Names and faces
■ John Lennon’s 1971 hit “Imagine” is often recalled in times of war or conflict, with its lyrics calling for unity and peace.
But it was the war in Ukraine that finally prompted his son Julian Lennon to sing the song publicly for the first time. He said in a note on YouTube that he had long resisted singing the Vietnam War-era song. “The only time I would ever consider singing ‘Imagine’ would be if it was the ‘End of the World,’” he said. But the war in Ukraine is “an unimaginable tragedy,” he said, and “as a human, and as an artist, I felt compelled to respond in the most significant way I could.” His cover was in support of the #StandUpForUkraine fundraising effort organized by the nonprofit Global Citizen. An event in Warsaw on Saturday raised $10 billion in pledges for Ukrainian refugees, with nearly half coming in the form of donations from governments, companies and individuals, and the rest as grants and loans from European financial institutions. Lennon, whose musical career began in 1984 with the release of his album “Valotte,” said he chose the song partly because its lyrics “reflect our collective desire for peace worldwide. Because within this song, we’re transported to a space, where love and togetherness become our reality, if but for a moment in time.” Among the song’s lyrics is the passage: “Imagine all the people / Sharing all the world / You / You may say I’m a dreamer.” Lennon said the song “reflects the light at the end of the tunnel, that we are all hoping for.”
■ Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has a book coming out this fall that covers his years in the Trump administration and, according to the publisher, offers “unvarnished appraisals of the deals made and characters encountered along the way.” Broadside Books, a conservative imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, announced Monday that Pompeo’s untitled book is scheduled for November. Financial terms were not disclosed. Pompeo “will draw readers deep into the innermost sanctums of government decision-making and reveal the stories and strategic thinking behind key actions regarding North Korea, China, Russia, Iran, Mexico, Israel, Afghanistan, support for international religious freedom, and many other countries and issues,” the announcement says. Pompeo, 58, is a Republican from Kansas who served three terms in Congress before President Donald Trump appointed him director of the Central Intelligence Agency in 2017, then secretary of state a year later. He has speculated about a 2024 presidential run.