Aware Editions, '07).
Poet Gillian Conoley has praised Maxine Chernoff, professor and chair of creative writing, for bringing "supreme humanity, ferocity, intelligence, wit, honesty" to her eighth collection of poetry, "The Turning" (Apogee Press, '08).
"Maiden USA: Girl Icons Come of Age" (Peter Lang Publishing, '08) by Kathleen Sweeney (M.A., '96) explores the powerful and often contradictory pop cultural representations of teenage girls during the past decade.
Ignoring her mother's prophetic words, "Running off with a foreigner will bring you nothing but trouble," a Japanese woman follows her fiancé to the United States in "Midori by Moonlight" (St. Martin's Griffin, '07), a novel by Wendy Nelson Tokunaga (B.A., '79).
Assistant Professor of Creative Writing Peter Orner edited "Underground America: Narratives of Undocumented Lives" (McSweeney's, '08), true stories of those who have risked deportation and imprisonment by living in the United States without legal status.
How can a new grandmother stay on the parents' good side? "Don't say anything, ever," advises Adair Lara (B.A., '76) in "The Granny Diaries: An Insider's Guide for New Grandmothers" (Chronicle Books, '07), a collection of witty words of wisdom for those who have hit the "big G."
Dan Kleinman (B.A., '68; M.A., '75) is the author of "All Star Sales Teams" (Career Press, '08), a practical and comprehensive blueprint for achieving a dynamic sales environment and a satisfied and productive sales team.
"Sweet Man is Gone" (Five Star/Gale/Cengage, '08), a mystery by Peggy Ehrhart (M.A., '70), introduces readers to blues-singer bandleader Maxx Maxwell, who sets out to find the killer of the dashing guitar player responsible for her band's success.
Jessica Barksdale-Inclan (M.A., '87) is the author of "Being With Him" (Kensington, '08). The novel tells the story of Mila Adams, a Mission District bohemian artist who has the ability to shift time, and the connection she forges with a man who shares her unique power.
Sherie Pitman Ellington (M.A., '05) is the co-author of "The Super Antioxidant Diet & Nutrition Guide: A Health Plan for the Body, Mind, and Spirit" (Hampton Roads Publishing, '08).