non-fiction – Page 17 – Looking For a Good Book

September 26, 2017

STAN LEE: THE MAN BEHIND MARVEL – Bob Batchelor

Like many baby-boomers, I grew up reading comics and thinking of Stan Lee as that crazy but lovable uncle who knows how to talk to kids. Plus, he worked in comics – how cool is that?! While I was big into comics for much of the 1970’s I didn’t really stay with it, but I… Continue reading

ENTERTAINMENT, GRAPHIC NOVEL, MEMOIR, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

4 stars, Biography, Book Reviews, Books, comic book superheroes, Entertainment, Graphic Novels, non-fiction, Reviews, superheroes

September 18, 2017

HOW TO DRAW COOL STUFF: HOLIDAYS, SEASONS AND EVENTS – Catherine V. Holmes

“How to Draw…” books typically don’t impress me, but this is now the second book of this sort from Catherine V. Holmes that has excited me for what it is doing. Holmes breaks down a drawing so that it starts with very obvious, basic shapes and then she adds bits and pieces so that the… Continue reading

NON-FICTION, OTHER, Uncategorized

5 Stars, Art, Book Reviews, Books, non-fiction, Reviews

September 14, 2017

THE RADIUM GIRLS – Kate Moore

I don’t typically have a problem with my blood pressure, but reading this book got my blood boiling. This well-researched non-fiction book takes a look at the dark side of a once-glowing industry. During the first World War there was a demand for watches and clocks and other instruments with glowing dials. The Radium Dial… Continue reading

NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

4 stars, Book Reviews, Books, History, non-fiction, Reviews

September 5, 2017

FLOCK TOGETHER – B. J. Hollars

As the son and brother of avid bird watchers and a weekend watcher myself, this sounded like a really interesting book. A variation on the bird-watching theme … a search for … or a ‘love affair with’ extinct birds sounded like a really fascinating take on the bird-watching craze. The appeal is part bird-watching, of… Continue reading

MEMOIR, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

3 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Environment, Memoir, Nature, non-fiction, Reviews

August 31, 2017

ALDO LEOPOLD’S ODYSSEY – Julianne Lutz Warren

I’m actually rather flummoxed on what to say in this review…I’ve been staring at a blank page for half an hour, not quite sure how to start. This is a biography of conservationist, writer Aldo Leopold. If you don’t already know who Aldo Leopold is, then you probably picked up this book by mistake. Leopold… Continue reading

MEMOIR, NON-FICTION

4 stars, Book Reviews, Books, Environment, Memoir, Nature, non-fiction, Reviews

August 16, 2017

AURORA MODEL KITS – Thomas Graham

Try as I might, I could never get any of my children interested in model kits. I grew up in the 1970’s and I have fond memories of sitting in the living-room, at a card-table covered with newspapers, and gluing and then painting plastic model kits. I didn’t spend much time looking at manufacturer names… Continue reading

NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

5 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Entertainment, History, Memoir, non-fiction, Reviews

July 31, 2017

THE SKY: THE ART OF FINAL FANTASY – Yoshitaka Amano

I’ve never played Final Fantasy but I’m certainly familiar with the video game series, but my requesting an ARC of a book of Final Fantasy art has much more to do with my interest in art than it does with the subject matter in this case. The art here is by Yoshitaka Amano. It is… Continue reading

ENTERTAINMENT, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

3 Stars, Art, Book Reviews, Books, Entertainment, non-fiction, Reviews, SF/Fantasy

July 23, 2017

HOW TO PACK – Hitha Palepu

I enjoy traveling but I know that I can be an over-packer. I tend to jump on Google the night before a trip, search for packing lists, print three or four and then randomly fill my suitcases and check things off the lists. Not exactly efficient. So when I saw this book available, complete with… Continue reading

NON-FICTION

3 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, non-fiction, Reviews

July 22, 2017

GIRL IN A BAND – Kim Gordon

I’m pretty fascinated by music and musicians (if I could live my life over again I would try to write music) and when I saw this biography of a founding member of Sonic Youth, I thought I would try it out. I borrowed the audio version from my local library for my drives to/from work.… Continue reading

MEMOIR, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

2 Stars, Biography, Book Reviews, Books, Memoir, non-fiction, Reviews

July 21, 2017

AND SOON I HEARD A ROARING WIND – Bill Streever

When I request an ARC of a book, I generally request books that I expect to like – typically in a genre that I am fond of, or an author that I enjoy reading. Occasionally, I go outside my typical reading box and request books that I know nothing about but for one reason or… Continue reading

MEMOIR, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

4 stars, Book Reviews, Books, History, Memoir, Nature, non-fiction, Reviews

July 17, 2017

WHAT IS A SUPERHERO? – Robin S. Rosenberg & Peter Coogan, editors

You can hardly turn around today without seeing a movie or television show featuring a superhero and they’re often on the covers of magazines and there are novelizations of their stories. And of course there are the comic books and graphic novels from which many of them sprouted. But what is a superhero? Such is… Continue reading

ENTERTAINMENT, GRAPHIC NOVEL, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

5 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, comic book superheroes, Entertainment, essays, non-fiction, Reviews, superheroes

July 7, 2017

1984 IN THE 21ST CENTURY – Lori Perkins, editor

Well, it didn’t take long for someone to put out a collection of essays relating George Orwell’s 1984 with the Donald Trump presidency. Of course it’s been the lingo in the press and on social media since Trump won the U.S. election and editor Lori Perkins, who writes in her introduction of having had affection… Continue reading

NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

3 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, essays, non-fiction, Reviews