Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

Wisdom of the Ages

Posted on May 19, 2009 by smellincoffee

Wisdom of the Ages: A Modern Master Brings Eternal Truths into Everyday Life(Strangely, the subtitle on Amazon is “60 Days to Enlightenment.” It seems to be a different edition with 20 more pages.)© 1998 Wayne Dyer268 pages My local public … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (18/5)

Posted on May 18, 2009 by smellincoffee

Books this Update: The Robots of Dawn, Isaac Asimov The Guns of August, Barbara Tuchman Familiar Poems, Annotated; Isaac Asimov Islam: A Short History, Karen Armstrong The DaVinci Code, Dan Brown I will begin by saying that I still intend … Continue reading →

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The DaVinci Code

Posted on May 17, 2009 by smellincoffee

The DaVinci Code© 2003 Dan Brown454 pages I don’t know that there is any point in introducing this book: given the controversy of its plot developments, I think it is safe to say that the whole of the English-speaking western … Continue reading →

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Islam

Posted on May 16, 2009 by smellincoffee

Islam: A Short History© 2000 Karen Armstrong222 This is the third or fourth book I’ve read in the “Modern Library Chronicle” series, which consists (I now realize) of brief but fairly informative treatments of given topics. I have not purposely … Continue reading →

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Familar Poems, Annotated

Posted on May 15, 2009 by smellincoffee

Familar Poems, Annotated© 1977 Isaac Asimov272 pages In reading I, Asimov, the good doctor made mention of his commentary work — including his Guide to the Bible, Guide to Shakespeare, and now Familiar Poems, Annotated. The book’s approach is quite … Continue reading →

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The Guns of August

Posted on May 14, 2009 by smellincoffee

The Guns of August© 1962 Barbara Tuchman511 pages The Guns of August, like Edward Gibbon’s The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, is work I’ve heard much of in my years as a history student. Used in my freshman … Continue reading →

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The Robots of Dawn

Posted on May 13, 2009 by smellincoffee

The Robots of Dawn© 1983 Isaac Asimov419 pages I return to Asimov’s Robots series with the third mystery novel featuring plainclothesman Elijah Baley. Having established a reputation on Earth and elsewhere in the galaxy for his ability to adjust to … Continue reading →

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This Week at the Library (11/5)

Posted on May 11, 2009 by smellincoffee

Books this Update Here I Stand: My Struggle for a Christianity of Integrity, Love, and Equality, John Shelby Spong Return of the Black Widowers, Isaac Asimov Spartacus, T.L. Mancour Last week was a short but busy week for me, as … Continue reading →

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Spartacus

Posted on May 9, 2009 by smellincoffee

Star Trek the Next Generation: Spartacus© T.L. Mancour276 pages It seems only appropriate that I read a Star Trek book on the weekend that its newest movie comes out, hopefully revitalizing the Franchise. A number of years ago, someone donated … Continue reading →

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Here I Stand

Posted on May 9, 2009 by smellincoffee

Here I Stand: My Struggle for a Christianity of Integrity, Love, and Equality© 2001 John Shelby Spong48o pages On YouTube, I somehow stumbled across two Christians (Marcus Borg and Bishop Spong) whose beliefs are definitely not in line with orthodox … Continue reading →

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