Stuck in a Book’s Weekend Miscellany

This week has been long. And sometimes a bit wearying. It started off with a nasty cold and feeling very sorry for myself. It ended with Trump coming to the UK with his hideous rhetoric about immigrants and general terribleness – I went to Blenheim Palace to protest. He truly is a terrible, terrible human being, and I’m ashamed that the leaders of my country were so sycophantic to him – though proud of the protests that the British people have put on in response.

Anyway. Ugh. Here’s a book, a link, and a blog post to distract ourselves…

1.) The blog post – is on Medium, which feels very millennial of me (is Medium still a thing?) It’s about the buy-out of Capitol Hill Books by the employees and friends of the eccentric owner Jim Toole. I’ve been a couple times, and love it, and the post is quite amusing. I’m so pleased this bookstore is sticking around, so close to the political heart of the US.

2.) The book – where did I hear about Avid Reader by Robert Gottlieb? Can’t remember, but it’s another book about reading (and an autobiography) that I will inevitably buy at some point. With his heritage working at Simon and Schuster, Alfred Knopf, and The New Yorker, how could this not be good?

3.) The link – with Trump on the mind, here’s a link for the best places to donate to help migrant and refugee families at the US/Mexico border. It’s from a few weeks ago, when the situation was a little different, but they could still do with all the compassion and help that we can give.

11 thoughts on “Stuck in a Book’s Weekend Miscellany

  • July 14, 2018 at 10:31 am
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    Thanks for protesting ! Warm hugs from a suffering US citizen.

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  • July 14, 2018 at 6:44 pm
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    Ta to you and everyone else who protested. I know you weren’t doing it for us in America, but I hope you know it was really appreciated. He’s ruining lives so consistently, and it meant a lot to see y’all all come out and protest him. <3

    I hope you're feeling all better! Summer colds are the damn worst.

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  • July 14, 2018 at 7:31 pm
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    Thank you so much for protesting. I am so ashamed that this monster was elected, and I feel so helpless on this side of the Atlantic. I really dread going back to the U. S. next year.

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    • July 14, 2018 at 7:32 pm
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      And I hope you’re feeling better soon! I hope you treated yourself to some rest and lovely comforting books while you are recovering.

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  • July 14, 2018 at 8:44 pm
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    Well done on protesting, he is a dreadful person, and I too was ashamed of our sycophantic leaders.

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  • July 17, 2018 at 10:12 pm
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    Simon, there are many Americans who don’t like Trump, but feared that Clinton would be worse. I am one of them. I left the Democratic Party years ago over its stand on education for inner-city children (denying vouchers,etc.) and (I know ‘this will get me many unfavorable comments) over abortion. The party hat insisted on the supremacy of science refused to acknowledge the scientific proof of ultrasounds. I was appalled when Trump was nominated. I am most unhappy with what happened on our southern border. The separation of families has now stopped. Many people don’t realize that the Obama administration also separated families. The photos you have no doubt seen of children covered with aluminum foil were taken during the Obama presidency. It was wrong then, and it is wrong now.
    It is hard for me and others to watch Trump’s boorishness and listen to many of his statements. I would ask, though, that you remember that he is the president and likely will fill out his term. I would also ask that you read some news coverage that is not pro-Trump, but that is not aggressively anti-Trump. RealClearPolitics was a valuable find for me. It has articles from across the spectrum. It presents many conflicting ideas.
    One more suggestion: try to get hold of Waiting for Superman. It is a documentary on the crisis in American inner-city schools.
    Thanks for listening. I do so like your blog, so I hope you can understand my position.

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    • July 18, 2018 at 3:34 am
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      Couldn’t have stated it better. I too voted for Trump as the far lesser of 2 evils. But trying to get unbiased reports on him is quite difficult. His so called anti immigrant talk though has been highly misrepresented. He is anti illegal not anti immigrant. If you want to come to this country, do it legally and you will be welcomed with open arms.

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      • July 18, 2018 at 7:15 am
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        I recently watched his press conference with Theresa May, where he talks about (legal) immigration as “very bad for Europe” and equates it with terrorist attacks. Not to mention how those trying legally to seek asylum in the US have been treated. In the past I’ve tried to keep politics largely off this blog, but he is such a threat to the world that I don’t feel I can keep silence. This isn’t about Hillary vs Trump anymore (much as he would like it to be) but Trump vs truth and equality.

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        • July 19, 2018 at 4:03 am
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          I will give you that he seems to have a very loose relationship with truth. I can’t address his comments with Theresa May as I didn’t see/hear them. My comments are based on what I have heard him say and the way the US press has skewed his remarks. And it goes both ways. Some feel he can do no wrong and some feel he can do no right. You almost have to be there live to see and hear everything in order to know the truth because each side will edit what you see to support their view of Trump. Truth is very hard to find nowadays. I do wish he would just shut up a lot of times though. And stay off of Twitter!

          Reply

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