Books

Dan and Diesel
By Charlotte Hudson and Lindsey Gardiner
Random House

Dan and Diesel is a story about a boy and his dog. The story tells how close they are and how they can do anything together. But it all goes wrong when Diesel is stolen away and Dan is left alone. It is only at the end of the book the reader learns why Diesel is so special ...

Dan and Diesel is the latest in a long list of books illustrated by part-time Textiles lecturer, Lindsey Gardiner. This year, three of her books are up for major awards including the Early Years Awards, the Sheffield Book Prize and the Canadian Willow Awards.

Lindsey also does some writing and her book "You can do it Lola" published by Oxford University Press, a sequel to "The Loopy Life of Lola", was successfully launched earlier this year.

Concrete: Neville's insights and issues
Adam Neville
Thomas Telford

Adam Neville was the second Principal of the University of Dundee (1978-1987). Concrete: Neville's insights and issues is his tenth and final book, and demonstrates the radical thinking that sets him apart through incisive reflections and forecasts.

Standard books on concrete often have an encyclopaedic approach and proceed from science to practice but this book is not standard. The author looks at a problem or an issue and discusses the underlying scientific and technological aspects, including broader contextual topics. Adam Neville describes this as looking at concrete through the wrong end of the telescope, which contribute to a better understanding of concrete practice and to better concrete in practice.

The book's subject ranges from how to establish the age of cracks in concrete to workmanship, design and the relevance of litigation for the structural engineer as well as future forecasts.

Adam Neville's books have sold more than half a million copies to date and he is widely regarded as the master of this subject.

US Foreign Policy since 1945
Alan P. Dobson and Steve Marsh
Routledge

US Foreign Policy since 1945 is an essential introduction to post-war US foreign policy. It combines chronologic and thematic chapters to provide an historical account of US policy and to explore key questions about its design, control and effects.

New features of this second edition include expanded coverage of the Cold War, new chapters on the post-Cold War era, a chronology and a new conclusion that draws together key themes and looks to the future.

Comments include: American foreign policy-making, US power and democratic control; containment strategy and Cold War debates; economic warfare; US foreign policy by geographical region; power and purpose in US foreign policy; US interventionism; rogue states, WMDs and the war on terrorism; and the neo-conservative foreign policy revolution.

Alan P. Dobson is Professor of Politics and Director of the Institute for Transatlantic, European and American Studies at the University of Dundee. Steve Marsh is a lecturer in the School of European Studies at Cardiff University.