Robert J. Blakely chronicles the career of one of the most influential Chicago lawyers of the civil rights movement in Earl B. Dickerson (Northwestern University Press; $24.95).
The 1977 novel A Scanner Darkly, by the famed sci-fi writer and Chicago native Philip K. Dick, is revamped in a graphic version (Pantheon; $15.95), composed of animated stills from the upcoming film adaptation starring Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey Jr., Woody Harrelson, and Winona Ryder.
In Fundamentally Wrong (Basic Books; $26), U. of C. law professor Cass Sunstein warns how a conservative interpretation of the Constitution will damage the judicial system and, ultimately, society.
The Beliefnet Guide to Islam (Three Leaves Press; $9.95), by Hesham A. Hassaballa, cofounder of the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, provides a comprehensive introduction to the practices and cultural implications of a religion that is widely misconstrued.
Catholic priest, U. of C. professor, and best-selling author Andrew M. Greeley releases Irish Crystal (Forge; $24.95), the ninth installment in his mystery series.
In A Stronger Kinship (Little, Brown; $24.95), Newberry Library scholar-in-residence Ana Lisa Cox tells a true story of equality in a mixed-race Michigan community in the 1860s.