MADreads

The times that try men’s (and women’s) souls

January 19th, 2007 Emily - Lakeview

Sarah Vowell’s non-fiction collection of essays, The Partly Cloudy Patriot are an attempt by the author to figure out how she ended up a history buff - a term she considers only applicable to old white men.  Her essay on nerds (The Nerd Voice) had me laughing the whole way through as it focuses mostly on Al Gore and how he should have spun his nerdiness in order to win the presidency.  Vowell’s answer: take notes from Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s self-deprecating Willow and use the “nerd voice” to poke fun at how smart you actually are.  In another essay (State of the Union) Vowell describes her experiences at the 2001 presidential inauguration ceremony and how there were two camps of people in attendance.  It quickly becomes clear which she belonged to as she started bawling when Bush stepped onto the stage.  The title of the book is a play on Thomas Paine’s famous quote “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier, and the sunshine patriot, will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.”  As Vowell, a New Yorker, becomes more sickened by supposed displays of patriotism after the events of 9/11, she realizes that she can’t be a sunshine patriot any more.

I listened to this book on tape and the audio version was lots of fun.  Vowell narrates the book herself and having experience on NPR, she does a great job.  The musical transitions between chapters and little songs Vowell wrote when she was a kid are all very well done by They Might Be Giants.  Vowell also manages to get some great comedians to guest narrate certain parts: David Cross as Theodore Roosevelt, Seth Green, Conan O’Brien and Norman Lear. The best one by far though is Steven Colbert as Al Gore.  Vowell’s essays regarding politics in America were thought provoking while managing to be funny and witty.

Entry Filed under: Nonfiction