Customer Reviews

The Running Mate

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I stayed away from "Primary Colors" as the "Anonymous" gimmick was deserving of many adjectives, none of them positive. I did see the movie adaptation hence the title of this review. Allowing for the tendency for the movie to be less than the book, I'm confident it was a good read.

This is an extremely well written work by a great writer with a sharp political eye, and a subtle and not so subtle, savage wit. There is repetition in this book and that's where "Primary Colors" readers might feel annoyed. There were very similar events between this book and the movie of the first novel.

I thought this was one extremely well written tale, but as another wrote, "only fiction can do justice to the truth", this was commentary on not only our electoral system, and those who seek office but the confirmation process as well. And as nauseating as the performance of most of the characters are, as you read you will draw parallels to real life events, and politics in general.

Calling this book fiction is a stretch. It would be too easy to say that the behavior this book describes is why only 43% of eligible voters showed up at the last Presidential Election, or would it? Same comment for why anyone would want to go through a confirmation hearing, or for that matter subject himself or herself to a National Campaign for office without it being the only alternative to a very long maximum security prison sentence.

The book is satirical; the book is full of extremely clever humor, as in wondering if a square dance step has anything to do with El Alamein. But as you read keep reminding yourself this is fiction, and if you convince yourself this truly is pure fiction, you are either a greater patriot than I or one who actually would enjoy being part of the circus that is Washington.

More morality tale than comedy, entertaining but sobering to say the least.

I heard Joe Klein speak at my school, Millsaps College, and was impressed enough with his insider knowledge to give Primary Colors a second read. Knowing who "Anonymous" was didn't change the context of the book much. It was still a novel about wondering who wrote the novel. The guessing game of which politico he was tabloiding overshadowed any literary aspects of the novel.

This speaks volumes to why THE RUNNING MATE is so much smarter that PRIMARY COLORS. The characters are composites of our favorite pundits, but the most important dynamic of the book is character and truth, not shock and satire.

The character portraits are as compelling as the political portraits. We open as our character has his marriage proposal rejected, while fighting a sexual misunderstanding and failing at a run for the presidency. The descriptions of the veteran Senator returning to Vietnam afterwards are particularly powerful.

THE RUNNING MATE is delightfully complex. You voyeuristically watch the Senator as he manipulates the people that watch him. We love the characters for the traits that make them great Americans, while simultaneously watching those same traits damn them. I particularly like how Klein uses many of the events from original novel as a backdrop. The events of Primary Colors seriously affect the new characters. It makes Klein's political timeline a universe of its own.

When he spoke at Millsaps, Klein mentioned that he wanted to "write the great modern novel about politics." And this time he has succeeded. This one is definitely a serious work that deserves another read, to catch the subtleties of Klein's observations of modern politics.

I'm the first to admit I've waited for this latest work by Joe Klein. I'm a political junkie, and love to read about the inner workings of contemporary political life.

Running Mate is a good read; the Great American Novel it's not, but who cares? We don't get enough political fiction (unless you count thrillers, which I don't). I devoured Primary Colors when it came out and, while waiting for Running Mate, was reduced to reading nonfiction -- Katherine Graham's autobiography -- to satisfy my need for political knowledge. Needless to say, novels are more fun to read and Running Mate does not disappoint.

Another piece of political fiction I enjoyed recently was a lighthearted look at the motivations of people who get into political activism -- a novel called Love Songs of the Tone-Deaf by Asher Brauner.

This novel is a compelling sequel to "Primary Colors" and while similar in some ways, there are also significant differences. For one thing, this novel is placed in the Midwest,perhaps Nebraska, not the South, a significant difference, and there is less emphasis on New York atmospherics than in "Primary Colors", although they are not completely absent. "Primary Colors" is narrated by a black man and there is correspondingly more emphasis on blacks in that novel. Also, there is a torrid love interest for the protagonist which is a primary theme of "Running Mate", also absent from "Primary Colors". Finally, because the protagonist, Charlie Martin, is a decorated Vietnam Veteran, there is far more emphasis in "Running Mate" on Vietnam, whereas the primary focus of past wars in "Primary Colors", where it exists at all, is on World War II. Vietnam pervades "Running Mate" like a sick, ghostly presence. Both novels, however, focus on the cut-throat aspects of politics with equal precision and emphasis.

I begin with a bias whenever I read anything written by Joe Klein. I think he's the best political journalist around, and an immensely gifted novelist. My bias re-asserts itself in my comment about "The Running Mate": It is a hugely entertaining book, very wise, very sobering, and just beautifully written. I couldn't put it down, and I was sorry that the book ended.

Imagine putting your 80 cents into a soda machine and having a bottle of expensive wine roll out. This is essentially what will happen to the reader who begins The Running Mate looking for an easy weekend read. Joe Klein had taken us through the looking glass to a world that while not unlike ours has one key difference: the political landscape, in all it's complexities and intricacies, is open for all of us to see. This in turn creates a novel that, while remaining an entertaining read, also works on the level of a socio-political commentary on the order of Orwell's Animal Farm. Characters may appear larger than life and events may seem otherworldy but that's Klein's point: the current political environment and those who participate in it have become detached from the rest of us and now live in a world of cartoon-like wackiness. As you might imagine, it's not a pretty place- one would not blame Klein for staying anonymous. With books like this he won't have to worry about running out of enemies but for the reader with an open, adventerous mind this is the guy to vote for.

I had initial reservations about reading the book. I am not a fan of American literature harping on about the ghosts of 'Nam' and especially not politicians so doing. However, I was pleasantly surprised with how Klein handled it. The book itself has fantastic witticism, intelligent prose and was introspective. I liked the manner in which Klein initially portrays the senator aas a 'golden boy' only for this image to be felled in our eyes during the Senatorial election race. I like the fact that the love interest had a history and complications that came with it. I further loved the 'best friend' who is disillusioned by the Senator when he falls in love and 'loses his head' because it implies certain characteristics of a successful Presidential candidate and also about focussed politicians in general.

I enjoyed this book tremendously and recommend it to all. I must admit I liked this book more than I did Primary Colours. It is more mature and I think better executed.

After being captured by Primary Colors, and the "who wrote it?" mystery behind its author, I thought I'd try the book Joe Klein put his name on. It is the tale of Senator Charlie Martin,(John McCain or even Bob Kerry) and his quest for the possible VP spot with Jack Stanton (he's back and as slimey as ever). Of course the road to success does not run smoothly, there is a percieved sexual harrasment problem and a romantic entanglement to contend with. Our hero(?) also tries to keep control of his staff, contend with the ever encroaching press and keep a lid on secrets, his and those of his opponents. There are many twists and turns. the story line does take some unpredictable roads. It is a well paced political thriller and an enjoyable read. It does lack the "who wrote it?" cachet that boosted Primary Colors. I found it just a little bit too long and a wee bit convoluted.

Senator Charles Martin was the Bob Kerry-like figure in Joe (a.k.a. Anonymous) Klein's roman-a-clef "Primary Colors," a decorated Vietnam vet who did not use the Happy Hairdresser to derail Jack Stanton in New Hampshire. In "The Running Mate," Martin is now the main character and while this book is not a sequel per se to "Primary Colors," it does inhabit the same fictional but still recognizable political world. The title of this book is purposefully ambiguous, since it suggests that Martin would be Stanton's choice for the second spot on the ticket, but then the book's prologue has the Senator embroiled in a re-election campaign. Actually the title refers to the book's main subplot, for while their is a political campaign dominating the narrative there is also a romance going on between Martin and Nell Palmerston (The cover art is a simple but elegant extension of "Primary Colors"; there is now a blue donkey behind the first). However, both story lines deal with the brand new world created in the wake of the Stanton/Clinton victory, from the extent to which personal lives are fair game to the way candidates create and respond to negative ads. Readers who pick up this book looking for more Jack Stanton will be disappointed, as he is a very minor character in the narrative. Still, his political reality is not only alive and kicking, but threatening to bring down Charles Martin. Actually, if this book reminds you of any other major political novel, it would really be "The Last Hurrah" rather than "Primary Colors."

Even more so than with "Primary Colors," those who try to find the facts behind the fiction are simply barking up the wrong tree. When Klein wrote "The Running Mate" there were six veterans in the United States Senate who served in Vietnam: Max Cleland, Chuck Hagel, Bob Kerry, John Kerry, John McCain and Chuck Robb. Readers might recognize bits and pieces of Charles Martin's life in what they know about those six Senators, and Klein credits them with being the inspiration for this book, but none of the six match up with the fictional characters even half as well as Bill Clinton did with Jack Stanton. Actually, when I read the book the Senator I kept thinking of was the one from my own state who was defeated last fall by a rich guy who owns a chain of department stores, which certainly matches up with Martin's contest against the Muffler Man. Ultimately, "The Running Mate" looks at the generational conflict between the Baby Boomers who lived through Vietnam and the Sixties rather than the ideological division supposed represented by the two parties (both of which are considerably more moderate than they were a decade ago). There is a sense in which Klein is tracking how the alternative lifestyles that were once accepted, are now being rejected again. Certainly Klein burdens Martin's character with a fair amount of baggage in that regard: his widowed father is living in sin, his girl friend is still married, he has just discovered he fathered a son in Vietnam, and his chauffeur is an ex-drug runner who has found the Lord. His opponent in the Senate campaign, Lee Butler, has been mouthing off on a morning radio talk show for a couple of years and loves to be shown reading his Bible. Clearly there are two well defined sides in this particular campaign.

"The Running Mate" is not a cynical novel about politics, but it is certainly depressingly realistic. A consistent theme is that Martin is an honorable man, which is clearly established as a big disadvantage when it comes to wagging a political campaign in America today. There is a transcendent moment in the novel, when Butler makes the mistake of trying to go for the jugular too soon in a debate between the candidates, and Martin destroys the man in two marvelous paragraphs. This is the sort of scene I have waited for my whole life in the Presidential debates, a moment where one candidate makes the other eat their words before the eyes and ears of the nation. However, in Klein's world as in our own, no good deed goes unpunished. In the final analysis I did not enjoy "The Running Mate" as much as I did "Primary Colors," where half the fun was wondering how much of the story was grounded in fact and how much in fiction. But Klein is making a much more serious point about the current nature of the political process this time around, dealing less with the dominant personality of a flawed but compelling candidate, and more with just how things work. At the end, you might be more inclined to be more disenchanted with the process than the candidates. This book is well worth reading, especially if you are provoked into having deep thoughts.

More so than "Primary Colors," this is truly the book for political junkies. Where the "Anonymous" book tittilated, "The Running Mate" provides a realistic view of the dilemma every candidate faces in any election contest (local to Presidential): How to control a staff and consultants bent on winning at any cost.

The ethical choices presented in the book are real: There are now symposiae on ethical campaign conduct that are begging for participants. The "Muffler Man" of the book would never a) attend and b), if he did, understand what it's all about. And perhaps the same could be said for Charlie.

As someone who has been on the rooms that Klein describes when talking about campaign strategy, he hits a home run every time. And unlike "Primary Colors," he provides us with characters we care about. Nell is one of the finest female characters to come along since Teddy White did the Camelot thing.

Perhaps the most interesting thing in the book is the postscript in which Klein mentions that only six sitting senators served in combat in Vietnam. Four are Democrats. As someone who has only worked for conservative Republicans, and served in the Army during the Vietnam era, there is something wrong with this picture. Which Klein beautifully paints to the discomfort of many. This is not a book George W. would recommend to his friends.