Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

The Gift of Good Land

Posted on February 18, 2014 by smellincoffee

The Gift of Good Land© 1981 Wendell Berry281 pages Wendell Berry is a philosopher, poet, and more, but before all else he is a farmer. He is a faithful son of Kentucky devoted to the land, to the stewardship of … Continue reading →

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The Martian

Posted on February 18, 2014 by smellincoffee

The Martian© 2013 Andy Weir369 pages I was elated!  This was the best plan ever! Not only was I clearing out the hydrogen, I was making more water!  Everything went great right up to the explosion.  p. 43 Mark Watney never thought … Continue reading →

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Forgotten Voices of the Great War

Posted on February 15, 2014 by smellincoffee

Forgotten Voices of the Great War© 2004 ed. Max Author336 pages                         Forgotten Voices of the Great War is a chronicle of the first great war,  a story told not by one author but many. Interviews and written recollections from … Continue reading →

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From Chunk to Hunk

Posted on February 14, 2014 by smellincoffee

From Chunk to Hunk: Diary of a Fat Man© 2003 Fred Anderson242 pages Fred Anderson had an epiphany while munching on snack cakes and watching TV; as he witnessed the amputation of a diabetic man’s leg, he realized: this is … Continue reading →

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And Then There Were Nuns

Posted on February 13, 2014 by smellincoffee

And Then There Were Nuns: Adventures in a Cloistered Life© 2013 Jane Christmas292 pages When Jane Christmas’ boyfriend proposed to her, she gave him the most obvious reply: she said she wanted to join a nunnery.  It wasn’t that he … Continue reading →

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An Excerpt

Posted on February 12, 2014 by smellincoffee

“But then that’s the problem, isn’t it? We get older, we get no wiser, the wars of FDR and Truman turn into the wars of Kennedy and Nixon, the Gulf War of Bush I reappears as the Gulf War of … Continue reading →

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This week at the library: desire, war, and traditions

Posted on February 10, 2014 by smellincoffee

Dear readers: It’s been a slow start for February despite the miserable weather that keeps everyone indoors, possibly because I’ve spent the last week nursing a cold and it’s easier to watch movies than to coordinate book-holding, page-turning, and nose-tending … Continue reading →

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The Pagan Lord

Posted on February 7, 2014 by smellincoffee

The Pagan Lord© 2014 Bernard Cornwell320 pages Uhtred of Bebbanberg is having a bad week. First his hall was burned by an old rival-enemy, Cnut Ranulfson, in retaliation for Uhtred kidnapping his children, which Uhtred did not do. Uhtred of … Continue reading →

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When Elephants Weep

Posted on February 4, 2014 by smellincoffee

When Elephants Weep: the Emotional Lives of Animals© 1995 Jeffrey Masson and Susan McCarthy291 pages Humans pride themselves on not being  animals,  going so far as to describe any behavior we’re shamed of as ‘animal’.  Beasts have rude instincts; we … Continue reading →

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Poor But Proud

Posted on February 1, 2014 by smellincoffee

Poor but Proud: Alabama’s Poor Whites© 2001 Wayne Flynt488 pages We might be poor but we’re proud And we’re living the best way we know how We don’t have much but we don’t look for pity Cause we’re country poor … Continue reading →

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