America
Jon Stewart, 2004
★ 4.01 from 97.8k ratings on Goodreads
A fake civics textbook that treats American democracy as a glorious, grubby, and very funny institutional mess. A brisk, joke-dense tour of government that mixes silly textbook parody with real anger about how democracy works.
Feels like humor, joy and melancholy. About power, death and society.
Who it’s for
You may like it if you enjoy satire that treats civics as a messy, absurd institution and don't mind jokes aimed at government and media. Be aware that some readers find the TV humor flatter on the page, and a few passages are crude or offensive.
Why read it
It gives you a funny, sharp way to look at the machinery of American government, especially when official language and media coverage start to sound like a parody.
A page from the book
How do you write a founding document when someone keeps talking about his anatomy?
But on what basis should the three branches of government be divided? It came down to two dueling ideas: Madison’s proposal of an executive, judicial and legislative branch, and Georgia’s Joseph Morton’s proposal to dole out power according to, “The presence, forbearance, rectictude and largeosity of one’s ‘Plums and Carrot’.” After much deliberation, it was decided Madison’s proposal would be accepted, Morton only relenting after the Constitutional Convention agreed to proclaim him “impressive.” What readers say
Readers overwhelmingly find it hilarious and clever, especially as a textbook parody skewering government and media; many praise the audiobook performances. Some are disappointed that the TV humor doesn't translate to print, and a few dislike its crude or offensive passages.
Jon Stewart.Jon Stewart hosted The Daily Show from 1999 to 2015; America (The Book) was published in 2004 and became a #1 bestseller.
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Questions readers ask
- Is America for me?
- You may like it if you enjoy satire that treats civics as a messy, absurd institution and don't mind jokes aimed at government and media. Be aware that some readers find the TV humor flatter on the page, and a few passages are crude or offensive.
- What is America like?
- A brisk, joke-dense tour of government that mixes silly textbook parody with real anger about how democracy works. Feels like humor, joy and melancholy. About power, death and society.
- What should I read after America?
- If you liked America, try I Am America (And So Can You!) (Stephen Colbert), Decision Points (George W. Bush) and Alistair Cooke's America (Alistair Cooke).
A taste of the feed
The cheerful logic of a country deciding its past never happened.
So let’s take that beautiful idea to its logical conclusion and not only leave the past behind but deny the past ever happened. Like this: America is not a land of immigrants. There. Was that so hard to say? It makes sense if you think about it. It feels like we’ve been here forever, doesn’t it? Let’s just assume we have been.
I Am America (And So Can You!) · Stephen Colbert
When the market stops following the rules, who is truly responsible for the collapse?
I was furious the situation had reached this point. A relatively small group of people—many on Wall Street, some not—had gambled that the housing market would keep booming forever. It didn’t. In a normal environment, the free market would render its judgment and they could fail.
Decision Points · George W. Bush
What a lifetime of news looks like when it's recited in one breath.
During thirtyfive years as a foreign correspondent, I must have covered just about everything, from the public life of six Presidents to the private life of a burlesque stripper; from the black market in beef to the Black Panthers; from Estes Kefauver amid the snows of New Hampshire to Jack Nicklaus amid the azaleas of Augusta, Georgia; from Henry Kaiser’s Liberty ships to Francis Chichester’s Gypsy Moth sailing into Staten Island at one in the morning; from the Marshall Plan to Planned Parenthood; from Senator Joseph McCarthy’s last stand to the massacre of Muhammad Ali by Joe Frazier.
Alistair Cooke's America · Alistair Cooke
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