A ‘Set Up’ Full of Explosive Trouble : In Maxine O’Callaghan’s fourth mystery, Delilah West is hired to investigate a bomb threat against an environmentalist.

In “Set Up,” Maxine O’Callaghan’s new Delilah West mystery, the scrappy Orange County private eye is hired when an environmentalist receives a bomb threat after taking a dramatic stand against development.

Or as O’Callaghan wrote in a blurb for the Sisters in Crime mystery writers organization, “Delilah West finds herself in big trouble, this time of the explosive kind, when a murder case mixes overdevelopment and Orange County politics.”

“Set Up” (St. Martin’s Press; $18.95) is the Mission Viejo writer’s fourth Delilah West mystery.

O’Callaghan was “thawing out” earlier this week after returning from Chicago, where she did a series of book signings and participated in a three-day seminar, “Murder by the Book,” sponsored by the Southwest Chicago Mystery Guild.

“They had record cold weather--5 and 10 above at night with a 20-below wind-chill factor. It made me realize why we left,” said O’Callaghan, who moved from Chicago to Orange County in 1972.

O’Callaghan will sign copies of her new mystery from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday at Book Carnival, 348 S. Tustin Ave., Orange. (Note: Book Carnival, which specializes in mysteries and science fiction, has moved to larger quarters not far from the old shop). O’Callaghan will also sign, along with Costa Mesa mystery author Jean Femling (“Getting Mine”), from noon to 2 p.m. Sunday at the Green Door Mystery Bookstore, 31781 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano.

College Transfers: “Transferring Made Easy: A Guide to Changing Colleges Successfully” (Peterson’s Guides; $11.95) outlines seven steps to a successful college transfer and how to avoid common pitfalls.

Author Muriel Shishkoff, a consultant for educational improvement programs at UCI’s Office of Relations With Schools and Colleges, discusses the diverse transfer polices of universities around the country, how to avoid duplication of credit, the importance of taking the right courses and how prior work experiences and education may be counted for college credit.

The book also answers 50 of the most commonly asked questions about transferring.

The text, Shishkoff says, “is interwoven with examples drawn from the experiences of Orange County college students, among others. Students, counselors and parents will find it a unique and helpful tool in planning a successful and economical transfer program.”

Animal Info: If you’ve ever wanted to know how to get rid of wasps, find the best place to board your pet or even prepare a pet earthquake survival kit, Pat M. Guiver of Huntington Beach has the book for you.

The 1992 edition of Guiver’s “Animal Connections: The Complete Directory of Pet and Wildlife Resources” (Paw Print Publications; $11.95) answers those questions and more.

The self-published, 155-page paperback is aimed at pet owners, hobbyists, environmentalists, animal shelter workers, veterinarians and other pet care professionals, and contains more than 400 listings in 120 categories. It includes information and advice on nutrition, poisoning, lost and found pets, veterinarians and shelters.

The book is the result of Guiver’s 20-year involvement in animal welfare in Orange County. Much of the information concerns little-known organizations or individuals whose services often are not listed in the phone book, says Guiver, who writes on environmental and animal-related issues for newspapers and magazines.

Guiver is founder and an eight-term president of the Animal Assistance League of Orange County. She is also founder and current president of the Orange County SPCA and says she will donate a percentage of the book’s profits to local humane organizations.

For more information, call (714) 536-2450.

Baby-Sitter Guide: Jeanne and Dave Duclett of Orange have designed a book to help ease parents’ anxiety when they leave their children with a baby-sitter.

“Baby Sitter’s Answers: A Personal Guide for Your Baby Sitter” (The Cottage Press; $12.95) is an all-in-one-place guide containing the parents’ information on everything from important phone numbers to what the baby likes to eat.

For more information, call (714) 974-5756.

Parenting Books: “Teens Parenting: Your Baby’s First Year” and “Teens Parenting: The Challenge of Toddlers”--the final titles in Jeanne Lindsay’s four-book series for teen-age parents--are now available.

The books ($15.95 each) are published by Morning Glory Press in Buena Park, a small publishing company that specializes in books for pregnant and parenting teens.

Lindsay, who worked for many years with pregnant and parenting teens as a teacher and director of the Tracy High School Teen Mother Program in Cerritos, founded Morning Glory Press in 1977. She is the author of 10 other books related to teen pregnancy and parenting and adoption from the birth family’s perspective.

For more information, call (714) 828-1998.