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Loading... The partly cloudy patriotby Sarah Vowell
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. I love Sarah Vowell's literary voice. I really enjoyed her dry humor in each and every one of her anecdotes about everything from history, to politics, to life experiences as a twin. ( )Sarah Vowell is one of my favorite writers. Her essays are hilarious in the deadest of deadpan, and yet still deeply moving. Sarah Vowell's essays about our country, our history, and our culture are witty and insightful. I liked some better than others. Particular favorites were "Ike Was a Handsome Man" about presidential libraries and "Rosa Parks, C'est Moi" about some people's audacity to compare themselves to Rosa Parks. Reading this book made me want to travel all around the country and visit national parks and small museums about very specific histories. The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell is a compilation of essays, stories and anecdotes with a theme of liberal politics and history. I’d been meaning to read Sarah Vowell for a while. She’d been mentioned in the same breath with David Sedaris whom I find hilarious and I’d seen her titles on a co-worker’s bookshelf. She’s got good taste which helped sway my thoughts. Throw in some love from Jon Stewart and it seemed that what I was really missing in my life was reading Ms. Vowell. (And what a great name for a writer eh?) I enjoyed The Partly Cloudy Patriot, though I’m not sure everyone would, particularly if you have a conservative mindset. No, she’s not anywhere near the Augusten Burroughs nor David Sedaris in the out-in-left-left-field department, but she’s not really a moderate either. Let’s face it, she trekked to the Bush inauguration to show her displeasure for the way in which he was elected. Don’t get me wrong, I lean that way heavily myself and in some ways admire those who have the time and inclination to partake in the political discourse. But … I have things to do too. Read my full review on the Used Books Blog: http://usedbooksblog.com/blog/the-par... I love Vowell's writing. This is a book of smart, funny, poignant essays, about politics, family, history, New York, Montana, popular culture. She has a remarkable way of stating strong opinions and yet keeping an open mind; you just know she could dialogue with anyone. Vowell can clearly express, for example, how really bad Bush is for the US (and the world) without coming right out and saying how really bad Bush is for the US (and the world). I aspire to be her. Or at least to write like her. At the very least, I wish I'd had her for a history teacher. This is my second Sarah Vowell; I listened to the audio version of Assassination Vacation last year, which is also stellar. She's moved onto my Favorite Authors list. 0.028 seconds to build listing
Amazon.com Book Description (ISBN 0743223527, Hardcover)In The Partly Cloudy Patriot, Sarah Vowell travels through the American past and, in doing so, investigates the dusty, bumpy roads of her own life. In this insightful and funny collection of personal stories Vowell -- widely hailed for her inimitable narratives on public radio's This American Life -- ponders a number of curious questions: Why is she happiest when visiting the sites of bloody struggles like Salem or Gettysburg? Why do people always inappropriately compare themselves to Rosa Parks? Why is a bad life in sunny California so much worse than a bad life anywhere else? What is it about the Zen of foul shots? And, in the title piece, why must doubt and internal arguments haunt the sleepless nights of the true patriot? Her essays confront a wide range of subjects, themes, icons, and historical moments: Ike, Teddy Roosevelt, and Bill Clinton; Canadian Mounties and German filmmakers; Tom Cruise and Buffy the Vampire Slayer; twins and nerds; the Gettysburg Address, the State of the Union, and George W. Bush's inauguration. The result is a teeming and engrossing book, capturing Vowell's memorable wit and her keen social commentary. (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:24 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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