I have the following suggestions for people looking for imaginatively conservative gifts this Christmas.
A national treasure, Bill Kauffman is almost single-handedly rewriting the history of the American Right. He is assuredly among the most interesting and entertaining conservative writers out there today. I recommend starting with Ain’t My America or his amazing biography of the drunken Founder, Luther Martin.
As until recently I was a lifelong resident of God’s Country (otherwise known as Brooklyn), I have had the great fortune to live through wonderful explosion of locally-made food and other products. People working with their hands to make things has made a real comeback in the city of hedge fund traders and supermodel wannabees. And although I encourage you to support similar places in your own locality, if you have any admiration or love for the Borough of Churches, check out New York Mouth. And if you are really adventurous and more hands-on, my daughter and I made cheese from Roaring Brook Dairy, which was quite good.
Books mentioned in this essay may be found in The Imaginative Conservative Bookstore. Reprinted with the gracious permission of the author.
You've got it, Gerald–four cheers for Bill Kauffman!
I haven't read Kauffman, but who can resist Willson and Russello both!? Meanwhile I'm reminded of Monty Python's bungled Sermon on the Mount, where the guys at the back mistakenly hear "Blessed are the cheesemakers…" Blessed indeed!