Category Archives: Reviews

Book reviews, as well as Reads to Reels

How to Survive Aggressive People

Posted on August 22, 2019 by smellincoffee

Surviving Aggressive People: Practical Violence Prevention Skills for the Workplace and the Street © 2014 Shawn Smith 268 pages Most of us have encountered aggressive people in our lives, and if we work with the public we probably do so … Continue reading →

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The Sky’s the Limit

Posted on August 16, 2019 by smellincoffee

Star Trek TNG:  The Sky’s the Limit © 2007 various 400 pages The original Star Trek struggled in ratings, especially after being shifted to a late-evening slot of doom in its third season, and was canceled prematurely in 1969.    It … Continue reading →

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What We Left Behind

Posted on August 15, 2019 by smellincoffee

A few months back I caught wind of the fan-funded What We Left Behind: A Look Back at Deep Space Nine, and naturally  I preordered.  I watched (and loved) it tonight, and though it has nothing to do with books,  … Continue reading →

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ST: Constellations

Posted on August 12, 2019 by smellincoffee

Star Trek: Constellations © 2006 400 pages Forty years after its creation, Star Trek was something of a beast — running two tv shows simultaneously through the nineties and into the early 2000s,  and tempting Paramount with dreams of a … Continue reading →

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Queen’s Shadow

Posted on August 10, 2019 by smellincoffee

Star Wars: Queen’s Shadow ©  2019  E.K. Johnson 400 pages “I suppose we can’t just burn down the whole Senate and start over again with a system that makes sense?” Dormé asked. “I’m fairly certain that would be treason,” Padmé … Continue reading →

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How To Be Your Own Bodyguard

Posted on August 8, 2019 by smellincoffee

How To Be Your Own Bodyguard: Self defense for men and women from a lifetime of protecting clients in hostile environment © 2011 Nick Hughes 326 pages What can you do to protect yourself in the event of a natural … Continue reading →

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Code Girls

Posted on July 31, 2019 by smellincoffee

Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Codebreakers of World War 2 © 2017 Liza Mundy 640 pages At the outset of World War 2, the United States’ military intelligence apparatus, much like its military, was minimal.  Following … Continue reading →

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More short rounds: hackers and silly vicars

Posted on July 28, 2019 by smellincoffee

Needing a quick break from all the classics,  I read The Hacker Crackdown, a bit of cybersecurity history.  Sterling first delivers the background of the telecommunications system in the United States, specifically the expansive growth of AT&T and its recent … Continue reading →

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Perspective from Seven Brief Lessons on Physics

Posted on July 25, 2019 by smellincoffee

I recently finished Seven Brief Lessons on Physics, a slim little volume introducing readers to relativity (special and general), quantum mechanics, particle physics, heat, time, and our place in the universe.   As it’s less than a hundred pages I don’t … Continue reading →

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Short rounds: Star Trek and Musketeers

Posted on July 23, 2019 by smellincoffee

It’s been open season on the classics this month: not only did I finish up June ( and take care of July, but I’ve recently advanced into August’s reading, defeating The Three Musketeers, and am about to mount an attack … Continue reading →

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