SEVENTH ANNUAL RANCHO MIRAGE WRITERS FESTIVAL - JANUARY 29-31, 2020 AT THE RANCHO MIRAGE LIBRARY AND OBSERVATORY
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
SEVENTH ANNUAL
RANCHO MIRAGE WRITERS FESTIVAL
AT THE RANCHO MIRAGE LIBRARY AND OBSERVATORY
JANUARY 29–31, 2020
Welcome to the RANCHO MIRAGE WRITERS FESTIVAL!
We are celebrating year SEVEN of this exciting Festival in 2020! This is where readers meet authors and authors get
to know their enthusiastic readers. We dedicate all that happens at this incredible gathering to you, our Angels and
our readers.
The Rancho Mirage Writers Festival has a special energy level, driven by ideas and your enthusiasm for what will feel
like a pop-up university, where the written word and those who write have brought us together in a most appropriate
venue—the Rancho Mirage Library and Observatory. The Festival starts fast and never lets up, as our individual
presenters and panels are eager to share their words and their thoughts. This is the excitement of books.
Our objective is important and clear—to bring the best authors, their books, and our readers together in this beautiful
Aaron Espinosa Jamie Kabler resort city. We start two years before each Festival, working to get the best authors for our readers. We never stop
LIBRARY DIRECTOR FESTIVAL FOUNDER making each year better than the last.
The writers you read and the books that get us thinking and talking converge at the Festival to make January in the
desert not only key to our season but a centerpiece of our cultural life.
The Rancho Mirage Writers Festival honors the value of books in our national tradition of sharing ideas and the
freedom to express them. You have helped to build the “intellectual village” we will share for the next three days.
Thank you to our 54 authors. We are delighted to offer you the opportunity to be with our 1,250 Angels and readers.
Let the 2020 Rancho Mirage Writers Festival begin!
WELCOME TO
“COACHELLA FOR
THE BRAIN.”
— MARK HOGAN
2
Our Festival theme this year is the upcoming 2020 election. Turn the page to view a helpful timeline of the election cycle, beginning
with the February 3, 2020, Iowa caucuses and ending with the January 5, 2021, announcement of the electoral results. Note that our
Festival bookends both of these significant events. We are pleased to offer a number of sessions related to the election and the issues
facing our country in these divisive times. Notable voices include Senator Jeff Flake, Robin Wright, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jon
Meacham, Karl Rove, James Carville, Frank Luntz, Bret Stephens and Max Boot. Don’t miss their sessions for an informed view of this
important election regardless of which side of the aisle you are on.
2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. We have assembled
a special panel celebrating some amazing women who have all achieved the pinnacle of success in their respective fields and paved
the way for future generations. We think you’ll agree that our 2020 lineup showcases numerous accomplished and inspiring women,
including historians, actors, journalists, literary fiction writers and the Librarian of Congress!
If you have to miss a session, remember that all talks are filmed and will be available on our website and YouTube channel soon after
the Festival ends. Select sessions will be filmed by C-SPAN Book TV again this year, giving us a national presence.
Deborah Dejah
We hope you enjoy our unique printed program. A lot of care has been taken to give you an informative and visually appealing DIRECTOR OF
PROGRAMMING
keepsake. Our mission remains to bring the finest authors to our desert. We hope that our Festival provides great enjoyment and a
stimulating educational experience over these next few days.
Deborah Dejah
Director of Programming
It is hard to believe that 2020 marks the seventh year of the Rancho Mirage Writers Festival. Boy, have we come a long way!
I want to share with you some of the exciting improvements at our Festival this year.
• The newly remodeled London Room enabled us to sell 250 more passes, specifically to readers. There will be giant video walls on
either side of the stage, so that everyone in the room will have a great view.
• In the Steinbeck Room, we have installed larger screens with close-up camera technology for better viewing from the back of the
room.
• We have increased the number of bathrooms facilities (and attendants) to diminish waiting time and keep everything pristine.
• We have added additional seating for lunch as well as an additional coffee station.
• The Festival will now provide complimentary water in boxed form instead of in plastic, to help reduce our impact on the environment.
In addition to the continuation of the Writers Series, Film Club and Book Club, we are also working with California State University,
Debbie Green Miller
San Bernardino Palm Desert Campus to bring some of our exciting authors to their students via live streaming.
EXECUTIVE
I personally want to thank the Angels, readers and writers for your participation, and I look forward to greeting you each day. Please PRODUCER
thank our staff when you see them... they all work hard to make the Festival a success and better each year. Enjoy!!
Debbie Green Miller
Executive Producer
3
February 3
Iowa caucuses 2020 ELECTIO
February 11
March 17
New Hampshire primary
Arizona, Florida, Illinois
and Ohio primaries
February 22
Nevada caucuses
April 4
February 29 • Alaska, Hawaii and
South Carolina Louisiana primaries
primary March 29
• Wyoming caucuses
Puerto Rico
January 29–31 primary
RMWF 2020
March 3 April 7
Super Tuesday Wisconsin primary
May 2
• Kansas primary
March 3–10 • Guam caucuses
Democrats April 28
Abroad Connecticut, Delaware,
primary Maryland, New York, May 5
Pennsylvania, and Rhode Indiana primary
Island primaries
March 24
Georgia May 12
primary Nebraska and West
Virginia primaries
January February March April May
2020 2020 2020 2020 2020
May 19
Kentucky and Oregon primaries
March 10 March 14
• Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri Northern Mariana
and Washington primaries Islands caucuses
• North Dakota Democratic caucuses
• Hawaii Republican caucuses
4
ON TIMELINE
June 2
District of Columbia,
Montana, New Jersey,
New Mexico and South
Dakota primaries
January 5
President of the Senate
June 6 formally announces
Virgin Islands caucuses the electoral result
November 3
Election Day
January
September 26–29
Presidential debates RMWF
July 13–16
2021
Democratic National
Convention, Milwaukee, October Mid-December
Wisconsin Presidential debates Electoral College vote
June July August September October November December January
2020 2020 2020 2020 2020 2020 2020 2021
January 20
August 24–27 Inauguration Day
Republican National
Convention, Charlotte,
North Carolina
5
ANGEL NIGHT 2020
An exclusive evening just for Angels on January 28, with very special g
uest speakers
James Patterson and Carl Hiaasen
James Patterson will be appearing for one night only—Tuesday, January 28, 2020, interviewed by Carl Hiaasen. His appearance
is part of Angel Night, a special evening for our generous Angel sponsors.
James Patterson is the world’s bestselling author and most trusted storyteller. He has created many enduring fictional characters
and series, including Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Michael Bennett, Maximum Ride, Middle School and I Funny.
Among his notable literary collaborations are The President Is Missing with President Bill Clinton and the Max Einstein series
produced in partnership with the Albert Einstein Estate. Patterson’s writing career is characterized by a single mission: to prove
that there is no such thing as a person who “doesn’t like to read,” only people who haven’t found the right book. He’s given over
three million books to school children and the military, donated more than seventy million dollars
to support education and endowed over five thousand college scholarships for teachers. The National
Book Foundation recently presented Patterson with the Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to
the American Literary Community. He is also the recipient of an Edgar Award and six Emmy Awards.
Carl Hiaasen is a journalist and the author of 26 darkly comic novels set in the Sunshine State.
He is a long-time columnist for The Miami Herald and best known for his biting commentary on
Photo: Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times
scandalous business practices and corrupt politicians. His candor and humor have made his column
a favorite for nearly three decades. Hiaasen has been described as one of the funniest crime writers Photo: Quinn Hiaasen
and America’s finest satirical novelist.
We will be live streaming and
recording this incredible event.
Please visit our website, rmwritersfest.org at 7 pm on Tuesday,
January 28, 2020, for a link to this event.
All Festival attendees will
receive a FREE copy of
Patterson’s new book, Lost.
6
Doris Kearns Goodwin and Jon Meacham Angel Night
We are pleased to bring together two of our country’s most prized presidential biographers and historians Doris Kearns Angel Night at the beautiful Omni Rancho Las
Goodwin and Jon Meacham for this special Angel Night appearance. Between them, they have written important Palmas Resort & Spa is the most sought-after ticket
biographies of ten U.S. presidents, from Abraham Lincoln to George H.W. Bush. These two historians are well qualified in the Coachella Valley. This special evening is made
to discuss what makes a great president and leader—a critical issue ahead of the upcoming presidential election. possible by the generous support of Helene Galen;
Harold Matzner; President and CEO of EMC
Aubrey Serfling and Lori Serfling; and President of
EMC Foundation Michael Landes and Stephanie
Landes. Thank you to our Dinner Chairs Drs. Terri
and Bart Ketover.
Helene Galen and Harold Matzner
Angel Night 2019 Tom Hanks and Maureen Dowd
(photo: Lani Garfield)
Photos: Salon@615
7
Wednesday 8:30–9:15 am
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory
Leadership In Turbulent Times
Doris Kearns Goodwin
Wednesday 8:30–9:15 am
Jack London Room
Are leaders born or made? Does the leader make the times or do the times make the leader? What is the difference between power, title and leadership? Is leadership possible without
a purpose larger than personal ambition? Pulitzer Prize-winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin will address these questions based on the four presidents she has studied most closely:
Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson (in civil rights). What these men had in common was a shared ambition and a deep-seated
resilience that enabled them to surmount uncommon hardships. At their best, all four were guided by a sense of moral purpose. At moments of great challenge, they were able to summon
their talents to enlarge the opportunities and lives of others. Please join one of the most gifted and popular historians writing today as she shares her insight into what makes a great
leader, a trait critical to our country today.
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
Photo: Annie Leibovitz
“ Regardless of one’s
impressive title, power without
purpose and without vision was
not the same thing as leadership.”
— Doris Kearns Goodwin
8
Information Wars Senator Jeff Flake
Richard Stengel Senator Jeff Flake
Wednesday 8:30–9:15 am Wednesday 8:30–9:15 am
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
Senator Jeff Flake has nearly two decades of experience
on Capitol Hill in both the Senate and House of
Representatives. Heralded as an “ideal public servant”
in The New York Times, Flake is renowned for his bravery
in speaking out against the current administration,
his principled stands on spending and free trade
Photos: Associated Press (L), Ronald Reagan Presidential and his shrewd negotiations and bipartisanship on
Foundation and Institute (R)
complicated issues such as immigration. A traditionally
conservative Republican, Flake defended the core values
America’s First War and principles of his party and revealed how they are
Dr. Lynne Cheney and Jon Meacham currently under threat. A passionate and principled
Wednesday 8:30–9:15 am defender of “country over party,” Flake famously invited
John Steinbeck Room From former TIME editor and Under Secretary for Democratic Senator Martin Heinrich on a six-day
Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Richard Stengel, survival adventure on an island in Micronesia to develop
The War of 1812 is a relatively unfamiliar war to most an idea to end partisan gridlock. Their experiences were
Americans. It is perhaps best known for giving us Information Wars is the first and only insider account
exploring how the U.S. tried and failed to combat the featured on a Discovery Channel reality TV show, Rival
“The Star Spangled Banner,” the burning of the White Survival. Senator Flake is the author of The Conscience
House, the Battle of New Orleans and the appellation global rise of disinformation that eventually spilled into
the 2016 election. Join Stengel as he illustrates how of a Conservative: A Rejection of Destructive Politics and a
“Mr. Madison’s War.” Historians and bestselling authors Return To Principle. Political consultant Robert Shrum
Dr. Lynne Cheney and Jon Meacham will discuss the ISIS terrorized the world using social media, how the
Russians launched a tsunami of disinformation around joins Senator Flake to talk about his career in politics
causes and consequences of this conflict for our young and plans for the future.
country’s future. the annexation of Crimea and how Donald Trump
used disinformation to weaponize the grievances of
Americans who felt left out
“
by modernism. This topic
could not be more urgent
Trust me when
as we prepare for the I say that you can go
upcoming election cycle. elsewhere for a job.
Stengel rightly stresses But you cannot go
we must find a way to
combat this ever growing
elsewhere for
threat to democracy. a soul.”
— Senator
Jeff Flake
Tom Freeman’s painting of the August 24, 1814, burning
of the White House by British troops (Image: White
House Historical Association)
9
Wednesday 9:30–10:15 am
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory The Library Book
Susan Orlean
Wednesday 9:30–10:15 am
Is America a Country at War with Itself? John Steinbeck Room
James Fallows, Senator Jeff Flake, Karl Rove and Bret Stephens Susan Orlean reopens the unsolved mystery of the
Wednesday 9:30–10:15 am most catastrophic library fire in American history and
Jack London Room delivers a dazzling homage to a beloved institution—our
libraries. On the morning of April 29, 1986, a fire alarm
Hate mongering, the increase in mass shootings, excessive police violence, the rise of
sounded in the Los Angeles Public Library. The fire was
white nationalism—these are just some of the dangerous threats to our society and
disastrous—it reached 2000 degrees Fahrenheit and
national identity. Our panelists will attempt to frame the critical questions to help us
burned for more than seven hours. By the time it was
better understand the underlying forces dividing America today. Flashpoints include
extinguished, it had consumed four hundred thousand
gun control, immigration, racism, poverty and our growing isolation on the world Photo: Noah Fecks
books and damaged seven hundred thousand more.
scene. Moderated by Robert Shrum.
Investigators descended on the scene, but more than 30 years later, the mystery remains:
did someone purposefully set fire to the library—and if so, who? Orlean chronicles the
This session will be simulcast in LAPL fire and its aftermath to showcase the larger, crucial role that libraries play in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room our lives—from their humble beginnings as a metropolitan charitable initiative to their
current status as a cornerstone of national identity. Kirk Wallace Johnson, journalist
and author, joins Orlean to talk about her six years spent researching for her bestselling
book about the LAPL fire.
April 29, 1986, fire at Los Angeles Public Library (photo: Jack Gaunt for the Los
Angeles Times)
10When Death Becomes Life
Dr. Joshua Mezrich
Wednesday 9:30–10:15 am
Joan Didion Room
Dr. Joshua Mezrich creates life from loss, transplanting organs from one body to another. Join
him as he takes us inside the operating room and unlocks the wondrous process of transplant
surgery—a delicate, intense ballet requiring precise timing, breathtaking skill and, at times,
creative improvisation. In illuminating this work, Dr. Mezrich touches the essence of existence
and what it means to be alive. Cardiologist Dr. Khoi Le joins Dr. Mezrich.
“
The field of transplant is so fascinating because it came
about over a really short period of time. In the 1930s and
1940s, people thought that transplant was science fiction.
— Dr. Joshua Mezrich
Lincoln in the Bardo
George Saunders
Wednesday 9:30–10:15 am
Walt Disney Room
George Saunders was best known for his inventive short
stories until he wrote his first novel, Lincoln in the Bardo.
His story is set against the backdrop of the Civil War and
centers on Abraham Lincoln’s grief over the death of his
11-year-old son, Willie. Much of the action takes place
in the graveyard where Willie and other unsettled spirits
languish in the “bardo,” a Buddhist term for the transitory
state between lives. A New York Times bestselling author
and recipient of the Man Booker Prize, Saunders has given
readers a daring, generous and thrilling new literary form.
Photo: Johnny Louis/FilmMagic
11Wednesday 10:30–11:15 am
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory
Songs of America: Patriotism, Protest and the Music That Made a Nation
Tim McGraw and Jon Meacham
Wednesday 10:30–11:15 am
Jack London Room
Through all the years of strife and triumph, America has been shaped not just by our elected leaders and our formal politics but also by our music—by the lyrics, performers and
instrumentals that have helped to carry us through the dark days and to celebrate the bright ones, from “The Star-Spangled Banner” to “Born in the U.S.A.” Three-time Grammy-winner
and country music legend Tim McGraw joins renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jon Meacham on our stage. Together they will take us on a moving and insightful journey
through eras in American history and the songs and performers that inspired us. The duo will chronicle our history and explore the stories behind the songs and the unique role music
has played in uniting and shaping a nation.
This session will be simulcast in
Walt Disney Room, Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
12America According to Karl Rove: A History Lesson Fact or Fiction?
Karl Rove Michael Chabon and Zadie Smith
Wednesday 10:30–11:15 am Wednesday 10:30–11:15 am
John Steinbeck Room Joan Didion Room
Bestselling authors Michael Chabon and Zadie Smith discuss their preference for
writing fiction or nonfiction. Chabon is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The
Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay and Pops, a collection of essays on the meaning
of fatherhood. Smith is the author of White Teeth, her highly acclaimed debut novel;
Feel Free, a wide-ranging collection of essays; and Grand Union, her first collection of
short stories. Please join these two literary stars in conversation.
Photo: Rich Pedroncelli/AP Photo
Photo: Benjamin Tice Smith Photo: Dominique Nabokov
Karl Rove returns to RMWF to offer an optimistic look at our country’s history and
how our nation has overcome adversity. He will share specific examples from our
sometimes tumultuous and fractious past to illustrate how America not only survived
but thrived. Our country is currently experiencing widespread disagreement about
what it stands for, and this history lesson may help give us the optimism we need.
{ “It’s time to put America at the front of all
of our agendas and to find ways to work
together on common ground.”
— Karl Rove
{
13Wednesday 11:30am–12:15 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory Friends Divided: John Adams and Thomas Jefferson
Gordon S. Wood
Wednesday 11:30 am–12:15 pm
Carl Hiaasen John Steinbeck Room
Carl Hiaasen John Adams and Thomas Jefferson could hardly have been more different, both in
Wednesday 11:30 am–12:15 pm temperament and politics, but they always had respect—grudging, at times—for
Jack London Room each other. The sometimes fraught relationship between the two presidents is the
basis for Gordon S. Wood’s dual biography of two of America’s most enduringly
Known for his biting commentary on scandalous
fascinating figures. Wood’s name was famously referenced in the movie Good Will
business practices and corrupt politicians, Carl
Hunting, making him a household name. He has often been described as the dean of
Hiaasen’s candor and humor has been a staple
American historians, and we are honored to have him at this year’s RMWF.
of the Miami Herald for nearly three decades.
He is also the author of 20 New York Times
bestselling novels, as well as the subject of a
newly released biography. Hiaasen has been Photo: Quinn Hiaasen
described as “one of the funniest crime writers
in decades,” “America’s finest satirical novelist” and a “great American writer about
the great American subjects of ambition, greed, vanity and disappointment.”
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
“ Jefferson told the American people what
they wanted to hear—how exceptional they were.
Adams told them what they needed to know—
truths about themselves that were difficult to bear.
Over the centuries Americans have tended to avoid
Adams’ message; they have much preferred to hear
Jefferson’s praise of their uniqueness.”
— Gordon S. Wood, Friends Divided
14Into The Silence The Road Not Taken: Edward Lansdale
Wade Davis Max Boot
Wednesday 11:30 am–12:15 pm Wednesday 11:30 am–12:15 pm
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
Historian Max Boot discusses the adventurous life of legendary CIA operative
Edward Lansdale. Boot demonstrates how Lansdale advocated for a “hearts and
minds” diplomacy in Vietnam that was ultimately crushed by America’s giant military
bureaucracy, which favored troop build-ups and napalm. Boot rescues Lansdale from
historical ignominy and definitively reframes our understanding of the Vietnam War.
With Dr. Khoi Le.
Mallory expedition team member (Photo: Edward Oliver Wheeler)
On June 6, 1924, two men set out from a camp perched at twenty-three thousand
feet on an ice ledge just below the lip of Everest’s North Col, a sharp-edged pass
carved by glaciers. George Mallory, 37, was Britain’s finest climber. Sandy Irvine was Edward G. Lansdale, second from left, arrives in Saigon, August 1965
(photo: Associated Press)
a 22-year-old Oxford scholar with little previous mountaineering experience. Neither
of them returned. Drawing on more than a decade of research, National Geographic
Explorer-in-Residence and anthropologist Wade Davis tells the story of the heroic
efforts of Mallory and his fellow climbers, setting their significant achievements in
sweeping historical context: from Britain’s nineteen-century imperial ambitions to O P E N I N G LU N C H E O N
the war that shaped Mallory’s generation. Davis’ story could not be more timely, as
12:15 pm: Join us outside for
2019 will surely go down in history as one of the deadliest years at Everest. A record-
breaking 381 permits were issued for over 900 climbers. The lethal combination of a delicious boxed lunch of your choice.
overcrowding at the summit, inexperienced climbers and bad weather resulted in 11 Sponsored by Lori and Michael Milken.
deaths in 2019.
15Wednesday 1–1:45 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory Celebrating Women
Mary Cunningham Agee, Hon. Barbara Boxer, Chief Justice
Tani Cantil-Sakauye and Anna Quindlen
The 2020 Presidential Election Wednesday 1–1:45 pm
James Carville, Senator Jeff Flake, Karl Rove and Bret Stephens John Steinbeck Room
Wednesday 1–1:45 pm
Jack London Room
The candidates have been chosen, the Iowa caucus is just one week away, and this
time next year our country will be swearing in a president for the next four years.
Please join our panelists and crystal ball gazers James Carville, Senator Jeff Flake,
Karl Rove and Bret Stephens as they debate who should be our next leader and why.
Moderated by political strategist Robert Shrum.
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
Suffragists campaigning for the right to vote in 1920 (photo: Library of Congress)
2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment. We honor this long,
hard-fought battle giving women the right to vote by celebrating some inspiring
women. Our panelists have achieved the pinnacle of success in their respective fields,
from the boardroom to the courtroom, from the halls of Congress to the pages of
The New York Times. Mary Cunningham Agee, Hon. Barbara Boxer, Chief Justice
Tani Cantil-Sakauye and Anna Quindlen share their stories and discuss what
remains to be accomplished for future generations of women. Moderated by Los
Angeles Times legend Patt Morrison.
16The Mapmaker’s Daughter
Katherine Nouri Hughes
Wednesday 1–1:45 pm
Joan Didion Room
The Mapmaker’s Daughter, a historical novel set in the
sixteenth century, is the story of Cecilia Baffo Veniero—the
mesmerizing, illegitimate Venetian who became the Sultana
Nurburu, the most powerful woman in the Ottoman Empire
during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent.
Nurbanu narrates her story as the wife of Suleiman’s son and
mother of the future Sultan. Nurbanu was known for her
beauty, intelligence and political sophistication that ensured
her son would become ruler. Following her son’s investiture,
Nurbanu continued to exert her considerable influence and
rule the empire through her son. Author Katherine Nouri
Hughes takes us inside the secretive harems of power and
palace intrigue of the Ottoman Empire. Odalisque by Jean Baptiste Ange Tissier
What is the Future of
Higher Education?
H.W. Brands, Geoffrey Cowan
and C.L. Max Nikias
Wednesday 1–1:45 pm
Walt Disney Room
What will higher education look like 10
or 20 years from now? Our panelists—
UT professor H.W. Brands, USC
professor Geoffrey Cowan and President
Emeritus of USC C. L. Max Nikias—will
address issues such as free tuition, online
universities, institutional accountability
and aligning education with jobs.
Moderated by Hon. Gray Davis.
Photo: Reuters/Mike Blake
17Wednesday 2–2:45 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory James Madison
Dr. Lynne Cheney and Gordon S. Wood
Wednesday 2–2:45 pm
Five Days to the Iowa Caucus John Steinbeck Room
Frank Luntz
Wednesday 2–2:45 pm
Jack London Room
“America’s public opinion guru” Frank Luntz will frame the Iowa caucus and engage
our Festival attendees in the “world’s largest focus group” as he takes us on the road
to the White House.
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
Painting by Gilbert Stuart
James Madison was a true genius of the early republic, the leader who did more than
Frank Luntz in an exact replica of the Oval Office inside his Brentwood ranch home
(photo: Noah Webb for The Hollywood Reporter) any other to create the nation we know today. Known as the Father of the Constitution,
Madison co-authored the Federalist Papers and drafted the Bill of Rights. As secretary
“
of state under Thomas Jefferson, he managed the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the
Eighty percent of our life is emotion, and only size of the United States. As president, Madison led the country in its first war under
20 percent is intellect. I am much more interested in the Constitution, the War of 1812. Historian and author Dr. Lynne Cheney and
how you feel than how you think. I can change how historian, educator and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Gordon S. Wood examine the
legacy of one of our country’s most influential leaders.
you think, but how you feel is something deeper and
stronger, and it’s something that’s inside you.”
— Frank Luntz
18Warlight The Printed Matter: Are Newspapers Dead?
Michael Ondaatje Patt Morrison, Adam Nagourney and Norman Pearlstine
Wednesday 2–2:45 pm Wednesday 2–2:45 pm
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
Michael Ondaatje’s Warlight is the unexpected story of two teenagers abandoned by
their enigmatic parents in postwar London. Casually watched over by a dodgy cast of
characters—petty criminals, opera singers and panting greyhounds—Nathaniel and
Rachel try to make sense of their new world while struggling to define their parents’
shadowy wartime pasts. Ondaatje is one of the world’s foremost writers—his artistry
and aesthetic have influenced an entire generation of writers and readers. Although
he is best known as a novelist, Ondaatje’s work also encompasses poetry, memoir and
film and reveals a passion for defying conventional form. His transcendent novel The
English Patient won the Man Booker Prize and was made into an Academy Award-
winning film.
A popular topic of conversation today is whether “traditional” media, particularly
newspapers, are dead. Revenues are down and staff cuts are increasingly the norm.
The ways in which the public consumes news and information have dramatically
changed. The internet will continue to be an important part of the news business, but
some argue that newspapers are still critically important for the public good because
every morning a group of highly intelligent people gather in a room and they fight.
These editors and journalists argue
about what should be in the paper
and what should be on the front
page. This daily fight is about
determining what are the most
important stories readers need
{ {
to see. Veteran journalists Patt
Morrison, Adam Nagourney
“We order our lives with barely held and Norman Pearlstine discuss
stories. As if we have been lost in a why newspapers still matter.
confusing landscape, gathering what was
invisible and unspoken.”
— Michael Ondaatje, Warlight
19Wednesday 3–3:45 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory
The Fan and the Commissioner
Doris Kearns Goodwin and Bud Selig
Wednesday 3–3:45 pm
Jack London Room
Doris Kearns Goodwin has been a fan of baseball since she was six years old. Her touching
memoir Wait Till Next Year talks about growing up in love with her family and baseball.
As a young reporter, Goodwin was the first woman journalist to enter the Boston Red
Sox locker room, and she served as a consultant for Ken Burns’ PBS documentary The
History of Baseball. Bud Selig was the founding owner of the Milwaukee Brewers and served
as the MLB Commissioner for over two decades. During his long tenure, Selig oversaw
baseball through the 1994 strike, the introduction of the wild card, interleague play, and
the merging of the National and American Leagues under the Office of the Commissioner. Photo: Steven
He was instrumental in organizing the World Baseball Classic in 2006. He is credited for Senne/AP
the financial turnaround of baseball with a 400 percent increase in the revenue of MLB and
annual record-breaking attendance. Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime conversation between
a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and baseball fan and the Commissioner Emeritus.
This session will be simulcast in Bud Selig outside his luxury suite at Miller Park
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room (photo: Sara Stathas for NPR)
The End of Alzheimer’s
Dr. Dale Bredesen
Wednesday 3–3:45 pm
John Steinbeck Room
Dr. Dale Bredesen offers real hope to anyone looking to prevent and even reverse Alzheimer’s disease
and cognitive decline. Revealing that AD is not one condition, as it is currently treated, but three,
Bredesen’s research outlines 36 metabolic factors that can trigger “downsizing” in the brain. His protocol
shows us how to rebalance these factors using lifestyle modifications like taking B12, eliminating gluten
or improving oral hygiene. The results are impressive. Of the first ten patients on the protocol, nine
displayed significant improvement within three to six months; since then the protocol has yielded
similar results with hundreds more. The End of Alzheimer’s brings new hope to a broad audience of
patients, caregivers, physicians and treatment centers with a fascinating look inside the science and a
complete step-by-step plan that fundamentally changes how we treat and even think about AD.
Photo: Whitney English Tabaie
20Get a Cat, Get Offline, Don’t Drink: Writers on Writing The Feral Detective
Jennifer Egan and Anna Quindlen Jonathan Lethem
Wednesday 3–3:45 pm Wednesday 3–3:45 pm
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
Jonathan Lethem is a writer best known for his genre-bending blend of science and
detective fiction. His latest book, The Feral Detective, is a Trump era detective story
that takes place in our very own California desert. Bestselling author Douglas Brunt
joins Lethem to talk about the inspiration for this story; his protagonist, Phoebe
Siegler; and Charles Heist, the feral detective of the novel’s title.
If you google “writers on writing,” there are thousands of entries including advice
from the who’s who of the literary world. This sage advice ranges from the practical
(don’t drink) and the gloriously idiosyncratic (get a cat) to the totally contradictory
(write in the morning/stay up late). We invite you to join two Pulitzer Prize-winning
writers Jennifer Egan and Anna Quindlen as they share some tips and taboos about
their own writing process.
Photo: Christopher Keiser
for Newsweek
21Thursday 8:30–9:15 am
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory Dreams of El Dorado: A History of the American West
H.W. Brands
Thursday 8:30–9:15 am
The White House Years John Steinbeck Room
Dr. Lynne Cheney and Karl Rove
Thursday 8:30–9:15 am
Jack London Room
Dr. Lynne Cheney and Karl Rove spent six years together at the White House during
the George W. Bush administration from 2001–2007. Susan Eisenhower, no stranger
to the White House, joins them to talk about their White House years.
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
Valley of the Babbling Waters (Yellowstone National Park) by Thomas Moran
Educator, historian and prolific author H.W.
Republican National Convention, 2004 (photo: Bruce Cotler/Globe Photos/Zuma Press Brands relates the thrilling, panoramic story
of the settling of the American West. He takes
us from John Jacob Astor’s fur trading outpost
in Oregon to the Texas Revolution, from
the California gold rush to the Oklahoma
land rush. The West was where riches would
reward the miner’s persistence, the cattleman’s
courage and the railroad man’s enterprise; but
El Dorado was at least as elusive in the West as
it ever was in the East.
President George W. Bush, Laura Bush and Susan and David Eisenhower at the
Karl Rove, Deputy Chief of Staff, 2007 White House, 1953 (photo: Everett
(photo: WENN Rights Ltd) Collection Historical)
22Meet the Editor of The New York Times Book Review, Theodore Roosevelt for the Defense: The Courtroom
Pamela Paul Battle to Save His Legacy
Pamela Paul Dan Abrams
Thursday 8:30–9:15 am Thursday 8:30–9:15 am
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
The New York Times Book Review editor and host of the Book Review’s podcast Pamela Dan Abrams, chief of legal affairs for ABC News, presents an intriguing presidential
Paul discusses her career as a writer and then editor of the storied New York Times Book courtroom procedural centered on the highly public 1914 libel claim brought by
Review. She is the author of six books and a lifelong lover of reading. Her book My Life New York state politician William Barnes against former President Teddy Roosevelt.
with Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues is a kind of memoir of her life Roosevelt had written that Barnes, a key player in the New York Republican machine,
through the books she has read. Van Gordon Sauter joins her. was corrupt and that his actions “deeply taint and discredit our whole government
system.” The furious Barnes responded by suing Roosevelt for an enormous sum that
could have financially devastated him. Working with the transcript of the case, Abrams
and co-author David Fisher dissect the fascinating legal maneuverings of the “trial of-
the-century.” According to Publisher’s Weekly, “many of the questions the trial raised
about the effects of money in politics, the dangers of blind allegiance to party politics
and oversize corporate political influence will resonate with contemporary readers.”
“
This is every reader’s catch-22: the more you read, the
more you realize you haven’t read; the more you yearn
to read more, the more you understand that you have,
Teddy Roosevelt on his way to court in Syracuse, NY to
in fact, read nothing. There is no way to finish, and attend his trial against William Barnes (photo: Onondaga
perhaps that shouldn’t be the goal. Historical Association)
— Pamela Paul, My Life with Bob
23Thursday 9:30–10:15 am
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory Warlight
Michael Ondaatje
Thursday 9:30–10:15 am
The Race to the White House John Steinbeck Room
Original Credits—Photo of Luntz: . Lawler Duggan/Photo of Flake: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Photo of Stephens: Lani Garfield
Senator Jeff Flake, Frank Luntz and Bret Stephens Michael Ondaatje’s Warlight is the unexpected story of two teenagers abandoned by
Thursday 9:30–10:15 am their enigmatic parents in postwar London. Casually watched over by a dodgy cast of
Jack London Room characters—petty criminals, opera singers and panting greyhounds—Nathaniel and
Rachel try to make sense of their new world while struggling to define their parents’
Senator Jeff Flake joins political consultant, pollster, and “public opinion guru”
shadowy wartime pasts. Ondaatje is one of the world’s foremost writers—his artistry
Frank Luntz and The New York Times op-ed columnist Bret Stephens to discuss
and aesthetic have influenced an entire generation of writers and readers. Although
the candidates, the polls, and the pundits’ predictions while sharing their hopes and
he is best known as a novelist, Ondaatje’s work also encompasses poetry, memoir and
concerns about our upcoming election cycle.
film and reveals a passion for defying conventional form. His transcendent novel The
This session will be simulcast in English Patient won the Man Booker Prize and was made into an Academy Award-
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room winning film.
24
{ “If a wound is great you cannot turn it
into something that is spoken, it can
barely be written.”
— Michael Ondaatje, Warlight {Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives Nana Quindlen
Tim Harford Anna Quindlen
Thursday 9:30–10:15 am Thursday 9:30–10:15 am
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and bestselling author Anna Quindlen has penned
nine novels and nine works of nonfiction, including A Short Guide to a Happy Life
which has sold more than a million copies. Before blogs existed, Quindlen was the
go-to writer on the joys and challenges of family, motherhood and modern life in her
nationally syndicated column. Now she’s taking the next step and going full nana in
her latest book, Nanaville: Adventures in Grandparenting. Patt Morrison speaks with
Quindlen about the brave new world of grandparenting.
Photo: Árni Torfason for PopTech
Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives celebrates the benefits that
messiness has in our lives: why it’s important, why we resist it and why we should
embrace it. Using research from neuroscience, psychology and social science, as
well as captivating examples of real people doing extraordinary things, the Financial
Times “Underground Economist” columnist Tim Harford explains that the human
qualities we value—creativity, responsiveness and resilience—are integral to the
Photo: Joyce Ravid
disorder, confusion and disarray that produce them. David Bryant joins Harford to
“
learn why messy can sometimes be better.
“ We may like things to be very routine and Books are the plane, and the train, and the road. They
exact, very familiar, and exactly the way we’ve always are the destination, and the journey. They are home.
— Anna Quindlen, How Reading Changed My Life
done them, and that may feel very comfortable. But
we get bored and so we get lazy and so we lose
our creativity.”
— Tim Harford
25Thursday 10:30–11:15 am
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory
Issues in U.S. Foreign Policy
Max Boot, James Fallows, George
Packer and Robin Wright
Thursday 10:30–11:15 am
Jack London Room
Our panel of foreign affairs experts Max Boot,
James Fallows, George Packer and Robin Wright
gather to discuss the important foreign policy issues
of the day. There is a bipartisan consensus that the
United States should accept a more modest role in Foreign policy has rarely resonated as much with
world affairs. But what will the long term effects of
Americans as it has in other parts of the world, in part because
the current “America First” foreign policy vision be?
Will President Trump’s divisive positions help him or we are geographically so separate from most parts of the
hurt him in the run-up to the November elections? world. The issue of American military, the U.S. role in the
Moderated by Bret Stephens. Middle East and America’s place in the world is beginning to
This session will be simulcast in resonate—and this is not likely to go away any time soon.”
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room — Robin Wright in response to the Syria/Turkey crisis
Educated
Tara Westover
Thursday 10:30–11:15 am
John Steinbeck Room
Tara Westover was 17 the first time she set foot in a classroom. Born to survivalists in the mountains of
Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-canned peaches and sleeping with her
“head-for-the-hills bag.” Lacking any formal education, Westover began to educate herself. She taught
herself enough math and grammar to be admitted to Brigham Young University, where she studied
history, learning for the first time about important world events like the Holocaust and the civil rights
movement. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to
Harvard and to Cambridge. Join Westover and Kirk Wallace Johnson as they talk about her incredible
and inspiring journey and the transformative nature of learning.
26George Saunders
George Saunders
Thursday 10:30–11:15 am
Joan Didion Room
Blend the satire of Swift, the humanism of Hugo, and
the storytelling of O’Henry, and you get acclaimed
fiction writer George Saunders. He has garnered
numerous accolades including a Man Booker Prize, the
PEN/Malamud Award, a Guggenheim Fellowship and
a MacArthur “Genius Grant.” Named one of the “100
Most Influential People in World” by TIME magazine,
Saunders’ wonderfully imaginative creations lay bare
the absurdity of consumerism, our everyday struggle for
dignity and the redemptive power of compassion. Come
hear him discuss his work with Dr. Khoi Le, as they reflect
on the role of empathy in the experience of literary fiction. Photo: David Crosby
The Ragin’ Cajun
James Carville
Thursday 10:30–11:15 am
Walt Disney Room
James Carville is one of America’s best known political consultants. His most prominent victory
was in 1992 when he helped William Jefferson Clinton win the presidency. In recent years, Carville
has worked on campaigns in over 23 countries around the globe. He is also an author, actor and
producer and is famously married to the former Republican political consultant Mary Matalin.
Carville will share his views on the upcoming election and what the Democrats need to do to win
back the presidency.
“ “I think the Democratic Party has the chronic problem
of appearing to be weak, of not standing and fighting for
what it believes in, not fighting for its own.”
Photo: Lynne Sladky/Associated Press — James Carville
27Thursday 11:30am–12:15 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory The End of Alzheimer’s
Dr. Dale Bredesen and Dr. Joseph Scherger
Thursday 11:30 am–12:15 pm
Fifty Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy John Steinbeck Room
Tim Harford
Thursday 11:30 am–12:15 pm
Jack London Room
The Financial Times “Underground Economist” columnist Tim Harford discusses
the inventions that have transformed the ways we work, play and live. From the plow
to artificial intelligence, from Gillette’s disposable razor to Ikea’s Billy bookcase, he
recounts each invention’s own memorable story and introduces us to the characters
who developed them, profited from them and, in some cases, were ruined by them.
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
Dr. Dale Bredesen offers real hope to anyone looking to prevent and even reverse
Alzheimer’s disease and cognitive decline. Revealing that AD is not one condition, as
it is currently treated, but three, Bredesen’s research outlines 36 metabolic factors that
can trigger “downsizing” in the brain. His protocol shows us how to rebalance these
factors using lifestyle modifications like taking B12, eliminating gluten or improving
Photo: TED.com
oral hygiene. The results are impressive. Of the first ten patients on the protocol, nine
displayed significant improvement within 3–6 months; since then the protocol has
yielded similar results with hundreds more. The End of Alzheimer’s brings new hope
to a broad audience of patients, caregivers, physicians and treatment centers with a
fascinating look inside the science and a complete step-by-step plan that fundamentally
changes how we treat and even think about AD. Family physician and clinical professor
Dr. Joseph Scherger has a practice that focuses on nutrition and wellness. He has had
success using the Bredesen Protocol on a number of dementia patients.
28Michael Chabon and Jonathan Lethem in The Girl Who Smiled Beads
Conversation Clemantine Wamariya
Michael Chabon and Jonathan Lethem Thursday 11:30 am–12:15 pm
Thursday 11:30 am–12:15 pm Walt Disney Room
Joan Didion Room
Clemantine Wamariya was six years old when her mother and father began to speak
in whispers, when neighbors began to disappear and when she heard the loud, ugly
sounds her brother said were thunder. In 1994, she and her 15-year-old sister, Claire,
fled the Rwandan massacre and spent the next six years migrating through seven
African countries, searching for safety—perpetually hungry, imprisoned and abused,
enduring and escaping refugee camps, finding unexpected kindness and witnessing
inhuman cruelty. Elizabeth Kabler Sorensen joins Wamariya to talk about her heart-
rending but ultimately life-affirming story.
Photo: Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times
Come hear award-winning writers and friends Michael Chabon and Jonathan Lethem
in a wide-ranging conversation about their writing lives. These two share a unique style
of writing that can best be described as a hybrid genre: in their cases a literary aesthetic
that mixes the highbrow with the low and science fiction with detective fiction. Chabon
received the Pulitzer Prize for The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay while Lethem
received the National Book Critics Circle Award for Motherless Brooklyn. The feature
film adaptation of Lethem’s Motherless Brooklyn has just been released, starring Edward
Norton, Bruce Willis, Alec Baldwin and William Dafoe.
LU N C H
12:15 pm: Join us outside for a delicious boxed
lunch of your choice
Photo: Menahem Kahana, AFP/Getty Images
29Thursday 1–1:45 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory
Presidential Politics and the Media
Dan Abrams, Norman Pearlstine,
Van Gordon Sauter and Richard Stengel
Thursday 1–1:45 pm
Jack London Room
Does the media primarily report politics, or does it shape political
events? From the dawn of TV to the Twittersphere, the media has
played an increasingly important and influential role in shaping
politics and, specifically, the presidency. Recently, the fourth
estate has come under fire from critics on both sides of the aisle for
its coverage of the elections. Please join chief legal affairs anchor
for ABC News Dan Abrams, Executive Editor of the Los Angeles
Times Norman Pearlstine, former president of Fox News and
CBS News Van Gordon Sauter and former managing editor of
TIME magazine Richard Stengel. Moderated by Douglas Brunt.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower inaugurated the first televised presidential news conference in 1955
This session will be simulcast in
(photo: Dwight Eisenhower Library) Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
The Corrosion of Conservatism:
“
Why I Left the Right
Max Boot
Thursday 1–1:45 pm To be an anti-Trump
John Steinbeck Room Republican in this
Warning that the Trump presidency presages America’s decline, Max Boot climate requires
(political commentator and Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Senior Fellow for national moral courage that
securities studies at the Council on Foreign Relations) recounts his extraordinary
few politicians or
journey from lifelong Republican to vehement Trump opponent. As nativism,
xenophobia, vile racism and assaults on the rule of law threaten the very fabric media personalities
of our nation, Boot presents an urgent defense of American democracy. Susan display.
Eisenhower, a lifelong member of the Republican Party who famously became — Max Boot
an Independent in 2008, joins him to discuss what it means to be a conservative
and a Republican today. Photo: Anna Webber/Getty Images
30Zadie Smith in Conversation with Pamela Paul Uncomfortable Learning
Pamela Paul and Zadie Smith C.L. Max Nikias and Zachary Wood
Thursday 1–1:45 pm Thursday 1–1:45 pm
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
Since she burst spectacularly into view with her debut novel, White Teeth, almost
two decades ago, Zadie Smith has established herself not just as one of the world’s
preeminent fiction writers, but also a brilliant and singular essayist. She contributes
regularly to The New Yorker and The New York Review of Books on a wide range of
subjects. The New York Times Book Review editor Pamela Paul joins Smith to talk
about her writing life and Grand Union, her first collection of short stories.
When I was 21, I
wanted to write like Kafka.
But, unfortunately for me,
I wrote like a script editor
for The Simpsons who’d
briefly joined a religious
cult and then discovered
Foucault. Such is life.” As the former president of the student group Uncomfortable Learning at his alma
— Zadie Smith mater, Williams College, Zachary Wood knows about intellectual controversy from
experience. At school and beyond, there’s no one Wood refuses to engage with
simply because he disagrees with their beliefs—sometimes vehemently so—and this
view has given him a unique platform in the media. Wood shares his perspective
on free speech, race and dissenting opinions with President Emeritus of USC C.L.
Max Nikias.
{ {
“Colleges across the country should
embrace free debate because every student
in America would be better off improving
Photo: Jackie Nickerson their ability to defend their own ideas rather
than hoping that their ideas prevail by
censoring those that disturb them.”
— Zachary Wood
31Thursday 2–2:45 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory This Chair Rocks: Is Age-ism the New ism?
Ashton Applewhite
Thursday 2–2:45 pm
The Librarian of Congress John Steinbeck Room
Meets the Author of The Library Book
Dr. Carla Hayden and Susan Orlean
Thursday 2–2:45 pm
Jack London Room
In The Library Book, award-winning New Yorker reporter and New York Times bestselling
author Susan Orlean chronicles the devastating 1986 Los Angeles Public Library fire
and its aftermath to showcase the larger, crucial role that libraries play in our lives.
Her book is a significant work of investigative journalism as well as a deeply personal
account of her lifelong connection to libraries and love of reading. Orleans is joined
by the Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden, to discuss the role of libraries—from
their humble beginnings as a metropolitan charitable initiative to their current status
as a cornerstone of national identity—and their mutual love of books.
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room
Photo TED.com
Author and activist Ashton Applewhite would like us to think differently about growing
older. As she writes: “aging is a natural, lifelong, powerful process that unites us all. So
how come so many of us unthinkingly assume that depression, diapers, and dementia
lie ahead? Because of ageism—the last socially sanctioned prejudice.” Whether you’re
older or hoping to get there, Applewhite will shake you by the shoulders, cheer you
up, make you mad and change the way you see the rest of your life. Patt Morrison sits
down with Applewhite to talk about the newest ism, ageism.
Photo: Wilson Center Photo: Noah Fecks “
The sooner growing older is stripped of reflexive
dread, the better equipped we are to benefit from
the countless ways in which it can enrich us.
— Ashton Applewhite, This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism
32Manhattan Beach The British Are Coming!
Douglas Brunt and Jennifer Egan H.W. Brands and Gordon S. Wood
Thursday 2–2:45 pm Thursday 2–2:45 pm
Joan Didion Room Walt Disney Room
Two of our country’s most preeminent scholars of American history discuss the causes
I write totally spontaneously. I actually write fiction and consequences of the Revolutionary War from a fresh perspective. Gordon S. Wood
by hand—that always seems to startle people. I think the is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Radicalism of the American Revolution and
reason I do that is to bypass the thinking part of me and Professor of History Emeritus at Brown University. H.W. Brands is the author of 30
books on U.S. History and the Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at The University
get more to the unconscious part, which is where all the
of Texas at Austin. Find out why the war was not just a break with England but rather
good ideas seem to be.” a revolution that transformed an almost feudal society into a democratic one.
— Jennifer Egan
Six years after winning the Pulitzer Prize for her “postmodern” A Visit from the Goon
Squad, Jennifer Egan has embraced traditional storytelling. Her 2017 New York
Times bestseller Manhattan Beach is Egan’s first historical novel. Please join Egan and
novelist Douglas Brunt as they talk about her creative process and the challenges she
faced writing her meticulously researched historical novel.
Battle of Yorktown (painting: H. Charles McBarron)
33Thursday 3–3:45 pm
Rancho Mirage Library & Observatory Happiness Revisited
Dennis Prager
Thursday 3–3:45 pm
Educated John Steinbeck Room
Tara Westover Dennis Prager, one of America’s most respected conservative voices, returns to our
Thursday 3–3:45 pm stage to revisit the topic of “happiness.” We live in a time of divisiveness, frustration
Jack London Room and anger brought on by myriad social, economic and political issues. Social media
and a 24-hour news cycle are a constant source of vitriol that have deadening effects
on our well-being. Prager’s message is that happiness is a moral obligation and not a
selfish pursuit. According to him, “Happiness—or at least acting happy, or at the very
least not inflicting one’s unhappiness on others—is no less important in making the
world better than any other human trait. With some exceptions, happy people make
the world better and unhappy people make it worse. This is true on the personal and
global planes.” Please join Prager for an inspirational and uplifting session on why
happiness is a moral obligation, especially crucial in these difficult times.
Westover at Cambridge University (photo: Hill & Aubrey)
Tara Westover was 17 the first time she set foot in a classroom. Born to survivalists in
the mountains of Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-
canned peaches and sleeping with her “head-for-the-hills bag.” Lacking any formal
education, Westover began to educate herself. She taught herself enough math and
grammar to be admitted to Brigham Young University, where she studied history,
learning for the first time about important world events like the Holocaust and the
civil rights movement. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over
oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge. Join Westover and Dr.
Khoi Le as they discuss the transformative power of education.
This session will be simulcast in
Anne Rice Room and Isabel Allende Room Photo: Collegian
34You can also read
