Anthology of magazine articles. I would have liked it if the book included at least the date that the pieces were originally published.
I first encountered Sullivan (at least to my knowledge) last year when I read a piece that he wrote for the NY Times Magazine about going to Disney World with his young daughter and some friends (read it at http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/12/mag...). It is a very funny piece. Also, after hearing about this book, I checked him out further and found a review he wrote of The Pale King, by David Foster Wallace, which was published last year, and it was an excellent review (read the review at http://www.gq.com/entertainment/books...). I was hoping that all of the articles included here would be up to those standards, maybe up to DFW standards. That was not the case, but, that is a ery vhigh bar. Each of the chapters was quite enjoyable, some exceptionally so. The topics are varied – music (Michael Jackson and Bunny Wailer), popular culture (One Tree Hill, The Real World, Christian Rock), politics (post-Katrina, health). Of course, this being gonzo journalism, Sullivan is part of the story, often the main part. For example, the article dealing with One Tree Hill is primarily about the effect of the show on his family, and his home, which was used as a set for the show. The article about Bunny Wailer is just as much about his efforts to get the interview.
I'll be looking for more from Sullivan.
An excellent review is here: http://www.gq.com/entertainment/books...
Another is here - http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics...