What to Read Next: July 18, 2025

Issue #385, featuring a fresh take on an old classic

Happy Friday, readers!

It’s hard to believe that we’re halfway through summer. Six weeks through and six weeks to go until school starts back up. With our cross-country move, our family has been fortunate enough to be able to mostly take the summer off and just enjoy an extended vacation in our new digs. If you ever get the chance to take extended time off, take full advantage of it!

In this week’s edition of the newsletter:

• A reassessment of one of America’s best-known books

• What to read to grasp fire season in the West

• 5 Things: Link and Opinions

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Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

I owe Mark Twain and Huck Finn an apology. Just two years ago, I called the master humorist’s best-known work “overrated.” Then I read James, Percival Everett’s award-winning re-imagining; then I read Ron Chernow’s massive (and marvelous) new biography of Twain. By the end of those two supplemental reads, I figured I had to give Huck Finn another chance.

And boy am I glad I did. It’s clear to me now that this 1884 novel is an all-time great story that captures so much of America’s promise and its contradictions.

Unlike Tom Sawyer, which is largely a lighthearted boy’s adventure tale, Huck Finn tackles rather adult themes in a style that deftly mixes satire with earnestness. Finn is a son to an abusive father who makes an escape with a runaway slave named Jim. You may or may not know that broad outline of the story; what you should know is that Twain gives us one of the great coming-of-age tales in our nation’s history. Huck comes to grips with Jim’s forced servitude as well as his humanity; he comes to understand that freedom of thought and human compassion are more important than anything else, even at the expense of status.

For me, this reassessment also served as proof of why re-reading should be a regular part of my reading habit. Some books will only hit you in the right place at the right time — and it’s often unpredictable. If you have classics lying around that you didn’t like in school or even just a couple of years ago, give them another shot. It’s well worth your time.

P.S. Chernow’s Mark Twain is great, but I can really only recommend it to those with a deep interest in biography and history. It’s looong and requires some sheer reading endurance — like all of Chernow’s biographies.

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In the News: Grand Canyon Burns

This section offers a book recommendation based on recent headlines, to help you make sense of the world with a bit more depth and context rather than just clickbait.

Fire Weather by John Vaillant

Thought we’ve moved back to the Midwest, our nation’s western landscapes will always be near and dear to my heart. As the Grand Canyon burns, along with hundreds of thousands of acres from other fires in the region, I can’t help but recommend John Vaillant’s Fire Weather. I’ve recommended it a few times in this newsletter and it remains the most compelling fire-related book I’ve book.

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5 Things: Links and Opinions

• Speaking of the Grand Canyon, we really enjoyed Into the Grand Canyon, a beautifully-shot documentary about Pete McBride and Kevin Fedarko’s 750-mile hike through the canyon.

• Jane and I also just wrapped up Sirens and I don’t quite know what to think of it. The acting was great, the styling and mythological ties were really interesting, and I was definitely sucked in — but I don’t quite know if I liked it. I’ll be thinking about it, though, which is saying something.

• “You Won’t Find God in Your iPhone” — I quite enjoyed this article, which brings a more spiritual/emotional angle to the debates about phone use and digital life in general.

• I was surprised and saddened to learn about Stephen Colbert’s upcoming departure from late night. It’s especially interesting that the show is just being canceled altogether. I’m a big fan of late night TV (though it’s consumed as YouTube clips these days) and it’s a bummer that our era’s smartest and most earnest host will soon be out of a job. I look forward to seeing whatever he does next.

• Anyone out there a kayaker? Since moving to lake country this summer, I’ve been looking and trying to figure out the best option. Toting kayaks around on top of the van sounds like a pain, so I’ve been looking at portable/foldable options. I wouldn’t be doing anything intense — just recreational paddling on lakes. If ya got any tips, shoot ‘em my way.

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Thanks so much for reading. Be good to each other.

-Jeremy