Continued Confessions
And an attitude of gratitude
I awoke this Thanksgiving morning to finish reading DEMOCRACY AWAKENING by Heather Cox Richardson. Many of us here on Substack read her daily “Letter from An American” about the state of politics or as one of the blurbs on the back of her book says “for vital historical perspective, wisdom, and moral clarity.” For the sake of this wonderful country and its democracy, I urge every book club in America to select this work as their next read. If you already know a lot about American history (which I didn’t) at least read Part 3 Reclaiming America. Dr. Richardson clearly explains the troubling path to autocracy which we seem to be on.
So as we gather with friends and family to give thanks for whatever we feel most grateful for, perhaps the time is now to take up those difficult topics usually avoided around the dinner table. Or at least bring some civility to the discourse. This book was specifically written in short, easy-to-digest chapters with the express purpose of AWAKENING all of us to the impending danger of the current chaos.
While I shared at a meeting recently that I was most grateful for my hot water bottle now that the nights are growing cooler, there are of course so many things that America offers for which to be particularly thankful. Freedom needs tending in these troublesome times, and I am thankful for the many brilliant minds that are hard at work defending the liberal consensus as defined in this amazing book.
Enjoy the day!
I too have purchased HCR’s book and have started reading it, albeit with a five day hiatus on it and SubStack reads to be with relatives and friends in a peaceful place of nature over Thanksgiving. What troubles me is the difficulty with which I went searching for the book less than one week of its published public availability in a brick-and-mortar nationwide book store (that for the sake of protecting the guilty has a name that starts with the same letter as brick). My wife had recently told me the local location of said store appeared to be a right-wing reading room based on observed stacks and displays of all things conservative and Christian. This in a fairly left-of-center town but bordering on a deep red zone of Southern California. I went in search of her theory and thought why not buy HCR’s new book while I’m there. She was spot on. I couldn’t find it anywhere and just as I was about to stand in line to ask the counter person, I make a third pass through the store to find a single four book high stack of Democracy Awakening completely surrounded and hidden by huge stacks of the latest biography on Elon Musk. I’ll go back to buying books online.
I have the book and started reading it. It’s such an important book Still, I have to remind myself to set aside time just for that book. It’s beautifully written and easy to read.
I hope people have bought several copies to distribute to friends and family after dinner.
Have a good Thanksgiving Day.