reading list

Andrew Jackson by Sean Wilentz
as in "...down the mighty Mississip!"

Muhammad Ali's greatest fight: Cassius Clay vs. The United States of America by Howard Bingham and Max Wallace

Roald Dahl by Jeremy Treglown

An Open Heart by The Dalai Lama

Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime by Geoffry Stone

Adverbs by Daniel Handler
just started this one


..........


...Speaking of Ali, Prez Jackson, and the Dalai ("The Lama"?), and with Father's Day looming ahead, I've been thinking about Heroes. Not the TV show or the Super variety, but the ones you admire, look up to, learn about and learn from, want to be like when you grow up, that type of hero. It started with the Fallen Hero category, the ones that disappoint. As a former Dodger fan (I make no apologies: I was young, they were the best team not in pinstripes.) I worshipped at the cleats of Steve Garvey. But instead of the Hall of Fame and the Governor's mansion, he does shows on the shopping network and ESPN 6. As a former naive idealist, I voted for Bill Clinton (again, no apologies: he was on Arsenio Hall!). Yes, he did a lot of important, quality Presidential stuff, but now he creates crossword puzzles for the Times, and his legacy has an icky, tacky element that hasn't gone away.

So who are my Heroes? Ali, most defiantly and definitely. Jackie Robinson, and Branch Rickey should get credit too. My Dad. My son. Colonel Joshua Chamberlain of the 20th Maine. Teddy Roosevelt. Ted Williams. Harriet Tubman. Astronauts. My Father-in-law. Cal Ripken. Gandhi. Batman. Lech Walesa, Michael Collins, Bono. Thurgood Marshall. Maya Angelou. Chrissie Hynde. Jessie Owens, Bethany Hamilton, Bart Giamatti. Sam Houston. Thomas Jefferson. Colman McCarthy: www.satyamag.com/nov01/mccarthy.html . Abraham Lincoln. John Steinbeck. Aragorn. Condoleeza Rice. Pat Tillman. Stan Lee. Frank McCourt. Kurt Vonnegut. Beowulf.