Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History of English by John McWhorter If you’ve ever wondered why English doesn’t act like other Germanic languages, this book is for you. It’s more than just “here’s all the stuff we stole from the Norman French” but goes into why we say “do you have the time” instead …
Tag: history
Apr 02
Book Review: The Icepick Surgeon
The Icepick Surgeon: Murder, Fraud, Sabotage, Piracy, and Other Dastardly Deeds Perpetrated in the Name of Science by Sam Kean The only time I remember enjoying a book about science history this much was when I read Sam Kean’s other book, The Disappearing Spoon, which is full of exciting tales from the periodic table. I …
Apr 03
Book Review: The Royal Art of Poison
The Royal Art of Poison: Filthy Palaces, Fatal Cosmetics, Deadly Medicine, and Murder Most Foul by Eleanor Herman Non-fiction books about chemistry, especially where chemistry and sociology intersect, are one of my fun go-to reads (or listens, in this case.) I was kind of hoping it would be like The Poisoner’s Handbook, which was like …
Feb 27
Book Review: A Discovery of Witches
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness I’d heard about this book, and more to the point, seen in on the bookshelves of people who share my taste, so I was excited to get the audiobook from audible. It’s a huge tome, something like 27 hours to listen to, so it’s a time investment of …
Aug 03
Book Review: The Map That Changed the World
The Map That Changed the World by Simon Winchester I usually love books like this, and I usually don’t review books that I haven’t finished, but I don’t know if I want to waste any more time on this one. I’m 93 hard-won pages into this and I think I’m going to quit. So far …