WHAT TO READ WHEN YOU WANT TO MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN
[This] Tuesday, we celebrate our country. A country that seems to be imploding with every passing presidential tweet. A country that has failed to care for the most vulnerable while those in power grow richer. Celebrating the Fourth this year feels a bit like going out for dinner with a cheating spouse.
But it’s important to remember that America is not our leaders, America is us. In that vein, here are some books that help remind us what actually makes America great (hint: it’s not tax cuts). Some of these books are problematic; others contain racism (looking at you Ma and Pa Ingalls); still more are jubilant, triumphant, and full of hope. But each highlights a real aspect of America, good or bad, and hopefully can remind us that what makes America great are the voices of the people who call this messy place home.
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
The Federalist Papers by James Madison and Alexander Hamilton
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
Citizen by Claudia Rankine
How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
Snopes: A Trilogy by William Faulkner
Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Boy Kings of Texas by Domingo Martinez
Native Guard by Natasha Tretheway
The Book of Unknown Americans by Christina Henríquez
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
The Battle Cry of Freedom by James McPherson
Bear, Diamonds and Crane by Claire Kageyama-Ramakrishnan
Poeta en San Francisco by Barbara Jane Reyes
Thomas and Beluah by Rita Dove
Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue
