Shannon Heaton
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chawkeye.bsky.social
Shannon Heaton
@chawkeye.bsky.social
3.7K followers 2.5K following 19K posts
He/him. Het, not always the cis-iest.
Hard books, dark music, sportsball, MPLS, left politics, cats, occasional fitness, nail polish.
Sentient weighted blanket, high shelf reacher/handwarmer/foot rest, spouse for @zanadu.bsky.social.
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chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 191 📚 for 2025. Harrowing story of a woman's desire to break free of small-town values (& violence) and become what she may be & the music that helped get her there. Her definition of 'dad rock' may not be yours, but she earned her definition. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of Toronto-based writer Niko Stratis' 2025 book, The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman. The cover is plain black, with curvy text -- suggesting a very 70s vibe -- in multiple colors that shift through the title from red to yellow, with light green author's name text.
November 19, 2025 at 2:28 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 190 📚 for 2025. Not only are the reviews of the books, recently published in various media, well written by one of America's leading historians, it's encouraged me (at least) to seek out several of the books themselves. It's a solid read. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of Columbia emeritus history professor Eric Foner's 2025 collection of essays, Our Fragile Freedoms. White title and author's name text, the cover art otherwise is an abstract image of people interacting with one another in a mosaic of color and diversity.
November 18, 2025 at 1:27 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 189 📚 for 2025. There's just something about the author's writing. It's really compelling. Not dinosaurs, this time the story is about how bone structure directed our evolution into the 'modern' humans that we are today. It's a good journey. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of the 2019 book, Skeleton Keys: The Secret Life of Bone. Kind of peach title and author's name lettering, with bones almost highlighted in yellow surrounding them.
November 16, 2025 at 3:16 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 188 📚 for 2025. Circumstance brought forth the man with the memory, and as a downplayed act became legend over time in early America, the man in the street with that memory became a Boston hero. It helped shape the so-called American 'story.' Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the paperback first edition cover of Northern Illinois University emeritus professor Alfred F. Young's 1999 book, The Shoemaker and the Tea Party (republished in 2025 with a subtitle - Memory and the American Revolution). This cover is much cooler, I have to say, with colonial-era etchings and paintings on the cover, plus a photo of the main subject of the work. The cover of the edition I read was just color blocks in teal and olive, with text. blegh.
November 15, 2025 at 1:50 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 187 📚 for 2025. The good part: I gained insights I hadn't thought about when it came to North American indigenous contributions globally. But the phrasing and word choices - particularly an insistence on 'Indian' throughout - don't hold up under modern scrutiny, and I can't recommend bc of that
An older image of the cover of anthropology professor Jack Weatherford's 1988 book, Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World. The subtitle was updated to How Native Americans Transformed the World in the 2010 edition that I read, but the book was not edited to reflect that change.
November 14, 2025 at 4:03 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
This is what we use with Obi-wan and she has tolerated this quite well, and it's a pleasant scent even the next day.
November 14, 2025 at 2:44 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Two of my favorites tonight while road-tripping for aurora views, and pie, with @zanadu.bsky.social. Alas my stomach is being weird so no pie this evening.
Forest Lake MN rest stop, 10 second delay. This was the one with the most red band. Had cool bands going through with green bands above the tree line, again in “Flake”.
November 13, 2025 at 4:06 AM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 186 📚 for 2025. Got to see GOF when they were here this spring, and book is a great runup from King's early life to formation of, rise and fall of GOF. I'm definitely wanting to know more about what happened afterwards; it stops in early 80s. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of Gang of Four lead vocalist Jon King's 2025 memoir, To Hell With Poverty!: A Class Act: Inside the Gang of Four. The version of the cover here is pink, with a young King holding his arms outstretched, and text kind of painted in around King. The version I read is a ... little cooler, with a live King snarling into a microphone, and a multi-colored title text and white author's name text framing the photo.
November 12, 2025 at 3:11 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
From west metro.
Aurora borealis from the west metro side, can largely be seen with naked eye as…something…but shows up better with a camera. Probably even better with more than an amateur operating the thing.
November 12, 2025 at 1:39 AM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 185 📚 for 2025. The book covers how, in making Latin America into a US fiefdom, we essentially ruined the rest of the Western Hemisphere for our own purposes. Fits in with Noam Chomsky's work, only with more receipts. Tough but necessary read. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of NYU historian Greg Grandin's 2006 monograph, Empire's Workshop: Latin America, The United States, and the Making of an Imperial Republic (updated with a new epilogue in 2021, the edition I read). The cover is yellow, with black title and author's name text, and subtitle text in red with some shades of black (my cover is orange). The cover shown here also includes an upside down flag, with US colors inverted.
November 11, 2025 at 3:22 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 184 📚 for 2025. Answers a lot of this 'wool''s (IYKYK) questions about the team I've followed passionately for 15+ years now. Latecomers like me can get up to speed. Now I just need the Anfield songbook and I'll be about set. Good read. Available everywhere, including your local library. #LFC
An image of the front cover of Toronto sports historian Alan McDougall's 2025 book, Dreams And Songs To Sing: A People's History of Liverpool F.C. from Shankly to Klopp. Tan cover with red title text, black subtitle text and white author's name text highlighted in bright trophy gold. A photo of three Liverpool players from the 1980s, holding up the FA Cup (I believe) in triumph, before the faithful fans is at the bottom.
November 10, 2025 at 1:32 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 183 📚 for 2025. Good title. Gets you going. But the book is a little short on providing new information, if you're in any way plugged into social media culture, aside from the vignettes on individual union-member teachers. I wanted a bit more. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of NYC teacher and American Federation of Teachers union president Randi Weingarten's 2025 book, Why Fascists Fear Teachers: Public Education and the future of Democracy. Cover is white, title/author's name text is red and blue, with gold subtitle text.
November 8, 2025 at 2:53 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 182 📚 for 2025. A breezy collection of the late popular historian's essays. I'm not sure how the title fits generally from the content, but I'm quite certain I could see how history mattered to the subject. Always nice to get insight on craft. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of popular historian David McCullough's 2025 collection of essays and speeches, History Matters (edited by Dorie McCullough Lawson & Michael Hill). An off-white color for the book, with red author's name text and blue title text. The author is shown seated in his office, going over a manuscript. His books are behind him on a shelf, with a 1940s-era Royal typewriter in front of him.
November 7, 2025 at 2:29 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 181 📚 for 2025. I like hard books as much as the next person, but music theory is probably beyond my ken, and there is a LOT of musicology in this book. Great for those who know that universe, and the mega-Prince fan will find much to like. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of University of South Carolina (Upland) associate professor Griffin Woodworth (#LocalAngle)'s 2025 book, entitled Prince, Musical Genre, and the Construction of Racial Identity. The book is dark purple in color, as would be expected, with a lighter purple paisley-style design overlaid. Text is white, with the word Prince bolded and in hollow font.
November 6, 2025 at 4:28 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 180 📚 for 2025. A very important read and a good start on this subject, but it read like a master's thesis that needed more research. That's probably very difficult to get, to be fair. It did leave me wanting more and that's probably good? Not available everywhere; thanks MNLink for the hookup!
An image of the front cover of Arkansas communications professor Lisa M. Corrigan's 2025 monograph, Prison Power: How Prison Influenced the Movement for Black Liberation. The title text is red, author and subtitle text is black, with sprinklings of 21 arrestees, presumably during the struggle for civil rights. I wasn't as sure why all of them were there, as the book focuses on three activist authors.
November 5, 2025 at 1:23 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 179 📚 for 2025. Really enjoyed this series, Old Man's War, and this one also did not disappointment, improving on the original idea of the worst ST: TOS episode extant. Will be working to complete my read of him; start this if you haven't yet. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of Old Man's War #6 by John Scalzi, The End of All Things (2015). Blue cover, a ship is plunging through the atmosphere, with smaller craft firing upon it; the outline of a city is showing below. The title text is white and author's name text is in canary yellow.
November 4, 2025 at 1:23 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 178 📚 for 2025. This gem won a Hugo Award and with good reason, though I'm late to the party. Incredible Trek-themed book premise & the main character's method of solving the Kobayashi Maru test (spoilers) is particularly ingenious. Great read. Available everywhere, including your local library
An image of the front cover of John Scalzi's 2012 book, Redshirts (my copy had an updated introduction written by Mary Robinette Kowal in 2021). My copy is darker red than this one and the 'Dub U' logo is hire up, with a less militaristic-font for the title and author's name.
November 2, 2025 at 1:57 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 177 📚 for 2025. I suppose my name gives away my interest. I had hoped for a comprehensive modern history, but it stuck to covering the history of ideas -- which largely meant was it Frankish/German or Gallic/French/Celtic, & my attn wandered. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of intellectual historian (is a Research Fellow at University of Edinburgh) Ian Stewart's 2025 monograph: The Celts: A Modern History. The book is mostly black, with a dark green and black circular piece of artwork, meant to express Celtic style, neatly halved.
November 2, 2025 at 12:18 AM
chawkeye.bsky.social
New cave, acquired.
#Caturday
#CatsOfBluesky
A brown and black striped tabby cat with a white chin, Obi-Wan Katnobi, is sitting inside her favorite poof that is sitting on a green sofa. The poof is blue on the outside and has white stuff/cottony cloth on the inside. Around the poof is a black blanket.
November 1, 2025 at 4:33 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Doubtful.
And not Lamar-Jackson-might-play-against-the-Bears doubtful.
More like I-believe-anything-Stephen-Miller-says doubtful.
Fuck that.
And this
A snipped image from the Goodreads website, which I use as an effective book-counter. Its consideration of my tastes, interests and reading preferences, are highly doubtful. Here, Goodreads thinks I might enjoy reading a James Patterson book, Return of the Spider (Alex Cross #34). I'd rather have my teeth ripped out.
October 30, 2025 at 2:55 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 176 📚 for 2025. You youngs may laugh about this, but I'm really struggling to learn how Magic: The Gathering works. My sons are devoted to it (at least the younger 3). So I'm trying to get up to speed. Am looking to find a basic-strategy book that would help me do just that, hoped this .. (1/2)
A blurry image of the front cover of Jeff Franzmann, Philip Kramer, and Beth Moursund's 1996 book Single Card Strategies for Magic: The Gathering. In it, a male-presenting elderly wizard holds a purple orb, with several cards laid out on a desk, with a green book at the left side of the table and a candle and goblet are on the right.
October 30, 2025 at 2:29 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 175 📚 for 2025. Once a group of economists wanted a laissez-faire approach in int'l policy started to meet in exotic European locales. We're bearing the cost of that policy. This book - even w/a great title - doesn't give much detail to either. Available everywhere, including your local library
An image of the front cover of economist Matthias Schmelzer's 2025 book, Freedom For Capital, Not People: The Mont Pelerin Society and the Origins of the Neoliberal Monetary Order. White text superimposed over a cover of international brokers in a typical market of foreign exchange.
October 29, 2025 at 6:23 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 174 📚 for 2025. Like the author, @restingdinoface.bsky.social, I too came to a love for dinosaurs through the 'Brontosaurus,' in my early reading. It's a gift to update my knowledge through their work. If you too are a fan, it's a must-read. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of Riley Black's 2013 book, My Beloved Brontosaurus: On the Road with Old Bones, New Science, and Our Favorite Dinosaurs. The cover shows the author* giving a gift of a floral bouquet to a large plant-eating sauropod dinosaur, while crouching on rock. * - please note date of publication and given the elapsing of time, that certain realities have changed for the author as well as their subject and first love.
October 28, 2025 at 4:07 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Book 173 📚 for 2025. This would have been a troubling read for me while in grad school, even though I'm by no means a neo-Turnerian, but where the frontier signified opportunity for all for decades, it's now only for the super-rich. As is the USA. Available everywhere, including your local library.
An image of the front cover of then-Yale historian Greg Grandin's The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of America (2019). The cover of the book shows a western frontier sky and landmass, with a solitary covered Conestoga wagon -- two persons, an adult and a child, in the wagon -- heading toward a pueblo-y, Southwestern-y small village, the only evidence of so-called civilization.
October 27, 2025 at 4:45 PM
chawkeye.bsky.social
Library had a book sale.
October 26, 2025 at 7:22 PM