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.

The Outlaw Ocean

Posted on November 6, 2023 by smellincoffee

The Secret Life of Groceries was a disturbing wake-up call for me last year, exposing as it did how slavery is a core part of the fishing industry that supplies seafood the world around — in which men are trapped … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Highlights from People vs Tech

Posted on November 3, 2023 by smellincoffee

Moments ago, I finally posted a review for a book I read back in September, The People vs Tech. We won’t witness a repeat of the 1930s, everyone’s favourite analogy. Rather, I believe that democracy will fail in new and … Continue reading →

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The People vs Tech

Posted on November 3, 2023 by smellincoffee

Democracy must bring big tech to heel, adapt itself to thrive despite big tech, or perish. Born of different times, with different expectations, they cannot coexist in their present date: the latter will surely destroy the other. In The People … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews | Tagged | 3 Comments

Chaos Machine Highlights

Posted on November 2, 2023 by smellincoffee

A few minutes ago I posted a review for The Chaos Machine: How Social Media Rewired Our Minds. Below are selected highlights from it. The thought process that went into building these applications,” Parker told the media conference, “was all … Continue reading →

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How Social Media Rewired Our Minds

Posted on November 2, 2023 by smellincoffee

One of my core beliefs is that we live in a world which we made for ourselves, and yet which is not fit for ourselves. Our eyes expect to see what they do not see, our arms reach for which … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 8 Comments

October 2023 in Review

Posted on November 1, 2023 by smellincoffee

October was a fun month! The highlight was reading some classic SF of the 1970s and 1980s, particularly True Names, Shockwave Rider, and Neuromancer. I was also able to revisit some favorite contemporary authors — Scalzi, Doctorow, and Suarez. I … Continue reading →

Posted in General | 3 Comments

Ten Year Book Tag (2023 Edition)

Posted on October 31, 2023 by smellincoffee

Cyberkitten and Marian recently posted a “Ten Year Book Tag”, which I missed because my weekend consisted of horror movies and a six-hour karaoke party . This should be fun, because 2013 was a banner year here at Reading Freely, … Continue reading →

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Influx

Posted on October 31, 2023 by smellincoffee

Jon Grady is ecstatic. Tonight he has ushered in a new era in human civilization. He’s created antigravity. A thousand years from now, schoolchildren will recite his name alongside Newton and Einstein. Or….they would, if a strike team from a … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, science fiction | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Terrifying Tuesday Teases

Posted on October 30, 2023 by smellincoffee

Mr. Bensington proposed originally to try this stuff, so soon as he wasreally able to prepare it, upon tadpoles. One always does try this sort ofthing upon tadpoles to begin with; this being what tadpoles are for. The Food of … Continue reading →

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Metatropolis

Posted on October 30, 2023 by smellincoffee

Metatropolis collects five short stories from a “shared future”, all in or about the future of the city. That vision is not one of growth, however, but of retraction and collapse. Expect nothing like the Sprawl here. I was drawn … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments