Author Archives: Bookworm
Coercive Commerce
In 1842, the Qing Empire signed a watershed commercial treaty with Great Britain, beginning a century-long period in which geopolitical and global economic entanglements intruded on Qing territory and governance. Previously understood as an era of “semi-colonialism,” Boston College Assistant … Continue reading
McAleer’s Henry von Stray is on the case
Late Boston College alumnus and Professor of English John McAleer ’45 created the literary characters Henry von Stray, a London private detective, and his collaborator, Professor John Dilpate, during the 1930s—a period known as Golden Age of detective fiction. A … Continue reading
Spenser is back
Spenser, considered Boston’s most famous fictional private investigator, takes on a new case that hits close to home in Robert B. Parker’s Hot Property (G.P. Putnam’s Sons/Penguin Random House, 2024), written by Boston College alumnus Mike Lupica. The novel opens … Continue reading
Mighty Monk Mysteries
Professor of Theology Emeritus Harvey D. Egan, S.J., a 50-year member of the Boston College Jesuit community, is the inspiration for Father Ignatius Lacroix, the reluctant detective in the new Mighty Monk Mysteries book series by D. Ansgar Nyberg, in … Continue reading
Confession
For generations, American Catholics went faithfully to confession, admitting their sins to a priest and accepting through him God’s forgiveness. The sacrament served as a distinctive marker of Catholic identity. But starting in the 1970s, many abandoned confession altogether. In … Continue reading
Brilliant leadership
Suzanne (Egan) Martin ’97, who has worked at Google for more than 17 years and is currently director of global marketing learning and development, has published Brilliant Leadership: Patterns for Creating High-Impact Teams. In the book, Martin provides valuable insights … Continue reading
Meet Dave
David McGrath, a 1996 Boston College alumnus, is a brain cancer survivor, educator, stand-up comedian, and host of “The WWIM (Women Who Inspire Me) Podcast.” In 2024, he published his first children’s book, If You Give a Dave a Darth. Written … Continue reading
A Black Mariology
A new book by BC Assistant Professor of Theology and African and African Diaspora Studies Amey Victoria Adkins-Jones begins with the claim, Mary is Black, to ground how Christian thinking of salvation, possibility, and identity are challenged when assumptions about … Continue reading
Humble Pie
Pat LaMarche, who has written and advocated on issues related to poverty and homelessness for decades, has published a thought-provoking book about food and food insecurity. Humble Pie is part nonfiction and part cookbook. LaMarche has collected stories from the … Continue reading
Landscaping Patagonia
In late 19th-century Latin America, governments used new scientific, technological, and geographical knowledge not only to consolidate power and protect borders but also to define the physical contours of their respective nations. Chilean and Argentine authorities, in particular, attempted to … Continue reading