62 PUBLISHERS WEEKLY ■ SEPTEMBER 9, 2019
Review_NONFICTIONinner peace from war’s personal demons.
(BookLife)Religion/Spirituality
Free to Believe: The Battle over
Religious Liberty in America
Luke Goodrich. Multnomah, $24 (288p)
ISBN 978-0-5256-5290-8
Goodrich—attorney at the Becket Fund
for Religious Liberty who has argued and
won multiple cases at the Supreme Court,
including the 2014 case Burwell v. Hobby
Lobby—explains the current state of reli-
gious liberty in his instructive debut.
For Goodrich, American openness to all
religious practice, founded on the principle
that “the gov-
ernment, within
reasonable
limits, leaves
religion alone
as much as pos-
sible,” promotes
good works
while protecting
the rights of
dissenters.
Drawing on
both legal doctrine and biblical lessons, he
provides analysis of five divisive issues—
religious discrimination, abortion rights,
gay rights, the unfounded fear of Islam, and
use of the public square—and encourages
readers to look for ways to protect all sides
of any deeply held moral question. For
instance, he explains how Christians should
embrace the religious freedom of Muslims
as a sign of a free culture of evangelism.
American society should also, Goodrich
argues, “aim for a public square that neither
promotes religion nor suppresses it, but
instead welcomes religion as an essential
part of human culture.” Christian
Supreme Court watchers will get the
most out of Goodrich’s lucid exploration
of American religious freedoms. (Nov.)Transcending:
Trans Buddhist Voices
Edited by Kevin Manders and Elizabeth
Marston. North Atlantic, $16.95 trade paper
(192p) ISBN 978-1-62317-415-6
The healing power of compassion and
community is exemplified in this frank,
uplifting collection of opinions, reflections,solo recordings, Schmidt compiles
insightful quotes from the siblings’ friends
and colleagues to show the pair’s parallel
artistic evolution and present solid
descriptions of Richard’s “seamless”
arrangements, “tailored for ’70s AM pop
radio.” English singer Harriet Roberts
reflects on the title song of their fourth
and most popular album, A Song for You,
which, like many of their songs, was
written by Leon Russell (“It’s so touching
and very powerful”). Producer Matt
Wallace, who worked with Nirvana and
the Replacements, argues that Karen’s
“emotionally and technically” stunning
vocal prowess made her “the Adele of her
time and even beyond.” And Houston
Grand Opera music director Patrick
Summers details how Richard’s arrange-
ments “have affected an entire generation
of classical musicians.” Illustrated with
more than 200 images from concerts,
records covers, and backstage moments,
this book will delight the Carpenters’ still
expansive fan base. (BookLife)Invisible Scars of War: A Veteran’s
Struggle with Moral Injury
Dick Hattan. Woodstock Square, $16.95
trade paper (188p) ISBN 978-1-7327-4100-3
In a moving and thoughtful debut,
Hattan, a priest in the Independent
Catholic Church, analyzes the cultural
cost of the Vietnam War while reflecting
on the spiritual damage one suffers in war.
Hattan, a native of Chicago, examines the
crisis of faith and morality he had while
serving with the 101st Airborne Division
in Vietnam in 1971 at age 24. Describing
himself as “a young white Catholic boy,”
he had long been drawn to the church and,
during the war, felt torn between following
the “nonviolent Jesus I read about in the
Gospels” and acting on his love of country.
Hattan ponders what he believes to be the
church’s inconsistent teachings—“If all
life is sacred, why did the Church go to
the mat on abortion, but not on war?”—
and charges the church with having failed
to support those returning home from
tours of duty. With no welcome home
parade or acceptance, Hattan describes
how veterans suffered moral and literal
injuries, and suggests that a National Day
of Forgiveness could serve as a kind of spir-
itual healing. With candor and insight,
Hattan offers options to those who seekthe photographs acting as the focal point
for each attraction, the sidebars are sig-
nificantly briefer than in prior editions
but still mention must-do activities (in
visiting Cappadocia in Turkey, she
writes: “Float over the area... in a hot-air
balloon from April through October,
when visibility is best”) and fascinating
trivia (“Winchester Cathedral... contains
the tomb of novelist Jane Austen”). This
spectacular coffee-table book will inspire
readers to add more destinations to their
bucket lists. (Oct.)Surf Like a Girl
Carolina Amell. Prestel, $50 (256p) ISBN 978-
3-7913-8595-2
“Surf has made me who I am and will
shape me into the person I want to be,”
writes Samia Lilian, one of the dozens of
inspiring women surfers featured in this
gorgeously photographed coffee-table
book. The essays by women from all over
the world will motivate female surfers and
thrill-seekers (“We embrace our Filipino
identity and skin color and would like to
encourage others to do the same,” write
competitors Ikit and Aping Agudo), and
awe them (“I continued surfing until I was
eight and a half months pregnant,” recalls
French blogger Stephanie Goldie). Many
of the women in this book are also avid
photographers who capture breathtaking
views, such as Camille Robiou du Pont’s
sunset on Siargao Island in the Philippines;
Maria Fernanda’s underwater photography
off the coast of Oahu; and Serena Lutton’s
aerial views of women surfers catching
waves. While the photos themselves are
gorgeous, the lack of contextual captions is
a disappointment. Amell concludes with a
list of female surf schools and retreats.
Admirers of surfing and underwater life will
certainly find much to appreciate. (Sept.)Carpenters:
An Illustrated Discography
Randy L. Schmidt. Mascot, $39.95 (192p)
ISBN 978-1-64307-321-7
Schmidt follows up Little Girl Blue: The
Life of Karen Carpenter with this illustrated
history of 1970s brother-sister duo the
Carpenters. Taking a chronological, pho-
tographic, album-by-album look at the
musical accomplishments of Karen
Carpenter (1950–1983) and her brother
Richard Carpenter in their 16 group andReview_NONFICTION