Analysis of Assassination Vacation by Sara Vowell

Assassination Vacation by Sara Vowell takes a completely new approach to a historical topic. This book provides Vowell’s description, commentary, and historical insights after going on a trip to explore every aspect of three presidential assassinations; Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley. While her approach is unorthodox, she presents a new side to history, not seen in traditional history books. She explores the assassination itself, but also the social atmosphere, personal issues of those involved, possible connections between vital participants and much more. Throughout the book, she also provides her personal opinions, insights, and attempts at humor. Assassination Vacation provides an in-depth view of a history topic but lacks the conformity expected and relied on for validity. 

Traditionally, history books are written in an objective third-person style. They are strictly informational and center on the facts of the story. Many history books can be read as outlines going through dates, people, and places. Typically, historical books have a clear hierarchy with the “most important” information getting the most attention and page space. Contrary to this traditional approach, Vowell gives great attention to all the little details that are often overlooked. For example, she talks about Dr. Mudd, who tended to John Wilkes Booth following the Lincoln assassination (p. 59-60). She goes into great detail describing everything she learns, sees, and experiences that are even remotely related to the assassination. In some cases, the connection is extremely weak, but that doesn’t stop her from bringing it to the readers’ attention. Secondly, she writes in the first person, which is highly uncharacteristic of a history book. Although within academics, this would be highly frowned upon, her use of the first person gives the history a new voice. It makes it feel more personal to the reader, and it helps remind the reader that history is a living thing. These assassinations did not happen in a vacuum; they were part of an ever-evolving history, and the impact of the assassinations affected people far beyond those directly involved. 

Her approach to research is also unique and provides readers with a new view of history. While most historical research is done through extensive reading, she takes her research on the road. She actually visits an extensive list of locations and writes about her discoveries. She analyzes artifacts; guns, tombs, letters, tombstones, clothes, statues and more. She speaks with museum curators, historical artifact collectors, and other historical writers like David Foster Wallace (McCain's Promise) to collect information. Although her approach is not traditional, it gives the information a new life. Through her writing, she is giving readers a new way to look at American history that goes beyond the list of facts most students are told to memorize in school. She takes political figures that people may or may not already know of and gives them personalities. She provides insights into these historical figures that make them seem more human. 

Despite her refreshing take on history, there are some possible issues of validity. She offers no bibliography or sources for her information. While some of this is understandable because the writing is based on her personal observations, much of it is not. She retells large portions of history with no explanation as to where the information came from. This weakens the validity of the book as a historical source. Additionally, her commentary is distracting at times. For example, when talking about Garfield’s assassination, she goes into great detail about what the abandoned buildings later become. Although the commentary is loosely connected to the assassination, she takes it much farther than it needs to go when she starts talking about Liza Minelli’s wedding, and who her best men were (p. 126). The faltering validity calls the work into question as a history book. This book may be better classified as historical commentary, as opposed to a history book. 

Vowell does successfully provide a new view of American history, as well as shed light on how Americans have traditionally viewed history. For many, the study of history has been limited to memorizing dates and locations while in school; just enough to pass the test. Despite this view of history; people, in general, are glued to their media sources; observing every bit of information being provided on current events. Vowell brings history back to the present through her writing. The act of visiting so many places with the smallest historical connections stands as a reminder to readers that these places still exist. People can experience history through these places and artifacts. Secondly, her ongoing commentary makes connections between historical events and current topics such as officers finding a gun at a Trump rally. 

Vowell also provides insight into how people view American history. The fact that her outgoing research style is considered unorthodox, speaks volumes to how history is perceived and interpreted. People perceive history as solely in the past. They fail to see the living and ongoing nature of history, which Vowell makes evident in her book. As mentioned earlier, Vowell even discusses people with only a remote connection to the assassinations or those directly involved. She gives names to historical figures that others have even thought of. People tend to remember the basic facts of the most famous people throughout history. For example, while most people know John Wilkes Booth killed Lincoln, they may not know he was a known womanizer.  Additionally, other than Lincoln and Booth, most people likely don’t know the names of anyone else even remotely connected to the assassination. Vowell provided a far more holistic view of American history than normally found in books.

Work Cited

Vowell, Sarah. Assassination Vacation. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005. Print.