“I gotta do holidays. They offer me so much. In particular, for me and the reader, a whole set of associations. If you write about Easter, if you write about the Fourth of July, something as important, almost invisibly important, as the temporal setting of a book…if the reader can say, ‘Gee, that’s a time I know. I have a whole set of memories and associations to bring to bear on whatever’s happening then,’ you’ve got a lot going for you. “
Richard Ford’s Independence Day was the first novel to win both a Pulitzer Prize and the PEN/Faulkner. Holidays are evocative. What does today bring to your mind? From fireworks and grilling to where America is headed with a new president at the helm – July 4th covers a lot of ground. Perhaps fitting for our multi-cultural nation, I’m cooking chili chicken with roasted tomatillo salsa this afternoon. Happy Independence Day!