Good reading, good writing

I have mentioned in the past an excellent independent bookstore near me called Parnassus. 

It is co-owned by Nashville author Ann Patchett. In addition to having a selection of books that makes readers like yours truly salivate, there are frequent programs and events that feature authors. In the past I have seen and heard John Grisham, David Baldacci, Mitch Albom and Tom Hanks, to name a few. 

Sometimes it is a paid event (such as the one with Tom Hanks) that includes a book, but many times it's free, like the one I attended last night that featured authors William Kent Krueger and Marc Cameron. 

Krueger is a favorite of mine. His "bread and butter" has been the Cork O'Connor mystery series, all set in his home state of Minnesota. But he has also written several standalones, including one of my all-time favorites, Ordinary Grace. He just wrote number twenty in the O'Connor series, which stresses me out because I have only read three and I don't know when I will get to the rest of them. 

As an aside, that's what series books do to me. Because of my mild anal-retentiveness, I will only read them in order. And with so many books on my TBR, I am reluctant to stop everything and catch up on the series. I am about six behind on The No. One Ladies Detective Agency and have only read half of Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series. 

Others include Greg Iles's Penn Cage series; Lee Child's Jack Reacher and Donna Leon's Commissario Brunetti. I have to resign myself to the fact it is not likely I will ever read all of these in my lifetime. 

But I digress. 

Last night, as usual with these programs, was delightful. Krueger is an engaging speaker, and I loved hearing him talk about the evolution of the O'Connor series and how his standalones have come from his heart. 

I had never heard of the other author, Marc Cameron, a former U.S. Marshall who penned the Jack Ryan series that was part of the Clancy universe. He has numerous other works under his belt, including (incorporating the writing maxim, "write what you know") a series about a U.S. Marshall. I could get pretty stressed thinking I need to get started on this too. 

During Q and A, the authors were asked about plot and character development. Both said they have a good idea where the story is going as they write, but also said characters will often reveal themselves to them as the story progresses. 

Fascinating stuff. I left wondering about that novel I have thought for many years lies within me. 

Authors William Kent Krueger (left) and Marc Cameron (right) speaking at Parnassus Bookstore, Nashville

Some thoughts on the current political environment

I don't write much in this space about politics. I leave that for my Substack pieces, and even there I do it sparingly. 

People get riled up over the subject. I know when I offer an opinion, I run the risk of alienating or offending someone, even though that is not my intention. 

During the years I wrote my local column, there was a reader who just could not deal with my occasional opinions, which almost always differed from his. He called me a jerk. He said I was aligned with Chinese Communists. He told me he could not believe I had the nerve to write the things I wrote. Angry, he was. 

I responded to most of his emails (except when he called me a jerk; I don't believe name-calling is worthy of a response), thanking him for his thoughts and for taking the time to write. 

I think it blew him away that I responded in a polite manner. Over time, he even complimented me on a couple of things. 

When I started my Substack in October 2022, he was an early subscriber. I couldn't believe it. I was pleased because I thought he and I had made some headway in the area of civil discourse. 

Alas, the first time I offered an opinion on something political (this time a local issue), although he did not send a nasty email (I guess that is some progress), he removed his name from my subscriber list. Obviously, he didn't agree with what I had written and was not open to reading an opinion that opposed his. 

I learned from that experience how important it is to be informed and specifically to be informed from different points of view. In dealing with this guy, I remembered times from years ago when I was too much like him. I wanted to speak my mind, but I did not want to listen. It is not an attractive character trait, and I hope I did not offend people back then. But I probably did. 

So, as this election season begins to get going, I will put myself out there and tell you the following: 

I would describe myself as a right-leaning moderate. Over the years I have probably voted Republican more than Democrat (and my moderation has happened over time), but I am fiercely independent. I am not affiliated with either major political party. I don't look for that to change. 

In 2016 I voted Libertarian. In 2020, regretting my 2016 vote, I voted for Joe Biden. In November, assuming she is the Democratic nominee, I will vote for Kamala Harris. 

Biden and Harris both lean more to the left than I, but for many reasons, I am a Never Trumper.  I have never voted for him, and I never will. 

I believe Joe Biden has done a decent job as president, but I think he made the right decision dropping out of the presidential race. My more right-leaning friends believe the Dems and the media somehow  "covered up" his cognitive decline, but I don't buy that. It was there for all of us to see and, until the infamous debate on June 27th, I think Biden's Democratic brethren still believed he would be the best person to go up against Trump. 

But then the debate happened. Biden had to go. 

Again, Kamala is more progressive than I would prefer. My vote for her, like my vote for Biden in 2020, will not be an enthusiastic one. But by all indications she is a smart, prudent person and, in my view, the more capable of the two presidential candidates. 

You may call me a Pollyanna if you wish, but I still have enough confidence in our system of checks and balances to believe Congress can keep a president in check when he/she tends to get too focused in a particular direction. 

With Tennessee being a predominantly red state, my vote will not make a lot of difference. But I will cast it anyway. 

I do not have a gut feeling about the outcome of the election. I am afraid it will get nastier as we move toward November. 

I think it is going to be close. There just does not appear to be much Trump can do (e.g. encourage insurrection, continue to falsely claim the 2020 election results are bogus, become a convicted felon) to dissuade his followers. I have friends who look past his character flaws and will vote for him because they believe he aligns with their views on the issues. 

Kamala Harris's nomination is interesting from a historical perspective. She likely would never have been the Democratic nominee outside the current circumstance of Biden stepping down and her ascending because of her position as vice president. 

Remember, she offered herself as a candidate in the 2020 primaries, even standing on the debate stage with Biden as an opponent. She was not a strong candidate at that time. 

But with her already being the VP, it made sense to now make her the nominee. 

There are those who believe a more formal nominating process should have taken place. There were some cries for, at the very least, a "mini-primary" or letting it go to the convention for debate. 

In some ways, it seems that would have been a fairer process, but of course the main objective is to defeat Trump. With all the infrastructure in place with the former Biden-Harris ticket, it made sense for her to take it and get the campaign started rather than wait until the convention. 

I have friends from both sides who are fretting over all of this. They worry the world as we know it will not be the same if (choose your candidate) is not elected. One of the candidates even says that. 

But I have been around a long time, and I have witnessed a few presidents come and go. I have told you how I will vote, but when I awake the morning after the election (or, if it's a razor-thin margin, once the votes are finally tabulated), I have it on pretty good authority (based on precedent) the sun will rise in the east and life will go on. 

Believe me, I don't relish another Trump presidency but if that's what happens, it's what happens. I can live through it. 

Happy to discuss this with anyone, so long as we remain calm.