by Robert A. Shakman, M.D.
A California specialist in environmental health, Shakman has rounded up a useful mass of information—mostly from government sources—on air pollution, allergies, climate, natural disasters and crime frequency in more than 200 U.S. cities. Denver, for instance, has a very high crime rate, double the national average in suspended particulate pollution, and averages 158 days below freezing every year, but it's rarely hit by natural disaster. Asheville, N.C. is low in crime and just average in pollution, but it's sneeze city for anyone with grass allergies. Lowest in violent crime is Fargo, N. Dak.—with 36 annual incidents per 100,000 population. New York City is highest, 1,357 per 100,000. In our mobile society this book belongs in every public library. (Stein and Day, $10.95)
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