Have a Nice Day

by Justin Webb

American talent and ingenuity and renewal, the very genius that led to Obama's rise, is celebrated too little in the outside world. The time has come - with the Bush presidency over - for a new appreciation of what makes America tick. Have a Nice Day does not shy away from the crazy preachers, the guns, and the continuing racial divisions. But it puts the rough edges of American life in context - geographical and intellectual. This is exactly the right time, Justin Webb claims, for the world to take a look at why Americans think as they do, and why they might just be right -

240 pages, Paperback

First published April 2, 2009

Reviews

[Glorious · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is written by Justin Webb who has worked for the BBC for nearly thirty years and it has that BBC feel about it as well. By that, I mean it mainly follows a centrist path showing the mentalist, zealous sides of the right and the ineptitude of the left.

Looking back at Obama's America and seeing the wave of optimism and hope that was glowing bright at the first two years of Obama's first term, this book takes stories from those that love or hate him.. and those that just want to forget all about George Bush but don't want any help from the government to do it. Not that that dangerous word socialism is drummed into anyone in this book, far from it.

This book has a good look at the American psyche.. far from the stereotypes that we've seen portrayed in films and TV shows and Jerry Springer. It tries to overcome the preconceptions and show why Americans are the way that they are. Basically, it's like the foreigner's guide to Americans, which is a good point of contact rather than the dummy's guide to Americans.