If not for John Cleves Symmes, who ordered his brother to build a village in 1789 at the South Bend of the Ohio River, there might not be a suburban Cincinnati community known as Delhi. If not for author Mersch and residents who shared their wealth of historic photographs, the pictorial story of Delhi's early years would not have been so charmingly revealed.

Mersch has included photos of horse-and-buggy rigs used by turn-of-the-century milkmen, the mailman and Kroger's grocery, as well as the community's flourishing vegetable, fruit and flower growers, many of whom had German roots. There are group pictures from long-ago Delhi schools and churches that show shy or smiling youngsters with their teachers and clergy. In what must have been the custom, whole families choose the front yard as background for their group picture. Readers can also look into the faces of past community leaders and famous folks who once called this close-knit community their home.

Order information: Amazon.com, local bookstores or directly from http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/ ISBN 0-7385-3440-4

In the middle of the Great Depression, Cincinnatians were like most other Americans: worried about having a job, feeding their families and losing their homes. They paid little attention to wars and dictators in other parts of the world. That changed dramatically on Dec. 7, 1941, when the United States was attacked by Japan.

Miller’s book describes the people of the Queen City in the years before, during and after World War II, how they faced each crisis and went on to enjoy the postwar economic boom. Included are poignant photos, some never before published, from the archives of the Cincinnati Historical Society Library.

Miller, a UC adjunct associate professor, also served as project historian for the Cincinnati Historical Society exhibit “Cincinnati Goes to War: A Community Responds to WW II.”

Order information: Online booksellers, Barnes & Noble, Borders, Joseph-Beth and B. Dalton’s.

Step into Bearcat game huddles, practices and locker rooms for the inside story about the UC team, courtesy of alumnus Michael Perry, sports editor of the Cincinnati Enquirer. In this, his first book, Perry treats readers to hundreds of anecdotes drawn from interviews with former Bearcat players, coaches, recruiters and staff.

“Tales” covers eight coaching eras, from John “Socko” Wiethe (1946-52) to the intense Bob Huggins, who took over the program in 1989. There’s coach Ed Badger hitchhiking through the snow to recruit a Pennsylvania player, and Tony Yates finding a future first-team all-Metro Conference star in a Mississippi marching band. Read what Oscar Robertson told Perry, as well as the comments of Kenyon Martin, 2000 National Player of the Year.

Order information: E-mail Bearcattales@AOL.com (signed, discounted copies), Amazon.com, UC Bookstore, local bookstores.

Newly arrived in America, Rica Heber is welcomed by Cincinnati’s German immigrant families in Wooden Shoe Hollow. Although she quickly settles into her new life, she is troubled by a secret that lies on the other side of the ocean.

While enjoying Pieper’s fiction, readers are treated to a taste of early 20th century life in a part of Cincinnati the late author knew well. The community’s nickname comes from the wooden shoes German farmers wore for fieldwork.

Originally published in 1951, this is a new, expanded version of Pieper’s historically significant book. Tolzmann has added a brief history of the area, original photographs, an index, a suggested reading list and footnotes that define terms, such as “Ein Prosit” (a toast) and “Yankees,” the term for English-speaking neighbors.

Order information: UC Bookstores, Joseph-Beth Booksellers, Borders, Barnes & Noble, Cincinnati Museum Center gift shop.