Book Talk

Jackie went to a book signing last week at BookPeople and here's her report.

We went to BookPeople to hear E.J. Dionne, the journalist and political commentator, talk about his latest book, “Our Divided Political Heart: The Battle for the American Idea in an Age of Discontent.”  His premise, as one of the reviewers said, is this: "Are Americans rugged individualists? Are we community-loving civic republicans? The answer to both questions, writes E. J. Dionne in his wise new book, is yes. We value individualism but not as an end in itself; we value community but not at the expense of fundamental liberties.” This apparent conflict has been intriguing me and Steve as we observe the partisan mud-slinging of this election season. We love the book-signing events at BookPeople, which, as you know, has been Texas’ leading independent bookstore since 1970 and voted best bookstore in Austin for more than 15 years.