Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, & technology book reviews, plus social, political, & economic commentary
It’s not your imagination: America really is awash in conspiracy theories. Trump, UFOs, the JFK assassination, Elvis, “crisis actors,” Obama, Hillary, George Soros (or was it George Clooney?) grabbing for your guns — take your pick. The current warning shouts of the looney toons can keep you on edge and looking over your shoulders 24/7 … Continue reading Why Do We Have So Many Ridiculous Conspiracy Theories?
Remembering DD-431 – #bookreview #USNavy #history Maine writer James Sullivan grew up in Quincy, Massachusetts, hearing World War II stories from his great-uncle, Frank Gallagher, an Army veteran. One memorable tale included the time Gallagher, a medic, managed to sneak away from his camp and climb aboard a U.S. Navy destroyer anchored off Italy to … Continue reading The Ship That Refused to Die
Spear of Light The Glittering Edge, Book Two Brenda Cooper Pyr – Kindle, paperback Spear of Light is the second book in The Glittering Edge duology. And it has been my introduction to Brenda Cooper’s science-fiction writing. For the most part, I am impressed. While I missed Edge of Dark, the duology’s first book, I … Continue reading ‘Spear of Light’ – Human vs. post-human on a planet facing destruction – #scifi #bookreview
The White House and the University of the District of Columbia are two of the sites helping spotlight the National Week of Making, June 17-23, 2016. “America has always been a nation of tinkerers, inventors, and entrepreneurs,” a White House news release recently stated. “Empowering students and adults to create, innovate, tinker, and make their … Continue reading Some Book Choices for ‘National Week of Making,’ June 17-23, 2016 – #books #WeekofMaking
Rain Dogs A Detective Sean Duffy Novel Adrian McKinty Seventh Street Books – paperback, Kindle, audible Now that I have suckered you into this review with a question, I’m going to give you something of a cop-out answer: Rain Dogs is the best Sean Duffy detective story I have read…since the last Sean Duffy detective … Continue reading “Rain Dogs” – Adrian McKinty’s best Sean Duffy murder mystery? #bookreview
The Make: Series of How-to Books A British scientist made headlines a few years ago when she warned that young people no longer make or repair things. It has become all too easy for them now, she cautioned, to simply throw away old or broken devices and buy new ones. A key point was that … Continue reading Step away from the ‘smartphone’ and try using your hands and mind to make something – #bookreview
Woman with a Blue Pencil Gordon McAlpine Seventh Street Books – paperback, Kindle What if the characters in a mystery novel are alive in some other universe, and their world keeps changing, because their book, unknown to them, is being edited and rewritten? And what if one of those characters is … Continue reading ‘Woman with a Blue Pencil’ – Characters in a mystery novel that is being rewritten find themselves in conflict in a world that keeps changing – #bookreview
The Secret Life of Anna Blanc Jennifer Kincheloe Seventh Street Books – paperback, Kindle This feisty debut novel makes the case that it’s tough to be a female detective…especially in 1907. The Secret Life of Anna Blanc is a clever blending of mystery, murder, and social commentary, along with elements of a comedy of … Continue reading ‘The Secret Life of Anna Blanc’ – This debut murder mystery has everything from comedy to horror – #bookreview
Wrath of the Furies A Novel of the Ancient World Steven Saylor Minotaur Books – hardback, Kindle As a young student, I deliberately avoided the ancient world—all of those armless and headless statues, magnificent carved-stone structures collapsed into rubble, “wonders of the world,” and gods and goddesses who allegedly had both magical powers and … Continue reading WRATH OF THE FURIES: Roman detective Gordianus the Finder tries to go undercover amid angry Greeks bearing arms – #bookreview
The Survivors A Cal Henderson Novel Robert Palmer Seventh Street Books – paperback, Kindle What a swamp a single lie can lead to. Washington, D.C., psychologist Cal Henderson thinks this to himself while he is trying, years later, to sort out the real reasons behind why his two young brothers and father were … Continue reading The Survivors: A complex mystery unfolds in this good series-debut novel – #fiction #bookreview
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