TheBestseller
Observatory
1992
GIVE WAR A CHANCE
P. J. O'Rourke
Cover of GIVE WAR A CHANCE

GIVE WAR A CHANCE

Eyewitness Accounts of Mankind's Struggle Against Tyranny, Injustice, and Alcohol-Free Beer

by P. J. O'Rourke

Atlantic Monthly Press · 2007

Peak rank

#1

Weeks on list

14

Weeks at #1

3

Debuted

April 1992

Chart History

#1510151992

14 weeks on the Hardcover Nonfiction list, including 3 weeks at #1

The #1 New York Times bestseller from "one of America's most hilarious and provocative writers . . . a volatile brew of one-liners and vitriol" ( Time). Renowned for his cranky conservative humor, P. J. O'Rourke runs hilariously amok in this book, tackling the death of communism; his frustration with sanctimonious liberals; and Saddam Hussein in a series of classic dispatches from his coverage of the 1991 Gulf War. On Kuwait City after the war, he comments, "It looked like all the worst rock bands in the world had stayed there at the same time." On Saddam Hussein, O'Rourke muses: "He's got chemical weapons filled with . . . with . . . chemicals. Maybe he's got The Bomb. And missiles that can reach Riyadh, Tel Aviv, Spokane. Stock up on nonperishable foodstuffs. Grab those Diet Coke cans you were supposed to take to the recycling center and fill them with home heating oil. Bury the Hummel figurines in the yard. We're all going to die. Details at eleven." And on the plague of celebrity culture, he notes: "You can't shame or humiliate modern celebrities. What used to be called shame and humiliation is now called publicity." Mordant and utterly irreverent, this is a modern classic from one of our great political satirists, described by Christopher Buckley as being "like S. J. Perelman on acid." "Mocking on the surface but serious beneath . . . When it comes to scouting the world for world-class absurdities, O'Rourke is the right man for the job." — Los Angeles Times Book Review "The funniest writer in America." — The Wall Street Journal

All Appearances

3↑4May 3, 1992wk 2
1↑2May 10, 1992wk 3
1May 17, 1992wk 4
2↓1May 24, 1992wk 5
1↑1May 31, 1992wk 6
4↓3June 7, 1992wk 7
6↓2June 21, 1992wk 9
7↓1June 28, 1992wk 10
11↓4July 5, 1992wk 11
9↑2July 12, 1992wk 12

Details

ISBN-13
9781555847128
ISBN-10
1555847129
Published
2007
Pages
264
Publisher
Atlantic Monthly Press
Google rating
3.5(3)
Categories
Humor

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