Angel 's profile

518 ratings (3.52 avg)
518 reviews
161 trivia answers
Goodreads librarian

Angel 's bookshelves

read ‎(515)
currently-reading ‎(3)
to-read ‎(0)
graphic_novels_and_comics ‎(162)
humor ‎(45)
science_fiction ‎(43)
library_science ‎(34)
history ‎(33)

spanish ‎(25)
politics-and-political-science ‎(25)
manga-manhwa-etc- ‎(24)
fiction ‎(24)
nonfiction ‎(23)
commentary-and-opinion ‎(18)
trivia-and-miscellaneous ‎(16)
books-and-reading ‎(16)

fantasy-and-speculative ‎(15)
spiritual-or-inspirational ‎(15)
education ‎(15)
business-and-economics ‎(14)
foods-and-epicurious ‎(11)
religion-studies ‎(9)
poetry ‎(8)
horror_and_thrillers ‎(7)

work-and-management ‎(7)
mystery-and-detective ‎(6)
leadership ‎(6)
lgbtq ‎(4)
drama ‎(4)
dropped-not-finished ‎(3)
children-ya ‎(2)

Cloud Shelves | More…

Angel is currently reading

	07/01 Angel is currently reading: 50 Ways to Support Lesbian and Gay Equality: The Complete Guide to Supporting Family, Friends, Neighbors or Yourself (Paperback) by Angela Watrous bookshelves: currently-reading	my rating:
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	06/19 Angel is currently reading: The Manga Bible: From Genesis to Revelation (Paperback) by Siku bookshelves: currently-reading	my rating:
	progress: (page 62 of 224) — 10 days ago, 10:12PM add a comment
	01/18 Angel is currently reading: Let the Galaxy Burn (Warhammer 40,000 Novels) by Marc Gascoigne (Editor) bookshelves: currently-reading	my rating:
	progress: (page 327 of 768) — 15 days ago, 07:47PM add a comment

Angel 's recent updates (rss)

July 03

Angel gave

to:
Tequila: A Natural and Cultural History (Paperback)
by Gary Paul Nabhan
bookshelves: foods-and-epicurious, history

my rating:

recommended for: tequila and mescal fans, liquor spirits fans
read in July, 2009

Angel said: "It was not a riveting book, but it was interesting in parts. I think readers may learn a thing or two about how tequila and mescal (remember, all tequila is a mescal, but not all mescal is tequila) are made and the very proud history of the product. ...more It was not a riveting book, but it was interesting in parts. I think readers may learn a thing or two about how tequila and mescal (remember, all tequila is a mescal, but not all mescal is tequila) are made and the very proud history of the product. This is written by botanists and agronomists, so the book does get a bit too technical at times in details about the different plants, cultivation, land, etc. For me, these were the slow parts, but I still learned something. The chapters dealing more with the lore, culture, and history were the ones that I found interesting.

Some notes for myself from the book:

The tequila hierarchy. I actually knew this before reading the book, but it is worth noting. You have tequila blanco (white/silver. This is the one that is not aged. The one you usually use for margaritas and cocktails), tequila oro (or joven. This one is colored by things like caramel or due to seasoning in oak barrels. This one is the popular one in the U.S., usually as a mixer or for shots), reposado( can have additives, but the main thing is it is "rested" in barrels for at least two months, but less than a year usually), and a&#241ejo (the extra-aged. It can have additives, but the deal is really in the aging from 12 months up).

Many tequilas are blended. Nothing wrong with that, but there is a clear difference. By law, if it is 100% blue agave (and this means no other sugars added), it has to be labeled as such. Therefore, that bottle of Cuervo, to pick a common example, is probably a blend of different agaves, and probably has additives (often sugars. By law, it has to be 51% agave). And boy, is there a diversity of agave plants. A lot of the reason that one type is used the most is pressure from the big companies for uniformity.

I found interesting how the image of tequila has changed to become more sophisticated. For a long time, Mexico did not really embrace tequila, as other than a cheap drink. Now, it is embracing it and seeing it as an element of national pride, but it was interesting to me because in large measure this was made possible by people outside of Mexico extolling the virtues of good tequila, then Mexicans abroad discovering this and telling their folks back home. "When you now give a Mexican an aged bottle of tequila, it is a prestigious present, reaffirming his identity" (74). As noted, that was not always the case.

On another little note, according to the book, Mexican connoisseurs tend to prefer white and reposado. Americans in the US prefer the oro. But the point at the end of the day is that tequila is not just for shots anymore. A good (premium) tequila is a pleasure to sip just as a good whiskey or cognac. A very premium tequila can set you back a thousand or two thousand bucks (and worth it if you can afford it, I suppose). You do have to note also that a lot of tequila's rise in popularity has been due to very good marketing techniques such as using artisans to make pretty bottles and labels in order to evoke certain images. The result of the growth in popularity, especially for the more premium brands, is that "tequilas have now displaced whiskeys as the most frequently consumed spirit in the United States" (81). Overall, read the labels, do some research if need be, then buy accordingly.

If you want to learn more about this spirit that seems to be overtaking the United States, this is a pretty good place to start. (less) "

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July 01

Angel is currently reading:
50 Ways to Support Lesbian and Gay Equality: The Complete Guide to Supporting Family, Friends, Neighbors or Yourself (Paperback)
by Angela Watrous
bookshelves: currently-reading

my rating:

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Angel is on page 21 of Tequila: A Natural and Cultural History

"Interesting in some parts, a bit slow in others so far. "

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June 23

Angel gave

to:
The Quotable Politician (Quotable) (Quotable)
by William B. Whitman
bookshelves: history, leadership, politics-and-political-science, trivia-and-miscellaneous

my rating:

read in June, 2009

Angel said: "This is a pretty good collection of political quotes. The book is arranged in topics such as "democracy," "war," and "money." The selection of quotes is very good. Personally, I found that a lot of the quotes are very re...more "

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June 21

Angel gave

to:
Cien anos de soledad (Paperback)
by Gabriel García Márquez
bookshelves: spanish

my rating:

read in June, 2009

Angel said: "I have read this a few times. I don't quite recall the first time I read it (probably sometime in the 80s back in high school when mom first gave it to me), but I make it a point to reread this book every so often (about a year or two give or take in...more "

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June 19

Angel is currently reading:
The Manga Bible: From Genesis to Revelation (Paperback)
by Siku
bookshelves: currently-reading

my rating:

progress:

(page 62 of 224)
— 10 days ago, 10:12PM

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Angel gave

to:
Bizenghast, v.2
by M. Alice LeGrow
bookshelves: graphic_novels_and_comics

my rating:

read in June, 2009

Angel said: "The series continues. Dina and Vince have found one of the four tower guardians, but is he going to help them, or make things more difficult. There are new souls and challenges along the way as the series continues. Again, a pretty easy read. Very go...more "

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June 18

Angel took the Never-Ending Book Quiz.

questions answered:	190
correct:	161 (84.7%)
skipped:	106
best streak:	12
questions added:	0

beat his score »

June 17

Angel gave

to:
Bizenghast Volume 1 (Bizenghast)
by M. Alice LeGrow
bookshelves: manga-manhwa-etc-

my rating:

read in June, 2009

Angel said: "This was a pretty pleasant surprise. Dinah loses her parents, and as a result has to move with relatives in the New England town of Bizenghast. The doctors think the young girl may not be well, maybe due to the trauma of loss, but things are not as s...more "

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June 15

Angel gave

to:
The Coffee House: A Cultural History (Hardcover)
by Markman Ellis
bookshelves: foods-and-epicurious, history

my rating:

read in June, 2009

Angel said: "I was not particularly impressed by this book. The idea behind it, a history of the coffee house, does sound interesting, but the book itself is a very slow and dry read. A lot of the late 17th century into the 18th in Britain, when the coffee houses...more "

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More of Angel 's books…

Angel 's favorite quotes

"A room without books is like a body without a soul."
— Marcus Tullius Cicero

tags: books, soul

8,060 people liked it

"If you don't stand for something you will fall for anything."
— Malcolm X

tags: belief, integrity

4,573 people liked it

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe."
— Albert Einstein

tags: einstein, human, humor, infinity, nature, philosophy, science, stupidity, universe

8,653 people liked it

"And on the subject of burning books: I want to congratulate librarians, not famous for their physical strength or their powerful political connections or their great wealth, who, all over this country, have staunchly resisted anti-democratic bullies who have tried to remove certain books from their shelves, and have refused to reveal to thought police the names of persons who have checked out those titles.

So the America I loved still exists, if not in the White House or the Supreme Court or the Senate or the House of Representatives or the media. The America I love still exists at the front desks of our public libraries."
— Kurt Vonnegut (A Man Without a Country)

tags: america, books, politics

841 people liked it

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
— Franklin D. Roosevelt (Franklin Delano Roosevelt's First Inaugural Address)

tags: fear

316 people liked it

More of Angel 's favorite quotes…

Angel 's groups (recent posts)

Daily Show / Colbert Report — 88 members — last activity 4 days ago, 06:55AM
Books recommended by these shows.

Goodreads Librarians — 2939 members — last activity 2 hours, 58 min ago
A place where members can work together to improve the Goodreads book catalog.

Activities include combining editions, fixing book and auth...more

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Litwin Books publishes scholarly books about media, communication, libraries, and related historical topics, and through its Library Juice Press impri...more

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