| | Location: Home » Political Science » Game Change CD: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime | |
|
|
Game Change CD: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime |  | Authors: John Heilemann, Mark Halperin
Creator: Dennis Boutsikaris
Publisher: HarperAudio
Category: Book
List Price: $39.99
Buy New: $17.95
as of 7/30/2010 21:07 CDT details
You Save: $22.04 (55%)
New (26) Used (15) from $17.95
Seller: MyDVDlibrary
Rating:  6 reviews
Format: Audiobook, Unabridged
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Unabridged
Number Of Items: 12
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 5.7 x 5.3 x 1.6
ISBN: 0062005634
Dewey Decimal Number: 973.932
EAN: 9780062005632
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
| |
| Features:
| • | ISBN13: 9780062005632 | | • | Condition: New | | • | Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed |
|
| Similar Items:
| |
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
"This shit would be really interesting if we weren't in the middle of it." —Barack Obama, September 2008 In 2008, the presidential election became blockbuster entertainment. Everyone was watching as the race for the White House unfolded like something from the realm of fiction. The meteoric rise and historic triumph of Barack Obama. The shocking fall of the House of Clinton—and the improbable resurrection of Hillary as Obama's partner and America's face to the world. The mercurial performance of John McCain and the mesmerizing emergence of Sarah Palin. Based on hundreds of interviews with the people who lived the story, Game Change is a reportorial tour de force that reads like a fast-paced novel. Character driven and dialogue rich, replete with extravagantly detailed scenes, this is the occasionally shocking, often hilarious, ultimately definitive account of the campaign of a lifetime.
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
 Best audiobook I have listened to in a while May 14, 2010
Samir Shah (Pittsburgh, PA United States)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I loved the narration of this book. Read like a novel, really well written for a political book. Comprehensive and well paced. The narrator is the best voice I have listened to in a long while. Nicely done.
 Good gossip, but juiciest bits are already out there March 31, 2010
D. J. Nardi (Washington, DC)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
"Game Change" is fun political gossip. As you probably heard, it's not analytical history or a digest of policy disputes. Rather, it's full of back-stabbing plots and trivia. However, I think the book launch and media hype ruined the book for me. Just reading a few articles from Politico or Washington Post revealed many of the biggest "reveals" or interesting tidbits. The rest of the book isn't nearly as exciting. In fact, I can't recall anything that hasn't been revealed already that would make the book listening to, unless you're an obsessive political junkie. So, in short, it's a fun retelling of the 2008 election, but I think a lot of the "wow" factor is gone.
great odyssey March 29, 2010
coyotem (seattle)
the guy reading this book apparently wasn't edited as he is constantly mispronouncing words but his speaking style was fine. the text is high drama; very interesting and somewhat demoralizing.
 Has all the Virtues and Vices of Good Gossip May 7, 2010
CJA (Minneapolis, MN)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This book lacks the sophistication of the classic post-campaign tell-all, such as those authored by Theodore White. But it is chock full of tasty gossip and insight into the personalities of those who strut their hour on the national stage every four years.
Of all the personalities, Obama comes off the best. There is an aloofness and cold-bloodedness about him (qualities that seem to be possessed by the most successful modern American politicians such as FDR, Kennedy, and Reagan)and he does suffer from a great deal of self confidence. But, his ego does appear to be under control, he loves his family, he has a sense of humor, and he is more than a reader of speeches. On this last point, Obama, like JFK (only more so) is very much in control of his policy formulation, message, and speech text.
Hillary Clinton comes off well, though she does suffer from the overweaning arrogance of Washington insiders who view any nonmember (or recent member) of the club as a lightweight disqualified from holding office. That she started picking her cabinet before the first primary or caucus tells you all you need to know about the arrogance and sense of entitlement that gave her such high negatives. On the other hand, she is portrayed as a person of great substance and strength eminently qualified to serve as President. And the authors have an interesting tale to tell of the friendship and mutual admiration (interrupted a bit by a bitter campaign) between Clinton and Obama.
McCain does not come off well, though his personal integrity and strong character are not challenged. Rather, he suffers from what led even the likes of George Will to oppose his candidacy: an impulsive temperament and failure to take deliberate, considered action. This is demonstrated in a devastating narrative of the September 2008 economic meltdown. McCain is shown to be woefully unprepared in the policy and the politics of the situation, whereas Obama took command of the Democratic caucus in both houses in the negotiations with Bush. The authors contend that this episode ultimately sank McCain for good -- which is convincing.
Palin is portrayed not as stupid, shallow, or weak (the words used by her fiercest critics) but as an intelligent and politically saavy person who is ignorant of national and international affairs and who probably needed 10 more years of seasoning for the national stage. McCain staffers who disliked Palin obviously squealed, and portray Palin as having a near nervous breakdown on the eve of the debate and as engendering panic amongst the ranks at the thought of her ever becoming President.
John Edwards comes off worst of all -- indeed, he appears to be someone with narcissistic personality disorder, wholly out of touch and lacking in empathy, and unsuited for high office. The surface appeal of this guy and its contrast with reality are so shocking as to restore faith in the necessity of the grueling marathon of the Presidential election cycle. Even more interesting, though, is the poor behavior of Mrs. Edwards, whom staffers completely detested despite her positive public persona.
There is not enough analysis of the policy and social issues raised by the campaign for this to be ranked with the better books about campaigns past. And most of the book concerns the Democratic primary contests, with the Republican contest and especially the ensuing general election short-changed.
Given the positive treatment of Obama, some may question the political biases of the writers. But I find the writing on the whole to be objective and based on the sources they were able to access. Winners write the history books, the cliche goes, and the coverage from the winner's perspective is always going to be more positive.
The reader is not the best. He has some irritating inflections and intrusiveness. But on the whole, this is a fun read.
Its a weird system June 23, 2010
Tom Munro (Melbourne, Victoria Australia)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The book is journalistic in that it reads more like a novel than a piece of history. A majority of the book is devoted to the primaries with about a third to the Presidential campaign. Hilary Clinton and Barrack Obama are the heroes. John McCain is portrayed as a decent but aging politician who is not up to the struggle. Sara Palin is a woman who is a whisker away from a total mental breakdown.
Most journalists see the important thing in a political campaign are the news stories. A revelation about Obama's preacher putting him behind in the polls. A news story about Edwards supposed affair leading to the implosion of his campaign.
One wonders to what extent this is an accurate way of understanding what actually happened. In the primaries Obama was generally "beaten" by Clinton in the various debates. He only started to win them in the Presidential campaign when he prepared very strongly to deal with McCain. The reason for his success early rather than the new cycle was his organization. He was able to mobilize an organization that was able to increase the interest in his nomination and to lead to bigger attendances at the caucuses and later at the general election. He was also able to raise money through getting large numbers of small donations using the internet. Mobilizing interest and outspending his rivals was probably more important to his victory than minor gaffs made by Clinton and McCain.
The book apparently contains some revelations. These are around some of the characters showing emotion at time, having temper fits or meltdowns. Things which are unremarkable to a general reader but are of significance for an American. There seems to be much more of a tendency to build up politicians as heroes and American's see it as a personal attack if someone lambasts one of their idols. The main recipient of what vitriol the book has is Sarah Palin. She is portrayed as poorly educated, a person who can wrote learn but has problems understanding complex matters such as economics.
One of the unusual things is that the authors have no real idea of how strange America's system appears. For instance in Countries such as Britain, New Zealand or Australia the election to determine the leader of the country will go for 4-6 weeks. In America the election process lasts close to 2 years. In Britain the people who are seeking to win government will be leaders of parties who will have been discussing the key issues for years in parliament, in the media and who have a handle on the direction of the country and what government does.
In America the situation is weirdly different. The three leading contestants for the Democratic nomination were: a woman who had been a lawyer and successful author and who had served in a legislative body, another male who was a lawyer and a successful author who had spent less time as a legislator and the last was a more successful lawyer who had spent a limited time as a legislator. On the Republican side Sarah Palin, also a successful author seems to be a person who had some talents in mobilizing rusted on elements of her party but was otherwise of limited experience.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
|
|
|
|
| |
|
