The Empathy Wall

This book begins with the author attempting to break down the political barriers between left and right. The first step in doing so is understanding why the other side (the right) looks the world the way it does, and this leads the author to Louisiana, one of the poorest and most right-wing states in the Union. Gradually she begins to peel back the barriers between her point of view and theirs, finally arriving at an appreciation for their way of life, which they believe is disappearing and to which government is, in their view, an obstacle.

At first, she attributes much of the way they think to their being in a bubble, where Fox News is the only news source, where office holders are almost all Republicans, and those with views like hers come from far-away Berkeley. Over time, however, she sees certain factors in their...