McCain and Obama are so different in so many ways, but they do share one thing: a kind of tragic sensibility. Judging from the books they cite as most important, they embrace hope but recognize the reality that life is unlikely to conform to our wishes.Can you judge a presidential candidate by the books they read - or say they read? In the New York Times, Jon Meacham reflects on McCain and Obama's literary tastes.
Both candidates seem to prefer heavyweight, more classic stuff - I wonder if either ever pick up a contemporary novel? (I'd put a copy of Cormac McCarthy's The Road in their hands right away!) And what do they read for fun???
Although Obama gets my good parent vote for reading Harry Potter to his kid, and he's certainly been making the right noises about the importance of reading and literacy education.
Anyway, should you wish to follow in the presidential footsteps, Amazon has set up a page so you can order the books the candidates mention. [Found via]. Never miss a marketing opportunity!It's a shame that those of us in the rest of the world don't get a vote in the US presidential elections, as whoever does get into office affects our lives too.
1 comment:
That's an interesting observation..speaks volumes of how much american policies affect/dictate the rest of the world
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