Comic Book Review: Action Presidents: George Washington

Comic Book Review: Action Presidents: George Washington by Fred van Lente and Ryan Dunlavey Our story begins with two modern tweens glued to their portal screen devices while Parson Weems bores them with the cherry tree legend.  The day is salvaged when Noah the Historkey appears and reveals that George Washington’s father Augustine didn’t raise… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Action Presidents: George Washington

Book Review: Manga! Manga! The World of Japanese Comics

Book Review: Manga!  Manga!  The World of Japanese Comics by Frederik L. Schodt Back in the early 1980s, manga and anime fandom was tiny, with almost no material being available in English save dubs heavily edited for American children’s television and expunged as much as possible of their Japanese roots.   It required a certain amount… Continue reading Book Review: Manga! Manga! The World of Japanese Comics

Comic Book Review: Queen & Country: Definitive Edition Volume 01

Comic Book Review: Queen & Country: Definitive Edition Volume 01 written by Greg Rucka, art by various Tara Felicity Chace is a field agent for the Special Operations Section of the British Secret Intelligence Service (SIS.)  She’s one of three operatives known as Minders who are assigned to the most dangerous tasks, and is code-named… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Queen & Country: Definitive Edition Volume 01

Magazine Review: Lapham’s Quarterly: A History of Fake News

Magazine Review: Lapham’s Quarterly: A History of Fake News edited by Lewis H. Lapham This is a “special issue” in addition to the four that this magazine normally puts out in a year.  The subject matter is topical as there has been an avalanche of “news” that is in fact not truthful, while certain politicians and… Continue reading Magazine Review: Lapham’s Quarterly: A History of Fake News

Book Review: Abraham Lincoln: Selected Speeches and Writings

Book Review: Abraham Lincoln: Selected Speeches and Writings by Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) was the sixteenth president of the United States, shepherding the nation through the dark days of the American Civil War.  Though mostly self-educated, he had a gift for the English language, making memorable speeches and writing interest letters.  Because of his… Continue reading Book Review: Abraham Lincoln: Selected Speeches and Writings

Book Review: The Best of Planet Stories #1

Book Review: The Best of Planet Stories #1 edited by Leigh Brackett Planet Stories was a pulp science fiction magazine that ran from 1939-1955.  Its specialty was “space opera”, exciting tales of adventure set in the future and on other worlds, full of square-jawed heroes, scantily clad damsels and bug-eyed monsters.  Not always the most… Continue reading Book Review: The Best of Planet Stories #1

Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents: The Brave and the Bold Batman Team-ups, Volume 1

Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents: The Brave and the Bold Batman Team-ups, Volume 1  Written by Bob Haney (mostly), Art by various The Brave and the Bold started its publication run in 1955 as an adventure anthology, featuring such characters as the Viking Prince and the Silent Knight.  Around issue 25, it switched to a tryout… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Showcase Presents: The Brave and the Bold Batman Team-ups, Volume 1

Book Review: The Minneapolis Riverfront

Book Review: The Minneapolis Riverfront by Iric Nathanson The city of Minneapolis grew up around the Mississippi River, and in particular, Saint Anthony Falls, which provided hydropower for the many flour mills that at one time made Minneapolis the flour milling capital of America.  This book, part of the “Images of America” series, tells the… Continue reading Book Review: The Minneapolis Riverfront

Book Review: A Force So Swift: Mao, Truman and the Birth of Modern China, 1949

Book Review: A Force So Swift: Mao, Truman and the Birth of Modern China, 1949 by Kevin Peraino In 1949, Chen Yong was an idealistic boy in his teens, his military uniform too large for him, cheering in Beijing as Mao Zedong declared that the People’s Republic of China was born.  Now, he is an… Continue reading Book Review: A Force So Swift: Mao, Truman and the Birth of Modern China, 1949

Manga Review: Fire Force Volume 01

Manga Review: Fire Force Volume 01 by Atsushi Ohkubo On an alternate Earth, the majority of Japanese people have been converted (at least on the surface) to the religion of the Sun God.  This may or may not have anything to do with the fact that the biggest threat to human life is now spontaneous… Continue reading Manga Review: Fire Force Volume 01