Hochschild, Arlie Russell "Strangers in Their Own Land"

Hochschild, Arlie Russell "Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right" - 2016

I have read this book in the hope that I will understand the Republicans a little better and I truly believe that the author wrote it in order to understand them. I still don't understand. And I doubt the author does. How can you not want the government to help you when the companies pollute your environment? There are people out there who know what goes wrong but still don't want any rules for the companies who destroy their lives, their landscapes, bring cancer and other illnesses to their families and treat the few people who work for them like rubbish.

I think the difference between Democrats/Liberals and Republicans is that the former sees the government as a caring parent who will help you on your way, sending you to a good school, making sure you'll find your way in the world, taking care of you when you are sick or can't do anything and for that you help in the household. The latter see them as as Big Brother who doesn't just watch you, doesn't share their toys but takes away all yours and destroys them. Well, without a caring parent, companies will just behave like Big Brother.

I would recommend this book to anyone, especially Republicans, in order to understand where this is all going and how we hopefully can find a better way to save this planet.

From the back cover:
"In Strangers in Their Own Land, the renowned sociologist Arlie Hochschild embarks on a thought-provoking journey from her liberal hometown of Berkeley, California, deep into Louisiana bayou country--a stronghold of the conservative right. As she gets to know people who strongly oppose many of the ideas she famously champions, Hochschild nevertheless finds common ground and quickly warms to the people she meets--among them a Tea Party activist whose town has been swallowed by a sinkhole caused by a drilling accident--people whose concerns are actually ones that all Americans share: the desire for community, the embrace of family, and hopes for their children.

Strangers in Their Own Land goes beyond the commonplace liberal idea that these are people who have been duped into voting against their own interests. Instead, Hochschild finds lives ripped apart by stagnant wages, a loss of home, an elusive American dream--and political choices and views that make sense in the context of their lives. Hochschild draws on her expert knowledge of the sociology of emotion to help us understand what it feels like to live in "red" America. Along the way she finds answers to one of the crucial questions of contemporary American politics: why do the people who would seem to benefit most from "liberal" government intervention abhor the very idea?"

A friend sent me a link to an article about two books, One Way To Bridge The Political Divide: Read The Book That's Not For You.  You can find the review to the other book "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates here.

Beautiful Blogger Award

I've been nominated for another award, the "Beautiful Blogger Award". Thank you so much to "The Captivated Reader" for this lovely thought.

Here are the rules for the Beautiful Blogger Award:
1.    Link to the blogger who has nominated you. You will find it "here".
2.    List 7 random facts about you.
3.    Nominate 7 creative, beautiful bloggers and let them know about about the nomination.

Seven random facts. Mmmh, a lot of my friends might know these but not all of my blog contacts, so here we go:

1. I have lived in four different countries - so far (in this order): Germany, Belgium, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands.
2. My biggest hobby is reading but I also love crafting, especially stamping and making cards, and photography.
3. I have a husband, two sons and three younger brothers, lots of testosterone in my life.
4. In my youth, I had dozens of penfriends, nowadays I have them on Facebook, Google+, Pinterest or here on my blog.
5. I love languages, speak five and a half of them (German, English, Esperanto, French, Dutch, improving my Spanish) and understand a few more.
6. My favourite colours are blue and green and all the shades in between.
7. I'd love to live near the ocean.

It wasn't that easy to decide whom to nominate, not because I don't know enough but because I know too many. So, if I haven't nominated you this time, I probably nominated you earlier for the Liebster Award. I follow a few great blogs and if I follow you, I love your inputs.

So, these are my nominees!

Bibliophilic Madness

Edith's Miscellany

Joy's Book Blog

Silver's Review

Stuck in a Book

Words and Peace

You, Me and a Cup of Tea

Please check out these blogs. Each one of them is wonderful, inspiring and offers something unique.

Liebster Award

Quite a while ago, one of the bloggers who follows my blog nominated me for the Liebster Award. I felt very honoured but was also quite sick at the time, so never followed it up. But I do want to thank Lois from You, Me and a Cup of Tea for being so nice to like my blog and including it in her list of favourites. Thank you so much

There are only a few rules to this and I hope all of you will like the idea of being nominated and keep the ball rolling.
1.    Thank the AMAZING blogger that nominated you.
2.    Answer the 11 questions the nominator provided.
3.    Nominate 11 other bloggers who have less than 200 followers.
4.    Post 11 different question for your nominees to answer.
5.    Contact your nominee to let them know that you've nominated them.

As you see, every nominee has to answer eleven questions. These were the ones chosen by Lois including my answers.
1.    Who's your favourite author?
Jane Austen, definitely Jane Austen
2.    What is your favourite book?
"The Children's War" and "A Change of Regime" by J.N. Stroyar
3.    Why did you starting blogging?
I had been running an international book club for over a decade but had to give it up for health reasons. Some of my friends suggested I start a blog. I've been enjoying it ever since.
4.    What is your favourite TV show?
That is really, really easy.
Thirtysomething.
But I also love The West Wing. A lot.
5.    What is your favourite movie?
That's a tougher one. I love a variety of movies. My favourite "feel good/funny" movie would be "When Harry Met Sally".
There are far too many others to even start attempting a list.
6.    What is your current school status?
This probably shows my age. I left school a long long time ago but my school status would be equivalent to American High School.
7.    Peanut butter or nutella?
I do love Nutella but since I'm lactose intolerant and can only go for the fake stuff, I'd have to say Peanut Butter.
8.    If you could go on your dream vacation and money was no object where would you go?
Easy. Down Under.
9.    If you could read a book for the first time again what would it be and why?
Another tough one, I'd love to reread all of Jane Austen and many many others but I think I'd still go for my favourite book, see above:"The Children's War" and "A Change of Regime" by J.N. Stroyar.
10.    What is your favourite book to movie adaptation?
"Chocolat" by Joanne Harris
I didn't care for the book much but loved the movie.
11.    Do you like tea?
I like tea but I looooove coffee.

And these are the blogs (in alphabetical order) I chose to give the Liebster Award to:
1.    A Room of My Own 
Swedish blogger who loves to read similar books to mine.
2.    Brainless Blogger 
A fellow migraine sufferer who writes a lot about the latest findings.
"Migraine is not a headache. It is quite inconceivable to me how someone can take advil and asprin to get rid of a migraine, as it never did the trick for me, not even for mild migraines or persistent tension headaches."
3.    Brona's Books 
Australian Book Lover
4.    Captivated Reader 
"My blog is about the books I'm reading, the independent bookstores I visit, the author and book events I attend, and any bookish related things I come across in the months and years to come!"
5.    Choose and Book 
"It is hard to imagine a life without books. Like all booklovers, I have a huge pile of books waiting to be read and at the same time, I am looking for space to store away all the books I have read. Old and new, I will read them all as long as they interest me. I do not touch science-fiction and am especially partial to new writers and book series. I aim to make my blog fun, informative and brief. Do feel free to share your thoughts with me and stop by as much as you can - my virtual bookshop is always open!"
6.    Eclectictales 
"My name is Lianne and I am a 20-something-year-old blogger from the North (otherwise known as Canada). I studied Soviet-Russian history for a long time but am now studying to be a nurse. In the meantime, I continue to write on the side. Regular readers/visitors of my blog and fellow bloggers may know me to have many interests (European) football, British television, and travelling to name a few)"
7.    I prefer reading 
"I'm an avid reader who loves middlebrow fiction, 19th century novels, WWI & WWII literature, Golden Age mysteries & history. Other interests include listening to classical music, drinking tea, baking cakes, planning my rose garden & enjoying the antics of my cats, Lucky & Phoebe."
8.    MacQue 
"I live with my husband Mac in coastal Georgia, near Savannah. We are retired and spend our time doing all and none of the things we always meant to do. Janet"
9.    Reading in the Garden 
"I am one of three daughters born to German immigrants, and was honored to be the first American born in our family. My parents ping-ponged back and forth across the ocean before permanently settling in fabulous Las Vegas when I was in the first grade.
... I have several passions, reading being right up there on the list. My love of reading stems from my mother and father. I enjoy reading all types of books including fiction (Pomegranate Soup, A Guide to the Birds of East Africa), memoirs (The Glass Castle, Falling Leaves), classics (Frankenstein, Jane Eyre), modern classics (Rebecca, Murder on the Orient Express) and humor (Me Talk Pretty One Day, My Uncle Oswald).  It’s rare that I will truly dislike a book, but it happens on occasion (Moby-Dick). "
10.    Rose City Reader 
"Prize winners, Must Reads, Big Reads, Top 100s -- if it's on a list, I'm tempted to put it on my TBR list. If I really like an author, I'll add the bibliography to my list of lists. And once I read a book, I add it to my Books I've Read list. Arguably, I burn up valuable reading time playing with my lists. I know this.
When not reading, I practice law at the Dumas Law Group"
11.    Sunderwarp 
"Freelance journalist, ghost writer, editor. A Facebook addiction, and now blogging, allows me to avoid more productive forms of writing."

My eleven questions are:
1.    Who, what, and/or where does your blogging inspiration come from?
2.    What do you like about blogging?
3.    What was the most meaningful book you ever read? 4.    Who is your favourite author?
5.    What is your favourite quote?
6.    What is your favourite time of year?
7.    If you had to teach a subject at school, what subjects do you think you would be most equipped to teach?
8.    What is the best thing about you?
9.    If you could only wear one colour for the rest of your life what would it be?
10.    What was the last movie you watched, was it a good one?
11.    What did you want to be when you were a child?

If, like me, you have never heard of this award before, you might start googling for the "original" page. If you find it, please, let me know.

However, I did find a brilliant link to the original idea with some different kind of questions, if you would like to choose different ones from mine.
The Liebster Award – General Info and Rules 

I love the idea of recognizing other bloggers, we all know how much time it involves and how much you do reveal of yourself. I also love the idea, that the origin of this award is German, that I received it via an American blogger and pass it on to several bloggers around the world myself.

So, I wish you all happy blogging.