The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction

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It's a hit!

Absolutely hilarious and inventive book.

Much like the show it's based off of, this book features current (though I don't know how well the Bush v... (show more)

Absolutely hilarious and inventive book.

Much like the show it's based off of, this book features current (though I don't know how well the Bush vs. Kerry section in the back has aged) political commentary as it relates to the history the book presents that's just as bright and agreeable as The Daily Show ever was. Add in the full utilization of the book format (and more specifically the textbook format it is parodying) with odd diagrams and beautiful, vibrant design and you have a book that you won't just want to read, but will definitely want to own and maybe, just maybe leave lying around on your coffee table or bean bag chair or indoor funeral pyre (I don't want to imply that just because you're reading about a book written by the team behind a Viacom owned cable television show or reading a review about said book on Facebook that you've bought into the suburban stranglehold.) (show less)

 

 

by Kevin Rayfield

No, it's a flop!

I bought this for a friend as a Christmas present, and then ended up deciding to keep it after I found out he had already bought it...until I read ... (show more)

I bought this for a friend as a Christmas present, and then ended up deciding to keep it after I found out he had already bought it...until I read it.

This book will forever have the distinction of being the only book I've ever actually returned to a book store to get my money back. I'm sorry (not really), but I refuse to jump on the Jon Stewart bandwagon of love. Jon Steward, or whoever writes his stuff for him, really isn't that funny, creative, original, or edgy. This wasn't a cheap book, and for as much as it cost I expected all four of the previous qualities.

There were some good sections. I particularly enjoyed the section on different areas of the world from an American perspective. Seriously though, it's not new. And while I realize this book is several years old, these same jokes have been around far longer. The entire book is really just a print version of his show, and I don't find his show all that hilarious either. The comedic value is really hit and miss (much like the show), unless your have some kind of middle school mentality, and this passes for "raw edgy social commentary" to you. I think anyone who even has a rudimentary knowledge of political humor would be bored by this.

To summarize, its got some funny parts, but it has been done. By all means check the book out from the library, but it's really not worth it to pay full price at a book store. (show less)

 

 

by Kate Walsh

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  While it was fun and semi-informative, I really expected it to be much more funny than it was. I also thought it was confusing to try to sort out truth from fiction. The audio version had a nice cast of people reading it but unfortunately cut some of the content from the book if the packaging is to believed although I can't tell you to what extent. I think that the book might actually be a better read due to the creative formatting and sidebars actually in sidebars and visual jokes as well... (show more)

  While it was fun and semi-informative, I really expected it to be much more funny than it was. I also thought it was confusing to try to sort out truth from fiction. The audio version had a nice cast of people reading it but unfortunately cut some of the content from the book if the packaging is to believed although I can't tell you to what extent. I think that the book might actually be a better read due to the creative formatting and sidebars actually in sidebars and visual jokes as well. Also unfortunately the book seems like it would be most useful high schoolers who have just reviewed a lot of this material in class but likely has too many curse words to be appropriate for public recommendation to this audience. Overall, it wasn't bad but it wasn't super engaging either for a short car trip. Maybe pick something else instead. (show less)

   

  by Facebook User on Nov 25, 2009 at 07:16PM

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  This book is LOL funny but also commendably requires the reader to really focus on what they are reading because every page includes hilarious side notes and comments.

  When I first picked it up, I quickly became distracted by what I thought was the clunky design and puzzled over it, finally realizing Pentagram designed it and then, "lightbulb"! They meant to make it look like a poorly designed school textbook! Which made me find the book that much funnier.

  There are too many hilar... (show more)

  This book is LOL funny but also commendably requires the reader to really focus on what they are reading because every page includes hilarious side notes and comments.

  When I first picked it up, I quickly became distracted by what I thought was the clunky design and puzzled over it, finally realizing Pentagram designed it and then, "lightbulb"! They meant to make it look like a poorly designed school textbook! Which made me find the book that much funnier.

  There are too many hilarious passages to mention all of them, so let me just leave you with two that really made me laugh. In the foreword, "Thomas Jefferson" writes: " If crack existed in our day, that boozed-up snuff machine [Ben Franklin] would weigh 80 pounds and live outside the Port Authority." And in the Judicial Branch chapter, a paralegal's 1931 account states: "The interior chamber is near dark. In the middle of the room, the justices float in a huge tank of brine. Their decisions and dissents are issued in whale-song and hastily recorded and interpreted by clerks". (show less)

   

   

  by Giuliana Lonigro on Apr 19, 2009 at 06:45PM

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