In Stephen Colbert's biting satire of the many politician's and pundit's autobiographies, memoirs, arguments, and complaints, he plays his classic right-wing anchor character, but in book form. The book is hilarious, particularly for fans of his show and those familiar with the kind of book he is spoofing. He takes the reader through as many controversial issues as he can find, all while adding inflammatory opinions about all of them.
The book is not a challenging read, and is complete with info boxes, foot notes, margin notes, diagrams, illustrations, and "Fun Zones", which are never very fun, but always hilarious. The book is 230 pages, so I wouldn't call it insurmountable, either. If you are old enough to get the political jokes and corrupted enough that your parents won't care if you read some of the more off-color jokes, than it's fine.
Speaking of which, will your parent let you read this? It is more appropriate than most left-leaning political humor, especially when compared with the Daily Show's books and The Onion. There are a few jokes and subjects which some parents would be displeased with, but, chances are if you made it to 8th grade you've heard worse. Make sure it's OK with your parents before reading it. Or don't tell them and read it under the covers at night. That's what I did.
- Chris, Grade 8, CSCL
