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 (3/12)

Posted on December 2, 2008 by smellincoffee

Books this Update: A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens Colonization: Down to Earth, Harry Turtledove Armageddon in Retrospect, Kurt Vonnegut Almost Everyone’s Guide to Science, Joshua Gribbin Women in the Middle Ages, Frances and Joseph Gies This past week encompassed Thanksgiving, … Continue reading →

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Women in the Middle Ages

Posted on December 2, 2008 by smellincoffee

Women in the Middle Ages© Frances and Joseph Gies 1978236 pages, plus index, notes, and bibliography. Again this week I read from Frances and Joseph Gies’ series on daily life in the medieval era. The book is divided smartly into … Continue reading →

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A Christmas Carol

Posted on November 30, 2008 by smellincoffee

A Christmas CarolCharles Dickens For a number of years now, I have made a tradition of watching A Christmas Carol with Patrick Stewart. I do not recall the first time I watched the movie, but it became an instant favorite. … Continue reading →

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Almost Everyone’s Guide to Science

Posted on November 30, 2008 by smellincoffee

Almost Everyone’s Guide to Science© 1998 John Gribbin200ish pages What’s this? Science? With no history of- or -fiction added to it? Can it be? After so many months? Yes! The Thanksgiving holiday afforded me the opportunity to do more reading … Continue reading →

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Colonization: Down to Earth

Posted on November 29, 2008 by smellincoffee

Colonization: Down to Earth© 2000 Harry Turtledove618 pages I continued reading Turtledove’s Colonization series this week. “Down to Earth” is the second book in said series, which is about Earth in the 1960s. The Lizards have held the southern hemisphere … Continue reading →

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Armageddon in Retrospect

Posted on November 28, 2008 by smellincoffee

Armageddon in Retrospect© 2008 Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Trust232 pages. Reading and writing are in themselves subversive acts. What they subvert is the notion that things have to be the way they are, that you are alone, that no one has … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (26/11)

Posted on November 26, 2008 by smellincoffee

Books this Update: Colonization: Second Contact, Harry Turtledove The Winds of Change and Other Stories, Isaac Asimov Life in a Medieval Village, Frances and Joseph Gies The Art of Living, Epictetus — trans. Sharon Leben I began reading Harry Turtledove’s … Continue reading →

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The Art of Living

Posted on November 25, 2008 by smellincoffee

The Art of LivingEpictetus, translated by Sharon Lebell (© 1994)115 pages One great asset I have access to is my university library. Being a university library, its historical nonfiction offerings are far greater than any public library (except for perhaps … Continue reading →

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The Winds of Change and Other Stories

Posted on November 25, 2008 by smellincoffee

The Winds of Change and Other Stories© 1983 Isaac Asimov Having survived the flood of term paper deadlines, I can now cool my heels and relax — and so I did, with another collection of Asimov’s short stories. This particular … Continue reading →

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Life in a Medieval Village

Posted on November 24, 2008 by smellincoffee

Life in a Medieval Village© 1990 Frances and Joseph Gies207 pages, plus index, notes, and a bibliography This week I continued reading from the Gies’ excellent series on daily life in the medieval era. This book, like Life in a … Continue reading →

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