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.

Short rounds, Read of England style

Posted on April 12, 2026 by smellincoffee

By luck of the draw, I’ve had a series of books too short to review properly, so I’ve bid them all wait until I had enough for a short round post. First up was my first proper experience with Dan … Continue reading →

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The Shaping of England

Posted on April 9, 2026 by smellincoffee

The Shaping of England is an older (1960s) Asimov history written about early England, beginning with speculation about the Beaker people and moving through the Celts, Romans, Anglo-Saxons etc to wrap up with the establishment of the Magna Carta. Like … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Controversial Polemics

Posted on April 8, 2026 by smellincoffee

When he was twenty-three, Michael Mohr read On the Road and decided to pursue the life of Sal Paradise himself. He hit the road for a life of drinking and adventures, but by the end of his twenties had lost … Continue reading →

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WWW Wednesday & When I was a Kid

Posted on April 8, 2026 by smellincoffee

Today’s prompt from Long and Short Reviews is: what were you like as a kid? But first, WWW Wednesday! WHAT have you finished reading recently? The Shaping of England, Isaac Asimov. And, technically, Public Libraries and their Communities, one of … Continue reading →

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Teaser Tuesday, 1066 Edition

Posted on April 7, 2026 by smellincoffee

That one battle had swung the pendulum. What the Saxons had won in a century of warfare against the Britons; what they had saved in a century and a half of warfare against the Danes; they now lost to the … Continue reading →

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The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy

Posted on April 6, 2026 by smellincoffee

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce was one of my favorite books of 2024, and I’ve been meaning to read its sequel for some time now. I thought Read of England as appropriate an occasion as any. … Continue reading →

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This Joyful Eastertide

Posted on April 5, 2026 by smellincoffee

Christos anesti! The choir I’m in will be attempting this piece later this morning. I knew Turner was a good musician & singer from his collabs with Allison Young, but I didn’t realize how vocally versatile he was.

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The People on Platform 5

Posted on April 2, 2026 by smellincoffee

You don’t talk to the people on the platform, or on the train. You sit in silence, lost in your headphones or your phone or even a book. But what happens when the man sitting opposite you suddenly begins choking … Continue reading →

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The Sober Diaries

Posted on April 1, 2026 by smellincoffee

In the afterwords of The Authenticity of Project, author Clare Pooley noted that it was her attempt to capture in fiction something she’s done in fact: change her life through honesty. She’d done it by blogging her journey to sobriety, … Continue reading →

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March 2026 in Review + WWW Wednesday

Posted on April 1, 2026 by smellincoffee

After a vigorous opening for the year, my reading fell back rather dramatically this month before starting to recover with some short biographies and novels at the close. (The novels were Britfic, too, a nice segue into Read of England.) … Continue reading →

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