I Am America (And So Can You!) is a book written by Steven Colbert. Steven Colbert is the host of his show The Colbert Report. The Colbert Report is a show that gives the news in an entertaining, comedic, and satirical fashion. Steven Colbert wrote I Am America (And So Can You!) about his life and his views on life. I this novel he has three different parts to represent the three different parts of his life. The parts are “My American Childhood,” “My American Adolescence,” and “My American Maturity.”
The first part of the novel, “My American Childhood,” is of course about childhood. In “My American Childhood” he talks about “the five F’s of childhood.” “The five F’s of childhood are family, faith, furry friends, and fear of the elderly.” These five F’s of childhood teach us “Where We Belong, What Belongs to Us, and Who We Belong to.” Stephen starts out by talking about the subject of family. In the chapter “The Family” he talks about the importance of family, what a family consists of, and how a family should be run. The next subject Stephen talks about is the elderly. In the chapter “Old People” he talks about general things about old people, what we can learn from old people, and how we should treat old people. The third subject Stephen talks about is furry friends. In the chapter “Animals” he talks about the importance of pets, the importance of animals used for food and product manufacturing, and endangered animals. The last subject Stephen talks about in this part of the novel is faith. In the chapter “Religion” he talks about the importance of religion in people’s lives, religion in America, religion in war, and about all the different types of religions throughout the world.
The second part of the novel, “My American Adolescence”, is about becoming and adult. In “My American Adolescence” Stephen talks about “the five big S’s of adolescence.” Three of “the five big S’s of adolescence are school, sports, and the silver screen.” Two of “the five big S’s of adolescence” are topics not fit for school environment so I was forced to leave them out in the review. The first subject Stephen talks about in this part of the novel is sports. In the chapter “Sports” he talks about the importance of sports, the history of sports, and he also breaks down many of the different sports that are popular to kids in America. The next topic Stephen talks about is school. In the chapter “Higher Education” he talks about the good and bad of the education system in America, he also talks about how to get into college, and what to do once you get into college. The last subject he talks about in “My American Adolescence” is the sliver screen. In the chapter “Hollywood” he talks about the old Hollywood, the new Hollywood, and the people in Hollywood.
The third and last part of the novel, “My American Maturity,” is about adulthood. In “My American Maturity” Stephen talks about “the four Ss and one M of maturity.” “The four Ss and one M of maturity are socioeconomics, segregation, science, sombreros, and the media.” The first subject Stephen talks about is the media. In the chapter “The Media” he talks about different news teams, the different ways that news is spread, and about the good and bad things of today’s media. The next topic Stephen talks about is socioeconomics. In the chapter “Class Wars” he talks about all the different social classes in the country and what separates them, and how to change your social class. The third subject Stephen talks about is segregation. In the chapter “Race” he talks about where racism came from, about racism in today’s world, and about affirmative action. The fourth subject that Stephen talks about is sombreros (immigration). In the chapter “Immigrants” he talks about illegal immigration from Mexico to America, and how to solve immigration problems. The last subject Stephen talks about is science. In the chapter “Science” he talks about The Scientific Method, and he tells about his views on a whole alphabet of scientific terms.
I read this book because I watch The Colbert Report and wanted to learn more about Steven Colbert. I believe this is a great book to pick up and read if you do not have a long time to just sit and read because it is organized very well. I Am America (And So Can You!) has lots of comedy and is an “easy read” as some people call it. This book is not for people of all ages because it has some strong opinions on controversial subjects but is still a great book to read especially if you like The Colbert Report. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn about popular subjects in today’s media.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I have always wanted to read this novel by Steven Colbert. I love his show and would probably enjoy reading his novel as well. Just by seeing the titles of his chapters, I can tell that Colbert uses humorous satire in his novel. The fact that Colbert expresses strong opinions in his book would not prevent me from reading it because Colbert and I both share similar conservative views. Just from reading the post, I have one question. How does the title I Am America (And So Can You!) relate to some of the chapter titles in his book? I guess I must actually read the book to find the answer to that question.
ReplyDeleteI have been watching Steven Colbert’s show since its premier several years ago. His humorous and often satirical outlook on life and current events is very entertaining and has kept me laughing for hours. Several of my friends and family members have read his novel, and they have all recommended it to me. From this review, I can tell that Colbert’s comedic perception of life is just as prevalent in his novel as in his television show. This novel seems like a very entertaining and fun book to read. I have always been interested in Steven Colbert’s work, but this review has encouraged me to finally read his latest novel.
ReplyDeleteHaving seen Steven Colbert's report on comedy central, I can only look forward to a book written by him. Colbert's satires with a kernel of truth not only make me laugh outrageously, but also make statements about life that I can agree with. Judging from the review of this book, it would be more than worthwhile to read it. I would imagine that it would be entertaining, and I might even learn something in the meantime. I heartily agree that anything written by Steven Colbert will be more than humurous, entertaining, and pose extremely strong opinions on a multitude of issues. As I say, the brave people are the ones who say what they mean, mean what they say, and do not dress it up in niceties. Steven Colbert follows the description of a brave man to a tee, and I look forward to reading his book.
ReplyDeleteAha! We can all am America!
ReplyDeleteThat's irrelevant, but could not resist.
I have not read the entirety of I Am America (And So Can You!), but I have surveyed large sections of it and thoroughly enjoyed what I found there. The strong opinions on controversial subjects are tongue-in-cheek, occasionally even mocking the position he supposedly takes. I’m not sure how much someone could actually learn from reading the book (surprisingly, both the show and the book provide a skewed but amusing lesson on politics), but the humor alone makes the book worth it to read. I agree with Eric; if you like Stephen Colbert, then you will probably enjoy his book.
ReplyDeleteI have always loved Stephen Colbert’s work, including his reports on the Daily Show, and his own show, The Colbert Report. I find Stephen’s satirical and sarcastic jokes very amusing, and I like him because he and I share the same liberal views. Stephen’s mockery of conservative ideas is very entertaining. I think that some people misinterpret Stephen’s use of sarcasm. He actually mocks conservative views.
ReplyDeleteFrom this review, I can tell that I will love reading this book in the future, and hopefully laugh as you did. It is interesting to learn about Stephen’s past, being born and raised in South Carolina, and how he currently continues his quest “to conquer the world.”