PANGS OF LOVE by David Wong...

PANGS OF LOVE by David Wong Louie (Plume: $9). In this impressive debut collection of short stories, the author’s Chinese-American background provides a sense of distance that enables him to observe American mainstream culture more sharply. In one story, the narrator notes that his mother watches American television although she stubbornly refuses to learn English: “Dumb to the prattle that fills the airwaves, maybe her brain will wither proportionately less than the average American’s.” The theme of a mother’s refusal to acknowledge her child’s sexuality has been explored in many recent books; in the poignant title story, Louie adds levels of meaning by setting the conflict between a resolutely traditional, Chinese-born mother and an Americanized gay son. “Love on the Rocks” depicts a game of infidelity and marital relationships as complex as the puzzle-boxes sold in Chinese novelty stores--and equally comprehensible, once the secret has been revealed. In “Warming Trends,” an ordinary man struggles to maintain his physical and psychological health when the recession forces his wife to take a job selling makeup door-to-door, in defiance of Asian and American traditions. Louie’s work transcends the restrictions of ethnic labels and markets: He’s not just a talented young Asian-American writer, he’s a talented young writer, period.

LIVING FOSSIL The Story of the Coelacanth by Keith S. Thomson (W. W. Norton: $9.95, illustrated). Scientists were stunned in 1938 when a South African fisherman caught a coelacanth, a lobe-finned fish believed to have been extinct for 70 million years. Icthyologist Keith Thompson offers a lively account of the search for the coelacanth, a study that was hindered by the outbreak of World War II and a host of other problems. His readily accessible discussions of the ancestry and anatomy of the coelacanth leads him to conclude that the lobe-fins caught near the Comore Islands in the Indian Ocean represent a relict population that somehow survived. Citing the decreasing size of recently taken specimens, he argues that the remaining fish should be protected by international law. With over 200 specimens in museums and universities, plenty of coelacanth material is available for study: There is no need to deplete this limited population.

TUVA OR BUST Richard Feynman’s Last Journey by Ralph Leighton (Penguin: $10., illustrated). Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman and his friend Ralph Leighton became interested in Tuva or Tannu Tuva through a geography game and their boyhood stamp collections. (The unlikely spelling of Kyzyl, the capitol, particularly delighted them.) Arguably the most obscure country on Earth, Tuva is a largely forgotten component of the U.S.S.R. Visiting Tuva became a near-obsession during the last years of Feynman’s life, when the eminent scientist was dying of cancer. Leighton’s account of their shared fascination is often entertaining, although the reader may be put off by their lack of scruples about bending rules and misrepresenting themselves in their decade-long effort to establish contact with the central Asian country. Leighton finally reached Tuva after Feynman’s death, a pilgrimage that stands as a testimony to the power of determination and friendship to overcome bureaucratic opposition.

THE FACE IN THE ABYSS by A. Merritt (Collier: $9). The former editor of Hearst’s American Weekly, Merritt wrote opulent and exciting fantasy stories that rival the work of Tolkien and Burroughs. Arguably his best novel, “The Face in the Abyss” boasts all the elements that have made the genre popular: a noble hero, a beautiful heroine, a passionate romance, merciless villains, glittering treasure and a duel-to-the-death between the forces of good and evil. Although the lost land in the Andes has become a standard fantasy setting, Merritt populates the hidden realm of Yu-Atlanchi with a host of extraordinary characters, including the puissant Adana, the last representative of a race of serpent-people who ruled Antarctica before glaciers covered the continent.

BOB’S YOUR UNCLE A Dictionary of Slang for British Mystery Fans by Jann Turner-Lord (Fithian Press, P . O . Box 1525, Santa Barbara, Calif. 93102: $7.95, illustrated). This brief, handy glossary lends credence to the old bromide about America and Britain being separated by a common language. American readers may find themselves at a loss when confronted with such idiomatic expressions as do porridge (serve time in jail), bottle fog (do something difficult or nearly impossible) and under the cosh (drunken). Fans of British mysteries who want know exactly what a suspect is saying to Miss Marple or Peter Wimsey will welcome this handy little reference book.

THE WORLD AROUND MIDNIGHT by Patricia Brownings Griffith (Washington Square: $8). Patricia Griffith mixes feminism and down-home humor in a comic novel that recalls Fannie Flagg’s “Fried Green Tomatoes.” After the death of her father, Dinah Reynolds finds herself stuck back in Midnight, a flyspeck town of 3,604 where everyone knows everyone else’s business instantaneously. She had happily left Midnight for a career in publishing in nearby Dallas, but her recalcitrant Baptist mother insists she take over her father’s two-bit weekly newspaper. While Dinah searches for something that might pass for news, her husband begins philandering in Dallas and her son’s marriage to a shallow, affected girl collapses. Naturally all these problems get sorted out in time for a happy, affirming ending. Although Griffith turns some clever phrases--contemplating her daughter-in-law’s white-trash family, Dinah muses, “Maybe what it boils down to is the fact that the middle class is not so bad when you see the alternatives”--”World Around Midnight” seems too predictable and drawn out for its own good.

USA TODAY: THE WEATHER BOOK by Jack Williams (Vintage: $18, illustrated). Williams’ basic introduction to meteorology explains why various atmospheric phenomena occur: how different temperatures produce different kinds of snow flakes; why hail forms under certain conditions, rather than snow or sleet; the differences between hurricanes and tornadoes, and why hurricanes do so much more damage. Williams also offers some offbeat weather statistics, including extremes of temperature and rainfall, which storms did the most damages, etc. Like its namesake newspaper, “The Weather Book” is filled with charts, diagrams, sidebars, profiles, graphs, graphics, etc., but so many of these visual extras have been included, it’s often difficult to follow the otherwise readable text.

THE SIMPSONS FUN IN THE SUN BOOK by Matt Groening (HarperPerennial: $9, illustrated). This imaginative and irreverent book of games, songs, activities and projects will help keep kids busy and parents sane during the long muggy days of an El Nino summer. Many of the games are old (one version of marbles is described as “older than Mick Jagger, even”), but the “Simpsons” characters give them a renewed currency. In his cartoons, Groening has always displayed an exceptional memory for what it was really like to be a kid, and his experiences as a father have only sharpened his perceptions. No other children’s activity book offers “Make-A-Big-Mess Leaf Printing” or tips on how to tell ghost stories (including the one about the Hook) on overnight camp-outs. Although conservative media commentators have accused “The Simpsons” of undermining “family values,” Groening and his bug-eyed cartoon clan stress the need for caution, safety and parental supervision, but never at the cost of fun.