Rating: 
Summary: Good Stuff..
Review: Such a great idea to use 40's style propaganda and apply it to today. The only complaint I have is how the book is a bit short on substance outside of the art work. Fans of Maher will notice some re-hashed stuff spread throughout. None the less, it's a keeper.
Rating:
Summary: A temper tantrum in print - but lots of fun
Review: Bill Maher has a serious temper tantrum in this short and cartoonish diatribe. But it is fun, and he makes some good points. Heck, he has blurbs on the back of the book from Al Franken and Ann Coulter - talk about appealing to everybody.The book is much like Bill's show, very opinionated but the ideas are never really fleshed out. A lot of points get made in a hurry here, but they are darned good points - and they get the reader thinking after he finishes laughing. The reader reviews here aren't totally friendly, and I think it may be because Bill manages to annoy everybody at some point or other. Or maybe folks were looking for Calvin or Marxian depth. But taken as a whole the book is like a very good political comedy routine - you'll chuckle, you'll be insulted, and you'll learn something. That's Maher's schtick on stage, and that's his style here. Listen, his show got on my nerves - I've never been a fan of his. But I enjoyed this book, and credit Maher for taking on the government and shallow patriots for their reaction to 9/11. And it's nice to see that Maher appreciates his country and what it represents while he faults its leaders and many of its people. By the way, what this book lacks in depth it makes up in height. If your bookshelf is less than 16 inches tall you better wait for the paperback.
Rating:
Summary: Witty
Review: Maher tells us what we should do to help win the war on terror, opining that the politicians won't ask us to make any sacrifices because they are afraid that it will hurt their chances of getting re-elected. He rails against the pervasive political correctness which seems to win out over common sense, and the self-indulgent attitude of Americans in general. Illustrated with lots of specially created posters by various artists, and some war-effort posters used during WWII. You don't have to agree with everything Maher says to enjoy this book. It had me laughing out loud.
Rating: 
Summary: Finally someone gets it right!
Review: I have never been a big fan of Bill Maher...However,...I hurriedly grabbed the book off the shelf and dashed out of the store. Since then, I have read it several times over and loved it each time. Finally, someone out there put together coherent, yet dead-on assessment of the U.S.'s current predicament. This book should be required reading for anyone who flips on the CNN at least once in their day. The final three pages of the book sum up everything that I have been preaching to anyone who would listen for years. Read this book and live by its teachings. Oh thank you wise Mr. Maher.
Rating:
Summary: Political Commentary with An Edge
Review: I don't watch Maher's show. I saw his book in the Cornell Alum magazine (he is a Cornell Grad). I enjoyed reading through, but that may be because I agree with many of his opinions. But even if you disagree with what he says it is worth thinking about. He can't be pigeon-holed into either conservative or liberal. He argues that profiling makes sense (why are searching white-haired grandmas in Airports instead of focusing on members of groups who are more likely to be terrorists). He argues for energy conservation (along the lines of the Sierra Club). He is for legalizing marijuana (and other non-victim crimes like prostitusion, he could be a libertarian). He believes that self-sacrifice is healthy, but that no politician would push us for it. He believes America is a great country, but argues for how we could be better. Overall a worthwhile read, and maybe I will tune in to his show now.
Rating:
Summary: Vital reading for every American
Review: This book is required reading for a post-9/11 USA, and not because Bill Maher has all the right answers to our troubled nation's problem (in more than a few instances I couldn't disagree more). However, in "When You Ride Alone..." Bill Maher has given us something much more valuable: all the right questions. This is where Maher has succeeded at one of his primary goals of spurring intelligent unity in writing this book. How else could a book jacket carry endorsements from such a sweeping cross-section of the political spectrum (it's probably the one place on Earth where you'll see Ann Coulter and Michael Moore agreeing with each other). Cast aside whatever side of the political line you may tie yourself to (blurred as that line is these days), and buy this book.
Rating: 
Summary: If only Bill Maher Were as Intelligent as He Thought
Review: Then maybe this book would have been worth the purchase price. As it stands, this is more of the same sanctimonious clap trap that grew tired long before his show was cancelled. If you must read it, do yourself a favor - check it out of the library and pocket the dough.
Rating: 
Summary: Edgy and Creatively Concieved
Review: I was irritated when Maher's show was canceled, but he has certainly turned the controversy into an opportunity. Here he characteristically uses his insights and wit to stir up our psyches about our views on war -- in an historical sense (alluding to previous wars fought by our country via spoofs of war propaganda), and a current one as well. The visual references force one to think about causes and contexts of past wars in order to make sense of current policy and situations overseas. It is a highly entertaining and thought provoking project, one that may surprise you, as it did me, with the substance underneath its cleverness.
Rating:
Summary: Truly patriotic
Review: Maher shows no hesitation in proclaiming his constitutional right to criticize our government and policies in the exercise of genuine patriotism. In so many words he is yelling at the American frogs to stop being so stupid and complacent and to jump out of the pot as the heat is clearly increasing and we clearly risk being boiled alive. The historical allusions, metaphors, and ironies of this collection of essays are creative and brilliant. Throughout them he lampoons the empty promises of the government and corporate sector (aren't they one?), the deliberately misleading finger pointing, and its baldly obvious lies designed to promote corporate wealth and to divert attention from the real causes of the world's rage against the United States. However, he doesn't just take shots at the government and industry, he lays the blame appropriately on our compliance in a vapid, self centered culture which chooses to remain blind to the ramifications of gross overconsumption of fossil fuels, and our military policies to keep them cheap for our convenience. He points out our obliviousness to our disproportionate domination and waste of many of the world's other resources while people starve, freeze, and die of poor health. However, Maher's rant is alleviated, and his love of country and patriotism are illustrated by his noting the hypocracy of much of the rest of the first world's criticism of the US domination over things such as alleged "cultural imperialism", which he accurately dismisses as inaccurate as well as emanating from clear jealousy. He observes how the US chooses in its own, perhaps inconsistent way, to act as a more humane imperial power than the other nations that over history have held this distinction. He also notes, that much of the hate for the US by the first as well as third world is largely due to our self absorption, and complete disinterest in other peoples. This is a strong dose of truth, "sweetened" by Maher's scathing but delightful sardonic wit. However, it will surely only appeal to those who already agree with his position.
Rating:
Summary: Full of 'Off the top of my head' political analysis
Review: This book almost completely lacks any reasoned political analysis. It is completely pitched at the cartoon strip level of political comprehension. Don't worry you'll be able to flick through it while eating a large burger without any indigestion. Maher's main point is that a small number of vested interest elites dominate economic home and foreign policy. That isn't a revelation to any educated European, and it strains belief that contrary is the case in the US. Ever since C.Wright Mills' Power Elite in the sixties (which analysed the influences of the military industrial networks growing under Eisenhower) this point has been made and remade. Maher makes the point again but without the erudition or the data. He preaches on the need for change but invokes formulae that never rise above sloganising. The other aspect of this book that really got on my goat was the relative absence of the 'rest of the world' in the various polemical pieces. While criticising the US for inwardness, he falls into the same trap by never presenting any reasoned external perspective on US policy. Sure you can agree with some of what he trots out as relevant, but most of his material is close to puerile. Much of it would passs for thoughts from a teenage pool hall where angst rules the night hours. I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone genuinely interested in political analysis and commentary. However, if you are interested in maintaining a superfical analysis of US policies this is probably the book for you.
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