Assassination Vacation

Sarah Vowell uses wit, probity, and an irreverent sense of humor to reveal the wonderful mysteries of American history and culture. She takes us on a road trip unlike any other with Assassination Vacation, visiting the locations of American political murders and exploring the many ways they have been used for amusement and financial gain as well as for cultural and political gain.

Vowell examines places where the shedding of politically significant blood has left a lasting legacy, from Buffalo to Alaska, Washington to the Dry Tortugas. She reports from these areas using her signature mix of biting humor, extraordinary candor, and provocative critique. We see the political maneuvering that went into building the Lincoln Memorial and learn about the enigma that was Robert Todd Lincoln, who was there when Presidents Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley were assassinated. The story that emerges is much more than just a fun and educational trip; it tells the unsettling and intriguing tale of how popular culture, encompassing literature, art, architecture, and—the author's personal favorite—historical tourism, has controlled American mortality. Mummies, show tunes, mean-spirited totem poles, and a nineteenth-century biblical sex cult are just a few of the lighter diversions along the way into the lives of the three presidents and their assassins, though themes of loss and violence are explored and we take detours to see how the Republican Party became the Republican Party.