Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

Florida Under Five Flags

Posted on March 9, 2017 by smellincoffee

Florida Under Five Flags© 1945 Rembert Patrick160 pages Note: I read from the 1st edition. This cover is from the 5th edition,  which has been updated and presumably revised. The State of Florida entered the Union in 1845; in 1945, … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Classics Club Spin Challenge

Posted on March 7, 2017 by smellincoffee

On Friday, the administrators of the Classics Club challenge are going to post a random number from one to twenty. Those of us enrolled in the Classics Club Challenge( reading fifty classics of our choosing within five years) have been … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged | 6 Comments

Real Music

Posted on March 6, 2017 by smellincoffee

Real Music: A Guide to the Timeless Hymns of the Church267 pages© 2016 Anthony Esolen In his book Out of the Ashes: Restoring American Culture,  Anthony Esolen devoted an entire chapter solely to music. Here he does one better! To … Continue reading →

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

In Spite of the Gods

Posted on March 6, 2017 by smellincoffee

In Spite of the Gods: the Rise of Modern India© 2007 Edward Luce400 pages In Spite of the Gods appraises India’s culture as its ancient civilization enters the 21st century as the world’s largest democracy and one of its largest … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Selma 1965: The Photographs of Spider Martin

Posted on March 4, 2017 by smellincoffee

Selma 1965: The Photographs of Spider Martin© 2015 University of Texas; photography Spider Martin128 pages, 80  photographs During the 50th anniversary of the Selma March back in 2015,  one of the more popular exhibits in the city was a public … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

A History of Saint Augustine, Florida

Posted on March 2, 2017 by smellincoffee

A History of Saint Augustine, Florida© 1881 William Dewhurst196 pages St. Augustine is the oldest European city in North America, founded by the Spanish in 1565.  Sitting at the mouth of the St. John river in northern Florida, it originally … Continue reading →

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

Miseri

Posted on March 1, 2017 by smellincoffee

My podcast and lecture time this week has been devoted to a series of lectures on southern literature and the like, all at least an hour long. This Wednesday being Ash Wednesday, however, and the start of Lent, I thought … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged | Leave a comment

Selma Shots

Posted on February 27, 2017 by smellincoffee

As a followup to my review of a recent history of Selma, I’d like to share some photographs of my hometown I took a few years ago (2010 – 2011) when I was trying to experience it as a tourist … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , | 12 Comments

Selma: A Bicentennial History

Posted on February 27, 2017 by smellincoffee

Selma: A Bicentennial History© 2017 Alston Fitts III384 pages On December 4th, 1820, the Alabama legislature granted a town charter to a burgeoning community established on a high bluff overlooking the Alabama river. The place, named after a cities of … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Posted on February 25, 2017 by smellincoffee

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings© 1969 Maya Angelou304 pages I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an autobiography in the form of a novel, following a young woman’s coming of age as she journeys from a small … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments