There is nothing really new in this book. It’s more an excuse for a sassy writer to riff for some two hundred pages about the blunders and abuses of power of the Bush administration. Interestingly, Frank Rich used to be a drama critic. He’s written three other books besides The Greatest Story Ever Sold, one a memoir and the two others books about drama. This may give you an idea of Rich’s writing style.
If you’ve read barely any books about Bush and Iraq, or if you’ve only read the papers in a cursory manner, then this book comes recommended as a very good primer. Better still if you’ve read nothing about Bush and Iraq, then you’ll think this long diatribe is the work of an awe inspiring genius.
But for me I felt a little guilty in spending the time to read it. If you really want to read a great book about the war in Iraq, you must read Ali. A. Allawi’s book The Occupation of Iraq. Even The Australian’s Greg Sheridan called it the definitive book on the subject.
Frank Rich has a website, www.frankrich.com, which has a time line of critical events since September 11. Readers are invited to make corrections or even add their own contributions.
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