Erik Larson
@exlarson.bsky.social
Author, tennis addict, lover of Hendrick's martinis, interesting restaurants, and long walks in Central Park. Website: eriklarsonbooks.com
Nice story in today's NYT, p. 1, about the demise of the penny. Well done; written with a good deal of charm.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/b...
The Penny Dies at 232
www.nytimes.com
November 13, 2025 at 12:46 PM
Nice story in today's NYT, p. 1, about the demise of the penny. Well done; written with a good deal of charm.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/b...
I wish someone would remind Hegseth and Trump that small conflicts have a way of becoming big and nasty wars very quickly. Can't imagine what would have happened if we'd had these amateurs in charge during the Cuban Missile Crisis. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Pentagon’s largest warship enters Latin American waters as US tensions with Venezuela rise
USS Gerald R Ford’s arrival marks the largest US military presence in the region since the invasion of Panama in 1989
www.theguardian.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:05 PM
I wish someone would remind Hegseth and Trump that small conflicts have a way of becoming big and nasty wars very quickly. Can't imagine what would have happened if we'd had these amateurs in charge during the Cuban Missile Crisis. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Trump was right. New York City is a hellscape of criminal savagery. (Spotted today at Lexington Ave and E. 107th.)
October 31, 2025 at 8:29 PM
Trump was right. New York City is a hellscape of criminal savagery. (Spotted today at Lexington Ave and E. 107th.)
Reposted by Erik Larson
Congratulations to all!
@katmezzacappa.bsky.social, @exlarson.bsky.social, @rachloudriscoll.bsky.social, @lissakevans.bsky.social, @christinebreen.bsky.social
@katmezzacappa.bsky.social, @exlarson.bsky.social, @rachloudriscoll.bsky.social, @lissakevans.bsky.social, @christinebreen.bsky.social
October 15, 2025 at 11:01 AM
Thanks for sending. People found remnants of the ship for years afterward, but for this jacket to reach the Delaware River? Remarkable.
A @nytimes.com report of the discovery of a life jacket from the Lusitania, five years after the liner was torpedoed off Ireland, on the other side of the Atlantic.
@exlarson.bsky.social #history #oddities #war
@exlarson.bsky.social #history #oddities #war
October 11, 2025 at 12:14 PM
Thanks for sending. People found remnants of the ship for years afterward, but for this jacket to reach the Delaware River? Remarkable.
Thank you!
@exlarson.bsky.social Just to say I’ve just finished reading The Splendid and the Vile - what a truly great read. An absolutely staggering amount of research! Had a mental pic of Churchill in some of those scenarios - perhaps best not to go there! Am going to read Colville’s Fringes of Power next.
September 30, 2025 at 10:18 PM
Thank you!
At last one of my books has made it to the big-ish screen! (Ethan Hawke in "The Lowdown;" see shelf behind.)
September 25, 2025 at 6:14 PM
At last one of my books has made it to the big-ish screen! (Ethan Hawke in "The Lowdown;" see shelf behind.)
Not sure what "premise" you think I'm accepting. I agree completely, especially with your last line. Well put, by the way.
Please do not accept that premise. Soldiers do not, can not, have not, and will never provide safety. Not their purpose, not their training, and not the intent here. They are the last resort in the face of political/diplomatic failure.
August 27, 2025 at 11:53 PM
Not sure what "premise" you think I'm accepting. I agree completely, especially with your last line. Well put, by the way.
Just arrived at Union Station in Washington, DC. Troops on patrol in one of the safest spots in the city. At least they’re not wearing masks. Must be incredibly boring: aimlessly walking streets already patrolled by multiple federal police agencies, Amtrak police, and the DC metro cops.
August 22, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Just arrived at Union Station in Washington, DC. Troops on patrol in one of the safest spots in the city. At least they’re not wearing masks. Must be incredibly boring: aimlessly walking streets already patrolled by multiple federal police agencies, Amtrak police, and the DC metro cops.
I'm headed to DC today. Curious to see how the city feels under occupation.
It's starting to feel a lot like 1861 around here, am I right, @exlarson.bsky.social?
WASHINGTON (AP) — South Carolina, Ohio also sending National Guard troops to DC in further escalation of federal intervention in Dem city.
August 22, 2025 at 12:21 PM
I'm headed to DC today. Curious to see how the city feels under occupation.
Thank you.
August 22, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Thank you.
Wow. Are you re-reading it? If so you may not be able to sleep.
August 20, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Wow. Are you re-reading it? If so you may not be able to sleep.
Going to DC on Friday. Never been to an occupied city. I feel like William Shirer:
August 20, 2025 at 9:46 PM
Going to DC on Friday. Never been to an occupied city. I feel like William Shirer:
So often in my research I come across tiny little mysteries that have zero relevance to what I'm working on, but are compelling nonetheless. Eg this, from the London Times, Sept. 5, 1871.
July 31, 2025 at 9:18 PM
So often in my research I come across tiny little mysteries that have zero relevance to what I'm working on, but are compelling nonetheless. Eg this, from the London Times, Sept. 5, 1871.
Ha. Love it.
July 21, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Ha. Love it.
Good to know! I'm in good company. Bunch of my favorites here: Bryson, Mankell, Nesbo, Atkinson, and Maj S. and Per W. (Martin Beck remains my favorite detective.)
Ten writers by whom I've read more than five books:
1. Simon Winchester
2. @exlarson.bsky.social
3. @stephenking.bsky.social
4. Bill Bryson
5. Henning Mankell
6. Jo Nesbo
7. Maj Sjöwall / Per Wahlöö
8. P.D. James
9. Kate Atkinson
10. Émile Zola
1. Simon Winchester
2. @exlarson.bsky.social
3. @stephenking.bsky.social
4. Bill Bryson
5. Henning Mankell
6. Jo Nesbo
7. Maj Sjöwall / Per Wahlöö
8. P.D. James
9. Kate Atkinson
10. Émile Zola
Ten writers by whom I've read more than five books:
1. @robinhobb.bsky.social
2. Jane Austen
3. Tolkien
4. Brian Lumley
5. Terry Pratchett
6. Stephanie Barron
7. @graskeggur.bsky.social
8. @michaelridpath.bsky.social
9. @liljawriter.bsky.social
10. Arnaldur Indriðason
#books #fun #BookSky
1. @robinhobb.bsky.social
2. Jane Austen
3. Tolkien
4. Brian Lumley
5. Terry Pratchett
6. Stephanie Barron
7. @graskeggur.bsky.social
8. @michaelridpath.bsky.social
9. @liljawriter.bsky.social
10. Arnaldur Indriðason
#books #fun #BookSky
July 13, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Good to know! I'm in good company. Bunch of my favorites here: Bryson, Mankell, Nesbo, Atkinson, and Maj S. and Per W. (Martin Beck remains my favorite detective.)
Reposted by Erik Larson
"We're going to say to the Americans who have chosen to side with the tyrants, to the Americans who fired researchers for demanding scientific freedom: 'Give us back the Statue of Liberty. We gave it to you as a gift, but apparently you despise it.'"
French MEP demands the US 'give us back the Statue of Liberty'
A French member of the European parliament has called for the US to return the Statue of Liberty originally gifted by the French people to mark the centennial of American independence because the US…
www.france24.com
July 5, 2025 at 4:33 PM
"We're going to say to the Americans who have chosen to side with the tyrants, to the Americans who fired researchers for demanding scientific freedom: 'Give us back the Statue of Liberty. We gave it to you as a gift, but apparently you despise it.'"
Just finished reading "Diavola," by Jennifer Thorne. Terrific, really scary ghost story. So much so I couldn't read it at night. Note: I have zero connection to Ms. Thorne or her publisher.
books.google.com/books/about/...
books.google.com/books/about/...
Diavola
Jennifer Thorne skewers all-too-familiar family dynamics in this sly, wickedly funny vacation-Gothic. Beautifully unhinged and deeply satisfying, Diavola is a sharp twist on the classic haunted house ...
books.google.com
July 5, 2025 at 8:53 PM
Just finished reading "Diavola," by Jennifer Thorne. Terrific, really scary ghost story. So much so I couldn't read it at night. Note: I have zero connection to Ms. Thorne or her publisher.
books.google.com/books/about/...
books.google.com/books/about/...
I wonder when the French will demand that we return her.
Wow! France gifted her to us, and now they’ve captured what so many Americans are feeling on Independence Day. The values the Statue of Liberty stood for are no more.
📌 A stunning mural of the Statue of Liberty covering her face was unveiled in Roubaix, France, on July 3, 2025.
📌 A stunning mural of the Statue of Liberty covering her face was unveiled in Roubaix, France, on July 3, 2025.
July 5, 2025 at 4:22 PM
I wonder when the French will demand that we return her.
Ha! Thanks for telling me.
@exlarson.bsky.social I just HAD to share this "telepathy" moment. On page 261 of THE DEMON OF UNREST Charles H Van Wyck is mentioned. Reading no further I wondered, "is this who the Van Wyck Expressway" is named for? OMG the very next sentence: "This was not the Van Wyck...New York expressway...."
July 4, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Ha! Thanks for telling me.
LA DODGERS just now:
“This morning, ICE agents came to Dodger Stadium and requested permission to access the parking lots. They were denied entry to the grounds by the organization. Tonight’s game will be played as scheduled.”
Right on, Dodgers!
More of this, please.
“This morning, ICE agents came to Dodger Stadium and requested permission to access the parking lots. They were denied entry to the grounds by the organization. Tonight’s game will be played as scheduled.”
Right on, Dodgers!
More of this, please.
June 19, 2025 at 8:55 PM
Sigh.
Happy Anniversary to these two.
Met him at 14, married at 18, a mom at 19 and a loving, solid couple until they passed. Almost 60 years together. She was an NYCB dancer, a model, and he was a lifeguard at the family's Catskills camp, Camp Trupin💜🍰🥂(she totally carried a watermelon) 🎶
Met him at 14, married at 18, a mom at 19 and a loving, solid couple until they passed. Almost 60 years together. She was an NYCB dancer, a model, and he was a lifeguard at the family's Catskills camp, Camp Trupin💜🍰🥂(she totally carried a watermelon) 🎶
June 11, 2025 at 9:49 PM
Sigh.
I like your term, "non-overlapping realities."
Americans occupy non-overlapping realities and I see no end in sight to the splintering of viewpoints; it reminds me of the U.S. on the cusp of the civil war (mostly because I’m reading Erik Larson’s The Demon of Unrest)
June 11, 2025 at 9:33 PM
I like your term, "non-overlapping realities."
Great piece by my past employer, the WSJ.
WSJ: The White House Marching Orders That Sparked the L.A. Migrant Crackdown
After deportations fell short of President Trump’s campaign promises, federal agents summoned to a meeting in Washington were told to ‘just go out there and arrest illegal aliens’
www.wsj.com/us-news/prot...
After deportations fell short of President Trump’s campaign promises, federal agents summoned to a meeting in Washington were told to ‘just go out there and arrest illegal aliens’
www.wsj.com/us-news/prot...
The White House Marching Orders That Sparked the L.A. Migrant Crackdown
After deportations fell short of President Trump’s campaign promises, federal agents summoned to a meeting in Washington were told to “just go out there and arrest illegal aliens.”
www.wsj.com
June 11, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Great piece by my past employer, the WSJ.
THAT is lovely.
"This was an experiment by a kindergarten class. They dropped seeds in the cracks of the sidewalk to see what would happen.
This would help our bees "
via I Love Bees
This would help our bees "
via I Love Bees
June 8, 2025 at 10:08 AM
THAT is lovely.