Central Intelligence Agency Factbook

The CIA Factbook is an online almanac created by the Central Intelligence Agency that offers statistical, historical, and cultural background notes on every nation. One may choose from a category of interests – complete with an introduction to a country’s historic profile. This resource is valuable for those interested in international business as well as for those with a mere curiosity about foreign lands.

Categories include concise encyclopedic topics. Under "geography" one can find data on a geographical location, map references, climate, and natural resources. Looking at "people", information is provided about the population, demographic structure, birthrates as well as life expectancies of a certain country. The "government" heading discusses topics on capitals, holidays, legal system, and political parties. Overviews on the GDP, household incomes, inflation rates, labor force, currency, exchange rates are profiled in the reference for "economy."

In addition, the CIA Factbook gives more detailed aspects on a nation’s infrastructure. Reports found in "communications" statistically counts telephone lines, Internet, and other various media outlets. "Transportation" lists how many railways, highways, ports/harbors, airports there are. "Military" summarizes figures on the different branches, manpower, and expenditures. "Transitional" covers information on international on international disputes. Annual updates from this web tool give a framework for understanding the diversity of different nations and how we all might interrelate.

Reviewed by R & RC Staff Member – Glenda Ronduen

Another Magazine is a British periodical brought to you by the publishers of Dazed & Confused. Issued bi-annually to coincide with the fashion seasons (spring/summer and fall/winter), Another Magazine focuses on being anything but its plain and ordinary name. The magazine is more like a thick volume of forward-bending images and ideas rather than a thin journal filled with simple text and overtly spouted trends.

Another Magazine caters to men and women with a curious thirst for the underdogs of fashion, music, literature, art, and society. Each page turned evokes the edgy, alternative and many times daring.

The current issues contains such sections as:

- Fashion
- Summer Collections
- Interviews
- Art Project
- Another Bright Idea

With each edition, Another Magazine invites an array of artists to express a different side of their creativity...stepping away from the medium they are known for. Fashion designers may turn into temporary art directors while vintage icons might be resurrected as elite models. By pushing the envelope and offering new ways of doing and seeing things, Another Magazine succeeds in offering ultra fresh ideas with a brand new source to serve the reader as inspiration

Reviewed by R & RC Staff Member – Francisco Murillo

Paris Living Rooms offers a fresh take on the photography of interior design. Photographer Dominique Nabakov arrives at a residence to be photographed and insists that nothing be altered or added, and that there be no people in her photographs. She also uses an unusual film stock (Polaroid Colorgraph 691) that feels a bit off-kilter, almost hazy. This definitely isn’t the high-gloss imagery one finds in top interior design magazines and coffee-table books, but something more austere, individualistic and ultimately more revealing of its subject matter.

Nabakov trains her camera on the living rooms of Parisian artists, writers, designers, intellectuals and the occasional celebrity. There is an almost voyeuristic pleasure in seeing these documentary-like photographs. You feel as if you’ve just wandered in for coffee or tea; things feel unfussy and natural. That is not to say that these rooms don’t possess style. This is Paris, after all, and the uniquely French ability to appear completely polished without an ounce of effort is evident throughout. Fashion Designer Agnes b.’s living room is formal with its elegant molding and Louis XIV’s chairs, but also comfortable, with mismatched oriental rugs that are frayed at the edges. Meanwhile, the actress Irene Jacob’s apartment is remarkably stark, but with a Zen elegance rather a harsh minimalism.

Paris Living Rooms offers one a glimpse into the residences of France’s artistic and intellectual elite. It’s a perfect book for those looking to add a little Parisian flair to their homes, as well as for those who simply enjoying seeing how other people decorate their lives.

Reviewed by R & RC Staff Member – Mollie Jones