Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
308th out of 1,046 books
—
5,570 voters
Bushwhacked: Life in George W. Bush's America
A simultaneously rollicking and sobering indictment of the policies of President George W. Bush, Bushwhacked chronicles the destructive impact of the Bush administration on the very people who put him in the White House in the first place. Here are the ties that connected Bush to Enron, yes, but here, too, is the story of the woman who walks six miles to the unemployment o...more
Paperback, 368 pages
Published
June 1st 2004
by Vintage
(first published 2003)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
1,850)
I enjoyed reading this book, but the second half is better than the first. The first half is chock-full of so many statistics and dizzying governmental jargon that I had a hard time understanding it all. I also think Molly Ivins and Lou Dobose could have done with fewer sob stories. The book was very Michael Moore-ish in this way. It does get their point across, but I think it is a tool they use too often. The second half of the book is chapter after maddening chapter presenting evidence of the...more
Bushwhacked: Life in George W. Bush's America
Molly Ivins & Lou DuBose
Vintage Books (Random House)
$17 CDN, Paperback
*** 1/2
Newspaper columns come in three varieties: Good, bad and disposable. A good column is provocative. It argues a case. It makes a reader think. It compels even those who oppose the author's stance to read it.
Unsurprisingly, the best-selling Bushwhacked (now available in a mass-market paperback edition) displays all of those qualities, which points to the reason why co-autho...more
Molly Ivins & Lou DuBose
Vintage Books (Random House)
$17 CDN, Paperback
*** 1/2
Newspaper columns come in three varieties: Good, bad and disposable. A good column is provocative. It argues a case. It makes a reader think. It compels even those who oppose the author's stance to read it.
Unsurprisingly, the best-selling Bushwhacked (now available in a mass-market paperback edition) displays all of those qualities, which points to the reason why co-autho...more
Jul 18, 2012
Don
added it
This was written by the late, great Molly Ivins, who had seen George Bush as governor, and then president. So, some of the things he did as governor were the same as when he was president. Tax breaks for millionaires is just one example.
But Ms. Ivins also brought into perspective some of the more horrible things Bush did as president. He got the country into deep debt by taking the country into two wars, both unfunded. He was terrible at foreign relations, and that explains why so many of our a...more
But Ms. Ivins also brought into perspective some of the more horrible things Bush did as president. He got the country into deep debt by taking the country into two wars, both unfunded. He was terrible at foreign relations, and that explains why so many of our a...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Absolutely fantastic informative book about the horror of the Bush years. It leaves the reader feeling much more knowledgeable and in my case, with much sympathy for the US electorate who have no way of having a fair election due to the immense amount of misinformation disseminated by those with the money to pay for the publicity. Shows the US system as deeply flawed. As Molly Ivins put it - government is for the "big bidness" when it should be for "the people". A must for anyone wanting an intr...more
We miss you, Molly Ivins! Being a Texan political reporter and essayist, she knew Dubya better than most when he took office as President, although he surprised even her with his capacity for murderous bungling and meanness. Her approach was, like that of Jim Hightower, to look at the lives of ordinary people and explore how they are affected by the politics of the President and the Congress. She blended laughter and hope with anger and determination not to let wrongdoing go unnoticed. The end r...more
1 like · like · see review
Not as good as her first book on Bush.
First of all, I LOVE EVERYTHING MOLLY IVINS!
I read this just before and after Barack Obama's 2009 inauguration and after the first several months of the Bush/Cheney economic meltdown --- due mostly, but not entirely, to Republican policies which have wreaked havoc on the world economy. Molly Ivins eerily predicts this in her book. She castigates Bush and the Republicans for dismantling economic safeguards which had been in place since the Great Depression.
I MISS MOLLY! She would have had so muc...more
I read this just before and after Barack Obama's 2009 inauguration and after the first several months of the Bush/Cheney economic meltdown --- due mostly, but not entirely, to Republican policies which have wreaked havoc on the world economy. Molly Ivins eerily predicts this in her book. She castigates Bush and the Republicans for dismantling economic safeguards which had been in place since the Great Depression.
I MISS MOLLY! She would have had so muc...more
Mar 04, 2012
Kate
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-in-2012,
political
WARNING: political content ahead. Read at your own risk!
"For years, bestselling political commentator Molly Ivins has been sounding the alarm about George W. Bush. In Shrub, her 2000 skewering of presidential candidate Bush, the inimitable Ivins, with co-author Lou Dubose, offered a devastating expose of Dubya's career and abysmal record as governor of Texas. Now, in their second book on our current White House occupant, Ivins and Dubose take the wire brush to the Bush presidency and show how he...more
"For years, bestselling political commentator Molly Ivins has been sounding the alarm about George W. Bush. In Shrub, her 2000 skewering of presidential candidate Bush, the inimitable Ivins, with co-author Lou Dubose, offered a devastating expose of Dubya's career and abysmal record as governor of Texas. Now, in their second book on our current White House occupant, Ivins and Dubose take the wire brush to the Bush presidency and show how he...more
If only this book had been read to everyone of voting age on Halloween of 2000! It truly is a horror story, and may have changed the minds of anyone stupid enough to have voted for bush in the election following, thus producing the greatest horror story in American history, or maybe second only to slavery. We are still suffering the long-term effects of slavery, but I fear the long-term effects of the most toxic administration in history are yet to be measured.
Ivins and Dubose start with the Pre...more
Ivins and Dubose start with the Pre...more
Bushwhacked: Life in George W. Bush's America
Molly Ivins & Lou DuBose
Vintage Books (Random House)
$17 CDN, Paperback
*** 1/2
Newspaper columns come in three varieties: Good, bad and disposable. A good column is provocative. It argues a case. It makes a reader think. It compels even those who oppose the author's stance to read it.
Unsurprisingly, the best-selling Bushwhacked (now available in a mass-market paperback edition) displays all of those qualities, which points to the reason why co-autho...more
Molly Ivins & Lou DuBose
Vintage Books (Random House)
$17 CDN, Paperback
*** 1/2
Newspaper columns come in three varieties: Good, bad and disposable. A good column is provocative. It argues a case. It makes a reader think. It compels even those who oppose the author's stance to read it.
Unsurprisingly, the best-selling Bushwhacked (now available in a mass-market paperback edition) displays all of those qualities, which points to the reason why co-autho...more
Jan 24, 2008
Paige
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Americans
Recommended to Paige by:
myself
This book was written in 2003; kind of a long time in the whole politics thing, but I picked it up brand new for $1, so I figured better late than never.
I am pretty glad I read it; I would have paid much more than $1 to learn some of the information in the book (of course no one should have to pay to know the truth), which is why I gave it the rating I did. Ivins & Dubose covered a lot of ground and detailed some of the horrible things Bush&Co have been doing to this country.
As for the w...more
I am pretty glad I read it; I would have paid much more than $1 to learn some of the information in the book (of course no one should have to pay to know the truth), which is why I gave it the rating I did. Ivins & Dubose covered a lot of ground and detailed some of the horrible things Bush&Co have been doing to this country.
As for the w...more
This was my first reading of Molly Ivins, prompted by her untimely death this year and a number of related articles which introduced me to her life/work. Without a doubt, the mission is an expose of W’s misdeeds and failures, but she does it without meanness and with humor. Fans of George W. Bush probably wouldn’t like it, but it/she should be required reading.
My review written after I finished the book in 2004: Molly Ivins delivers once again! She's always so great in her wit. It's amazing to me that she can make utterly irritating things funny. Just when I thought I was outraged enough, I read the next chapter and became even more outraged. This President has been so reckless and he needs to be voted out of office!!
My review written after I finished the book in 2004: Molly Ivins delivers once again! She's always so great in her wit. It's amazing to me that she can make utterly irritating things funny. Just when I thought I was outraged enough, I read the next chapter and became even more outraged. This President has been so reckless and he needs to be voted out of office!!
Good book on the 'Bush legacy', tries for equal parts of serious approach and humorous.
Much as I love Molly Ivins, I just find the subject matter so depressing and blood pressure raising that it costs the book a star, as I read to stay informed, but when it comes to Republicans, I never enjoy the book and so generally subtract a star.
Much as I love Molly Ivins, I just find the subject matter so depressing and blood pressure raising that it costs the book a star, as I read to stay informed, but when it comes to Republicans, I never enjoy the book and so generally subtract a star.
Should this book be classified under "horror, nonfiction"? Thank goodness Molly Ivins is(was) a writer gifted with a very funny wit, cuz these tales will scare the poop outta ya. Very educational as well, and she makes it pretty clear that, though we no longer have a shrub in the White House, this book is still extremely relevant. Yikes.
This one took awhile to read since I picked it up during my busiest time! It was not as *funny* as I had hoped, but it is classic Molly and I did read it just after she passed as a way to revel in her viewpoint. Back in 1999 when it was clear that GW was going to get the GOP nomination and my own guy was in knots over it, Molly was the only one writing things the way I saw them. I swore sometimes it was just Molly and I and no one else! Of course, I know this is not true - many of us were out th...more
This is a very entertaining and informational book. I would recommend this if you are the type of person who is interested in politics and likes to do their research (whether u are a Bush fan or not). A MUST read for those who are Anti-Bush.
This may be a book that was so good because it was desperately needed during the middle of the Bush era, but I still recommend it! Molly Ivins is one of my favorite writers. She's witty and smart... thoroughlly enjoyable!
I so miss Molly Ivins! Her comments on the upcoming election would be so insightful and on point. This book has pride of place on my bookshelf as it was inscribed and autographed at a reading when it was published.
Absolutely loved this book. If you didn't think George and crew were smart, read this to see what their real strategies were.
My first introduction to Molly Ivins and her incredible intellect, wit, and Texas sense of humor. She is deeply missed.
Feb 22, 2009
Allison
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Democrats, liberals, the needlessly nostalgic.
Recommended to Allison by:
A friend.
Shelves:
leisure,
political-science
It was absolutely infuriating when I read it on the plane in Summer 2004; doubly so that November.
Feb 21, 2010
Alex
added it
Bushwacked (Life in George W. Bush's America) by Molly Ivins and Lou dubose (2003)
Great idea, but probably would have been better to read this book while GWB was in office...
What journalism should be! Molly & Lou show the importance of good government, of having qualified people in power who recognize the importance of their jobs, of government in curbing excesses from greed...all before Katrina and "heckuva job, Brownie"! Conservatives don't believe government is the solution, then they make sure it's not by getting into power and dismantling programs and regulations that are in place to protect against greed, a natural outgrowth of unregulated markets. Too bad...more
I dearly miss Molly Ivins. I've learned more about how government really works by reading her than anyone else. Molly had the respect to share politician's policy records and not gloss over them because it's too boring or unsexy. To the contrary, she makes the machinations of government a story I want to see more of. I've never had the reaction to a journalist's death like I did when Molly died. Just as many have speculated about how the discourse will be adversely affected this fall without Tim...more
Thankfully, we no longer live in that America. Let's hope the hope reshapes the world.
Funny (smirk), but more entertainment than any real journalism involved.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
American newspaper columnist, political commentator, and best-selling author from Austin, Texas.
More about Molly Ivins...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
Jul 23, 2009 11:10am