Assassination Vacation — My Kind of Book

I just finished Sarah Vowell’s book Assassination Vacation, and let me tell you, it’s a trip.  (Pun intended.  Always.)  The book follows Vowell as she travels around the U.S., her path determined by presidential assassinations and the history surrounding them.

Naturally, our delightful narrator is visiting a ton of monuments, landmarks, and — you guessed it — house museums!

Vowell’s perspective is hilarious and, frankly, super, super spot on.  Her take on all the different styles of her tour guides — like the one who quizzes middle school girls on every obscure historical figure who relates to Lincoln, resulting resounding silence — is a delight.

I also appreciated how well Vowell uses specific, often trivial, elements of history to really paint a picture of the era.  For example, when she’s talking about the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo (where McKinley was shot) she notes all the new technologies that were on display, including… a room full of preemie babies “demonstrating” incubators.  Imagine asking a new mother now if you can borrow her underweight, premature infant to put on display.

I bring this up because we often try to emphasize the sensitivity (or huge, tremendous lack thereof) of Joel Chandler Harris’s time.  It can be hard to illustrate the fact that we’re judging Harris with our current sensibilities — until you show them the piece of an elephant he received for being famous.  Something makes me think PETA might try to get in the way of resurrecting that tradition.  History is a whole lot of context, and Vowell uses it so, so well.

History geeks, non-fiction fans, slightly morbid folks, and those who appreciate the funny — this book’s for you.  Thanks to my dear chum Rebecca for insisting that I read it (and not just because I fall into all of those categories).

Sidenote: I recently read “Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer” and let me tell you, these two pieces complement each other like you wouldn’t believe.

Previously: Inserting Modern Standards into Classic Literature — Cool?