Download or read book Red, White, and Blue Letter Days written by Matthew Dennis and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2002 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Introduction. Identity, history, and the American calendar -- 1. Political fireworks: American Independence Day, 1776-2000 -- 2. Haven in a heartless calendar: America's Thanksgiving, 1621-2000 -- 3. Reinventing America: Columbus Day and centenary celebrations of his voyage of "discovery," 1792-1992 -- 4. Washington, Lincoln, and the unheroic Presidents' Day -- 5. St. Monday: Memorial Day, Labor Day, and the celebration of leisure -- 6. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday: inventing an American tradition -- Epilogue. The future of the past.