Book Review: Masters of the Lamp | A Harvest of Hoodwinks

Book Review: Masters of the Lamp | A Harvest of Hoodwinks by Robert Lory This is another Ace Double, two small books combined into one upside-down from each other so they make a fair-sized paperback.  In this case, a short novel and several short stories by former ad executive Robert Lory. Masters of the Lamp… Continue reading Book Review: Masters of the Lamp | A Harvest of Hoodwinks

Book Review: The 47 Ronin

The 47 Ronin by A.B. Mitford This is an abridged and dolled-up reprint of A.B. Mitford’s Tales of Old Japan with lots of color illustrations.  Tales was originally published in 1871, as Algernon Bertram Freeman-Mitford, a member of the British legation in Tokyo, witnessed the rapid modernization of Japan.  He decided to set down some traditional stories… Continue reading Book Review: The 47 Ronin

Book Review: Deadly Defiance

Book Review: Deadly Defiance by William Manchee Disclosure:  I received this book as a Goodreads Giveaway on the premise that I would review it. This is the tenth volume in a series about Stan Turner, a Dallas based attorney for the firm of Turner and Waters.  It’s 1995, and the law firm is going through… Continue reading Book Review: Deadly Defiance

Book Review: The Boy Knight

Book Review: The Boy Knight by G. A. Henty G.A. Henty (1852-1902) was a writer of children’s historical fiction, who began his career as an author after a friend heard him telling bedtime stories to his kids.  Like many Victorian authors, he’s out of favor these days, but my parents found this book at an… Continue reading Book Review: The Boy Knight

Book Review: America In So Many Words

Book Review: America In So Many Words by Allen Metcalf & David K. Barnhart American English is its own animal, with a vocabulary that marks it out from British English.  This volume traces American history through the words that have been important to or invented by Americans.  It’s set in roughly chronological order, from “canoe”… Continue reading Book Review: America In So Many Words

Book Review: They Talked to a Stranger

Book Review: They Talked to a Stranger by Len O’Connor This book is centered around ten interviews with juvenile delinquents by then-radio reporter Len O’Connor in 1950s Chicago.  Each of the boys is identified with a nickname, some their actual nickname, others chosen to protect their identities.    They’re asked how they got into a… Continue reading Book Review: They Talked to a Stranger

Book Review: The Weird Ones

Book Review: The Weird Ones by Frederik Pohl, Poul Anderson, Milton Lesser, Eando Binder, Mack Reynolds, Sam Sackett & L. Sprague de Camp This is an anthology of 1950s science fiction published in 1962.  In the Fifties, SF became more “thinky” than in the pulp era, with an emphasis on the soft sciences like psychology… Continue reading Book Review: The Weird Ones

Book Review: The Cat Sitter’s Cradle

Book Review: The Cat Sitter’s Cradle by Blaize & John Clement Disclosure:  I received this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway on the premise that I would review it.  This is an Advance Reading Copy, so minor changes may be made in the final product. The cover is adorable, a kitten bottle-feeding in a… Continue reading Book Review: The Cat Sitter’s Cradle

Book Review: Koko

Book Review: Koko by Peter Straub Four Vietnam veterans, among the very few remaining from their old unit, meet at the Vietnam War Memorial’s dedication.  One of them has noticed a series of murders that indicate another member of their unit is alive and a serial killer.  He convinces the others to go searching for… Continue reading Book Review: Koko