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albstarr's review
2.0
(Audio) I enjoyed a couple essays but overall not my favorite collection. The author has a really unique voice & I didn’t enjoy listening to the narration. I think my rating would have been higher if I’d read the book.
sharppointysticks's review against another edition
4.0
I rather liked this one! The songs in between sections (by They Might be Giants) was a nice touch to the audiobook.
allegra_j's review
4.0
I read this book election week 2020. I picked it up Nov 2nd because I wanted something funny. I had no idea how much time the book would spend on themes that are particularly salient right now, from an examination of her feelings around the presidential election of 2000 (Bush v. Gore) which sounded so eerily familiar and yet also quaint compared to what is happening right now.... to themes on how we are all human beings and we are all one country (something much in doubt right now).
Having had no very good idea of the themes of this book, I was pleasantly surprised. I can't imagine a better time to have read this book than right now. And now that I'm finished, the election of 2020 is still not yet decided.
The only drawback is that I listened to the Audible version. I can handle Sarah Vowell's voice in short This American Life quantities, but for several hours at a time, it does get a little grating. And I feel really mean for saying that but I think she also knows she has a child-like voice. Had I realized that, I might have enjoyed the hard copy version better.
Having had no very good idea of the themes of this book, I was pleasantly surprised. I can't imagine a better time to have read this book than right now. And now that I'm finished, the election of 2020 is still not yet decided.
The only drawback is that I listened to the Audible version. I can handle Sarah Vowell's voice in short This American Life quantities, but for several hours at a time, it does get a little grating. And I feel really mean for saying that but I think she also knows she has a child-like voice. Had I realized that, I might have enjoyed the hard copy version better.
vicioustrollope's review
4.0
earnest and thoughtful look at what it means to be a patriot in america. if you like quippy writing and/or npr, read this.
logantea's review
3.0
Really hit or miss. And being politically based humor it hasn't aged super well. Some of it seems very quaint and others dated.
jcschildbach's review
5.0
I love Sarah Vowell, and may be in love with Sarah Vowell. Who else would reference Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Al Gore's first book, and the correct Seminole languages (via a reference to a Revenge of the Nerds sequel) in an essay on the Supreme Court calling a halt to the vote recounts in Florida in the 2000 presidential election? Vowell is passionate about history and politics, but also well-versed in pop culture, all in an incredibly personal way. She is able to articulate the contradictions in American life and in her private life (which makes it that much more universal), such as how it is possible to both love and be deeply disturbed by one's family, and one's country.
langwidere's review
sarah vowell is always a lil treat for me, especially when i get to larp bush era while reading it. history girls we are legion!!!
jes312's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Some points didn't age well, others still ring true.
pamiverson's review against another edition
3.0
Her reflections as a political nerd circa 2001-2002. Would have been better to have read it closer to that time.
alisarae's review
5.0
Fantastic amd hilarious personal essays about Americana that took me back to the period of Bush-era political frustration washed in midwestern naivety. Remember when the Lewinsky scandal was still fresh in our minds and Al Gore “invented the internet”? Ahh, the good ol days.
Anyways, I love American humore that is self-depreciating and appreciates our Wild West values. two choice essays here: Why Americans have cowboys and Canadians have mounties, and how Gore vs Bush was a replay of highschool nerds vs jocks.
Also, if you don’t listen to this via audiobook, you are missing out. Sarah Vowell is a favorite voice on This American Life and she plays Violet in The Incredibles. Also, there is functional music by They Might Be Giants.
Anyways, I love American humore that is self-depreciating and appreciates our Wild West values. two choice essays here: Why Americans have cowboys and Canadians have mounties, and how Gore vs Bush was a replay of highschool nerds vs jocks.
Also, if you don’t listen to this via audiobook, you are missing out. Sarah Vowell is a favorite voice on This American Life and she plays Violet in The Incredibles. Also, there is functional music by They Might Be Giants.