Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

The Orthodox Church

Posted on June 17, 2016 by smellincoffee

The Orthodox Church© 1963, 1993 Kallistos (Timothy) Ware368 pages Who are the Orthodox? To the extent Americans have heard of them, it is through eastern European immigrant communities. Those who paid marginal attention in western civ might remember something called … Continue reading →

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Bratva

Posted on June 17, 2016 by smellincoffee

Sons of Anarchy: Bratva© 2014 Christopher Golden256 pages For Jax Teller, the Sons of Anarchy motorcycle club has always been his family, its members his brothers. His father started the Sons, with a philosophy directly inspired by Emma Goldman. But over … Continue reading →

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Reads to Reels: Roswell

Posted on June 15, 2016 by smellincoffee

In 1998, Melinda Metz introduced a new series of young-adult science fiction: the story of three teenagers whose earliest memories were of climbing out of incubation pods in the desert outside of Roswell, New Mexico.  When they emerged, they appeared … Continue reading →

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Celebrating America: Independence Day Reading

Posted on June 14, 2016 by smellincoffee

Every year since this blog’s inception I have committed part of June and July to Independence-Day reading. The number and variety of the books has grown every year, and usually includes material on the colonial period, the revolution, and the … Continue reading →

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Tubes

Posted on June 14, 2016 by smellincoffee

Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet© 2012 Andrew Blum303 pages It turns out Ted Stevens was right: the Internet really is a series of tubes, connecting large boxes, and usually in nondescript warehouses that look like self-storage units. … Continue reading →

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Lights Out

Posted on June 13, 2016 by smellincoffee

Lights Out: A Cyberattack, a Nation Unprepared© 2015 Ted Koppell288 pages In Lights Out,  investigatory journalist Ted Koppel comments on the vulnerability of the United States’ power grid to a cyber attack,  and reviews the way government agencies, private citizens, … Continue reading →

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When Asia was the World

Posted on June 10, 2016 by smellincoffee

When Asia Was the World: Traveling Merchants, Scholars, Warriors, and Monks Who Created the ‘Riches of the East© 2009 Stewart Gordon256 pages When Asia was the World revisits, through the lives of traveling monks, traders, and warriors,  the extraordinary vistas and … Continue reading →

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Cyber War

Posted on June 10, 2016 by smellincoffee

Cyber War: The Next Threat to Our National Security and What to Do About It© 2010 Richard Clarke, Robert Knake320 pages Soon, the ultimate tool will become…the ultimate enemy! So said the 1982 trailer for Tron, a heavily dated computer … Continue reading →

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Volcanoes in Human History

Posted on June 8, 2016 by smellincoffee

As with Earthquakes in Human History, this is exactly as it describes itself. A mix of science and history, the authors begin with an explanation of volcanic activity before moving on to cover a few key eruptions. Volcanoes illustrate that … Continue reading →

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Saving Congress from Itself

Posted on June 7, 2016 by smellincoffee

Saving Congress from Itself: Emancipating the States and Empowering their People© 2014 James F. Buckley120 pages According to the latest Gallup poll, only 11% of Americans approve of Congress’ job performance, but virtually every senator or representative who runs for … Continue reading →

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