Pass the Olives

A Jumble of Opinions on Living, Thinking, Reading, and Making Things

Category: Reviews & Recommendations

Mostly books but other stuff too.

As a child, I was told often, as in every day, to “get your nose out of that book.” Like children stealing screen time, I soon knew enough to stay out of sight if I wanted to read. For this reason, I don’t take limits on screen time as seriously as many parents do. If the game is challenging or the website informative can it be worse or as bad as reading a book?

While there were years when I was too rushed to finish more than a New Yorker on the subway, I’ve purposely begun reading several hours a day again, now from newspapers to websites to books to blogs. When I read something that I think is useful, curious, or up-ending I like to share it. My friends and family are pretty tired of it so I am expanding my reach by posting here.

Barbara Jordan, The Voice of God

Barbara Jordan at the Judiciary Committee Hearings on Watergate and the Impeachment of Richard Nixon

People are the source of all governmental power. —Barbara Jordan. 1976 Barbara Jordan vs Hillary Clinton Clips have been playing for the last few days of Hillary Clinton’s speech at the 2022 National Democratic Convention. Over and over. It’s nice to see her back out there again, but she has to do something with her voice. The harder she tries, the more it sounds witch-like. It’s not pleasant. I wonder where […]

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Depressed for No Good Reason: Hiding in Plain Sight

Well, not exactly depressed for no good reason. It’s the fifty-first day of my shelter-in-place sojourn for covid and I finished reading Sarah Kendzior’s Hiding in Plain Sight: The Invention of Donald Trump and the Erosion of America this morning. As a specialist, Kendzior explains the development of autocracies and kleptocracies and chronicles all the steps in Donald Trump’s rise to power. Good book but not an upper. Hiding in Plain Sight is […]

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Books Kids Will Sit Still For 3: A Read-Aloud Guide

One reason to blog about books is to tell people about them. Another is so I won’t forget them myself. This one is both. It is a reference book for school librarians which means if you work with kids or read to kids a lot this is where you look up ideas about what to read and why. Reference also means it’s 900+ pages and heavy. It includes everything about […]

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