The Coke Machine by Michael Blanding

November 30, 2014 by Christina

Nonfiction — audiobook. Read by George K. Wilson. Tantor Media, 2010. 13 hours, 3 minutes. Library copy. I am horribly addicted to Coca Cola. I can easily down six or seven cans (or, their equivalent at a restaurant) without batting an eye, which obviously places me in the “heavy user” category by The Coca Cola Company. I have tried many times over the past six years to kick the habit going cold turkey for ten weeks or ten months until […]

Categories: 2014 Reads, Audiobook, Food, Nonfiction, North America, South America, United States • Tags: George K. Wilson, Michael Blanding

The Map Thief by Michael Blanding

July 5, 2014 by Christina

Nonfiction — print. Gotham, 2014. 300 pgs. Library copy. Subtitled “The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-Map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps”, Blanding’s book utilizes one map dealer to explore the complex world of rare-map dealing and collecting where maps went from practical instruments to quirky heirlooms to highly coveted objects that are traded – and stolen – like prized art. E. Forbes Smiley was once considered a respectable antiquarian map dealer until he was caught cutting rare […]

Categories: 2014 Reads, Cartography, New England, Nonfiction, North America, United States • Tags: Michael Blanding