One of my favorite contributers to This American Life on NPR is Sarah Vowell. Whether she is trying to discover what it means to be “Goth” by dressing up and clubbing in San Francisco or dishing with Conan O’Brien, Vowell delights in a myriad of morbid fascinations with perky diatribes and witty, yet well researched exposés. She continues in the same vein in her latest book, Assassination Vacation, where she travels to famous, infamous, and not-so-famous tourist destinations associated with the assassinations of presidents Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley. The book is jam-packed with interesting historical trivia and amusing tales of her visits to tombs, plaques, and kitchy relics, bits of bone, tissue, and hair in museums and roadside attractions. The book is a funny, well-written reminder of the indelible traumas our nation has endured as well as our collective preference for venerating our heroes through velvet paintings and snow-globes.
Read this book!