Thoughts on Living the Life Creative
The Father Brown Mysteries (1910-1936) by G.K. Chesterton. Fifty-plus stories about the world's least impressive detective. It isn't his skill in solving mysteries that is unimpressive, it is the man himself. Chesterton describes the Roman Catholic priest in consistently unflattering terms. He is short, even stumpy, with baggy clothes and commonly a vacant look on his... Continue Reading →
I'm taking a look back at what I've watched (the movies post went up on Monday) and read in 2016. My total stands at 25 books this year. As with the movies, this is less about being "The BEST of the Year" and more about stories that stayed with me after I closed the... Continue Reading →
The Quartermaster: Montgomery C. Meigs, Lincoln's General, Master Builder of the Union Army by Robert O'Harrow Jr. (2016) - Lost amid the names of generals of the Civil War is the man who may have had as much to do with the victory of the Union as any commander in the field, Montgomery Meigs. It... Continue Reading →
The Allure of Battle - A History of How Wars Have Been Won and Lost (2017) by Cathal J. Nolan (Oxford University Press) - Overviews of military history have generally been divided into two categories, the Great Captains, and the Great Battles. Decisive action in war has been attributed to the genius of the winning... Continue Reading →
Mandate of Heaven (Legends of Tivara, Daughter of the Dragon Throne Book 4) (2016) by J.C. Kang Princess Kaiya returns to her homeland carrying twins but without the magic of her singing voice. Cathay is assailed from outside by many enemies, while others work to weaken the Empire from the inside. Kaiya will have to draw... Continue Reading →
Fit For the Presidency? Winners, Losers, What-Ifs and Also-Rans by Seymour Morris Jr. (2017) An examination of a variety of men who have run for the highest office in the land and some who only considered it. Beginning with George Washington, and ending with Ronald Reagan, historian Seymour Morris takes a look at the qualifications... Continue Reading →
Tarzan of the Apes (1912) and The Return of Tarzan (1913) by Edgar Rice Burroughs - A tiny baby is left in the wilds of the African jungle following the death of his parents. He is adopted by a she-ape and raised among the great apes of Africa. He will grow to manhood with incredible... Continue Reading →
A Red Dotted Line by Simon Gervais (2016) - Mike Walton, his wife Lisa and the rest of the International Market Stabilization Institute are once again on the trail of the international terrorist known only as "The Sheik". It's a very personal pursuit this time, since "The Sheik" kidnapped Mike father and nearly killed Lisa... Continue Reading →
Sherlock Holmes - Through Time and Space - edited by Isaac Asimov, Martin Harry Greenberg and Charles Waugh (1976). A collection of short stories that explore the possibilities of the Great Detective as a time traveler, an alien or confronting same. Authors include Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mack Reynolds, Fred Saberhagen, Philip José Farmer, Poul... Continue Reading →
The Judas Game by Ethan Cross (2016) - An anonymous killer known as the Judas Killer will bring together veteran investigator Marcus Williams and serial killer Francis Ackerman once again. Working with the team from the Shepherd Organization, these two will try to understand what begins at a federal prison but is intended to spread... Continue Reading →
Stories Are My Life 