Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

A Conspiracy of Paper

Posted on April 22, 2012 by smellincoffee

A Conspiracy of Paper© 2000 David Liss442 pages Benjamin Weaver is a man with a curious trade. Having left the family business years ago, in his early days he earned acclaim for his skills as a boxer, introducing a ‘scientific’ … Continue reading →

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Nickle and Dimed

Posted on April 18, 2012 by smellincoffee

Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America© 2001 Barbara Ehrenreich221 pages In 1998, Barbara Ehrenreich asked her editor at Harpers Weekly a question for which neither had an answer: how do people get by on the meager wages … Continue reading →

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At the Library

Posted on April 17, 2012 by smellincoffee

Great news to report! Back in January I began volunteering at my hometown library while I looked for work, for four hours a week helping in the reference department’ computer lab. In one wing of our library is an area … Continue reading →

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Blood, Iron, and Gold

Posted on April 7, 2012 by smellincoffee

Blood, Iron, and Gold: How the Railways Transformed the World© 2009 Christian Wolmar376 pages Outside of the wheel, the railways may be the single most influential form of transportation ever invented by human beings. This is a bold claim, but … Continue reading →

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Life Ascending

Posted on March 31, 2012 by smellincoffee

Life Ascending: the Ten Great Inventions of Evolution© 2009 Nick Lane344 pages For my money, few subjects are as impressive, beautiful, and awe-inspiring as biology and evolution. Is there a greater drama in the cosmos outside the long play of … Continue reading →

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Posted on March 31, 2012 by smellincoffee

The Obamas© 2012 Jodi Kantor368 pages In 2004, a young state senator from Illinois gave the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention. His unusual name wasn’t one anyone knew — until that night. Barack Obama’s address decried polarization as … Continue reading →

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Children of the Storm

Posted on March 31, 2012 by smellincoffee

Star Trek Voyager: Children of the Storm© 2011 Kirsten Beyer418 pages In Unworthy, Kirsten Beyer launched the USS Voyager into the Delta Quadrant anew, this time at the head of a fleet of  ships. Their mission: to make sure that … Continue reading →

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Death of Kings

Posted on March 25, 2012 by smellincoffee

Death of Kings© 2011 Bernard Cornwell325 pages Let us sit upon the ground and tell sad stories of the death of kings… (Richard II, William Shakespeare) Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, lays on his deathbed. Aged and long infirm, … Continue reading →

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Founding Rivals

Posted on March 16, 2012 by smellincoffee

Founding Rivals | Madison vs. Monroe: the Bill of Rights and the Election that Saved a Nation© 2011 Chris DeRose336 pages In these days of contentious politics, where adversaries rip into one another with all the grace of beasts,  Chris … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (14 March)

Posted on March 14, 2012 by smellincoffee

Reviews: 200 pages; © 2012 A family of four sits at a table in a nice restaurant, heads bowed. But they’re not pausing for reflection or prayer; they’re in the middle of a meal, and all attempting to check their … Continue reading →

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