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This reader-friendly exploration of the primary forces relevant to punishment—poverty and political powerlessness—highlights the necessity for humane alternatives to our current incarceration binge. This provocative overview looks at the business of punishment and at the historical patterns of control regarding slavery, the death penalty, women, the LGBTQ community, juveniles, and supervision. The United States has the world’s highest rate of incarceration—a form of punishment that separates the least privileged from the rest of society, creating populations of damaged lives. All of society pays the price for overly punitive sanctions. Equal justice is not possible in an unequal society. Up-to-date statistics illustrate the race, class, and gender inequalities in the criminal justice system. The criminal justice system has expanded for half a century. Will challenges to policing succeed in narrowing the net of social control? Will the cost of maintaining a massive system stimulate a transformation, or will stakeholders support minimal reforms that do not threaten their interests? The public is largely unaware of most of the workings of the criminal justice system. Through this engaging text, the authors hope to provide insights that encourage readers to examine the collateral effects of policies to address crime and the role of punishment.

*HA02, Departures: A Reader for Developing Writers, Randall L. Popken, Alice A. Newsome, M. Lanell Gonzales(all of Tarleton State University), H6249-0, 350 pp., 6 x 9, 0-205-16249-5, paperbound, 1995, $16.50nk, October*/Departures offers developmental writers a fresh, unique anthology to complement their writing courses. The readings are drawn exclusively from popular media and are chosen for their ability to interest students. Departures examines questions of immediate importance in modern American life, choosing topics that also have academic significance.

Chromatin: Structure, Function, and History covers the basics of chromatin biology, beginning with the discoveries that culminated in the recognition of the nucleosome as the basic subunit of chromatin. Chromatin folding, nucleosome positioning, and histone variants are discussed, as well as research on chromatin modifications and remodeling, which exploded in the early to mid-1990s and led to widespread interest in epigenetics. Considerable attention is given to methods and experiments that led to key insights and recent developments such as the use of genome-wide approaches and innovations in imaging approaches are also emphasized. By providing historical background together with detailed discussion of contemporary studies, the book aims to instill in the reader an appreciation not only of our current knowledge of chromatin structure and function, but also of the remarkable path that has taken chromatin to the forefront of modern research. - Provides a current, expansive, and well-documented resource on chromatin and epigenetics - Addresses the role of chromatin in transcription regulation and chromatin abnormalities in disease - Reviews the historical background of specific areas of chromatin research, enabling readers to understand how the field was born and to appreciate the discoveries and technical advances that have propelled it forward