A year into his marriage and having never driven an RV\, Frank and his wife Laurel set out from New York City in a W innebago to drive the nation&rsquo\;s first transcontinental route\, the L incoln Highway\, which zigzags through small towns and big cities from Tim es Square to San Francisco.
\nUsing the spirit of Abraham Lincoln to guide them across the land\, they hope to see more clearly what holds the country together &mdash\; and how we can keep it together\, even amidst p olitical divisions have grown increasingly rancorous\, bitter\, and exhaus ting.
\nAlong the way\, Frank and Laurel meet Americans whose person al experiences help humanize the nation&rsquo\;s divisions\, and they enco unter historical figures and events whose legacies are still shaping our s ense of national identity and the struggles over it.
\nThis unforget table journey is full of what makes any great road trip memorable and enjo yable: music\, conversation\, and laughter. By the end\, readers will have a clearer picture of how we have arrived at a period that carries echoes of the Civil War era\, and &mdash\; using Lincoln as a guide &mdash\; wher e the path forward lies.
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\nThis event is co-sponsored by The American Democracy Project at IU South Bend and its Office of Communi ty Engagement\, Departments of Political Science and Philosophy\, and Prog rams in Women&rsquo\;s and Gender Studies.
\nRegistration recommende d. Click here to bo rrow the book from SJCPL.
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\nFrancis S. Barry is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist and member of the editorial board covering national affairs. He is the author of the fo rthcoming book\, "Back Roads and Better Angels: A Journey Into the Heart o f American Democracy." He served as chief speechwriter on the Bloomberg 20 20 presidential campaign after having been director of speechwriting for M ayor Michael R. Bloomberg in City Hall\, where he also helped create a var iety of government and election reform initiatives. He is also the author of The Scandal of Reform: The Grand Failures of New York's Political Crusa ders and the Death of Nonpartisanship. He received degrees from the Univer sity of Notre Dame and New York University.
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