American Exceptionalism: An Experiment in History weighs in at a little under fifty, four-by-six pages (not including notes and citations). It’s pretty light weight, especially as it goes for books on politics or history. And yet, Charles Murray does not disappoint. He packs in a lot of interesting ideas in a short amount of time. […]
Brief Book Review | Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
2015-09-02 · by ·
Tonight is the Manly Book Club, a neighborhood book club I started for an excuse to hangout and talk ideas with the guys in my neck of the woods. We’re talking about Jules Verne’s Journey to the Center of the Earth. While it’s not the most interesting book we’ve read, reading it has certainly been an […]
Brief Book Review | The Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
2015-08-30 · by ·
Do I need to put a summary? Who hasn’t read it? This certainly isn’t the first occasion I’ve had to read Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, but this time I enjoyed it through the eyes of my daughters (7 and 4). It’s almost, but not quite, too old for them, and I’m sure that […]
Book Review | The Fold by Peter Clines
2015-08-25 · by ·
A high school English teacher on the last day of school before summer break, Mike Erikson is looking forward to a quiet summer in his Maine town, where he knows everyone and everyone knows him, and life is pleasantly boring. That is, until an old friend shows up, reminding Erickson of abilities he’s repressed for […]
2015 Hugo Awards Announced
2015-08-22 · by ·
Tonight, the 2015 Hugo Awards were announced from Sasquan in Spokane, Washington. Winners are highlighted below. The awards were presented by David Gerrold and Tananarive Due. In the audience, and called out by name, were the whose who of scifi and fantasy: George R.R. Martin, Connie Willis (‘the Meryl Streep of science fiction”), Robert Silverberg (who […]
Brief Book Review | Perfect State by Brandon Sanderson
2015-08-11 · by ·
Emperor Kairominas is nearly a god, the master of his realm, nearly unchallenged and…his masters are demanding that he procreate. To do so, he’ll have to condescend to leave his realm to find an equal, but that equal may be far more than he expects. I much enjoy Sanderson’s tomes, er, novels, but I’ve come […]
Brief Book Review | Dad is Fat by Jim Gaffigan
2015-08-10 · by ·
Yes, Dad Is Fat by Jim Gaffigan gets five stars. Because when you laugh from start to finish, you feel happy, and feeling happy is worth five stars. It’s a little unnerving how much Jim Gaffigan seems to get the dad part of me. It’s been a few weeks (okay, a few months. I finished […]
Book Review | Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan
2015-08-05 · by ·
It’s funny how books influence you. One minute I’m hyper attentive to everything I’m eating for health’s sake. The next moment (after finishing Food: A Love Story) I’m hyper attentive to everything I’m eating because I LOVE FOOD. And I’m okay with that. Jim Gaffigan is the guy who rocketed to fame on the strength […]
Book Review: Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
2015-08-04 · by ·
With all that’s been said about Harper Lee’s new (second? First? Found? First draft?) book, Go Set a Watchman, it’s been hard to form a fully realized opinion. Even before I had opened my copy, social media exploded with denunciations. Still, with that depressing prelude–who wants to read something that is the subject of a […]
2015 Hugo Nominee: The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin
2015-08-04 · by ·
China’s Cultural Revolution is in full swing. Intellectuals and scientists are denounced by their students for teachings contrary to the communist orthodoxy. The country is in turmoil. No one can be trusted as friends turn on each other, children on their parents, mentors on their students… Against this backdrop, Ye Wenjie, a young refugee from […]
