David French, 49, has the rare distinction of graduating from Harvard Law School and then volunteering for a tour of duty in Iraq during the Bush administration’s surge. He is a National Review Institute senior fellow and a major in the U.S. Army Reserve. He and his wife Nancy have three children: I interviewed him in their home in Franklin, Tenn. Here are edited excerpts.

We will celebrate this coming Wednesday the work of a brilliant writer, Declaration of Independence author Thomas Jefferson. Here’s what’s less known: Jefferson worked hard at writing because he was a lousy speaker. I’ll discuss that, then note his way of neutralizing Christian opponents, then look at his small government principles and his pacifism in regard to Britain—and how that worked out. He’s a fascinating figure.

The cover story in WORLD’s June 30, 2018 issue shows how a bill to ban “conversion therapy” (sometimes called “reparative therapy”) in California, even for consenting adults, is in a pipeline to passage. Since press coverage has been biased in favor of the bill, here are a few voices of opposition from testimony before the California Assembly’s Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee.

My prime recommendation this year for beach, hammock, or air-conditioned treadmill is The Other Woman, Daniel Silva’s 18th novel starring Gabriel Allon, a thoughtful spy: Allon would prefer to spend more time with his family and in his initial calling as a world-class art restorer, but the Israeli intelligence service keeps calling him back for difficult missions. Publication date is July 17: I read the proof as soon as HarperCollins sent it to us and can say that it’s another masterwork of espionage, as Allon outthinks the Kremlin.

In April a wall in one Austin middle school displayed 11 student responses to what they learned about America’s seventh president, Andrew Jackson. Nine of them were hand-drawn wanted posters for Jackson’s arrest for murder: Some mentioned his duels, but the students appear to have learned that Jackson’s biggest crime was his successful push for legislation to force Cherokees out of their homes in three Southern states and move them to what is now Oklahoma.

Min Jin Lee, born in South Korea, came to the United States in 1976 when she was 7 years old. She grew up in Queens, New York City, went to church, and worked behind the counter of her family jewelry store. She graduated from Yale, survived a serious liver disease, persevered through writing disappointments, and became a National Book Award finalist last year for her novel Pachinko. It’s really well-written, as is her first novel, so I wanted to interview her in front of some Patrick Henry College students who are aspiring writers.

Twelfth in a series of short short fiction. For other stories in this series, visit wng.org/shortstories.