Category Archives: Reviews

Vanished World

Posted on August 13, 2015 by smellincoffee

A Vanished World: Christians, Muslims, and Jews in Medieval Spain© 2005 Chris Lowney320 pages Vanished World sets medieval  Spain before the reader with the warning; we may be blessed or cursed by emulating its example. The Iberian peninsula is the very perimeter of … Continue reading →

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Cod

Posted on August 10, 2015 by smellincoffee

Cod: A Biography of a Fish that Changed the World© 1997 Mark Kurlansky294 pages In Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky detailed the surprisingly impactful career of a table condiment on human history. The importance of salted fish, both as … Continue reading →

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10 Don’ts On Your Digital Devices

Posted on August 6, 2015 by smellincoffee

10 Don’ts On Your Digital Devices© 2015 Eric Rzesut, Daniel Bachrach180 pages Networked computers are no longer the hulking monsters of the 1970s,  only found in  industrial and military installations. In the second decade of the 21st century, they are … Continue reading →

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Pedal to the Metal

Posted on August 6, 2015 by smellincoffee

Petal to the Metal: The Work Lives of Truckers© 1994 Lawrence Ouelett247 pages ICC is a-checkin’ on down the lineI’m a little overweight, and my logbook’s way behind But nothin’ bothers me tonight, I can dodge all the scales all … Continue reading →

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The Great Cities in History

Posted on July 23, 2015 by smellincoffee

The Great Cities in History© 2009 ed. John Julius Norwich302 pages             The Great Cities in History takes readers on a literary world tour, traveling through space and time to visit the greatest political bodies in history.  Civilization is nothing … Continue reading →

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The Space Between Us

Posted on July 23, 2015 by smellincoffee

The Space Between Us© 2007 Thrity Umrigar321 pages “A hard land, yes, full of mountains, but toughness has its own beauty.” p. 200 The Space Between Us is a modern Indian tragedy, told through the plight of two women who guide … Continue reading →

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Travelin’ man

Posted on July 21, 2015 by smellincoffee

Hello again, dear readers! I’ve been on a mini-vacation this past weekend, staying with my sister’s in-laws in Atlanta and watching the Atlanta Braves take on the Chicago Cubs.  The game itself was a sleepy affair, with little hitting and  only … Continue reading →

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A Canticle for Leibowitz

Posted on July 16, 2015 by smellincoffee

 A Canticle for Leibowitz © 1960 Water M. Miller 320 pages A thousand years ago, nuclear war swept the Earth,  rendering to ashes the civilizations which inaugurated it.  In the southwestern desert, however,  there lies an outpost of another civilization … Continue reading →

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We Could Not Fail

Posted on July 7, 2015 by smellincoffee

We Could Not Fail: The First African-Americans in the Space Program© 2015 Richard Paul, Steven Moss312 pages Between the murder of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr, and both political and racial riots throughout the United States, 1968 was a … Continue reading →

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I Am Forbidden

Posted on July 6, 2015 by smellincoffee

I Am Forbidden© 2012 Anouk Markovits302 pages Darkness grips Eastern Europe in the 1940s as war devours millions and the hopes of generations. Jewish residents of Romania are especially hard-pressed; already viewing themselves as a people in exile, they are … Continue reading →

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