Series of political satire articles, published in book form. Each chapter stands alone making for easy reading in short sessions. There is a political pundit glossary in the back of the book that I found informative and humorous.. ( )

P.J. O'Rourke and his conservative view is bearable because he presents it with a sense of humor. Something usually missing in conservative presentations. Another saving grace is the fact that he realizes the election of Donald Trump to the presidency is the worst outcome possible in this election, (except P.J. obviously thinks this election couldn't have a good outcome, considering the candidates!). He does present some alternatives, some of whom I could also get behind. So maybe with a little humor and an open mind, there is still hope! ( )

Full disclosure: I was given an ARC of this book via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

You're right, it's a good title. P. J. O'Rourke's always been good at titles ([Eat The Rich, Don't Vote, it Just Encourages the Bastards, The Baby Boom: How It Got That Way (And It Wasn’t My Fault)). When it comes to his politics, your mileage may vary.

O'Rourke's beliefs are not mine: he likes guns, God and the American Way; I like peace, Dawkins and a more equivocal Captain America. But that's OK, that's fine; if you only ever read people who agree with you, you're going to be very tiresome at parties.

That said, neither of us likes Donald Trump, so we can at least come together around the roaring tyre fire of American politics.

Journalists are going to be trying to make sense of the Donald's win for decades to come – many were trying before it even happened. As a first pass, this collection of essays is as bewildered as the rest of us; as O'Rourke acknowledges, "if my book lacks a coherent narrative it's because I couldn't find one."

While I can sympathise with his confusion it doesn't make for the best of reads. He is reliably funny and insightful ("Americans appreciate bad taste or America wouldn't look the way America does") but the lack of focus leads to repetition, a certain degree of disingenuousness, and some brashness verging on outright offensiveness (I genuinely don't think his problem with Hillary Clinton is her gender, but he's too happy to make her gender the subject of his jokes).

Filters set and allowances made, I'll be reading more P. J. O'Rourke. He's the semi-acceptable face of American conservatism (with all the moral relativism that implies) at a time when that label is better associated with mendacity, bigotry and the neediness of a five-year-old. But while funny, this book just isn't a particularly insightful or enlightening history of its subject. Sad. ( )

This is an absolutely hilarious and compelling look at the presidential election of 2016. It is a must read for social studies teachers and anyone interested in either politics or history. I loved it! ( )

I tend to avoid reading election post-mortem books because usually the ground covered is simultaneously too old to be newsworthy and too fresh to be considered "history." They are somewhere in between: a political netherworld of limited relevancy. But P.J. O'Rourke has been popping up recently as a pundit on the airwaves, offering his wry commentary and promoting his new book, How the Hell Did This Happen?: The Election of 2016. So, based largely on his reputation as a humorist I decided to give it a shot. The book reaffired my aversion to such books on that opening principle. And while there are a few good laugh-out-loud moments, particularly in his fashion notes on the candidates, this is an uneven mix of essays that generally fail to amuse or offer lasting insights. ( )