Literary Defibrillation- You're Bound to See Fireworks

Hello to all our readers, both faithful and sporadic. I'm sure you are all wondering the meaning behind this title 'literary defibrillation;' truthfully, we made it up! What it means is to jump-start and enliven our love of good books. Those of you that have read our blog in the past know that we began a book club at the beginning of this year and have maintained it with only marginal success. The fact of the matter is, the book club has been flat-lining for months and now we want to shock the life back into it (1.21 gigawatts anyone?). So we propose to start again from a new angle, a book forum rather than a book club. We will suggest a topic (use the topic or don't it's at your discretion) at the beginning of the month and anyone interested can find a book that interests them and give their opinions to the group at the end of the month. It's all up to you! Have a favorite book you haven't picked up in a while? Been meaning to swing by the local library for a few months? Finally fixed the coffee table and don't need that old book to level it out any more? What better time than the heat of the summer to crack open a good book, flip on the AC and wait out the heat.

That being said, we now come to our topic for July... any guesses?... AMERICA! See that was the reason for the fireworks... you get the idea. Anyway, find a book that screams GOD BLESS THIS COUNTRY AND ALL IT WAS FOUNDED ON!!! Despite the current cynical trend, we still live in a great nation where we are free to live, work, play, and worship as we please. Patriotism is not outdated and only needs a little fuel to reignite itself in our lives. So it is only fitting that during July, the time when we celebrate our independence, we take a good look at our past and how it will influence our future. READ ON!

At a loss? Need a hint? Here are a few of our favorites:

His Excellency by Joseph Ellis

First Family by Joseph Ellis

American Creation by Joseph Ellis

Founding Brothers by Joseph Ellis

1776 by David McCullough

John Adams by David McCullough

Washington's Crossing by David Hackett Fischer

Washington the Indispensable Man by James Thomas Flexner

Undaunted Courage by Stephen Ambrose

To America by Stephen Ambrose

The Boston Tea Party by Benjamin Woods Labaree

The Glorious Cause by Robert Middlekauf

Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes (also an excellent film by Walt Disney)

The Patriot by Stephen Molstad (a novel based on the film)

Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville

Common Sense by Thomas Paine

The Prelude to Glory Series by Ron Carter

I Am America And So Can You! by Stephan Colbert

And go to see Captain America on July 22!