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Listen, Liberal: Or, What Ever Happened to the Party of the People? Hardcover – March 15, 2016

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NAMED BY THE NEW YORK TIMES AS ONE OF "6 BOOKS TO HELP UNDERSTAND TRUMP'S WIN"

From the bestselling author of
What’s the Matter With Kansas, a scathing look at the failures of liberal politics, a book that helps explain the shocking outcome of the 2016 presidential election

It is a widespread belief among liberals that if only Democrats can continue to dominate national elections, if only those awful Republicans are beaten into submission, the country will be on the right course.

But this is to fundamentally misunderstand the modern Democratic Party. Drawing on years of research and first-hand reporting, Frank points out that the Democrats have done little to advance traditional liberal goals: expanding opportunity, fighting for social justice, and ensuring that workers get a fair deal. Indeed, they have scarcely dented the free-market consensus at all. This is not for lack of opportunity: Democrats have occupied the White House for sixteen of the last twenty-four years, and yet the decline of the middle class has only accelerated. Wall Street gets its bailouts, wages keep falling, and the free-trade deals keep coming.

With his trademark sardonic wit and lacerating logic, Frank's
Listen, Liberal lays bare the essence of the Democratic Party's philosophy and how it has changed over the years. A form of corporate and cultural elitism has largely eclipsed the party's old working-class commitment, he finds. For certain favored groups, this has meant prosperity. But for the nation as a whole, it is a one-way ticket into the abyss of inequality. In this critical election year, Frank recalls the Democrats to their historic goals-the only way to reverse the ever-deepening rift between the rich and the poor in America.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Thoroughly entertaining . . . Frank delights in skewering the sacred cows of coastal liberalism . . . he argues that the Democratic party―once “the Party of the People”―now caters to the interests of a “professional managerial class” consisting of lawyers, doctors, professors, scientists, programmers, even investment bankers . . . A serious political critique.”
New York Times Book Review (front page)

“What makes Frank’s book new, different and important is its offer of a compelling theory as to how and why the party of Jefferson, Jackson and Roosevelt is now so unlikely to champion the economic needs of everyday people. . . . In such a looking-glass world,
Listen, Liberal is a desperately needed corrective.”
History News Network

“In his new book, progressive commentator Thomas Frank says Democrats need to take a good long look in the mirror if they want answers to why blue-collar workers are feeling abandoned and even infuriated by what used to be their party.”
New York Post

“The most important political book of 2016, and one that should disturb and hopefully influence progressives for years to come.”
OBRag.com

“A must-read.”
Naomi Klein

“Over the past four decades, Frank argues, the Democrats have embraced a new favorite constituency: the professional class―the doctors, lawyers, engineers, programmers, entrepreneurs, artists, writers, financiers and other so-called creatives whose fetish for academic credentials and technological innovation has infected the party of the working class. . . . For that class, Frank argues, income and wealth inequality is not a problem but an inevitable condition.”
Washington Post

“An astute dissection of contemporary Democratic politics that demonstrates, cogently and at times acidly, how the party lost the allegiance of blue-collar Americans.”
Publisher’s Weekly

“No one has written more consistently and stylishly about the conservative onslaught in America and the betrayal of liberal democratic values than Thomas Frank, arguably the Left’s leading essayists and the founder of The Baffler. This is Mr. Frank’s best book since What’s the Matter with Kansas?
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

“A tough and thought-provoking look at what’s wrong with America . . . Frank puts forth an impressive catalog of Democratic disappointments, more than enough to make liberals uncomfortable.”
Booklist

“Important . . . engaging . . . An edgy―even disturbing―analysis of the Democratic Party’s jilting of its traditional base.”
The National Book Review

“An engaging and witty demolition of the [Democratic] party, especially its modern post-New Deal incarnation . . . Listen, Liberal is a great read for this election season.”
SocialistWorker.org

“Thomas Frank’s new book Listen, Liberal documents a half-century of work by the Democratic elite to belittle working people and exile their concerns to the fringes of the party’s platform. If the prevailing ideology of the Republican establishment is that of a sneering aristocracy, Democratic elites are all too often the purveyors of a smirking meritocracy that offers working people very little.”
Huffington Post

“Long overdue . . .
Listen, Liberal is a powerful addition to America’s political discourse. It is full of truths and, sadly, the truth hurts.”
Washington City Paper

“Democrats often use the fact that Republicans have gone off the deep end to ignore their left flank, on the grounds that those liberals have nowhere else to go politically. Listen, Liberal contributes to the literature that expresses deep frustration with that decision, the fuel for a revolt.”
The Fiscal Times

“As with Frank’s other books, Listen, Liberal is a piece of contemporary history that tells us not only what the powerful are up to, but how the trick is being pulled, with an admirable deployment of irony. . . . While his previous books are essentially about devils being devils, this one shows how the angels have fallen further than they realize.”
Prospect (UK)

“An indispensable read . . . provocative and stimulating.”
National Newswatch

About the Author

Thomas Frank is the author of Listen, Liberal, Pity the Billionaire, The Wrecking Crew, and What's the Matter with Kansas? A former columnist for The Wall Street Journal and Harper's, Frank is the founding editor of The Baffler and writes regularly for The Guardian. He lives outside Washington, D.C.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Metropolitan Books; First Edition (March 15, 2016)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1627795391
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1627795395
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.76 x 1.18 x 8.45 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,814 ratings

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Thomas Frank
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Questions frequently asked Thomas Frank.

- Kansas, really?

- Aren’t you one of these liberals that you’re always scolding?

- Is it true that President Trump uses “The Wrecking Crew” as a field manual?

- “The Baffler” – what’s that all about?

- You don’t look particularly cool. Why do you write about coolness?

- Why aren’t you, like, a college professor or something?

- Why all these books about politics? I mean, that’s hardly the right subject for a culture critic or whatever it is you call yourself.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,814 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book insightful and well-researched. They appreciate the writing style as nice, fluid, and clear. The humor is praised as light and engaging. Readers describe the timeline as timely and prescient. Overall, they consider the book a good read and worth the price.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

154 customers mention "Readability"154 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They describe it as an insightful read on socio-political issues in the United States. The author explains how and why the Democrats have left their major party position in an entertaining and clear manner.

"This is the most important book about modern politics that a person can read...." Read more

"BRUTAL. Essential reading. I read it back in March, and still refer to it often. Talking points for days!..." Read more

"Listen, Liberal is a well written, researched, and well thought out book that anyone interested in our political discourse should read...." Read more

"...This book is a particularly good tonic for all those would-be "progressives" who support the Democrats as the lesser-of-2-evils choice..." Read more

123 customers mention "Insight"123 positive0 negative

Customers find the book insightful and well-researched. They appreciate the data-based discussion and arguments grounded in facts. The book provides history and analysis to understand the state of the Democratic party. It offers a prescient explanation of how limousine liberals have evolved.

"...This book uses data as the basis for discussion which restricts the scope to the things that actually matter...." Read more

"...This book, with its arsenal of facts told in a conversational style injected with humor, is the best place to start. *..." Read more

"Listen, Liberal is a well written, researched, and well thought out book that anyone interested in our political discourse should read...." Read more

"With wit and incisive precision, Frank deftly charts the rightward devolution of the Democratic Party from its pre-Carter advocacy of American..." Read more

61 customers mention "Writing style"49 positive12 negative

Customers find the writing style clear and engaging. They describe the book as well-written, witty, and insightful. The prose is fluid and well-timed. Readers appreciate the well-conceived and supported content. Overall, they consider it an easy read with good footnotes.

"...Talking points for days! And Frank's clear and engaging style suck you in. I even enjoyed the footnotes...." Read more

"Listen, Liberal is a well written, researched, and well thought out book that anyone interested in our political discourse should read...." Read more

"...Thomas Frank's latest book is a well-conceived, well-supported, and oh-so-timely argument that the Democratic Party has much to answer for..." Read more

"...social critics and pundits has done it again with another work of scholarly art...." Read more

25 customers mention "Humor"21 positive4 negative

Customers find the book humorous and engaging. They describe it as a conversational style with humor, irony, and wit. The book's title is ironic and appropriate. Readers also mention that the book is shocking and brutal.

"...This book, with its arsenal of facts told in a conversational style injected with humor, is the best place to start. *..." Read more

"...Tartly ironic, but not overbearing, Frank understands both the hypocrisy of our liberal elites and the tragedy for the majority not part of that self..." Read more

"...It’s disturbing to read this book, but I have concluded the master plan to change America has been going on for more than 40 years...." Read more

"This book is brutal. If you are a Democrat (as am I) you will probably not like this book but read it anyway...." Read more

15 customers mention "Timeline"15 positive0 negative

Customers find the book timely and informative. They say it provides a history of change and its impact on the middle class and politics. The book is described as a quick, comical read that provides context for the Sanders campaign.

"...In this quick, often comical read, Thomas Frank puts into clear words the cozy relationship between our appointed Democratic representatives and the..." Read more

"...It gives a history of the change and the affect it had on the middle class and politics up through today...." Read more

"...This is extremely timely given the primary election cycle of 2016 and the campaign of Bernie Sanders - this provides the context and historical..." Read more

"Thomas Frank, author of What's the Matter With Kansas, has excellent timing...." Read more

6 customers mention "Value for money"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the book a good value for money. They say it's worth the purchase and an interesting read.

"...how and why America got to where it is now, it's worth both the time and the money." Read more

"...I'm only 30 percent in on my Kindle but it's already worth the price of purchase...." Read more

"...Frank brilliantly describes the price -- in jobs, hopes and future prospects for young people -- associated with the Democratic Party's shameless..." Read more

"Well written. Well researched. Interesting read. Well worth the tim ." Read more

18 customers mention "Liberal bias"8 positive10 negative

Customers have mixed views on the book's liberal bias. Some find it a great read about liberalism and the Hillary phenomenon that should be read by all liberals. It completely changes their views on liberals and politics in general. Others feel it's heartbreaking for new deal Democrats, as the book is biased against the Democratic Party. The subjects are thoroughly beaten into a pulp, taking away some of the valid concerns.

"...Some subjects are thoroughly beaten into a pulp (the innovation economy, for one), taking away some of the revelatory value in them; others are..." Read more

"A great book, written by a liberal for liberals...." Read more

"This is a heartbreaking book for any new deal democrat...." Read more

"Plain talk pulls away the mystique of Neo-liberalism, even in the Obama variation...." Read more

13 customers mention "Story quality"8 positive5 negative

Customers have mixed views on the story. Some find it engaging and instructive, with a witty style. Others feel the story lacks depth and is a rehash of other works.

"...Talking points for days! And Frank's clear and engaging style suck you in. I even enjoyed the footnotes...." Read more

"...Not a pretty story but an explanation of why we now have two right wing political parties and no party for the left...." Read more

"...opening account for everybody, that's written in a sarcastic and engaging style." Read more

"A fantastic corollary to 'What's Wrong with Kansas?'..." Read more

So Far Left, It's Right
4 out of 5 stars
So Far Left, It's Right
As a fiscal conservative going "behind enemy lines," I found this book entertaining in the same way I find Michael Moore movies humorous. To quote Frank, "This is a book about the failure of the Democratic Party," and so it will simultaneously appeal to frustrated Bern supporters as well as conservatives wanting to see liberals tear-apart their own. A key focus is on growing income inequality - or what Frank calls "Appalachification" - and it is a reality of secular automation/globalization trends ("The Second Machine Age" is a great read on this topic). There should be common ground here between conservatives and liberals as to the income inequality issue and its societal implications. The problem, as always, is one of best remedy and Frank is Bern-like in his desire for more government meddling (In contrast, for a liberal-libertarian meeting of the minds on potential solutions read Andy Stern's book - "Raising the Floor" - which offers an open inquiry into UBI or Universal Basic Income). Frank mercilessly excoriates Bill Clinton, Obama and Hillary and "the Ten Percent of the people at the apex of the country's hierarchy of professional status" (aka a "coalition of the ascendant"). These guardians of correct thinking form a "tight, hermetic and incestuous clique," suffusing the government with painfully self-righteous and outright condescending leaders: ex. MIT economist Jonathan Gruber infamously refers to "the stupidity of the American voter" when it comes to understanding the purposefully recondite Obamacare. But no matter, reflective of their inherent narcissism, "these are the defects of a superior mind." The larger message is "this is what it looks like when a leftish party loses its interest in working people." This book should be a wake-up call for limousine liberals, especially in the aftermath of the Brexit vote. As noted by Conservative MP, Michael Gove: "people in this country (UK) have had enough of experts." The same thing is true here in the US and if Trump wins in November, Frank's book shows where to allocate much of the blame.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2017
    This is the most important book about modern politics that a person can read. It's essential to understand what has happened with American politics and the economy over the last 25 years. People so easily slip into the narrative about liberal vs. conservative or Democrat vs. Republican because it's a comfortable topic and it's all most people talk about. But people almost never discuss the changes that have taken place with the Democrats and the true nature of their track record. Few people understand the drastic changes that have taken place with the Democratic platform since 1968 and why it happened. The actual track record in the past few Democratic administrations is almost never discussed because there is an assumption that they did the best they could while being constantly stabbed in the back by conservatives.

    This book uses data as the basis for discussion which restricts the scope to the things that actually matter. It's like the approach in Freakonomics where the writer asks "what does the data say?" without any influence from conventional wisdom. There is fundamental truth discussed right at the beginning which should be the first thing ever discussed regarding politics. This is that is that the productivity of the American economy is several times larger now than in 1980, yet the income growth going to the bottom 90% was zero. It's such a shocking fact that upon reading it for the first time the natural reaction is to start laughing. The median worker in America is so much worse off than in 1980 because cost of living has skyrocketed during that time while their income has stayed the same adjusting for inflation. It means that the management of the US economy has been bungled so badly that the economy has produced an extra $50 trillion dollars worth since 1980 and the people are actually worse off now. What was the point of it all? How could all of that money not been used to benefit the American people? It explains why so many people living in the economically depressed parts of the country are angry and voted for Trump. 16 years of Democrats in the White House didn't do much to fix income inequality and there's nothing to stop these people from being angry despite all of the excuses that can be made. The accepted storyline is that the Democrats did their best but were stabbed in the back by Fox News and various other villains. But 0% income growth for the bottom 90% or "The American People"? I guess their best wasn't quite good enough. The author discusses all of the possible reasons why this happened. It has to do with elitism and the modern Democrat living in a bubble where their main constituencies become academics and corporate leaders. It started with the Kennedy administration and the book opens with a powerful quote about McGeorge Bundy from "The Best and the Brightest."
    "McGeorge Bundy, then, was the finest example of a special elite, a certain breed of men whose continuity is among themselves. They are linked to one another rather than to the couuntry; in their minds they become responsible for the country but not responsive to it.

    From Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville:
    "It is doubtless important to the good of nations that those who govern have virtues or talents; but what is perhaps still more important to them is that those who govern do not have interests contrary to the mass of the governed; for in that case the virtues could become almost useless and the talents fatal."

    Here's an amusing quote from the book about Obama and how Democratic voters have been unable to criticize or analyze the Democratic presidents:

    "What was shocking about all this was to realize that Obama actually believed these cliches. Consensus, bipartisanship, the "center": those were the things that this admirable and intelligent man was serious about -- the kind of stale empty verbiage favored by Beltway charlatans on the Sunday talk shows. The other things Obama used to say -- like when he connected deregulation, corruption, and income inequality in his Cooper Union speech in 2008 -- those things were just to reel in the suckers. The suckers being the people who could hear the pillars of their middle-class world snapping. "
    13 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2016
    BRUTAL. Essential reading.

    I read it back in March, and still refer to it often. Talking points for days! And Frank's clear and engaging style suck you in. I even enjoyed the footnotes.

    My only criticism: As the man who forever shut down the "Forgive the Clintons for they knew not what they did" narrative (re: '94 crime bill and its racial disparities in sentencing)* I was surprised the book didn't offer more discussion about race; more space is devoted to abandoned neighborhoods in the mostly white rust belt. (One passage actually made me tear up. Thomas Frank brings a lot of heart as well as thought to his report.)

    I place LL on par with The New Jim Crow as game changers for me. Were this information and HISTORY available to everyone, the political landscape would be transformed by now. And while he criticizes the Clintons (and all the New Democrats), his critiques are not drowned out by ax-grinding; he even said in an interview he would probably vote for Hillary in the general election. He mentions Bernie in passing (and the timing of the book hinders more substantial mention) but he never comes across as having an agenda. After many books deconstructing the conservatives and Republicans, he's unafraid to turn a critical eye on what I imagine to be his own political leanings: he's socially Liberal and Progressive and wants an economy will work for all of us (economic populism? Whatever the opposite of neoliberalism is).

    Whomever you voted for, please read this book and pass it on. Maybe we can all get on the same page. We're all on the same side -- the losing side. We need to take back our party or take it to the trash heap of history. In this time of fake news, alt-facts and corporate media, reading political books is no longer a luxury; it's a must. We need to turn to scholars as much as independent journalists. This book, with its arsenal of facts told in a conversational style injected with humor, is the best place to start.

    *Google: "Thomas Frank The Guardian Bill Clinton [and] crime bill"
    13 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2018
    Listen, Liberal is a well written, researched, and well thought out book that anyone interested in our political discourse should read. Thomas Frank doesn't really discuss the root cause of the problems with the so called liberal elites or corporatists or establishment Democrats, who are really greedy for money and power--pretty much just like most of the Republicans. Thomas explains who the elite liberals are and when they replaced the support of the working class Democrats. Thomas also explains when the liberal elites began primarily funding the Democratic party essentially replacing or far surpassing the funding from unions.

    We've essentially lost our democracy to the corporate and establishment class in both parties, because the American people can't get what they want even when a clear majority of the people want Medicare of all, a living wage, no more wars, etc. Corporate interests have been ruling America for quite some time, and the American people get the illusion of a democracy. What prevented this book from being a great or spectacular book is that Thomas Frank limited this discussion to domestic issues during the Clinton and Obama administrations. He could have easily obliterated them if he included their corrupted foreign policies and war crimes. And to be clear, yes, most of the Republicans are worse, but that's no excuse to what has happened to our beloved country.
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • marie
    5.0 out of 5 stars Mind changing
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 8, 2020
    A remarkable, lucid, mind opening read. Read and understand, the 'plot' against ordinary working people by the 1% of (oligarchs, billionaires, over educated, scum sucking) MFs. Sorry, Mr Bezos but you asked my opinion. And, yes, I can still read and write. I have a library card and I know how to use it. I occasionally think about you, and all your filthy lucre, and I pity you. You sad, sad man. Apologies, how, I do go on.
  • Heli
    5.0 out of 5 stars Aanbevolen
    Reviewed in the Netherlands on April 30, 2017
    Dit boek analyseert de huidige politieke situatie in de VS op een duidelijke manier. Wat daar gebeurde verschilt weinig van de neergang van het socialisme in Europa. En daar profiteren de Trumps van. Als Macron in Frankrijk wint, krijgen we binnen de kortste keren eenzelfde situatie als in de VS: totale idiotie. De Clintons hebben de bankencrisis veroorzaakt, en dit is het resultaat. Macron behoort tot de gedereguleerde klasse die goed geboerd heeft als bankier. Après lui le déluge. Erst kommt das Fressen, dann kommt die Moral. Dat moeten onze politici goed onthouden.
  • Fredric Henderson
    5.0 out of 5 stars Want to know why Donald Trump is our next President
    Reviewed in Mexico on December 14, 2016
    A revealing ( and sometimes shocking) look into the flaws of the Democratic Party and Obama, the Clintons and the so called party of the left.
  • redbycicle
    5.0 out of 5 stars Alerta para navegantes socialdemocratas
    Reviewed in Spain on December 18, 2016
    Gran libro facil de leer.Explica el giro del Partido Democrata que abandona las clases trabajadoras industriales en favor de la nueva economia y los profesionales liberales. Explica parte del reciente exito de Trump. Y advierte de lo que puede ocurrir en Europa donde los partidos socialdemocratas tradicionales estan perdiendo el apoyo de las bases.
  • M Clark
    5.0 out of 5 stars The best book for understanding why Trump won the election
    Reviewed in Germany on December 1, 2016
    Despite having been written before election day in 2016, this book is the best book for understanding why Trump won the election. Although a democrat, Frank is angry about the party's betrayal of the working class.