Category: Books
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Women, Contracts, Dowries, Murder, and Survival in Early Modern Germany. Or Novel Ideas Better than a Knight with a Working Iron Hand.
As I was researching Gotz von Berlichingen and his hand made of iron in early modern Germany as a potential basis for a novel, I ran into something I found even more interesting: widows clawing back their dowries in order to keep their businesses alive. In much of early modern Germany, woman in many industries…
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On Getting an Agent. Or Not. (It’s Gonna Be Not.)
This is mostly a navel gazing post, but I thought some people might find the process and thoughts on it interesting. Or not. I recently sent my fourth completed novel out on query in hopes of attracting an agent. This is the second novel I have attempted to get representation for. The first, got one…
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Anxiety as Magic: A Review of Empire of Exiles
I am not precious about spoilers, so while there isn’t anything too detailed below, reader beware. I read about two chapters of Empire of Exiles, by Erin M. Evans, and was afraid I was not going to like it. I primarily purchased the book because I liked the author form a podcast I listened to.…
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Only The Ripples: A Review of Terry Pratchett A Life With Footnotes
I am hesitant to write this review. Not because the book is poorly done, or uninteresting, or a hagiography. It is none of those things and is very often their opposite. Rather, I feel like I am writing the worst sort of review. The author, Rob WiIkins, Pratchett’s personal assistant for the last couple of…
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Penguin Schuster Merger Defeat a Different Kind of Anti-Trust Win
The department of justice has successfully blocked the merger of two of the big five publishing houses: A federal judge blocked Penguin Random House from buying Simon & Schuster, arguing that the combination of the two book business giants would illegally reduce competition. Judge blocks Penguin Random House’s purchase of Simon & Schuster | CNN…
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Polls are Fscking Useless: A Review of Strength In Numbers
G. Elliot Morris would not want me to walk away with the notion that polls are fsking useless after reading Strength in Numbers: How Polls Work and Why We Need Them. Quite the opposite, actually. Morris has written a passionate defense of the polling industry and why we need polls. Unfortunately, it flounders on the…
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Book Two: Humane By Samuel Moyn
This book came highly recommended with a lot of blurbs about it making a powerful, thought-provoking argument about the nature of war and American imperialism, and the future of the planet. I wish I had read that book. Instead, I read this thing, which has no real argument that I can find and is completely…
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Book One: A Christmas Carol
Tis the season, and all that, so why not start this little exercise with a holiday classic? The first question I always have when reading a classic – i.e., something they made me read in English lit in high school or college – is whether or not the book is worth reading as a book. …