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.

Essex Dogs

Posted on April 6, 2023 by smellincoffee

Essex Dogs© 2023 Dan Jones464 pages In 1066 Normandy invaded England: in 1346, England returned the favor. His majesty Edward III has come to make good his claim to the French throne, and in advance of England’s troops arriving, a … Continue reading →

Posted in historical fiction, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Blogging prompt: Sports

Posted on April 5, 2023 by smellincoffee

Today’s blogging prompt is sports we’ve played and what we thought of them. Although spectator sports is not my bag, and I’ve always been more of a reader than an athlete, I did enjoy playing pick-up games as a kid … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged | 8 Comments

Note to revolutionaries: Bard is more cooperative than Bing

Posted on April 4, 2023 by smellincoffee

Today while reading a history of attempts to invade England, I was using Bard as a running cross-reference thing — asking what the Palantine was, for instance, or what a tercio was. (The Palantine is a bit of the old … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Teaser Tuesday: of natural beauty and human beastliness

Posted on April 4, 2023 by smellincoffee

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday is our favorite self-published books, which is problematic for me given how few I’ve read. Disrupting the Rabblement is a much-mention, since it was the first Kindle title I ever read (using Kindle for PC), and … Continue reading →

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Hitler’s Armada

Posted on April 2, 2023 by smellincoffee

Hitler’s Armada: The Royal Navy & the Defence of Great Britain© Geoff Hewitt246 pages Summer 1940. Britain stands alone, its ally France having lain down her sword and surrendered to the German blitzkrieg, which has already consumed Norway, the Low … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Read of England, 2023!

Posted on April 1, 2023 by smellincoffee

Well, dear readers, it’s April first, and that means ’tis time to Read of England. RoE is an annual tradition at Reading Freely, starting with an annual nod to English history in 2010 before growing into a month set aside … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged | 11 Comments

March 2023 in Review

Posted on March 31, 2023 by smellincoffee

A fourth of the year has gone by already! If January was SCIENCE MONTH!!! and February was as Southern as fried green tomatoes, then March was a month for the ol’ to be read pile. I’ve got a few unreviewed … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged | 2 Comments

Gaming on the ZX Speccy, oceans, and harrumphing at the White House

Posted on March 30, 2023 by smellincoffee

I think I’ve managed to avoid doing any ‘short rounds’ posts this year, but three months in the streak ends. It’s not my fault, I swear. It’s the books. First up is The Nostalgia Nerd’s Retro Tech, a mostly-graphic look … Continue reading →

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

WWW: Favorite Nonfiction?

Posted on March 29, 2023 by smellincoffee

Today’s blogging challenge from Long & Short Reviews is ‘Favorite Nonfiction Book’, which is…er, problematic. I read over a hundred nonfiction books a year, and have done since I started keeping a book log in mid-2007. which means I’ve read … Continue reading →

Posted in General | Tagged | 17 Comments

Purgatorio

Posted on March 28, 2023 by smellincoffee

Purgatorio© 14th century Dante Alighieri, translated 2004 by Anthony Esolen544 pages, including appendices and notes Seven years ago I descended into hell with Dante and his guide, Virgil,   and after that arduous descent into a valley of desolation and … Continue reading →

Posted in Classics and Literary, Religion and Philosophy, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments