Best-selling humorist P.J. O’Rourke is back to share some thoughts about America in 2020. In A Cry from the Far Middle, he mixes history, literature, pop culture, personal anecdotes, and civics in a series of essays that bring a little logic and perspective back to American politics.
O'Rourke uses his signature style to compare the early history of the colonists to the unrest in the country today. He talks about the differences between Coastals and Heartlanders. He argues the difference between government and politics, and he points out the positive points to the current political climate. He rants about the new billionaires in their t-shirts and shorts (“let’s make rich people uncomfortable again!”), and explains what it means now that puritanism is back.
He talks social media, fake news, sympathy and empathy, education, drug culture, the electoral college, foreign policy, journalism, and his fantasy presidential debate. And maybe most importantly, he encourages us all to relax a little, take a step back to look at the bigger picture, and understand that this is all part of the game. America is not broken. It’s just . . . America.
You need to be aware of what you’re getting into with P.J. O’Rourke. He sounds humble and engaging, using a bit of “aw, shucks, I’m from Ohio” to draw you in, and then he hits you between the eyes with ancient playwrights, classical philosophers, Marshall McLuhan, Ogden Nash, George Orwell, Mark Twain, modern YA, and a host of other great thinkers and talkers to help him make his point. He is a master with words, and he will use them in rhymes, alliteration, wisecracks, and witticisms to bend you to his ideas.
I’m not one to talk much politics these days. I’ve been avoiding reading about it, posting about it, talking about it, or watching it on media, social or otherwise. But I can get behind a book like this. It’s smart without being judgmental, savvy without being servile, clever without being obnoxious, and just plain funny. There are a lot of political books coming out these days, but this is the only one I can recommend to anyone, no matter how you plan on voting.
I got the audio version of A Cry from the Far Middle, and while I was disappointed that it wasn’t read by the author himself, I thought narrator L.J. Ganser did an excellent job of keeping things smart, witty, and down to earth. I think he captures O’Rourke’s voice to perfection, reading each essay with the same attitude and warmth that he would have done himself.
I really enjoyed A Cry from the Far Middle, and I highly recommend it as an audio book to anyone who is tired of being pulled by the far left or the far right, and who is needing some good, old fashioned wisdom and humor.
A copy of the audio book for A Cry from the Far Middle was provided by HighBridge Audio, with many thanks.
