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.

Teaser Tuesday, October 19 | WWW Wednesday

Posted on October 21, 2026 by smellincoffee

I’ve been without internet when not at work, so I didn’t have my Tuesday meme post scheduled the way I usually do. Hence, you get it on Wednesday! McKinley peered at the world through deep-socketed gray eyes that seemed almost … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Rumble Fish: Keep Cooly-Cool, Boy

Posted on October 19, 2026 by smellincoffee

Many years ago, when the Earth was young and dinosaurs roamed the land, I encountered a book called That Was Then, This is Now at a Waldenbooks in Montgomery, Alabama. It proved to be my introduction to S.E. Hinton, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Short rounds…LBJ and FDR

Posted on October 19, 2026 by smellincoffee

While I’ve been excellent this year at keeping my number of un-reviewed books to practically zero (one exception being Bruce Thornton’s Greek Ways), in the last couple of weeks several have piled up.  Thus, I wave my magic wand: the … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Reagan: The Life

Posted on October 15, 2026 by smellincoffee

Unlike many of the presidents on this list,  I approach Reagan: The Life with a fair bit of familiarity.   Reagan was just a name to me until he died in 2004: my parents and I were taking our last … Continue reading →

Posted in General, history, Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews, World Affairs | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

WWW Wednesday

Posted on October 14, 2026 by smellincoffee

WHAT have you finished reading recently? I finished a Fellowship of the Ring radio adaptation, but I don’t know if that counts…..so there’s also Amity Shlaes’ The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression. I know I need … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged , | 12 Comments

Top Ten Fall Covers + Teaser Tuesday

Posted on October 12, 2026 by smellincoffee

“My God, he must have thought, here I am the head of the largest, most powerful banking system in the world and the very first thing this guy — who is going to be the president of the United States … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged , | 20 Comments

A weird weekend

Posted on October 12, 2026 by smellincoffee

On Friday evening the library closed an hour early, because Hurricane Isaias had ramped up to Category 3 and was hanging out on the Gulf Coast, pondering where to go for dinner. It destroyed one of Flounders’ signs in Pensacola, … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 5 Comments

In re: the whole hurricane thing

Posted on October 10, 2026 by smellincoffee

Its the middle of the night but Isaias has moved northwards. I lost power around 830 last night. Although I didn’t use my phone after I laid down, I apparently left an app open and so I’m hovering at 60% … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 4 Comments

Can’t post, hurricaning

Posted on October 9, 2026 by smellincoffee

After a dormant hurricane season, the Gulf has produced its first storm and decided to interrupt Game Day in Alabama. Half of my dog sitting gigs for the next two weeks were cancelled, alas, as were my plans to visit … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 4 Comments

Nine Books I’ll Never Forget

Posted on October 8, 2026 by smellincoffee

A “Nine Books I’ll Never Forget” meme is going around. Considering how much I have read in the course of my life — close to three thousand books on this blog alone — that’s a daunting challenge, so consider this … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged | 12 Comments