Author Archives: smellincoffee

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About smellincoffee

Citizen, librarian, reader with a boundless wonder for the world and a curiosity about all the beings inside it.

The end approaches

Posted on February 27, 2021 by smellincoffee

Earlier last year David Mack, one of Treklit’s leading authors, suggested that To Lose the Earth was the last planned book in the Treklit continuity, as future releases would be centered on the current shows. It appears that a finale … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 4 Comments

The Last Stargazers

Posted on February 26, 2021 by smellincoffee

The Last Stargazer: The Enduring Story of Astronomy’s Vanishing Explorers© 2020 Emily Levesque336 pages Emily Levesque was drawn to the stars from childhood on. Having realized her dream of studying them for a living, in The Last Stargazers she offers … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, science | Tagged , | 7 Comments

The death of Liberty

Posted on February 25, 2021 by smellincoffee

“Liberty never dies from direct attack. No man ever arises and says ‘Down with Liberty.’ Liberty has died in 14 countries in a single score of years from weakening its safeguards, from demoralization of the moral stamina of the people….If … Continue reading →

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Cold Sassy Tree

Posted on February 24, 2021 by smellincoffee

Cold Sassy Tree© 1984 Olive Ann Burns391 pages “I know now the difference between a writer and an author. A  writer writes, and an author speaks.”   Those words came from Leaving Cold Sassy, an unfinished sequel to this work … Continue reading →

Posted in Classics and Literary, Reviews | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Top Ten Books That Made Me Laugh

Posted on February 23, 2021 by smellincoffee

This week Top Ten Tuesday is looking at funny books, so I’m listing my ten favorite P.G. Wodehouse novels. Okay, I won’t go that far, but.. The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, Max Shulman. I was given this collection of … Continue reading →

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Death and madness in China

Posted on February 22, 2021 by smellincoffee

The Cultural Revolution: A People’s History© 2016 Frank Dikotter433 pages In twenty-five years of reading history, I know of no man who has instigated more human suffering and death at a broader scale than Mao Tse-tung, the rebel turned architect … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 13 Comments

The Lost Classics

Posted on February 18, 2021 by smellincoffee

The Lost Classics© ed. Jim Casada1950s-60s pieces by Robert Ruark from Field & Stream and other magazines260 pages A hunt for southern literature outside the Faulkner/O’Connor domain brought me to the happy surprise that was The Old Man and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Double play: Mobile & Latin America

Posted on February 15, 2021 by smellincoffee

This past week has seen a little progress on the ol’ TBR front, as I knocked out three books from the list, including The Network and those below. First up was E.O. Wilson’s Why We Are Here: Mobile and the … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews, World Affairs | Tagged , , , , , , | 15 Comments

“Love”

Posted on February 14, 2021 by smellincoffee

“Love is the only bow on Life’s dark cloud. It is the morning and the evening star. It shines upon the babe, and sheds its radiance on the quiet tomb. It is the mother of art, inspirer of poet, patriot … Continue reading →

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Yesterday’s News: Carnegie & Brexit circa 1902

Posted on February 12, 2021 by smellincoffee

Inspired by The Network, I’ve been perusing my local paper’s older archives and looking for mentions of Signor Marconi. I thought it might be interesting to see how his invention was received at the time. I was amused to find … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged | 6 Comments