this evening, john straussbaugh details how new york city was helpful and hurtful to the union during the civil war. and we wrap up with a look at the positive and negative aspects of studying abroad. that all happens next on c-span2's booktv. first up, here's political cartoonist gary trudeau. [inaudible conversations] >> good afternoon. i had a feeling if we put on an event, even if it was at 4:00 in the afternoon on a monday, a lot of people would turn out, yeah, in august. i'm bradley graham, i'm the co-owner of politics & prose along with my wife, lissa muscatine, and thank you very much for coming. a few quick administrative notes, now would be a good time to turn off your cell phones or anything that might go beep. when we get to the q and a part of the session, we have one microphone stand there, and we'd ask that if you have a question, please step up to it. c-span, booktv is here, ask we're also recording -- and we're also recording, and we'd like to be able to pick up your question on the tape. and at the end of the session, you know, normally we ask people in the audience