Thomas Jefferson And The Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger.

On Monday, January 9th, the Booked for the Day Book Group met to discuss, Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger.  Here are a few things we discussed during the meeting:

• We started our discussion with who enjoyed the book. The majority of the group enjoyed the book and what most of the group said was that things don’t change much. History does seem to repeat itself.
• The group thought it was a good overview of America's involvement in the Barbary Coast. It was a quick read, at times suspenseful, one member thought the author knew how to keep you hanging at the end of each chapter in order to keep you reading. Another member thought that since the author is a newscaster, he’s proficient as a wordsmith.
• A few member thought the book had an anti- Muslim slate. But the group decided it is always good to get both side of an issue and that is why we read a variety of books.
• Most of the group was not aware of the history and development of the American Navy so many were interested in learning more. The book helped us to understand the need for a strong naval presence in order to protect American interests.
• It was nice to be re-introduced to known historic characters and their heroic actions during this period in early American history. A few members could tell the author was extremely patriotic.
• We discussed the authors comment as to why the Muslim countries in the Barbary Coast area felt they had a right to take slaves, which lead us to the discussion of slavery in our country by Christians. One question that was asked was if we don’t get our ethics from religion, where do we get them from?
• We talked about the length of time it took to get anything accomplished, which was understandable due to a lack of communications.  This made seeking guidance from superiors during a crisis impossible.
• One member thought it was poorly written but most thought the book held their attention.

These are just a few things mentioned during the discussion. Please feel free to add any of your thoughts in the comment section.