Books |
July 4, 2016: Stay safe. Read a book.
By
Published: Jun 30, 2016
Category:
Mystery
This is so obvious it shouldn’t need to be said, but real patriotism is the exact opposite of what those fools — mostly male — mean when they chant “USA! USA!” It’s the exact opposite of hating Obama because of — you say — Obamacare when you really mean the N-word. The exact opposite of hating anybody because hating is the only way you can feel anything.
“July 4, 2016” — I dread this day. Because if you make a cocktail of sun and beer and people carrying signs for this or that, you’ve got a foolproof recipe for hate speech and maybe worse.
I’m not going there.
I’m going to see The BFG.
I’m going to watch Marvin Gaye sing the National Anthem. (At the end, the crowd starts clapping on the beat. Who knew the National Anthem even had a beat?)
And I’m going to think hard about direct acts of kindness — like this.
And if I feel the need for a thrill, I’ll read a thriller or a mystery. Like one of these.
Jim Thompson: The Killer Inside Me
Jacqueline Winspear: A Dangerous Place
Tana French: In the Woods
Tana French: The Secret Place
David Taylor: Night Life and Night Work
Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep
Dashiell Hammett: The Glass Key
James M. Cain: The Postman Always Rings Twice & Double Indemnity
Or this, again, for the zillionth time:
Walter Tevis, The Queen’s Gambit
This weekend: Stay safe. Read a book.
