Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

8.4

Posted on May 25, 2016 by smellincoffee

8.4.© 1995 Peter Hernon393 pages San Andreas? You want a real earthquake, son, you come to Tennessee.  In America’s heartland lies a currently-quiescent fault, the New Madrid Seismic Zone. In the early 19th century a series of three massive earthquakes … Continue reading →

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In God’s Path

Posted on May 21, 2016 by smellincoffee

In God’s Path: the Arab Conquests and the Creation of an Islamic Empire© 2015 Robert Hoyland303 pages A Roman author referred to the Roman and Persian empires as the two eyes of the world — but they didn’t see the … Continue reading →

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Science: the Index

Posted on May 20, 2016 by smellincoffee

This list includes most of the science books I’ve read since 2007, omitting  titles that received only scant mention. Brane and Brane! What is Brane?!- Cosmology and Astrophysics* The Grand Design, Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow Black Holes and Baby … Continue reading →

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The Planets

Posted on May 17, 2016 by smellincoffee

The Planets© 2003 Dava Sobel288 pages Like Lives of the Planets, Sobel’s The Planets is a flyby through the solar system. The inclusion of the Sun and Moon give this a classical feel, since those bodies were considered by the … Continue reading →

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The Deep: Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss

Posted on May 16, 2016 by smellincoffee

The Deep: the Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss 253 pages © 2007 Claire Nouvian I’ve been enjoying a gallery book devoted to the extraordinary creatures of the deep sea these past two weeks.  Edited by Claire Nouvian, The Deep collects … Continue reading →

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Off the Grid

Posted on May 15, 2016 by smellincoffee

Off the Grid:  Inside the Movement for More Space, Less Government, and True Independence in Modern America© 2010 Nick Rosen292 pages When Nick Rosen put up a website to help his fellow Britons find resources and land reduce their carbon … Continue reading →

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On the Grid

Posted on May 14, 2016 by smellincoffee

On the Grid: A Plot of Land, an Average Neighborhood, and the Systems That Make Our World Work© 2010 Scott Huler256 pages If modern humans have retained a penchant for magical thinking, little wonder. Our homes accomplish marvels seemingly by the … Continue reading →

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Iran and the United States

Posted on May 13, 2016 by smellincoffee

Iran and the United States: An Insider’s View on the Failed Past and the Road to Peace© 2014 Seyed Hossein Mousavian368 pages The United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran have not been on speaking terms since the hostage … Continue reading →

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American History: the Index

Posted on May 13, 2016 by smellincoffee

Across the Bering:  Native America Twilight of the Mammoths,  Paul Martin The Earth Shall Weep: A History of Native America, James Wilson Kingdoms of Gold, Kingdoms of Jade: Peopling the Americas, Brian Fagan 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before … Continue reading →

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This week: science, the middle east, and a duel

Posted on May 10, 2016 by smellincoffee

Dear readers, I’m beginning to suspect books are a racket.  Today I began reading one and within fifty pages, I’d already written down four  more titles that I wanted to investigate.  No wonder people read fiction — it’s far less … Continue reading →

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