I hate to give such a predictable rating to this book. It was given to me as a gag-gift, because my politics are far apart from Palin's. However, I actually wouldn't mind reading a book that seriously worked to determine what Palin's values are. This is not a serious book; it is a hagiography.
Palin's defenders may well like this book because it views the world in the same terms they do. But for the rest of us, I will quote a few sections of the book just so you get an idea of the text:
*Describing Sarah's mother during Sarah's baptism (pg. 12): "Slightly taller than her husband, she is lean and feminine, possessing a sinewy strength that is unusual for a mother of three. Her eyes are intelligent, slightly wearied but quick to flash into joy. Her mouth is wise, reflecting a sense of irony in the world and yet disarmingly sweet." This absurd description of an event the author did not attend is typical of the book.
*(pg 23) "She was heard to complain that she would trade all the fancy food in the campaign hotel suites and buses for one good bowl of moose chili." Typical lack of attribution and conflict with reports of Palin's actual behavior during the campaign.
*(pg. 35) About her basketball experiences. "She was not tall. She was not swift. She was not exceptionally graceful. She had little of the court sense that makes for great players. What she did have--and this is a hallmark of her life--was heart." No comment required.
*(pg. 60) The sections on her religious life are very difficult. The authors want us to admire Palin's religion when it serves her purposes, but to overlook it when it does not. Evidently, during the 2008 campaign a video surfaced on Youtube depicting a pastor that often preached at Palin's church in Wasilla "praying a witch out" of a village in Africa. Now, I followed to campaign very closely, and I have never heard of this scandal, so I wouldn't overrate the mean-spirtedness of the press on it--Palin just continues to constantly view herself as a victim, as usual. Nonetheless, why shouldn't it be news that Palin's church, and possibly by extension Palin herself, believe some very strange things?
* (pg. 64) "It is pleasant to think of how much good might have been done for the country had Todd Palin taken up residence in Washington DC with his wife, the vice president. Politics and government aside, it might have been wonderful to behold. There, in the city of the androgynous politician, where image and word pass for character and deed, it might have helped change something in the national psyche for a man who spoke little, did much, and lived simply to go about his quiet, manly ways." Thoughtless praise of masculinity and homoerotic subtext aside, this may be the worse prose in this book.
* (pg. 70) On Todd wearing a shirt saying "If you don't love America, why don't you ge the hell out?". "He knew it would create a stir. He knew it would draw fire. But in true Yupik way, he said what he had to say, and he did not intend to explain. Point made." It is awful rich to suggest that indiginous groups are telling those that 'don't love America' to get the hell out. Perhaps the authors would like to visit with some of my Native American friends. But also, if your point needs explanation, and you decline to explain, well, the point hasn't really been made, has it?
I have more of these marked, but I'm tired of writing about it and I think you can see what I'm driving it. This is an uncritical and badly writen book. Palin is an important cultural phenomenon, but this book is in no way up to the task of explicating the meaning of her political stardom. It's blustery but empty--not unlike my view of Palin herself.