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.

China Marine

Posted on December 29, 2009 by smellincoffee

China Marine: An Infantryman’s Life after World War 2© Eugene Sledge 2003192 pages Last week I read Eugene Sledge’s With the Old Breed, a memoir of his experiences in the Pacific War. The memoir ranks as one of the most … Continue reading →

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Skipping Christmas

Posted on December 25, 2009 by smellincoffee

Skipping Christmas© 2001 John Grisham227 pages One of my own personal Christmas traditions is to read John Grisham’s Skipping Christmas. It’s a tradition I’ve maintained every year since owning the book, although part of the tradition is not reading all of … Continue reading →

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The Triumph of Caesar

Posted on December 21, 2009 by smellincoffee

The Triumph of Caesar© 2008 Steven Saylor308 pages The Triumph of Caesar is currently the last (Saylor may yet add to it, but I can’t confirm this from his website) book in the Roma sub Rosa series. I would not … Continue reading →

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Black Edelweiss

Posted on December 19, 2009 by smellincoffee

Black Edelweiss: A Memoir of Combat and Conscience By a Soldier of the Waffen-SS© 2002 Johann Voss206 pages As the last coach slid by, it cleared the view of another train, a goods train as it appeared, slowly passing by … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (19/12)

Posted on December 19, 2009 by smellincoffee

Books this Update: Living Buddha, Living Christ; Thich Nhat Hanh With the Old Breed, Eugene B. Sledge When Religion Becomes Evil, Charles Kimball Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days, Jeff Kinney Although I finished my term papers last week,  … Continue reading →

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With the Old Breed

Posted on December 18, 2009 by smellincoffee

With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa© 1981 Eugene B. Sledge326 pages The recruiting sergeant asked me lots of questions and filled out numerous official papers. When he asked, “Any scars, birthmarks, or other unusual features?” I described an inch-long … Continue reading →

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When Religion Becomes Evil

Posted on December 17, 2009 by smellincoffee

When Religion Turns Evil© 2002 Charles Kimball256 pages Published in 2002 before the Iraq War and the rise of the “New Atheism”  Charles Kimball’s When Religion Becomes Evil seeks to preserve religion for humanity’s sake by elaborating on five ways … Continue reading →

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Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days

Posted on December 17, 2009 by smellincoffee

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days© 2009 Jeff Kinney 224 pages My niece (10) is in the process of reading through the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and enjoys it immensely, so I bought her one for Christmas. … Continue reading →

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Living Buddha, Living Christ

Posted on December 17, 2009 by smellincoffee

Living Buddha, Living Christ© 1995 Thich Nhat Hanh240 pages One interpretation of Jesus that I’ve grown used to seeing in books writing on the necessity for religious pluralism is his depiction as an enlightened teacher in the same manner as … Continue reading →

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This (Month) at the Library 9/12

Posted on December 9, 2009 by smellincoffee

Books this Update: The Zinn Reader and Marx in Soho, Howard Zinn Isaac Asimov: The Complete Stories (Volume I), Isaac Asimov The Best of Robert G. Ingersoll, compiled by Roger Greely Saints Behaving Badly, Thomas J. Craughwell Cicero, Anthony Everitt  … Continue reading →

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