"The Pale Blue Dot," QWERTY, and Carl Bernstein's birthday - with a reading from Anne Bronte's "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall."

ASCAP is formed, the fire bombing of Dresden begins, Australia apologizes to the Stolen Generations, and Eleanor Farjeon and Kate Roberts were born on this day - with a reading from Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein."

An observation on what it means to be a reader

Celebrating the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln, Charles Darwin, and Judy Blume - with a reading from Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Address.

"Gerrymandering" begins, GM makes UAW a cohesive labor union, the Seabed Arms Control Treaty is signed, and Joy Williams and Mo Willems celebrate their birthdays - with a reading from Willams, "The Quick and the Dead."

The birthday club includes William Allen White and Boris Pasternak - with a reading from White's editorial apologizing for an earlier piece in which he angrily asked "What's the Matter with Kansas?"

I'm back

Abraham Lincoln signs the 13th Amendment, the Voice of America begins broadcasting, the Woolworth's lunch-counter sit ins begin, and it is the birthday of Langston Hughes - with a reading from his poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers."

Congress approves the 13th Amendment, Truman approves production of thermonuclear weapons, the Winter Soldier Investigation, and the birthday club includes Zane Gray, Norman Mailer, and Peter Sagal - with a reading from Gray's "Man of the Forest."

Antarctica is discovered, San Francisco gets its name, COVID-19 is declared a PHEIC, and it is the birthday of Richard Brautigan - with a reading of his "Hinged to Forgetfulness Like a Door."