Dog reading days | News, Sports, Employment

My birthday, at the end of July, comes just in time for reading on the hottest days of August. August, with its heat and humidity, is perfect for seeking refuge in air-conditioned comfort, sitting back, and reading. My three favorite people (Ginnie, my wife; Annie, my daughter; and Jack, my son) gave me books for my birthday. Perfect.

Annie gave me “Horse” by Geraldine Brooks. “Horse” is about one of the most famous racehorses in the world before Seabiscuit. Originally named Darley, and then Lexington after Lexington, Kentucky, the book “Horse” is about slavery, an artist, a zoologist, an art historian, a museum director, and the owners, trainers, jockeys, scoundrels, and spectators who surrounded the great thoroughbred, Lexington, and Lexington’s secret handicap. It was not uncommon in those days for an owner to bet against his own horse, as it was not unusual to buy and sell people like cattle. Well written, “Horse” only whets my appetite for more Geraldine Brooks books, like “March,” for which she won the Pulitzer Prize.

Jack gave me “The Secret Six of George Washington, the Spy Ring that Saved the American Revolution,” by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yeager. Had it not been for a secret spy ring of half a dozen men and one woman (whose identity remains unknown), the British would still have been in control of New York, and in all likelihood we would be British subjects today. We are familiar with names like Nathan Hale (“My only regret is that I have but one life to give for my country”) and the traitor Benedict Arnold, who survived to flee to England, but the Secret Six are shrouded in grim mystery. That was until Brian Kilmeade, through his painstaking research, scouring diaries and letters, discovered the real reason the British capitulated and surrendered New York. With the hanging of Nathan Hale, it became alarmingly clear why the identities of these American informants (spies) had to be kept secret, even from General George Washington, even from each other. We owe the origins of our country to these brave individuals who sought no notoriety, only the knowledge that they helped their fledgling country gain independence.

Ginnie gave me Erik Larson’s “The Demon of Disquiet.” She had been urging me to read a book by Erik Larson for some time, knowing that I lean more toward fiction than history. I must admit that Eric Larson’s writing style and straightforward approach to history was a pleasant surprise, and I learned a number of details about the events that happened just before the shooting at Fort Sumter, which marked the beginning of the Civil War, that I had not known about. In the 1860 presidential election, Abraham Lincoln crossed his name off the ballot so that he could not vote for himself, before voting for a straight-line Republican ticket. In those days, the Republicans were the liberals and the Democrats were the conservatives. Lincoln was considered a “black Republican” because he opposed the expansion of slavery into new territories. There were serious plots to assassinate Lincoln even before he took office. As in today’s election, there was concern that the electoral vote would swing in favor of one candidate or the other, or that the vice president would not certify the electoral vote. (Sound familiar?) Lincoln’s statement “A house divided cannot stand” is biblical, and Lincoln used it in a campaign speech two years before he was elected. The statement referred to his view that a nation could not be part slave and part free.

After reading Erik Larson’s account of the events leading up to the attack on Fort Sumter, I find that I am still a fan of fiction. For example, Larson’s historical account of Jefferson Davis (president of the Confederacy) and his wife Varina is rather dry compared to Charles Frazier’s book, “Varina.” Charles Frazier, as you know, wrote “Cold Mountain.”

It’s a bit chilly outside. My son is urging me to start reading the Bible every day. Along with aronia juice and cancer treatment, it should be beneficial. Happy reading.

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Got a good story? Call or text Curt Swarm in Mt. Pleasant at 319-217-0526 or email him at [email protected]. Curt is available for public speaking.