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Author Archives: smellincoffee
The Wonder That Was India
The Wonder That Was India© 1959 Arthur Llewellyn Basham586 pages For the past few weeks I’ve been enjoying The Wonder That Was India, a Will Durant-like survey of Indian history and culture prior to the Mughal invasion. Its opening section … Continue reading
Tyrannosaur Canyon
Tyrannosaur Canyon© 2006 Douglas Preston416 pages What do a ‘misplaced’ lunar sample and a fossil hunter shot dead in the high mesas of New Mexico have in common? Their shared secret is one that would answer one of humanity’s oldest … Continue reading
Posted in Reviews, science fiction
Tagged American Southwest, Douglas Preston, New Mexico, science fiction, thriller
8 Comments
Dragon’s Teeth
Dragon’s Teeth © 2017 Michael Crichton288 pages Scientific discovery isn’t always a gentlemanly affair. Dragon’s Teeth, published by the estate of Michael Crichton in his name, inserts a fictional character into the real-life feud of two paleontologists who went to such … Continue reading
Posted in historical fiction, Reviews, science fiction
Tagged adventure, archaeology, dinosaurs, historical fiction, Michael Crichton, science fiction
2 Comments
Gates of Rome
I rarely give up on a book, but for this one I could never muster more than marginal enthusiasm. I’ve been watching Rome on Amazon Prime, and contemplating Caesar’s The Conquest of Gaul, so a novel about the formation of young … Continue reading
A human is a messy receipe
“There is an important distinction between a blueprint and a recipe. A blueprint is a detailed, point-for-point specification of some end product like a house or a car. One diagnostic feature of a blueprint is that it is reversible. Give … Continue reading
Romans Without Laurels
Romans Without Laurels© 1962 Indro Montanelli352 pages In Romans Without Laurels, Indro Montanelli delivers an affectionate history of the Roman Republic and the empire which followed. Although a work in translation, it succeeds wonderfully as narrative history, reminding and entertaining … Continue reading
State of Fear
State of Fear© 2004 Michael Chrichton672 pages I stumbled upon State of Fear via Rousseau, oddly enough. Wikiquote’s page on Rousseau included an excerpt from a Michael Crichton article rebuking Rousseau’s “noble savage” myth. The article in question scrutinized political … Continue reading
Columbus was a lucky devil
The great American eclipse has come and passed, and in my neck of the woods it was scarcely noticable. According to a website, we were to have achieved 88% obscurity, which sounded like “dusk” to me. The only noticable effect … Continue reading
Posted in General
5 Comments
Ten Biographies of Interest
I was asked to create a bookmark or brochure of biographies to promote that section at the library. I used Goodreads and selected ten books which we have, adjusting a bit to include more women. The blurbs borrow slightly from … Continue reading
The Art of Deception
The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security© 2005 Kevin Mitnick352 pages The Art of Deception is interesting at first, but very repetitive. Mitnick, who claims his career as a hacker was passed solely on manipulating people to gain … Continue reading
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