Category Archives: Books

Fred Saberhagen’s The Arms of Hercules: Book of the Gods Volume III

Naomi de Bruyn wrote this review. The Arms of Hercules is the third book in Fred Saberhagen’s Book of the Gods series, and it differs slightly from the previous two, in that it is more of a first person narrative. … Continue reading

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Michael Erlewine, Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra and Stephen Thomas Erlewine’s All Music Guide to Country

The All Music Guide to Country profiles more than 1,000 musicians and reviews more than 5,500 CDs in the stupefyingly enormous field of country music. It’s a good resource for the fan looking for some help in weeding out the … Continue reading

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David Goodman’s Modern Twang

Whatever “alternative country” music is, you’ll find just about everything about it through 1999 in this comprehensive book. David Goodman, as a fan of the music and a scholar of American Studies, has compiled what amounts to a one-volume encyclopedia … Continue reading

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Nolan Porterfield’s Last Cavalier: The Life and Times of John A. Lomax

“John Lomax got Leadbelly out of prison.” That’s the commonly accepted story; you can still see it being bandied about if you do a web search under his name. But as every biblical scholar and IRS auditor knows, the truth … Continue reading

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O. J. Padel’s Arthur in Medieval Welsh Literature

Lisa Spangenberg penned this review. Since the earliest references to King Arthur occur in medieval Welsh poetry, it has been almost de rigeur to assert that Arthur, and hence the ancestry of Arthurian literature and myth, lies in Celtic tales … Continue reading

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Nuala O’Connor’s Bringing it All Back Home: The Influence of Irish Music

Originally written as a companion to an RTE/BBC television series on Irish music, this book has lots of photos, tidbits, and history. This is a book I wish someone had handed me 10 years ago when it first came out. … Continue reading

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Jack Cady’s The Hauntings of Hood Canal

Christine Doiron penned this review. … there are small pockets out here in the boonies where people stumble around and bump into each other. They aren’t particularly good, or particularly bright, but they halfway try to take care of each … Continue reading

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Scott Yanow’s Swing

Scott Yanow, a well-known and prolific jazz writer, historian and journalist, has produced a definitive treatment of all things Swing. Equally useful as a textbook and a guide to essential recordings, Swing covers the jazz genre also known as Big … Continue reading

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Gregory Maguire’s Lost

Both of the previous novels from this author, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West and Confessions of An Ugly Stepsister, got glowing reviews here in Green Man, it won’t surprise you, me dear reader, … Continue reading

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Philip Pullman’s The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass

My love affair with Philip Pullman began when I found The Golden Compass and fell for his beautifully descriptive writing and the fantastically creative world of Lyra Silvertongue. Our relationship began to suffer when he released The Subtle Knife, bringing … Continue reading

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