Anvils, Mallets & Dynamite is the definitive story of Looney Tunes. It is well-researched from a multitude of sources. Plus, it is just a fascinating read! The book starts at the beginning of animation in Hollywood with a brief mention of Disney and other animation studios’ styles before jumping inContinue Reading
The Shift is about changing your mindset. Instead of using willpower to drive your diet, utilize skillpower to take detailed steps into your weight loss journey. The book discusses how to change your negative self-talk. It also goes over research into how to set habits to make it easier toContinue Reading
On Tyranny uses examples from European history to show how democracies have fallen in the past. It includes twenty rules to follow here in the US to avoid the same fate. The text is from a book published in 2017. The illustrations are new. Though this book is labeled TheContinue Reading
I’m sure I wasn’t the only person who early in the pandemic bought more dried beans, lentils and peas than they would eat in a year. I wanted to read Grist because of two sentences in the introduction: “Prep the ingredient instead of the finished dish so that ingredient canContinue Reading
You’ve read the histories (or watched the BBC shows) about ancient battles. But how did the people on the ground feel? Were they jostling shoulder-to-shoulder in a phalanx? What were the smells, sounds, and sights during the throes of battle? A Sensory History of Ancient Warfare answers those questions. ThoughContinue Reading
China has definitely been frequently in the news lately. If you are curious about the world’s longest written history, you could spend an eternity reading books about the various dynasties. Or you can read The Shortest History of China in an afternoon and understand our number one trade partner’s historyContinue Reading
Robert’s Rules of Writing is a mixed jumble of advice about plot, character, motivation, and setting. The last two are referring to the writer—not their characters. To illustrate this point, four of the rules are Skip the Starbucks, Burn Your Journal, and instead Take a Walk Around the Block (andContinue Reading
True Raiders is an account of treasure hunters in the early years of the 20th century looking in Jerusalem for the Ark of the Covenant. Though it sounds like a real Raiders of the Lost Ark, it reads more like The DaVinci Code. There are ciphers, secrets, spies, and evenContinue Reading
If you’re a totally newbie salesperson or business owner, Sell Different! might offer valuable insight. Unfortunately, for everyone else, you have heard all of these “revelations” before. Finding a way to differentiate your business from your competitors is a great idea but nothing new. The book suggests using three businessContinue Reading
The New Startup Mindset will motivate you to begin that business you have been dreaming about! The author’s story of seeing a need and fulfilling it by opening her own business is so inspiring! Yet, I question that some of her instructions will work for everyone. “Don’t delay. Don’t waitContinue Reading
Become Your Own Boss in 12 Months literally changed my life. This book has a step-by-step month-to-month plan to open your own business in 12 months. I was thinking about how to apply its lessons to my life. Luckily, I had already done most of the preliminary steps to getContinue Reading
Masochists are everywhere—not just in Fifty Shades of Grey. They are marathon runners, chili pepper eaters, Polar Bear Club members, MMA fighters, and ballerinas. Why people put their bodies in these situations is the main question in Hurts So Good. However, the book also explains how pain works and givesContinue Reading
From breakfast to desserts and everything in between, there are 100 tasty sounding recipes within Instantly Mediterranean. While the book advertises 100 Instant Pot and Air Fryer recipes, be aware that there are only 18 fryer recipes in a separate chapter at the back of the book. Most of theContinue Reading
Mexican food is so delicious! And here, in California, it is plentiful. However, everyone should try to eat healthier. In a restaurant, you may be eating foods fried in lard. If you create the same dish at home, you can control the fat and calories. So, how does the HealthyContinue Reading
In Declutter Like a Mother, a mom of three children under three gets organized so she can enjoy her children and life without stress. I have been down the road of minimalist perfection. I read Marie Kondo’s book the day it was published. I watched her entire streaming show asContinue Reading
I was a bit skeptical. Are there any Travel Hacks out there that I haven’t already heard? But this book promises 651 hacks so I figured that at least a few would be new to me. And I was correct. Here are a few of my favorites. “Prices for flightsContinue Reading