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Losers
Michael Lewis is a master at dissecting the absurd: after skewering Wall Street in his national bestseller Liar's Poker, he packed his mighty pen and set out on the 1996 campaign trail. As he follows the men who aspire to the Oval Office, Lewis discovers an absurd mix of bravery and backpedaling, heroic possibility and mealy-mouthed sound bytes, and a process so ridiculous...more
Paperback, 320 pages
Published
July 28th 1998
by Vintage
(first published May 27th 1997)
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THIS is why I’m a Michael Lewis fan. The book follows the 1996 presidential campaign trail from an unusual slant; although assigned to cover the campaign, Lewis constantly finds that there’s nothing interesting going on with the frontrunners, so he spends time getting to know the candidates who have no chance of winning. I left more highlights and notes in this book than in any other that I’ve read on the Kindle. Losers blends top-notch writing, a strange slant on political insight, and . All al...more
Wow, I remembered this book being far better than it actually was. Theoretically a hilarious look at the losing candidates in the 1996 presidential election, it ends up being just a basket of anecdotes and quick character sketches. No arcs, but an anti-arc carving out the whitespace around Clinton's march to re-election.
I originally read it during the '08 presidential election, and I think my enjoyment then was at discovering that Keyes was just as ridiculous in 1996 as he was in 2004 and 2008....more
I originally read it during the '08 presidential election, and I think my enjoyment then was at discovering that Keyes was just as ridiculous in 1996 as he was in 2004 and 2008....more
It's not Fear and Loathing and the election it covers is among the most insignificant in our country's history, but Lewis is a great writer and there's a lot in here that I really enjoyed. It was kind of refreshing to read about our not-so-distant past where Pat Buchanan was the most marginal candidate that the Republicans considered nominating. The truly prescient part was where professional nut-case Alan Keyes, with a platform very similar to Michele Bachmann's, said that he wasn't running to...more
I'd likely have enjoyed this a good bit more if (a) I didn't think Michael Lewis was so freakishly awesome and (b) I hadn't read DFW's truly outstanding essay, "Up, Simba" (from Consider the Lobster). Comes off kind of mean-spirited, supercilious and unsure of itself.
NB: This was authored before Lewis married MTV VJ (and fantasy of my adolescence, well one anyway) Tabitha Soren, at least going by the omitted shout-out in the ACKs, but he does mention friend "Tabitha Sornberger", who "read and im...more
NB: This was authored before Lewis married MTV VJ (and fantasy of my adolescence, well one anyway) Tabitha Soren, at least going by the omitted shout-out in the ACKs, but he does mention friend "Tabitha Sornberger", who "read and im...more
Michael Lewis is currently making a big name for himself writing books about money. Moneyball, The Big Short and, most recently, Boomerang. All good stuff. REALLY good stuff. This book, Trail Fever, is about the 1996 presidential campaign, and I was absolutely captivated by it. His campaign trail anecdotes had me laughing out loud at times, and his depiction of the raft of Republican candidates for the position which would eventually go to Bob Dole as the Republican challenger to Clinton's secon...more
1996 elections had some interesting characters and that is all this book has to offer--interesting characters. Lewis becomes fascinated with "The Grizz" and seems to lose his point of view for the book, which reads like a character sketch. The book makes a half-hearted attempt to make a statement about American politics as a whole, but Lewis gets so caught up in "The Grizz" that the book settles into a no-mans land between a political read and a character sketch.
Two stars: I expect more from Mi...more
Two stars: I expect more from Mi...more
Yeah, Michael Lewis is great.
So, this is Michael Lewis' look at the 1996 election via the Republican primaries, some of the minor candidates, and a little Clinton.
Lewis isn't a political writer, and this doesn't have a lot of political theory in it - more campaigning theory, and strikingly non-partisan.
I found out about this book by listening to old episodes of This American Life, and loving Lewis' Moneyball. This wasn't quite the pageturner that I found Moneyball to be, but for a book about a 1...more
So, this is Michael Lewis' look at the 1996 election via the Republican primaries, some of the minor candidates, and a little Clinton.
Lewis isn't a political writer, and this doesn't have a lot of political theory in it - more campaigning theory, and strikingly non-partisan.
I found out about this book by listening to old episodes of This American Life, and loving Lewis' Moneyball. This wasn't quite the pageturner that I found Moneyball to be, but for a book about a 1...more
an excellent book, particularly in retrospect, from this election year... in some ways, it captures much of what is wrong with American politics specifically, campaigns.
And if you ever wondered how & why John McCain disappeared in the 2008 election, you'll find the answer here
And if you ever wondered how & why John McCain disappeared in the 2008 election, you'll find the answer here
A great look at the 1996 election that left me with the distinct impression that the candidates were the least interesting part of it. I would be fascinated by the same book about the most recent election.
Lewis - who is NOT a Republican - reminded me that the McCain who ran in 2008 was not the same one I liked. I could have voted for the one I liked and the one Lewis liked. McCain wanted to be president too much by 2008 and let the 'rented strangers' do what they did to Dole...who I also didn't...more
Lewis - who is NOT a Republican - reminded me that the McCain who ran in 2008 was not the same one I liked. I could have voted for the one I liked and the one Lewis liked. McCain wanted to be president too much by 2008 and let the 'rented strangers' do what they did to Dole...who I also didn't...more
Solid presidential campaign reportage from 1996 campaign, ala Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail. Losers are much more interesting than the winners, and there were some interesting parallels to the 2012 race.
This might have been interesting when it was written, but feels very dated now. Too bad - I think Michael Lewis is a very good writer.
This is an account of the 1996 election, written by a non-political writer who is decidedly outside of, and disenchanted by, the normal political reporting process. He shows how normal behavior is lampooned as weird by the same media and political system that ignores some of the strangest, unnatural habits imaginable.
In a way it's very similar to the Joan Didion book, Political Fictions, but he's more funny and witty, and less dense and depressing. Didion tends to be hated by anyone under the a...more
In a way it's very similar to the Joan Didion book, Political Fictions, but he's more funny and witty, and less dense and depressing. Didion tends to be hated by anyone under the a...more
Quick review: This is a book I read several years ago for book club and so I don’t remember all that much but it’s part of my series of reviews that are more impressionistic (and based on my faulty memory). I loved this book because A) I chose it for book club so I’m self-interested; B) I like politics; C) this guy has a great eye for the absurd and then flawlessly describing what makes it absurd. He knows how to use the English language and does a great job of describing scenes the candidates a...more
Great story about presidential elections. Equal parts hilarious, insightful and depressing.
Great behind the scenes look at the 1996 GOP primary.
a political gossip magazine.
Quite the time capsule.
An interesting account of the 1996 Republican Primary followed by Presidential election. Michael Lewis acknowledges the common critisms of the modern political campaign, but attacks the system but not the participants. The novel does not provide any radical or original fixes to the current political problems of America. However, it does provide an illuminating inside account that is less cynical than that of many political journalists.
Not Lewis' best work, but certainly funny and quotable. It brought out the cynic in me, thanks to his snarky comments about the real politicians.
Feb 17, 2008
Nancy
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Surprised, didn't like it and gave up. Highly enjoy Michael Lewis other work.
May 08, 2013
Boris Bratz
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Apr 21, 2013
Tyreese
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Michael Lewis attended Princeton University where he received a BA in art history in 1982. He also received a masters degree in economics from the London School of Economics in 1985.
He went on to work with New York art dealer Wildenstein, and then became a bond salesman at...more
More about Michael Lewis...
Michael Lewis attended Princeton University where he received a BA in art history in 1982. He also received a masters degree in economics from the London School of Economics in 1985.
He went on to work with New York art dealer Wildenstein, and then became a bond salesman at...more
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Jun 06, 2010 05:36pm