Illustration by Andrew Zbihlyj
Discussed in this essay:
The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels, by Jon Meacham.
Random House. 416 pages. $20.
The Soul of America, directed by KD Davison. HBO, 2020. 77 minutes.
It’s the beginning of the new HBO documentary based on the work of the celebrated historian Jon Meacham, and here he comes ambling through his tastefully decorated home. We glimpse autographed photos, toby jugs, old prints, comforting Americana. The prize-winning biographer of Jefferson and Jackson slowly makes his way to a TV studio in the basement, where he looks at…