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.

Literary humor in RDR2

Posted on August 1, 2020 by smellincoffee

I’m currently wrapping up my fourth playthrough of RDR2, and am continuing to discover new things.  Recently while looting the body of some poor unfortunate (he had a case of bad manners, which I remedied with liberal application of fisticuffs) … Continue reading →

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The End of October

Posted on August 1, 2020 by smellincoffee

The End of October © 2020 Lawrence Wright 482 pages COVID-19 gotcha down? Cheer up! It could be worse. A lot worse. Like…the US president dying on live television, bleeding from the eyes worse.   The End of October was published … Continue reading →

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Darth Plagueis

Posted on July 31, 2020 by smellincoffee

Darth Plagueis © 2012 James Luceno 498 pages Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the wise? ….it’s not a story the Jedi would tell you.   Beginning decades before The Phantom Menace, and culminating in its end,  Darth … Continue reading →

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In the Garden of Beasts

Posted on July 30, 2020 by smellincoffee

In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin © 2011 Erik Larson 432 pages In 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt needed a man for a post no one wanted to fill: US Ambassador to Germany.  … Continue reading →

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Re-read: The Ethical Assassin

Posted on July 29, 2020 by smellincoffee

The Ethical Assassin © 2006 David Liss 336 pages A few weeks ago for TTT,  I mentioned David Liss as an author who made me smile, and happened to think  about the first novel I read by him, The Ethical … Continue reading →

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How do you read? A bookish meme

Posted on July 29, 2020 by smellincoffee

Ruth from A Great Book Study recently posted a survey I thought of interest, so I’m participating.  Feel free to join in! Do you have a certain place at home for reading? I favor a cozy chair in the living … Continue reading →

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Wisdom Wednesday: A Psalm of Life

Posted on July 29, 2020 by smellincoffee

Today’s wisdom is more inspiration, as this poem came to mind often while reading 12 Rules for Life.  I first heard the poem on YouTube, read by Paul Scofield (he had magnificent force for narration),  and have grown to appreciate … Continue reading →

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Ten Books that I haven’t bought (yet)

Posted on July 27, 2020 by smellincoffee

Today’s TTT is a freebie, so I’m looking at books I’ve previewed (that is, had Amazon send me a kindle freebie of) but haven’t bought. Coyote America: A Natural and Supernatural History, Dan Flores. This was more of a  “I … Continue reading →

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The Splendid and the Vile

Posted on July 27, 2020 by smellincoffee

The Splendid and the Vile: A Sage of Churchill, Family, and Defiance during the Blitz © 2020 Erik Larson 464 pages “Nothing could have been more beautiful and the searchlights interlaced at certain points on the horizon, the star-like flashes … Continue reading →

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Harvard and the Unabomber

Posted on July 23, 2020 by smellincoffee

Harvard and the Unabomber: The Education of an American Terrorist Original title: A Mind for Murder © 2003 Alston Chase 352 pages Ted Kaczynski was hunted fruitlessly by the FBI for eighteen years, until finally being done in by his … Continue reading →

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