Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, & technology book reviews, plus social, political, & economic commentary
The Many Lives of Andrew Young Ernie Suggs NewSouth Books, ISBN: 978-1-58838-474-4 U.S. Ambassador Andrew J. Young’s high-profile career in public service is not quickly nor easily summed up. Nonetheless, The Many Lives of Andrew Young, by Atlanta writer Ernie Suggs, has delivered an important, celebratory touchstone while preparations are underway to celebrate Andrew Young’s 90th … Continue reading Celebrating a Man of Many Lives
Staying Sane & Entertained While Forced to Hide from the Coronavirus Charles Dickens likely did not have a deadly global pandemic in mind when he wrote the “best of times, worst of times” opening for his novel, A Tale of Two Cities. He was contrasting life in profitable, peaceful London with grim life in revolution-torn … Continue reading Worst of Times, Best of Times
Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose Joe Biden Flatiron Books If you are leaning toward Joe Biden and wondering if you will want to back him in the 2020 presidential election, Biden’s 2017 book, Promise Me, Dad, can give you some good insights into his character, values, and long record of … Continue reading Joe Biden’s ‘Promise Me, Dad’ #bookreview #2020Election
The Obelisk and the Englishman The Pioneering Discoveries of Egyptologist William Bankes Dorothy U. Seyler Prometheus Books – hardback, Kindle Early in the 19th century, a young Englishman repeatedly risked death and overcame numerous dangers as he sailed along the Nile River and journeyed into deserts, discovering and documenting important details about … Continue reading The Obelisk and the Englishman: The Pioneering Discoveries of Egyptologist William Bankes – #biography #bookreview
Tinsley Harrison, M.D.: Teacher of Medicine James A. Pittman Jr., M.D. (NewSouth Books – hardback, Kindle) Dr. Tinsley Randolph Harrison is an important figure in 20th-century American medicine, and both his legacy and his influence live on in 21st-century health care. Before his death in 1978, Dr. Harrison taught medicine for 54 years and was fond … Continue reading Tinsley Harrison, M.D., Teacher of Medicine: An inspiring biography of a dedicated physician – #bookreview
Sophie’s Diary: A Mathematical Novel Dora Musielak (Math Association of America, hardback) The Mathematical Association of America recently has published the second edition of this intriguing “mathematical novel.” Its story is built around a fictional diary and a real-life French mathematician, Marie-Sophie Germain. The well-written tale imagines Ms. Germain writing down her thoughts and experiences while … Continue reading Sophie’s Diary: A Mathematical Novel – Imagining French mathematician Sophie Germain as a young teen – #bookreview
Here are eight recent books to consider, whether you prefer fiction, nonfiction or poetry. Midnight Movie By Tobe Hooper, with Alan Goldsher (Three Rivers, paperback, list price $14.00 ; Kindle edition $0.99) Fans of Tobe Hooper’s horror movies, including The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, likely will relish this experimental first novel. It is written in a … Continue reading Eight recent books of fiction, nonfiction & poetry – #bookreview
Fante: A Family’s Legacy of Writing, Drinking and Surviving By Dan Fante (Harper Perennial, $14.99, paperback; $9.99, Kindle) Italian-American novelist and screenwriter John Fante wanted his son Dan to become a plumber or electrician, not a writer or worse, an actor. He had strong and bitter reasons behind that desire, as Dan Fante movingly notes … Continue reading Fante: A Family’s Legacy of Writing, Drinking and Surviving – #bookreview #writing #screenwriting
Courage Beyond the Game: The Freddie Steinmark Story By Jim Dent (Thomas Dunne Books, $25.99 hardback; $12.99 Kindle) In my one and only fall semester as a student at the University of Texas at Austin, I went to a couple of football games and watched Freddie Steinmark play safety for the Longhorns. I sat high up in … Continue reading Courage Beyond the Game: The Freddie Steinmark Story – #football #biography #bookreview
The Book of Books: The Radical Impact of the King James Bible, 1611-2011 By Melvyn Bragg (Counterpoint Press, $28.00 hardback; $20.00 Kindle) As a child, I liked and respected the King James Bible. But I hated religion. I had been born into a “Christian” demonination that tried incessantly to pound hellfire, damnation and, sadly, white supremacy, … Continue reading The Book of Books: The Radical Impact of the King James Bible, 1611-2011 – #bookreview
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