Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

The Renaissance

Posted on September 12, 2011 by smellincoffee

The Renaissance:  A History of Civilization in Italy from 1304-1576 A.D.© 1953 Will Durant776 pages I assumed the Renaissance would be a high point of this series for me, second only to The Age of Reason. After a thousand years … Continue reading →

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The Illiad

Posted on September 8, 2011 by smellincoffee

The Illiad© 1960 Barbara Leonie Picard208 pagesIllustrated by Joan Kiddell-Monroe The Illiad is one of the oldest and most celebrated works of literature of western civilization: a classic among classics, no world literature class would be complete without it.  It is … Continue reading →

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The Feather Merchants

Posted on September 8, 2011 by smellincoffee

The Feather Merchants© 1944 Max Shulman145 pagesFrom Max Shulman’s Large Economy Size,  Sergeant Dan Miller, supply clerk extraordinaire, is home on furlough — and leave to him to get into more trouble in one night than he’s found in months … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (7 September)

Posted on September 7, 2011 by smellincoffee

This week at the library I’ve put entirely too much on my plate. For starters, I’m knee deep in Will Durant’s The Renaissance, which is surprisingly..not all that interesting. So far it’s been three hundred pages of petty Italian city-state politics … Continue reading →

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Sharpe’s Havoc

Posted on September 1, 2011 by smellincoffee

Sharpe’s Havoc: Portugal, 1809© 2003 Bernard Cornwell396 pages “So what do you believe in?” Vicente wanted to know.“The trinity, sir,” said Harper sententiously.“The trinity?” Vicente was surprised.“The Baker rifle,” Sharpe said, “the sword bayonet, and me.” (p. 266) Napoleon’s armies … Continue reading →

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The Gods Themselves

Posted on August 31, 2011 by smellincoffee

The Gods Themselves© 1972 Isaac Asimov288 pages “Against human stupidity, the gods themselves contend in vain.” – Friedrich Schiller In a small university office, something wondrous has been discovered: an isotope of Plutonium which cannot possibly remain stable according to the … Continue reading →

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The Age of Faith

Posted on August 30, 2011 by smellincoffee

The Age of Faith© 1980 Will Durant1200 pages After centuries of economic decay, political corruption, and relentless outside attack, the glory of Rome finally surrendered to the tides of history some four centuries into the common era. The western empire gave … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (24 August)

Posted on August 24, 2011 by smellincoffee

Yesterday I finally — and grudgingly — accepted the suggestion that I visit the doctor’s office, where I was given pills. The prescription appears to be working, and so today I managed to go into town and pay a visit to the … Continue reading →

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Isaac Asimov’s Caliban

Posted on August 24, 2011 by smellincoffee

Isaac Asimov’s Caliban: A New Robot Novel© 1993 Roger MacBride Allen312 pages The planet Inferno is slipping toward ecological disaster, and the only woman with the wisdom to save it has just been attacked and left lying in a pool … Continue reading →

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Unfamiliar Fishes

Posted on August 13, 2011 by smellincoffee

Unfamiliar Fishes© 2011 Sarah Vowell238 pages For those accustomed to Sarah Vowell’s usual approach to history — one offering contemporary political allusions and biting wit — Unfamiliar Fishes will seem decidedly straightforward. Her introduction describing 1898 as a perhaps more pivotal … Continue reading →

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