First Review!

The first review for Joe's book, Sunflowers: the Secret History, is out. Below, read Kirkus' glowing words:



SUNFLOWERS
The Secret History

Author: Pappalardo, Joe

Review Date: DECEMBER 01, 2007
Publisher:Overlook
Pages: 256
Price (hardback): $22.95
Publication Date: 3/20/2008 0:00:00
ISBN: 978-1-58567-991-1
ISBN (hardback): 978-1-58567-991-1
Category: NONFICTION
Air & Space magazine editor Pappalardo forms a touching relationship with a preternatural plant.

The author's self-confessed obsession with sunflowers, coupled with an inquisitive mind, combine in a book about the plant's history and cultural impact that's full of interesting asides and little-known facts. Pappalardo gives credit to some of the lesser-known names who have championed the colorful flower's many and varied uses. He charts the sunflower's discovery and gradual integration into various industries, outlining some historical instances in which these flowers have reared their pretty heads. One indelible image, from the German invasion of Russia in 1941, shows opposing tanks cutting down great swathes of sunflowers as they lumber into battle in the fields of Kursk. Pappalardo even makes a connection between sunflowers and the activities of Osama bin Laden, who owned a company in the Sudan that controlled most of the country's exports of sunflower-related products. These stories neatly counterbalance chapters on the plant's history, which introduce characters such as Charles Heiser, the "godfather of sunflower research"; Vasilii Stepanovich Pustovoit, whose breeding and manipulation of sunflower seeds helped give them greater oil content, thus laying the foundations for a lucrative industry; and Peter the Great, who may or may not have been responsible for introducing the plant to Russia, thus dramatically influencing its future economy. In fact, Russia is central to all sunflower-related activity, according to the author, who spends a large portion of the book examining the evolution of the country's sunflower-oil industry. Fans of Mark Kurlansky's Salt (2002) should find much to enjoy here; Pappalardo demonstrates a similar dramatic flair as he makes a strong case for the sunflower's grip on humanity.

Enjoyable and eye-opening.

Follow these links for pre-orders!
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Borders

Jobbity Goodness

Well, folks, I finally got a job. After 6 months of looking and interviewing after graduation, it's my turn. I will be at the most entry level position, receptionist, at Harcourt Trade Publishers. The person in the role before me was promoted into the publicity department after just 3 months. And while I'm told this is unusual, I have hope that it won't be much longer for me. It's an exciting house to be in, very small (only about 40 people in NYC and another 80 in San Diego). Authors in the house include Umberto Eco, Gunter Grass and current US poet laureate, Charles Simic. The house is focused on literature, rather than the expansive commercial market, which I admire. Everyone seems really friendly and the benefits package is quite nice. I start on December 3rd, so I have some time before, which will be nice to have, to finish getting the apartment together and get more settled in here. I'm looking forward to keeping you updated! Now it's time to put aside the Princess Diaries and pick up a little more challenging read...

During

I have had a request or two to see the apartment in the "during" phase and since we're doing everything so piecemeal, I thought now would be a good time to show you how little we've gotten done in 2 weeks. Here you see the hallway, the living room, kitchen, back room (office? library?) and the bedroom. Pretty, right?



































































Here are a couple of things we did get done: we made a closet (except for the curtains on tracks, which is another project to come) and today I painted some sample colors for the back room. I think it's working with my modernist-meets Jane Austen-post-neo-classical-pre-Victorian library...you'll see. I just hope it works as well as it is in my head. HA.