DEMOCRACIES—MEASURING RISK
“WHY DEMOCRACIES DIE AND WHAT TO DO NEXT” is the thought-provoking title of Rachel Beatty Riedl’s review in AAAS Science, September 25, 2025, of Susan C. Stokes’ book The Backsliders. … Continue reading
HOAX REDUX
GEEZ. I THOUGHT I HAD COVERED ALL THIS IN “Hoax: A Real Etymology,” SimanaitisSays, March 22, 2018. It even had lots of Trump references (Henry VIII was “Donald Trump in … Continue reading
REMEMBERING THE GROUND OBSERVER CORPS PART 2
YESTERDAY, MY AEROBIBLIOGRAPHIC RECOLLECTIONS encountered Bruce Callander’s “The Ground Observer Corps,” Air & Space Forces Magazine. Today in Part 2, we continue gleaning tidbits from it, together with my (barely … Continue reading
REMEMBERING THE GROUND OBSERVER CORPS PART 1
I WAS LEAFING THROUGH MY AVIATION SHELVES, a collection, I immodestly note, better than in many secondhand bookshops I peruse from time to time. This includes gems such as “Jane’s … Continue reading
SEVERAL HELPFUL PHRASES
TRUTH IS, I’M NOT REALLY INTO SELF-HELP (this, despite those who might suggest otherwise). However, I was impressed by Catherine Pearson’s “8 Phrases to Help Your Relationship Thrive,” The New … Continue reading
CROSS-REFERENCES FOR FUN AND ILLUMINATION PART 2
YESTERDAY, CROSS-REFERENCES OFFERED an innovative means of indexing material. Today in Part 2, we continue this investigation from Brewer’s Rogues, Villains & Eccentrics: An A–Z of Roguish Britons Through the … Continue reading
CROSS-REFERENCING FOR FUN AND ILLUMINATION PART 1
THOUGH OTHER BREWER’S PUBLICATIONS HAVE APPEARED here at SimanaitisSays, I don’t believe I’ve ever told you about Brewer’s Rogues, Villains & Eccentrics: An A–Z of Roguish Britons Through the Ages. … Continue reading
MORE DIRTY BOOKS
THERE—THAT SHOULD GET YOUR ATTENTION AGAIN. Who would have guessed Boccacio’s Decameron was once described as “probably the dirtiest great book in the Western canon.” I gleaned this from Barbara … Continue reading
ENZO FERRARI TIDBITS FROM THE LRB PART 2
THOMAS JONES’ ARTICLE IN LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS “Lunch With Mussolini” is replete with tidbits continued here in Part 2. A Young Enzo. Jones relates that Ferrari’s first business venture … Continue reading
ENZO FERRARI TIDBITS FROM THE LRB PART 1
I’M OFTEN ENTERTAINED BY THE LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS. To cite a few examples, see “Just Because I’m a Librarian Doesn’t Mean I Have to Dress Like One”—Belle Da Costa … Continue reading
