Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

The Liberty Amendments

Posted on January 13, 2014 by smellincoffee

The Liberty Amendments:  Restoring the American Republic© 2013 Mark Levin257 pages The United States Constitution was written by men who appreciated their lack of omniscience, and who therefore included in Article V means for amending their handiwork, for fixing through … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics and Civic Interest, Reviews | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The Red Queen

Posted on January 12, 2014 by smellincoffee

The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature© 1993 Matthew Ridley404 pages The Red Queen begins with a question: why do creatures have sex? Why did it evolve? The answer, Matt Ridley believes, lies in the principle of the … Continue reading →

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

It’s the Little Things

Posted on January 6, 2014 by smellincoffee

  It’s the Little Things: Everyday Interactions that Get Under the Skin of Blacks and Whites© 2002 Lena Williams304 pages It’s the Little Things is an account of Lena Williams and her family’s grievances with white people, which are legion. … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged | Leave a comment

This week at the library: prospects for the new year

Posted on January 6, 2014 by smellincoffee

Dear readers: The winter solstice is passed and December has ended, beginning a new year regardless of your reckoning. In the past few days I’ve used my time off, and the fact that it’s too cold and dark out to … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | 4 Comments

Stonehenge

Posted on January 3, 2014 by smellincoffee

Stonehenge: 2000 BC© 2000 Bernard Cornwell400 pages          For millennia the hanging rocks of Stonehenge have stricken visitors with awe and mystery. Who  built them, and to what purpose?  Stonehange: 2000 BC  tells the story of those people, the ancient … Continue reading →

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

Sharpe’s Christmas

Posted on December 31, 2013 by smellincoffee

Sharpe’s Christmas© 2003 Bernard Cornwell104 pages Sharpe’s Christmas collects two stories which do the seemingly impossible, in honoring the Christmas spirit while simultaneously being action-adventure tales starring Richard Sharpe. Sharpe doesn’t lend himself easily to Christmas stories; he is not … Continue reading →

Posted in historical fiction, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The View from the Summit

Posted on December 31, 2013 by smellincoffee

The View from the Summit: The Remarkable Memoir from the First Person to Conquer Everest© 1999 Sir Edmund Hillary310 pages The Himalayan Mountain range boasts the highest peaks on the surface of the globe; its heights equal the cruising altitude … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Men Who United the States

Posted on December 27, 2013 by smellincoffee

 The Men Who United the States: America’s Explorers, Inventors, Eccentrics and Mavericks, and the Creation of One Nation, Indivisible© 2013 Simon Winchester496 pages The Men who United the States is a storied account of how the American people came to … Continue reading →

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

The Phantom Menace

Posted on December 26, 2013 by smellincoffee

Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace© 1999 Terry BrooksThe Phantom Menace was the first movie in the new ‘prequel’ trilogy of the Star Wars saga, which told the story of a promising young Jedi who was seduced by the Dark … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged | 5 Comments

This week: Christmas reads, science in the city, and social telegraphy

Posted on December 24, 2013 by smellincoffee

Dear readers:             A blessed Yuletide and a merry Christmas to those of you in the northern hemisphere, as we celebrate the rebirth of the Sun – or the birth of the Son, if you prefer. The library is closing … Continue reading →

Posted in history, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments