reading expands the mind

Jon Meacham's Lincoln and John DeLury's Agents

It’s a truly exciting day as I am going over page proofs for the author of a soon-to-be published novel (no, not mine) on the People’s Liberation Army Navy which is terrific. It’s exciting to see any book come to fruition but this one has been years in development. Stay tuned as I will let you know when it’s available.

I am also reading two quite distinct non-fiction books. Jon Meacham is probably known to many of you. His new biography of Abraham Lincoln, focusing on the late president’s spiritual path influencing his abhorrance to slavery is most enlightening. It helps, of course, that Meacham is such a welcoming author by drawing us in to the topic so easily. And Let there Be Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle (New York: Random House, 2022) is timely considering our current domestic tensions over race, class, education, narrataives, religion, and virtually evening else in our society. I am far from finished but must confess I find it a delicious read in its writing and a profound subject in its consideration of Lincoln, slavery, and early Nineteenth Century experiences.

I am also reading John deLury’s Agents of Subversion: The Fate of John T. Downey and the CIA’s Covert War in China (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2022). It is, among other things, a reminder of the differing views of why we engaged with Taiwan and China as we did decades ago, arguments largely unknown in the United States today. It would be useful for us to recap the various reasons that were in play and still are. He too writes in a lively manner.

I love to read!

Also, it was a serene morning on the Creek. Life is good. FIN