Why Not Me?: The Inside Story of the Making and Unmaking of the Franken Presidency
by Al Franken
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Book Summary Information
Author: Al FrankenEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2000-02-08
ISBN: 0385334540
Number of pages: 320
Publisher: Delta
Book Reviews of Why Not Me?: The Inside Story of the Making and Unmaking of the Franken Presidency
Book Review: A Bipartisan Disappointment
Summary: 2 Stars
The first 50 or so pages of this timely political satire are vintage Franken: The shameless self-promotion mixed with mock piety. The premise is wonderfully absurd (Franken runs for President on the single issue of lowering ATM fees), and Franken presents the material in a variety of formats: Excerpts from his "autobiography" ("The Courage to Dare"), transcripts of political chat shows, and selected material from his speeches and diary. Pages 3-4, for example, include a letter to Chief Justice Rehnquist, asking if he'll appear for a photo for the cover the book. Franken offers to reimburse him for "off-peak train fare," and then asking for free legal advice.But then Franken destroys the readers' trust in his cheeky humor and insight by making himself thoroughly unlikable in the remaining 200-some pages. Rather than posing as the politician you love to hate, candidate Franken is merely a juvenile prankster, puerile and unfunny. The sex and drug jokes, the cheap shots at public figures, and the sexist and other offensive escapades are grade school quality and repetitive. They are so unlikely that-as satire-Franken's implicit commentary on the hypocrisy of politicians and the flaws of the electorate has no wit or insight. Instead, he offers an implausible figure with nowhere to go satirically or as straight-ahead comedy. The net effect is a mostly unfunny ego-trip that quickly loses its initial appeal.
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