★★★☆☆ [amazon_link id=”1560258500″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Monster Island by David Wellington[/amazon_link] – This is well written for a zombie novel.  A zombie apocalypse ravaged the world, leaving 3rd world countries, like Somalia, one of the few safe places. Dekalb is a former UN weapons inspector, agreeing to lead a band of teen, female Somali soldiers in search of anti AIDS drugs that may exist in New York City.  Greg is a zombie, who has somehow maintained his ability to think, speak and act.  Dekalb meets Greg, and a rash act by one of the soldiers makes an enemy of the two.  The story progresses with Dekalb meeting a group of survivors and having to take on Greg, whom Dekalb finds that Greg is more capable than being able to think.
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Review: Monster Island by Dan Wellington
★★★☆☆ [amazon_link id=”1560258500″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Monster Island by David Wellington[/amazon_link] – This is well written for a zombie novel.  A zombie apocalypse ravaged the world, leaving 3rd world countries, like Somalia, one of the few safe places. Dekalb is a former UN weapons inspector, agreeing to lead a band of teen, female Somali soldiers…
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Review: A Visit From the Goon Squad
★★★★☆ [amazon_link id=”0307477479″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan[/amazon_link] – Central to the story are time, music, Bennie Salazar and Sasha. Beyond them are pasts that they share between people they’ve known and places they’ve been.  Bennie is an aging record executive and Sasha is his assistant. The story…
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Use a mason jar with a blender
It turns out, most blenders fit properly with a mason jarmost blenders fit properly with a mason jar. We use this trick most often to make whipped cream. The blender whips it right in the jar, so if we have extra, it’s already in a jar for storage. And it is easier when it comes…
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Crossword Puzzle Girl
Petite, blonde hair always in a pony tail, blue-eyed, she occupied the same corner of the campus cafeteria. Whenever I saw her, her face peered down, lips pursed and eyes intently engaged in the day’s crossword puzzle. Her books and backpack would be either piled at her feet or on the table next to her,…
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Recent non-fiction reads
[amazon_link id=”1422133443″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]HBR’s 10 Must Reads The Essentials[/amazon_link] – This complilation collects 10 articles that business leaders should readily consider–strategies for broad aspects of business. Â Each article is summarized in a side bar with the key points. This is handy as the articles are 20-30 pages in length. Â Drucker, Porter, Christensen are…
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Recent fiction reads
And by recent I mean, in the last 6 months. [amazon_link id=”159514188X” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher[/amazon_link]Â – Clay Jensen receives a box of cassette tapes, narrating why a dead classmate killed herself. Hannah Baker tells of teenage heart break and cruelty that pushed her over the edge. The novel shows how…
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Twitter Stories
Twitter splendidly presents stories of tweets or clever uses of its service in Twitter Stories. A guy who saved his mother’s book store. Fishermen who sell the day’s catch while still on the boat. Complete recipes in 140 characters. Twitter is finding a singular purpose–enabling people to communicate uniquely and directly to the entire world,…
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Art begets art
Art begets art. Â One creative act should be free to inspire another creative act. Â To say that one creation, once delivered to the world, remains tethered to its creator, unable to inspire, evolve or grow into something new, restricts the life of the original creation. Â As much as one may try to control the perception…
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How to have a whiskey tasting
How to host a whiskey tasting 1. Know the difference between the types of whiskey. 2. Decide which whiskies you wish to share. 3. Be able to talk about a) whiskey in general, b) each individual whiskey. 4. Serve food. Recently, I held a whiskey tasting for a small group of friends. Over the past…
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Ten years on, he still stands
Ten years on, new stories find a way to be told about that day. Everyone owns a part of history, however far removed they were from the events that occurred. September 11, 2001 horrifically created a common experience. My experience became real, running late to a business law class and arrived to a visibly upset…