Double Down by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann

Double Down: Game Change 2012 by Mark Halperin

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I picked this up the day it came out, which is one of those character-revealing statements, probably. Anyway, this is perhaps more gossipy and personality-driven than the 2008 volume, which is pretty impressive considering this book contains no John Edwards and very little Sarah Palin. The buzz in the circles I move in was mostly about Christie, as this book contains leaked details of his vetting file compiled by Romney's VP search team. And pretty unpleasant stuff it is, too. But you don't need to read the book for that; just wait about two years and you'll get the lowdown, whether you want it or not.

Mostly, though . . . eh. The funny thing about 2012 was, the more you knew about the election, the less interesting it was. And by necessity, I knew a shit ton about it. I can't count the number of times my friends were caught in spasms of anguish over it and I was like, "eh, take a chill pill." I mean, 2008 was genuinely interesting and, for a long time, genuinely suspenseful. 2012 was neither – the narrative crystalized early and never budged, and the electoral math was writing on the wall not long after. So what you've got left is Romney sticking his foot in his mouth, the President demonstrating to everyone how much he fuckin' hated debates, and The Donald. Just not that interesting, and this is me saying that.




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The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Lovely and surprising. My expectations were low given the setup (sixteen-year-old girl has been told by her fortune-telling family that kissing her true love will kill him, sigh, groan), but I was pleased to discover a complicated, well-controlled story of friendship and self-determination, peopled by smart, conflicted teenagers. And you guys know my interest in teenagers is at a permanent low ebb. But this book does the all-too-rare trick of making teenagers into actual people, which is something I may be cursing later as at least one of them will probably be dead when it's all over.



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