My daughter, Elspeth, recently gave me a signed copy of Maira Kalman's delightful book,
And the Pursuit of Happiness. She saw it in her favorite book shop,
Three Lives & Company, Greenwich Village, and knew I would love it.
She was right, I immediately connected with Kalman's wonderful idiosyncratic style. We obviously have the same sense of humor, and I laughed out loud at her delightful remarks, since they could have easily been my own.
Inspired by the 2008 elections, Kalman embarked on a yearlong investigation of democracy and how it works, from town hall meetings in Vermont to the inner chambers of the Supreme Court.
And the Pursuit of Happiness is a diary of her quirky drawings and observations in a lovely tribute to American history and democracy. Anyone who can make this statement, is one after my own heart:
The more I read, the more entranced I became.
Over 15,000 books have been written about Lincoln.
I won't claim to have read them all , or even any.
But it became clear, as I tumbled into his world, that he had a magnetic appeal.
I looked at images. I looked deep into his eyes and found that I was falling in love.
In love with A. Lincoln.
Kalman has also written children's books (another of my passions) about Max Stravinsky, the poet-dog, as well as done covers for the New Yorker. She is definitely on my A List.
