"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that [books make the best gifts]"
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that [books make the best gifts]"
Okay, so perhaps Jane Austen didn’t quite phrase it that way, but there’s a reason books make excellent gifts. Their luster doesn’t fade like clothing, diminish quickly like food, or become obsolete like electronics. Instead, our favorite titles seem to grow more powerful and poignant with time. So make your shopping simple—and meaningful—this holiday season. Browse below to find the perfect literary gift for everyone on your list. Place your orders this week to ensure their timely arrival!
Jim Lichatowich Gets Candid on Salmon Management
Recently, Jim Lichatowich, whose most recent book, Salmon, People, and Place: A Biologist’s Search for Salmon Recovery is out from the OSU Press, paid a visit to Oregon State to deliver a talk: “Salmon Management and Salmon Science at a Crossroads” as part of the department of Fisheries and Wildlife’s seminar series.
Lichatowich spoke openly with young biologists about his experiences over the course of his esteemed career—including the ethical dilemmas between policy and science he says are endemic to the profession. He challenges would-be wildlife managers to consider what they themselves will do, when faced with one such dilemma of their own.
African American History Month Book Giveaway
OSU Press publishes books that celebrate and explore aspects of African American history in the Pacific Northwest. (For more on OSU Press publications that honor the significant contributions African American women have made to Oregon, click here.) In particular, OSU Press has established a legacy of publications that aim to acknowledge and recount the historical realities of both African American experiences and the struggle for civil rights in Oregon. 
An Ideology of Food: Ken Albala Talks Culinary History
Last month at the 2014 Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, Ken Albala’s latest book, Grow Food, Cook Food, Share Food: Perspectives on Eating from the Past and a Preliminary Agenda for the Future, recently published by OSU Press, won in the category of Culinary History. Today, Albala, a Professor of History at the University of the Pacific, joins us on the blog to offer his perspective on the potency, and the palatability, of cooking from the past.
Behind the Battle: Kathie Durbin's Bridging a Great Divide
Issues surrounding the Columbia River Gorge are an ongoing source of conflict, emotion, and interest. And who better to chronicle the history of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Act, the legislation that incited both conservation and controversy, than Kathie Durbin—renowned journalist and native Oregonian? In a recent review of her book, Bridging a Great Divide: The Battle for the Columbia River Gorge for the Oregonian, Jeff Baker calls the book Durbin’s “last, best story.” Today, we share an excerpted foreword from Bridging a Great Divide, written by Durbin’s longtime friend (and fellow OSU Press author) Roberta Ulrich. Ulrich offers readers an intimate glimpse into the lengths Durbin went to finish her final book—further evidence of her indomitable legacy.
New Books From OSU Press This Spring
Spring is rapidly approaching and with it come new books from OSU Press. We’re excited to share previews of the ten new books being released in the coming months, all of which are available for pre-order now!
Bonnie Henderson’s The Next Tsunami: Living on a Restless Coast shares the compelling story of how scientists came to understand the Cascadian Subduction Zone—a fault line capable of producing earthquakes even larger than the 2011 Tohoku quake in Japan—and how ordinary people living in zones vulnerable to tsunamis cope with the knowledge that when the next one strikes—this year or hundreds of years from now—it is likely to be the most devastating natural disaster in the history of the United States.