Well hello there, happy Tuesday!

I started today’s piece a little over a week ago, high on the optimism of reading a book that gently put today’s national horrors in perspective. Then I realized I should probably offer some other options for you, since you probably hadn’t read that book yet, and might be approaching this whole “250th birthday of our troubled nation” thing with perhaps a bit more … complexity. So, I got to reading.

Reading more means I now have FOUR new books to offer you on the theme of our complicated nation, with varying tones, as well as a backlist option for those of you who have simply given up all hope and need the probably-real dystopian version of where things are headed. I may have deluded myself into a strange red white and blue optimism for the week, but I GOT YOU ALL.