Author Author

Recently author Stephen Hess told me that Barack Obama has the potential to be “our most literary president since Lincoln.” This is not a toss-off remark, nor a mere reference to Lincoln’s considerable rhetorical gifts. Abraham Lincoln, our 16th president, was an autodidact whose reading habits and material shaped his heart and mind. When we remember him as one of our greatest leaders, we should not ignore this (I’ll be ranting more about the importance of reading next week).

Here is a list, properly annotated, of books scholars know or have reason to believe that Lincoln read. It’s a wonderful list in so many respects, ranging from poetry to scripture to speeches to history to novels and much more. It’s shorter than a modern president’s list might be, but the important caveat is not only that books were more precious and harder to come by in the 19th century, but that Lincoln (especially in his early years, when he had very little money for extras) read deeply. He didn’t skim texts; he learned them, and thought about them, and tested their ideas against his inner compass. 

Next week, in honor of Abraham Lincoln’s February birthday celebration, WETA will be airing two special Lincoln programs: The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln from The American Experience, and Looking for Lincoln with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. 

Early next week I’d like to put together the Ultimate Abraham Lincoln Bookshelf — books about President Lincoln. I’d like to see your picks now, so I can include them.

5 Comments

…hypermiling.

Had you heard of it before? I actually had, mostly because I have the privilege of working with many folks at National Geographic on book projects, and most people at National Geographic are quite eco-conscious (even if their consciences don’t dictate that they become hypermilers themselves, they’re conscious of what it means, LOL).

Some info from the Oxford University Press blog:

Do you keep the tires on your car properly inflated to maximize your gas mileage? Have you removed the roof rack from your vehicle to streamline the car and reduce drag? Do you turn your engine off rather than idle at long stoplights? If you said yes to any of these questions you just might be a “hypermiler.”

Some history:
“Hypermiling” was coined in 2004 by Wayne Gerdes, who runs this web site. “Hypermiling” or “to hypermile” is to attempt to maximize gas mileage by making fuel-conserving adjustments to one’s car and one’s driving techniques. Rather than aiming for good mileage or even great mileage, hypermilers seek to push their gas tanks to the limit and achieve hypermileage, exceeding EPA ratings for miles per gallon.

Many of the methods followed by hypermilers are basic common sense—drive the speed limit, avoid hills and stop-and-go traffic, maintain proper tire pressure, don’t let your car idle, get rid of excess cargo—but others practiced by some devotees may seem slightly eccentric:
• driving without shoes (to increase the foot’s sensitivity on the pedals)
• parking so that you don’t have to back up to exit the space
• “ridge-riding” or driving with your tires lined up with the white line at the edge of the road to avoid driving through water-filled ruts in the road when it’s raining.

But regardless of your interest in “hypermiling,” you should check out the linked entry to see some of the other words considered for the 2008 Word of the Year. Here’s my favorite.

Submit a comment