NEW HAMPSHIRE BOOKS COLUMN

by Eleanor O'Donnell

Canney, Robert Sayward. EARLY MARRIAGES OF STRAFFORD COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE, SUPPLEMENT 1630-1870. Heritage Books Catalog #C055. 1997. $21.00 ISBN 0-7884-0681
Over 4,000 entries with information unique to this volume. Includes previously unrecorded marriages and updated entries from the previous volume which covered 1630-1860. The material has been gathered from town records, Piscataqua Pioneer files, census records, private manuscripts and published town histories. Arranged alphabetically by the groom's surname, then chronologically by marriage date.

DESIGN STANDARDS FOR RECREATION FACILITIES. New Hampshire Office of State Planning, 2« Beacon Street, Concord, N.H. 03301-4497. 1997.
"This design guide was prepared as a result of receiving numerous requests from communities for assistance in developing various types of recreation facilities." Includes information on maintenance and dimensions for tennis courts, baseball fields, and ice hockey rinks, and also describes the design of outdoor exercise facilities.

Doan, Daniel, and Ruth Doan MacDougall. FIFTY HIKES IN THE WHITE MOUNTAINS. 5th ed. Backcountry Publications. 1997. $14.95 ISBN 0-88150-389-4
New edition of the classic work by the late Daniel Doan, revised by his daughter, Ruth Doan MacDougall.

Firth, Ernestine Bellamy, and Gladys Hale Bellamy. STAR SONGS: "TWO ON THE ISLE." Available at Water Street Bookstore, Exeter; Little Professor Bookstore and Stroudwater Bookstore, Portsmouth. 1997. $5.00
Ernestine Firth has spent many summers at the Isles of Shoals. One of her ancestors was Samuel Haley of Smuttynose Island, whose homestead is said to be the oldest house in the State of Maine. The spirit of the Isles come alive in this collection of poems, which includes some sea poems written by her mother, Gladys Hale Bellamy.

Gaines, Charles. SURVIVAL GAMES. Atlantic Monthly. 1997. $23.00 ISBN 0-87113-684-8
Two best-friend couples spend a long weekend at their country home, a sheep farm in New Hampshire. While the husbands have gone duck hunting, their wives are kidnapped by two local laborers. The husbands use real-life survival skills in their hunt for their missing wives and the brutal kidnappers in this suspenseful novel.

Kumin, Maxine. SELECTED POEMS 1960-1990. Norton. 1997. $27.50 ISBN 0-393-04073-9
The lyric and narrative gifts of New Hampshire poet, Maxine Kumin, are everywhere in evidence in these poems, which have been gathered from nine collections of her poetry.

Leavitt, Robert Hayes, compiler. LEBANON, NEW HAMPSHIRE IN PICTURES. Lebanon Historical Society. Order from Whitman Distribution Co., 10 Water Street, Lebanon, N.H. 03766. 1997. $45.00, 2 vol. set.
Robert Hayes Leavitt has selected photographs from his grandfather's collection of historical pictures, and from his own, to create this two volume visual history of Lebanon.

Marvel, William. THE ALABAMA AND THE KEARSARGE: THE SAILOR'S CIVIL WAR. University of Carolina Press. 1996. $34.95 ISBN 0-8078-2294-9
On June 19, 1864, the confederate cruiser, Alabama, and the USS Kearsarge, which was built in New Hampshire, faced off in the English Channel. The stories of the two ships from their construction to the climactic encounter off Cherbourg are interwoven in this work by New Hampshire author, Marvel. The day-to-day experiences of deepwater sailors are told though diaries and letters of officers and crewmen.

Morse, William S. A MIX OF YEARS. Moose Country Press, P.O. Box 699, Enfield, N.H. 03748, tele. 1-800-34-MOOSE. 1998. $20.00 paper, plus $3.00 shipping and handling. ISBN 0-9642213-5-7
Those who enjoyed reading his earlier book, A Country Life, will enjoy the continuation of the 93 year old author's memories, mixed with humor and a good dose of Yankee wisdom.

Older, Julia, and Steve Sherman. NATURE WALKS IN THE NEW HAMPSHIRE LAKES REGION. Appalachian Mountain Club Books. 1997. $12.95 ISBN 1-878239-59-7
This guide covers 50 nature walks located north of Concord to the base of the White Mountains, and west from the Connecticut River to the eastern border of Mane. Includes descriptions of flora and fauna, detailed maps and directions, information on historic sites, wildlife sanctuaries, and state parks.

Palmer, Niall A. THE NEW HAMPSHIRE PRIMARY AND THE AMERICAN ELECTORAL PROCESS. Praeger. 1997. $49.95 ISBN 0-275-95569-9
This book summarizes the history of the New Hampshire Primary, and its significance in the process of electing the president of the United States. Despite efforts by other states to change its position, New Hampshire is still the first in the nation to hold its presidential primary. Since the advent of television, the New Hampshire Primary has gained national attention. The author analyzes the effect of the news media on the political process.

Pinder, Eric. LIFE AT THE TOP: TALES, TRUTHS AND TRUSTED RECIPES FROM THE MOUNT WASHINGTON OBSERVATORY. Down East Books. 1997. $14.95 ISBN 0-89272-396-3
What is it like living and working on Mount Washington's summit, "home of the world's worse weather?" Eric Pinder, weather observer, describes life at the top, and explains Mount Washington's geology and weather. The second half of the book contains favorite recipes contributed by Observatory staff, who, in winter, like their food hot and spicy when the temperature grows colder.

Snow, David B. YEARS OF PRACTICE: A DOCTOR LOOKS BACK. MEDICINE'S CHANGING FACE IN MANCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE, 1955-1996. Order from the author, 245 Liberty Hill Road, Bedford, N.H. 03110-5632. 1997. $20.00, plus $3.00 shipping and handling.
When the author began his private practice in Manchester in the 1950s, conditions for doctors and patients were very different form the present day. Dr. Snow looks back at those early years, when there was little paramedical support structure from the community. He reviews the emergency of ambulance service and emergency room staffing, and hospital growth and mergers. His memoirs include amusing, heartwarming vignettes of patient encounters.

TUFTONBORO, NEW HAMPSHIRE: CEMETERIES, GRAVEYARD, AND BURIAL SITES, 1800-1995. Published by Peter E. Randall. Order from the Tuftonboro Association, P.O. Box 121, Melvin Village, N.H. 03850. 1997. $20.00, plus $3.00 shipping and handling.
When Tuftonboro was first settled in 1780, no communal burying grounds were established. Most families established their own graveyards on the family farm. In this book, the Graveyard Committee of the Tuftonboro Association provides description of the graveyards and the individual stones, including biographical details on persons buried there, occasionally interwoven with bits of town history.

WALKING TOUR OF EXETER, NEW HAMPSHIRE. Order from Exeter Historical Society, P.O. Box 924, Exeter, N.H. 03833, tele. 778-2335. 1994. $2.00
Exeter, one of the first four townships of New Hampshire, was settled in 1638. The coastal community combine industry, commerce, farming and learning, making it a place of distinction in the region. A leader in the historic preservation movement, the town retains many of its early landmarks, as described in this booklet.