This week's book reviews, by Connie Forst, as submitted for publication in the Tofield Mercury.

Who owns the Arctic? : understanding sovereignty disputes in the north / Michael Byers

Who actually controls the Northwest Passage? Who owns the trillions of dollars of oil and gas beneath the Arctic Ocean? Which territorial claims will prevail - those of the U.S., Russia, Canada or the Nordic nations - and why? In this highly readable book, a leading Arctic expert and international lawyer explains the sometimes contradictory rules governing the division and protection of the Arctic and the disputes that remain unresolved.   

Brute force : [a Nick Stone adventure] / Andy McNab

Days after his car erupts in a ball of flame, Nick Stone narrowly cheats death a second time when a gunman opens fire on him from the back of a motorcycle. Who knows his movements? Who wants him dead, and why?            

Swan for the money : a Meg Langslow mystery / Donna Andrews

Meg Langslow's parents have a new hobby: growing roses. Meg is so relieved that they've taken up such a safe hobby, that she volunteers to help when the local garden club sponsors its first rose show. The other growers are so eccentric that they make Meg's family seem almost normal, and so competitive that they will do nearly anything to take home the show's prize - making them prime suspects when Meg uncovers the body of the wealthy woman on whose estate the competition is being held.

Whole green catalog : 1,000 best things for you and the earth / edited by Michael W. Robbins

The decisions that consumers make have planetary consequences, and this book is their new, indispensable resource to all things green.   

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