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.

Moviewatch July 2028

Posted on July 31, 2026 by smellincoffee

Annnd that’s a wrap for movies this month! Young Washington, 2026.   Watched on opening weekend with the ladyfriend, who indulged my historical asides (“That’s Thomas Gage, he’s going to be an antagonist in twenty years.”)  and and the film’s … Continue reading →

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July 2026 in Review

Posted on July 30, 2026 by smellincoffee

While I’ll finish The Age of Eisenhower today and could wrap up Stephen Fry’s Odyssey tomorrow,, reviews for either before August are unlikely. So, let’s wrap up July in books! We travel ever deeper into the oppressive heatsink of July, … Continue reading →

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WWW Wednesday and “My Life in Pictures”?

Posted on July 29, 2026 by smellincoffee

Today’s prompt from Long and Short Reviews is, “My life in photos or gifs”. I’m not going to share any personal photos, but will share ten of my rotating desktop wallpapers. But first, WWW Wednesday! WHAT have you finish reading … Continue reading →

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Top Ten Books We Couldn’t WAIT to Read…but haven’t…

Posted on July 27, 2026 by smellincoffee

Today’s TTT is books we couldn’t wait to get and have not read. But first, The Tuesday Tease! Odysseus openly laughed. ‘Oh my goodness, you’ve never seen such arocky, scrubby, barren, unforgiving spot,’ he said. ‘It’s all our farmers cando … Continue reading →

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The Lincoln Obsession

Posted on July 22, 2026 by smellincoffee

James L. Swanson is something of a Lincoln obsessive. How obsessive? Well, he’s considered an authority for evaluating Lincoln-related artifacts and relics, and he has quite a collection himself — including a lock of Lincoln’s hair. (He can also name-drop … Continue reading →

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Books We Wish We’d Read Sooner + WWW Wednesday

Posted on July 22, 2026 by smellincoffee

Today’s prompt from Long and Short reviews is, “Books We Wish We’d Found Sooner”. I tend to think I find books when I’m meant to. I have mentioned on numerous occasions, for instance, that Death and Life of Great American … Continue reading →

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The Thirty-First of March

Posted on July 21, 2026 by smellincoffee

I begin the first of presumably several books on LBJ by peering into his office as he made the decision to not run for office again in 1968. The door is opened by Horace Busby, a newspaperman-turned-speechwriter and confidant for … Continue reading →

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Top Ten Books that Live Rent Free

Posted on July 21, 2026 by smellincoffee

Today’s TTT is ‘books that live rent free in our heads’, which is an interesting premise. But first, Teaser Tuesday Time! RFK told the reporter that his Hoffa proposal seemed promising on paper, but he had one reservation: Who the … Continue reading →

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Jack and Bobby

Posted on July 20, 2026 by smellincoffee

“You and those Kennedys!” exclaimed the waitress at my usual lunch spot when she walked by to see me deeply invested in yet another title about the Brothers K.   I must admit, becoming obsessed with the Kennedy men was … Continue reading →

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The Gospel of Mark: A Beginner’s Guide

Posted on July 17, 2026 by smellincoffee

The Gospel of Mark: A Beginner’s Guide  to the Good News is an informal introduction to the first of the synoptic Gospels.   It’s markedly different from the other Gospels in its spareness and pace. Mark moves,  and everything is … Continue reading →

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