I can’t imagine that I’ll read a more important book this year. The heightened tensions throughout the country following the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland and so many others (just so many) has made race perhaps the defining issue of our times. But it’s impossible to say this is surprising or new for anyone who’s been paying attention. What is going on now has been a continual flashpoint in our nation’s history; at times it’s been relegated to […]
Wall to wall tragedy, with nary a lasagna to be found.
Apart from The Emperor and the Assassin, this is a different beast from the other biographies I’ve been reading. Dispensing with the straight telling of James Garfield’s life, Candice Millard instead paints the portrait of an era. Taking place between the war that sundered the nation and the dawn of the new century, the era in which Garfield rose to prominence was nothing if not propitious. It was a time for momentous change and novel invention. The light bulb and the telephone came to prominence. […]
He’s pretty great if you forget about the whole “owning humans” thing.
James Madison and James Monroe are interchangeable in mind. Both were important Founding Fathers, their names are fairly similar, they served consecutive dual terms as president, they both hailed from Virginia, were both proteges of Thomas Jefferson and turned against George Washington and the Federalists. Both served as Secretaries of State. Madison and Monroe were even close friends for 25 years (before temporarily severing ties with one another). There are numerous differences between the two men, but the one that stands out for me is […]
Dullness of Character Makes for Bland Review Titles
This was not the next biography on my list. I had engaged, the day previous to starting this book, in a heated exchange with a co-worker over who would comprise a list of the five most important Americans (I live an exciting life, folks). My off-hand suggestion of George Washington was dismissed with disdain, and countered with George Mason. This led down a rabbit hole which I won’t bother venturing again, but the salient point here is that I was driven to pursue greater understanding […]