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.

This Week at the Library (16/9)

Posted on September 17, 2009 by smellincoffee

Books this Update: Death by Black Hole, Neil deGrass Tyson Murder on the Appian Way, Steven Saylor Waiter Rant, “The Waiter” Taming the Mind, Thubten Chodron Pebble in the Sky, Isaac Asimov Dark Force Rising, Timothy Zahn The Philosophy of … Continue reading →

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The Philosophy of Humanism

Posted on September 16, 2009 by smellincoffee

The Philosophy of Humanism© 1990 Corliss Lamont326 pages This is very straightforward book on the obvious subject, giving a history, description, and promotion of contemporary humanism. Author Corliss Lamont once headed the American Humanist Association, although he is perhaps better … Continue reading →

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Dark Force Rising

Posted on September 16, 2009 by smellincoffee

Dark Force Rising© 1992 Timothy Zahn376 pages I’m continuing in the Thrawn trilogy with Dark Force Rising. When we left the series at the end of Heir to the Empire, Leia Organa Solo was about to pay a visit to … Continue reading →

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Pebble in the Sky

Posted on September 14, 2009 by smellincoffee

Pebble in the Sky © 1950 Isaac Asimov 223 pages After finishing the Foundation and Robots series (save Robots and Empire) I decided to move on to the Galactic Empire series which fits in between them — tying Earth’s near … Continue reading →

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Taming the Mind

Posted on September 13, 2009 by smellincoffee

Taming the Mind © 2004 Thubten Chodron 217 pages I judged a book by its cover when I read this one. Oh, I looked it up on Amazon to see what readers were saying about it — my substitute for … Continue reading →

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Waiter Rant

Posted on September 12, 2009 by smellincoffee

Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip — Confessions of a Cynical Waiter © 2008 “The Waiter” 302 pages While browsing humor site NotAlwaysRight, in which the malevolence and stupidity of the average consumer are celebrated through submitted quotations, I noticed … Continue reading →

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A Murder on the Appian Way

Posted on September 12, 2009 by smellincoffee

A Murder on the Appian Way © 1997 Steven Saylor 413 pages “Oh, the times! Oh, the morals!” – Cicero “Ah, judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts and men have lost their reason!” – Mark Antony, Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. … Continue reading →

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Death by Black Hole

Posted on September 10, 2009 by smellincoffee

Death by Black Hole and Other Cosmic Quandries© 2007 Neil deGrasse Tyson384 pages Although I’ve encountered Dr. Tyson before — chiefly through interviews in podcasts like The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe and the Humanist Network News — I’ve never … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (10/9)

Posted on September 10, 2009 by smellincoffee

Books this Update: A History of God, Karen Armstrong The Demon-Haunted World, Carl Sagan Heir to the Empire, Timothy Zahn The Sons of Caesar, Philip Matyszak I started the week off with Karen Armstrong’s History of God, a religious history … Continue reading →

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The Sons of Caesar

Posted on September 9, 2009 by smellincoffee

The Sons of Caesar: Imperial Rome’s First Dynasty© 2006 Philip Matyszak296 pages, 16 pages of plates. Most of my Roman reading has been set in the late Republic, although as a western student of history I have a working knowledge … Continue reading →

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