Faculty books of 2015

Edited by Maria Yudkevich; Philip G. Altbach, director of the Boston College Center for International Higher Education; and Laura E. Rumbley, associate director of the Boston College Center For International Higher Education

280 pages, Palgrave Macmillan

Academic inbreeding refers to the practice of universities hiring their graduates as faculty members—a practice rare in the United States but common worldwide. This book examines case studies from countries where such inbreeding is normal and discusses the causes and consequences.

Edited by Maria Yudkevich; Philip G. Altbach, director of the Boston College Center for International Higher Education; and Laura E. Rumbley, associate director of the Boston College Center For International Higher Eeducation

376 pages, State University of New York Press

Declining academic salaries, the growing number of part-time faculty, and other factors create challenges to attracting the “best and brightest” to work in universities. Case studies from 10 countries yield a detailed analysis of the situation of young faculty.

By Richard Kenneth Atkins, assistant professor of philosophy

256 pages, Hackett

Are all of our actions ultimately motivated by self-interest? Does God exist? If we’re part of the natural order, do we have a free will? This book introduces readers to philosophy by addressing these questions and others with which philosophers continue to grapple.

By Casey Beaumier, SJ, director of the Institute for Advanced Jesuit Studies

160 pages, Loyola Press

Part modern travel adventure, part memoir, this is the author’s story of how a begging pilgrimage during his Jesuit formation helped him to discern his direction in life. His message: embrace vulnerability, trust God, keep moving.

By Caroline Bicks, associate professor of English; and Michelle Ephraim

176 pages, Perigee Books

In this irreverent book, two professors provide original cocktail and hors d’oeuvre recipes inspired by Shakespearean characters and tied to life’s daily dramas. With images from the Folger Shakespeare Library.

By Mary Sarah Bilder, professor of law

384 pages, Harvard University Press

Madison’s Notes on the Constitutional Convention do not date in their entirety to the summer of 1787; he revised them as his understanding changed about the Convention, the Constitution, and his own role. Over 50 years, Madison transformed an incomplete political diary into a seemingly objective account of the writing of the Constitution.

Edited by Jeffrey Bloechl, associate professor of philosophy, and Nicolas de Warren

215 pages, Springer

Essays contributed by 11 leading philosophers from around the world honor Boston College emeritus professor Richard Cobb-Stevens, an interpreter and practitioner of German and French phenomenological philosophy, especially in relation to Anglo-American philosophy.

By Robert M. Bloom, professor of law; and Marc S. Brodin, professor of law and the Michael and Helen Lee Distinguished Scholar

432 pages, Wolters Kluwer

An exploration of the process of criminal investigation—including arrest, search, interrogation, and eyewitness identification—and the constraints placed upon police by the Constitution, with a chapter devoted to post-9/11 developments in electronic surveillance.

By Robert M. Bloom, professor of law

1,166 pages, Wolters Kluwer

A compilation of Supreme Court cases involving police practices as governed by the Fourth (search and seizures), Fifth (interrogation), and Sixth (eyewitness identification) Amendments. The cases present the different approaches taken by the Warren, Burger, Rehnquist, and Roberts Courts.

by Daniel Bowles, assistant professor of German studies

238 pages, Walter de Gruyter

An exploration of postwar German prose and its place in the history of satire, with particular attention to the writing practices of inversion, myth-making, and citation.

By Christian Kracht; translated by Daniel Bowles, assistant professor of German studies

192 pages, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux

August Engelhardt is a radical, idealistic, coconut-eating nudist who travels to German New Guinea to escape old-world strictures. Named to Publishers Weekly’s list of the year’s 10 best books.

By Maria Estela Brisk, professor of teacher education/special education

280 pages, Routledge

Geared to teachers and teacher educators, this book presents an approach to teaching writing informed by systemic functional linguistics. The content is based on work in two elementary schools. A practical guide for writing instruction, it includes theory, examples of student work, and lessons.

By Sanjay Chugh, assistant professor of economics

552 pages, MIT Press

Modern Macroeconomics starts from micro foundations to analyze economy-wide events. Topics include consumption vs. savings, unemployment, monetary policy, fiscal policy, and financial markets.

By Daniel R. Coquillette, the J. Donald Monan, SJ, University Professor of Law; and Bruce A. Kimball

688 pages, Harvard University Press

This account of the first century of Harvard Law School includes new and candid discussion of the Civil War, the school’s founding by a slave owner, its early race and gender history, and the clash between Harvard president Charles Eliot and the leaders of Jesuit universities, including Boston College.

By Mike Cronin, academic director of Boston College–Ireland

144 pages, Oxford University Press

A global overview of why sport is important to society and the values that are wrapped around the games we play and watch.

Edited by Lisa Cuklanz, professor of communication; and Heather McIntosh

288 pages, Bloomsbury

Interviews with documentarians supplement textual analysis of selected contemporary films, YouTube videos, photographs, and theater productions with regard to gender violence.

By Charles Derber, professor of sociology

156 pages, Routledge

A concise account of the blockbuster book about inequality, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, by Thomas Piketty, that goes beyond Piketty in explaining how to solve the inequality crisis that is undermining the American Dream.

Edited by Hans de Wit, professor of education; Fiona Hunter; Eva Egron-Polak; and Laura Howard

319 pages, European Parliament

Commissioned by the European Parliament—and based on surveys, analysis of digital learning, and national reports from 17 countries—this study presents recommendations for the future of internationalization in higher education, in Europe and beyond.

By Richard Gaillardetz, the Joseph Professor of Catholic Systematic Theology

190 pages, Liturgical Press

An indispensable reference point for understanding Roman Catholicism today, Vatican II was in many ways an unfinished project. This volume describes both the council’s contributions and the challenges facing the Church today to bring its vision to completion.

Edited by Richard R. Gaillardetz, the Joseph Professor of Catholic Systematic Theology; and Edward P. Hahnenberg

236 pages, Liturgical Press

The Catholic Church stands at a threshold. Contributors to this volume explore developments in ecclesiology fueled by modern ecumenism and feminist reflection and consider fresh perspectives on questions of ministry, mission, authority, globalization, and culture.

By Brian J. Gareau, associate professor of sociology; Damien F. White; and Alan P. Rudy

280 pages, Palgrave Macmillan

An inter-disciplinary reflection on social theory in the age of global climate change, this book maps the key modern environmental debates in a world reconstructed by human impacts.

By Gary Michael Gurtler, SJ, associate professor of philosophy

376 pages, Parmenides Publishing, the Plotinus Series

A translation that recovers Plotinus’s often-unsuspected originality. In IV.5, for example, Plotinus posits that light brings the color within it to an object.

By Philip Browning Helsel, assistant professor of pastoral care and counseling

268 pages, Palgrave Macmillan

In times of massive economic inequity, why do so many Americans consider themselves mentally ill? Exploring the psychological effects of debt, foreclosure, and unemployment, this book shows how ministers and counselors can help.

Edited by Sharlene Hesse-Biber, professor of sociology; and R. Burke Johnson

776 pages, Oxford University Press

With the goal of enhancing new ways of asking and addressing complex research questions, the Handbook offers a range of qualitative perspectives and quantitative tools. Each chapter includes research examples that cross disciplines.

By Kenneth Himes, OFM, associate professor of theology

212 pages, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Targeted killings have played a role in politics from ancient times. This book reviews the history and addresses new issues raised by the American policy to use drones in the conflict with terrorists.

By You Guo Jiang, SJ, part-time philosophy faculty, Woods College of Advancing Studies

302 pages, Brill

This book looks at the development of liberal arts education in China from a historical perspective and presents the current views of Chinese policymakers, university administrators, faculty, and students.

By Marilynn Johnson, professor of history

304 pages, University of Massachusetts Press

This examination of the historical confluence of immigration and urban transformation in greater Boston since the 1960s finds that newer immigrants have been crucial in rebuilding the labor force and metropolitan landscape of the city.

Edited by Candace Jones, associate professor of management and organization; Mark Lorenzen; and Jonathan Sapsed

750 pages, Oxford University Press

A reference work on cultivating and managing creativity at the individual and organizational level, drawn from the work of scholars in economics, law, psychology, and organization studies.

Edited by Richard Kearney, the Charles Seelig Professor in Philosophy; and Brian Treanor

408 pages, Fordham University Press

Carnal Hermeneutics asks: How do we interpret the world through touch and taste as well as ideas and concepts? And how much of our primal sensitivity as persons is threatened in our “age of excarnation” where virtual communication increasingly replaces living in the flesh?

By Richard Kearney, the Charles Seelig Professor in Philosophy

288 pages, Columbia University Press

Exploring the sacred in our new secular age, Kearney debates with some of the leading contemporary thinkers of religion, in dialogues ranging over science and psychology, philosophy and literature.

By James F. Keenan, SJ, the Canisius Professor of Theology

292 pages, Rowman & Littlefield

From sexual violence to racial conflict, universities face countless ethical trials. University Ethics contains chapters on athletics, gender, faculty accountability, cheating, race, the treatment of adjuncts, and other topics—highlighting the ethical hotspots and proposing best practices.

By Michael C. Keith, associate professor of the practice of communication

192 pages, Vraeyda Literary/Langley

A story collection concerned with the often bizarre ritual called life.

By Michael Keith, associate professor of the practice of communication

270 pages, Cold River Press

Short stories that blend dark realism with occasions of absurd humor.

Edited by Edmond P. Bowers; G. John Geldhof; Sara K. Johnson; Lacey J. Hilliard; Rachel M. Hershberg; Jacqueline V. Lerner, professor of counseling, developmental, and educational psychology; and Richard M. Lerner

288 pages, Springer

Lerner and colleagues conducted an eight-year longitudinal study of more than 7,000 adolescents in 42 states, to gauge the effects of what they term a positive youth development model (PYD). Their book provides evidence for programs and policies promoting youth competence and community involvement.

By Ray D. Madoff, professor of law; Cornelia R. Tenney; Martin A. Hall; and Lisa Nalchajian Mingolla

864 pages, Wolters Kluwer

Explanations of simple and complex estate planning techniques, including planning for a spouse or non-marital partner, planning for a business interest, and planning with life insurance. With annotated estate planning forms.

Edited by Ana M. Martínez-Alemán, professor of higher education; Brian Pusser, and Estela Mara Bensimon

344 pages, Johns Hopkins University Press

A look at the ways in which critical research and theories can be used by higher education researchers to better understand students, institutions, issues of organization and governance, and policy.

Edited by Robert Maryks, associate professor of history

345 pages, Brill

This book places Ignatius within the context of important late medieval and early modern movements—less as the colossal icon of the Counterreformation and more as a man influenced by the revolutionary period in which he lived.

By Maia McAleavey, assistant professor of English

258 pages, Cambridge University Press

The Victorian novel is associated with conventional courtship and marriage, but bigamy was a surprisingly popular storyline. In hundreds of novels, husbands or wives thought to be dead suddenly reappeared to complicate the lives of their newly remarried spouses.

By Gustavo Morello, SJ, assistant professor of sociology

240 pages, Oxford University Press

The kidnapping of Fr. James Week and five seminarians on August 3, 1976, propels this exploration of the complex relationship between Catholic faith and political violence during Argentina’s Dirty War—a relationship that has received renewed attention since the country’s own Jorge Mario Bergoglio became Pope Francis.

By Arissa Oh, assistant professor of history

320 pages, Stanford University Press

The story of how international adoption took off in the aftermath of the Korean War.

By Kevin Ohi, professor of English

320 pages, University of Minnesota Press

Writers contemplating the transmission of knowledge often turn to loss, imagining a tradition constituted through the mishaps that consign it to oblivion.

By Stephen J. Pope, professor of theology

224 pages, Orbis

This book focuses on the connection between service to others and the Christian faith, with chapters on six models of charity—compassion, advocacy, hospitality, stewardship, solidarity, and witness—and on Christian exemplars of each.

By Andrew Prevot, assistant professor of theology

448 pages, University of Notre Dame Press

A study of the prayerful forms of thinking and living that shape much of contemporary philosophy and theology.

By Bernard Wolfman, Deborah H. Schenk, and Diane Ring, professor of law and Boston College Law School’s Dr. Thomas F. Carney Distinguished Scholar

628 pages, Wolters Kluwer

With heightened expectations for the ethical conduct of tax lawyers, and increasing business pressure for corporations to treat tax departments as profit centers, the tax lawyer is caught in the middle. This thoughtful study of ethical rules offers tax advisors a roadmap for their conduct.

By Franck Salameh, assistant professor of Near Eastern studies

282 pages, Lexington Books

An examination of Lebanon’s intellectual, cultural, and political life, as incarnated in the ideas, works, and activities of Charles Corm (1894–1963), visionary poet, entrepreneur, patriot, and spiritus rector of modern Lebanese nationalism.

By John Sallis, the Frederick J. Adelmann, SJ, Professor of Philosophy

160 pages, State University of New York Press

The artist Paul Klee propounded his ideas on the nature of art in essays, in lectures while teaching at the Bauhaus in Weimar, and in two decades worth of journals. Sallis explores how Klee’s ideas are reflected in his paintings and how making art furthered his theoretical reflections.

By Robert Savage, professor of the practice of history

288 pages, Manchester University Press

Recently released archival material from the BBC and UK government archives enabled this consideration of how the BBC’s broadcasts complicated the ‘Troubles’ by challenging government decisions, policies, and tactics.

By Eve Spangler, associate professor of sociology

326 pages, Sense Publishers

Featuring contemporary Israeli, Palestinian, and American voices, this book provides an historically grounded analysis of how well their respective narratives fit the facts.

Edited by Andrea Staiti, associate professor of philosophy

344 pages, Walter de Gruyter

First presented at a November 2013 Boston College conference commemorating the centennial of the publication of Edmund Husserl’s Ideas for a Pure Phenomenology and Phenomenological Philosophy, these essays by leading international scholars offer critical commentary while also engaging secondary sources.

Edited by Andrea Staiti, associate professor of philosophy; and Nicolas de Warren

336 pages, Cambridge University Press

This essay collection assesses the most influential philosophical movement in early 20th-century Europe, looking at topics in areas such as ethics, culture, and theory of knowledge.

By Thomas D. Stegman, SJ, associate professor of New Testament

112 pages, Paulist Press

A look at the life of faith presented by the five major voices of the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Paul. The book attempts to make relevant these biblical portraits of faith to the present day.

By David Storey, assistant professor of the practice of philosophy

284 pages, State University of New York Press

There is a link between nihilism and the modern conception of nature, and there are resources in Martin Heidegger’s work—on Aristotle, on biologist Jakob von Uexküll, and on Nietzsche—that can help overcome nihilism and recover a value-laden conception of nature.

By O. Ernesto Valiente, assistant professor of systematic theology

304 pages, Fordham University Press

Drawing from Latin American liberation theology, this book builds on the Christology of Jon Sobrino, SJ, to construct a theology and a spirituality of reconciliation inspired by Jesus’s life and God’s reign.

By Arch G. Woodside, professor of marketing; and Mohammed Quaddus

555 pages, Emerald Group Publishing, Advances in Business Marketing and Purchasing Series

In-depth investigations of recently implemented online services in developing nations, with special attention to what needs to be done for airlines.

By Arch G. Woodside, professor of marketing; and Mohammed Quaddus

540 pages, Emerald Group Publishing, Advances in Business Marketing and Purchasing Series

A guide for long-term survival of firms in emerging markets, geared toward senior executives.