Books, Commentary, Ephemera, & More
Fiction, nonfiction, poetry, & technology book reviews. Also social, political, & economic commentary. Plus more.
Matthew McConaughey’s autobiography Greenlights is due to be released Oct. 20, 2020, by Crown Publishing. I doubt I’ll be receiving a copy to review in this backwater book blog. But the Sunday (Oct. 18, 2020) New York Times has published an enticing spread in its Culture section focusing on McConaughey and his new book. Greenlights … Continue reading Matthew McConaughey’s New ‘Greenlights’ Autobiography
Design and implement production-grade Node.js applications using proven patterns and techniques, 3rd Edition Mario Casciaro and Luciano Mammino Packt Publishing Node.js often is thought of simply as a small but helpful tool for working with JavaScript code while developing applications. The two writers of (paid link) Node.js Design Patterns, 3rd Edition, however, show that Node.js … Continue reading Node.js Design Patterns
Yes, when it comes to Bob Woodward’s Rage, (paid link) there are matters to be mad about, such as why didn’t Woodward let us know what he knew regarding Trump downplaying COVID-19’s dangers when he first knew it? And there are basic questions to be asked, such as: why has Woodward’s book been timed for … Continue reading Enraged about Bob Woodward’s ‘Rage’?
Guess which book, as yet unreleased, is pre-selling at #1 in Amazon’s “Corruption & Misconduct in Politics” category? P.S., I possibly may earn a few helpful cents as an Amazon affiliate bookseller if you follow this link to the book. But only if you actually buy it or something else. Otherwise, bupkis. No soup for … Continue reading Just One of the Ways Political Crime Pays?
Sales totals continue to explode for Mary L. Trump’s book, Too Much and Never Enough. (paid link) CNN has reported: “A tell-all memoir by President Donald Trump’s niece — who claims he has world-endangering emotional problems stemming from childhood trauma inflicted by his parents — has sold 1.35 million copies in its first week, according … Continue reading A Blockbuster’s Blockbuster?
Recently, I’ve reviewed several new books for Lone Star Literary Life and for this book review blog. And I keep looking guiltily at the other books I’ve gathered over the months and years before the pandemic hit. I want to be reading them, too. Yet, even when much of life is shut down and “house … Continue reading Book Reflections: 07/2020
The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir John Bolton Simon & Schuster I confess. I haven’t read all of John Bolton’s book, The Room Where It Happened. And I likely won’t read all of it, to be honest. I’d rather page through John Milton before I’ve had my morning caffeine than wade through … Continue reading Bolting Through the Bolton Book
Homestead Steel Mill: The Final Ten Years USWA 1397 and the Fight for Union Democracy Mike Stout PM Press Now more than ever, with some 40 million Americans unemployed, the nation’s economy stalled by protests and a deadly pandemic, and federal leadership failing, we need to review and draw again from hard lessons learned during … Continue reading Hard Lessons Learned Inside a Steel Union’s Battles to Save Jobs and Benefits
Variations of LaborStories & PoemsAlex Gallo-BrownChin Music Press On Twitter, Seattle poet Alex Gallo-Brown (@AlextheGB) modestly calls himself simply a “writer and labor organizer.” But he’s more than that. He has been hailed as “the poet of the service economy” by Valerie Trueblood, a contributing editor to The American Poetry Review. And Washington State Poet … Continue reading Wise words from ‘the poet of the service economy’
Trust MeRichard Z. SantosArte Publico Press This well-crafted suspense tale provides a nice debut for first-time novelist Richard Z. Santos. Trust Me also has a real-life tale of perseverance behind its fiction. Indeed, many writers can identify with Santos’s long struggle to get his first book finished and published. And that may inspire new hope … Continue reading Political intrigue, a land fight, clashing agendas, and unearthed bones all propel new suspense novel ‘Trust Me’ by Richard Z. Santos