Nonfiction

Picked up another couple of books at my local library—Norman Ohler’s Tripped and Arthur J. Magida’s Code Name Madeleine.

Midred Harnack

Finished reading Rebecca Donner's All the Frequent Troubles of Our Days. A very interesting follow-up to Erik Larson's The Demon of Unrest. 

Expansionist Views

In Larry Gara's The Presidency of Franklin Pierce, he makes clear how the United States has long entertained "expansionist views", especially when it comes to various countries both north and south of our present borders. Strange, but true.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

"Indeed, a limited civil war was already raging in Kansas." -- Larry Gara

So could the violence and bloodshed that resulted from passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act maybe have been avoided had President Pierce been more even-handed in his policies toward the new territories? 

Diaries

I really appreciate seeing these snippets of handwriting from various diaries in Rebecca Donner's book.

Bonhoeffer

"Dietrich Bonhoeffer is inside the Castle Church in Wittenberg listening to Bishop Müller blabber on about the glories of Hitler." - Rebecca Donner

Fascinating & Disturbing

Finished reading Mark Braude's The Typewriter and the Guillotine last night. A very interesting take on life in France both before and during WWII as told through the lives of a journalist, Janet Flanner, and, rather shockingly, a serial killer, Eugen Weidmann. As fascinating as it is disturbing.