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 Night Before Christmas: The Musical”

Posted on December 23, 2019 by smellincoffee

A few weeks ago I shared my admiration of Alma Deutscher, a German-English musical prodigy who’s been writing operas since she was  in elementary school.  I recently encountered this video of her singing with her little sister, ‘reciting’ the classic … Continue reading →

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Some voices from 9/11

Posted on December 22, 2019 by smellincoffee

Below follow some of the more poignant quotes from The Only Plane in the Sky. “Meanwhile, hundreds of feet below the impact zone, people were still going about their day. The World Trade Center complex was so massive that those … Continue reading →

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The Only Plane in the Sky

Posted on December 22, 2019 by smellincoffee

The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11 © 2019 Garrett Graff 512 pages   If you ever only read one book about 9/11, make it The Only Plane in the Sky.   I have rarely been as … Continue reading →

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The Lost Gospel of Mary

Posted on December 21, 2019 by smellincoffee

The Lost Gospel of Mary:  The Mother of Jesus in Three Ancient Texts © 2012 Frederica Mathewes-Green 178 pages   We are presently in the season of Advent,  an ideal time to take a look at a question of mine: … Continue reading →

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My Disillusionment in Russia

Posted on December 20, 2019 by smellincoffee

My Disillusionment in Russia © 1923 Emma Goldman 271 pages “Is there any change in the world? Or is it all an eternal recurrence of man’s inhumanity to man?”    – Emma Goldman, 1921 In 1919, then-notorious anarchist Emma Goldman was … Continue reading →

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Rubbish!

Posted on December 18, 2019 by smellincoffee

Rubbish! The Archaeology of Garbage © 1992 William Rathje and Cullen Murphy 250 pages Given that historians often use the contents of middens to glean information about societies which have long faded away, it’s only fair to see what our … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews | Tagged , | 11 Comments

Of stars and saints

Posted on December 14, 2019 by smellincoffee

Two also-reads in recent weeks have been Brian Cox’s Wonders of the Solar System and Kevin Vost’s 12 Life Lessons from St. Augustine. I’m familiar with Cox from his many appearances in Symphony of Science videos (a YouTube series in  … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, science | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

A Decade in Music

Posted on December 13, 2019 by smellincoffee

Marian recently posted a fascinating survey regarding the music we’ve listened to in the last ten years.     Considering how much I listen to music — constantly, unless I’m at work, sleeping, or reading —    it was a tough exercise to … Continue reading →

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War and Peace

Posted on December 11, 2019 by smellincoffee

War and Peace pub. 1869 Leo Tolstoy trans.  1957 Rosemary Edmunds 1444 pages My word, what a book!   In the beginning, dear readers, I’ll confess that I anticipated failure. Tolstoy’s epic addressing the nature of history and war,  and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Junkyard Planet

Posted on December 6, 2019 by smellincoffee

Junkyard Planet: Travels in the Billion Dollar Trash Trade © 2013 Adam Minter 304 pages I once encountered a pair of supermarket clerks unloading cases of bottled water from their pallet jack to the shelves where the water awaits the … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews | Tagged , , | 6 Comments