Rating: 
Summary: Great book!
Review: I strongly recommend this book for all people in mgmt (and sales!). It has some very strong underlying ideas. These two guys are the king spin doctors who have fought in the trenches and won. It's certainly worth the read. I would also recommend you combine this purchase with Chris Mathews "Hardball" book.
Rating:
Summary: BUCK UP, SUCK UP... AND COME BACK WHEN YOU FOUL UP
Review: James Carville and Paul Begala have waged political war all across America and on three continents. They've won some of the most spectacular political victories of the twentieth century and lost a few campaigns too. Along the way, they've learned a few lessons. Some sound simple, like "Never Quiet," some comic... and some are more complicated and nuanced, like "Strategy Ain't Tactics," But each lesson contains tired - and - true wisdom, illustrated with colorful stories from long political experience many never told before: - Find out how Carville's mother, Miz Nippy, used a bass boat to "frame the debate"in selling encyclopedias. - Discover what success secret Hillary Rodham Clinton and Tom DeLay share. - Learn the War Room tricks for sharpening your message and delivering the perfect sound bite. - And much more. Whether you are a senior executive or a secretary, a political junkie or the president of the United States, the rules to live by can be found in Buck Up, Suck Up...and Come Back When You Foul Up.
Rating:
Summary: Practical and Entertaining
Review: Idealogically I disagree with these guys on just about everything, but their book was an entertaining read on some basic principles of management and leadership.
Rating:
Summary: Life Lessons for all ages
Review: In my attempt to reach street savvy special education students who have low self-esteem, learning disabilities and who have been retained at least a year, examples from this book have served me well. Not a word of my cheerleading and pep talks worked as well as the lesson I gave today which included excerpts from this book. In addition to quotes by Einstein, "In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity," Gladstones "No man ever became great except through many and great mistakes", and the Chinese proverb, "All things at first appear difficult," the story of Lincoln really hit home with these kids. How relieved they were to know that it is ok to make mistakes and that mistakes can even be beneficial. They had the evidence right in front of them and it was written by someone else besides me! It wasn't just their teacher trying to make them feel better or ease the pain of years of failure because "it's my job", and because they know I love them. Hopefully the occasional discussions I over hear about wanting to leave school will subside when I remind them that smarter people than their teacher have adopted the mantra, "Don't ever quit."
These are 5th graders, by the way.
If all you see when you read this book is partisanship. You've missed the boat that my 5th grade students are on. :)
Rating:
Summary: You get what you pay for!
Review: This book is a practical guide to winning the "battle", whether that's a political campaign, a business, or anything. The advice is organized into simplistic chapters, such as "Kiss Ass", "Kick Ass" and "Frame the Debate". The chapters use interesting and humorous anecdotes to explain the ideas. This is roll up the sleeves advice for how to make things happen. The context is political, the application much more universal. As one might imagine, the book has strong liberal pro-Clinton leanings. YOU don't need to be card carrying democrat to get a lot from the book. If you're a Carville fan, you'll appreciate the editiorial comments more. If you're a die hard Republican, learn from these guys and get the last laugh. Read a chapter a day and you'll be better for it. p.s. The chuckle from the name alone should be worth a few stars!
Rating: 
Summary: Nothing new but lively political storytelling
Review: For those of you unfamiliar with the book's authors, James Carville and Paul Begala are well-known vets of the political campaign wars, most heralded for their handling of Bill Clinton's Presidential run. While Carville is known as the "Rajun Cajun" and typically receives the majority of the press, Begala is razor sharp in wit and tongue alike. Together, they're a relatively lethal combination. While I didn't purchase this book for their political insights and regaling of campaign successes, one can't help but be a bit impressed with the message they've composed in BUCK UP, SUCK UP. But, only a bit. Carville and Begala, fresh out of current campaign work, decided to collaborate on their combined experiences in the election process and extrapolate it to the business/self-help genre. In the end, the principles they gleaned from their experiences are condensed into a 220 page book providing the self-help denizen with new fodder. The result is, well, somewhat chaotic and mixed. The subtitle of the book, "12 Winning Secrets from the War Room" suggest that Carville and Begala will provide the unsuspecting reader with insightful suggestions to "beat the game." Well, not really. While some of the 12 Secrets are thought-provoking, others fall short of anything but basic common sense. Let's look at a few: 1) Kiss {Tail}; 2) Kick {Tail}; 3) Be Open; 4) Know How to Communicate...you get the idea. (By the way, my bracketing {} was necessary to appease the censors.) While its easy to see that some of the suggestions Carville and Begala offer are clearly gleaned from their political experience ("Frame the Debate," "Understand the Difference between Strategy and Tactics"), others appear to be simple rules of life. In short, BUCK UP, SUCK UP is less a book of "Secrets" exciting to the politicos and wannabes than one of basic, simple rules of thumb for politics, business, and life. One area which hits home for the business crowd is their rant on micromanaging. Carville and Begala tutor the reader on campaign failures as a result of candidates and staff becoming hung up on the minutiae. For instance, one sure-fire issue on the road to failure is "how campaign headquarters answers the phone." They go on to inform us that many candidates spend the lionshare of their strategic thinking(?) on these types of issues and never think about how average voters are perceiving them. This holds true for most professions and those operating/managing businesses. While being a detail person has its merits, the big picture is the entrepreneur's path to success. Hire the detail guys; you can't hire visionaries. BUCK UP, SUCK UP doesn't meet the traditional definition of a political read by a long shot although it is written by two VERY, VERY political individuals. Regardless, it is quite obvious that Carville and Begala had great fun writing the book. It is laced with anecdotes and stories which hold the reader's attention. This, by itself, earned a couple of stars. At 220 pages, BUCK UP, SUCK UP is a very quick read. The book is designed to be a basic, quick-and-dirty self-help guide. If you're well-versed and experienced in political offerings, this book holds nothing for you. If you have political aspirations, this book is probably a reasonable primer. If you are looking for inspiration in the form of a self-help book, this book is simply adequate.
Rating: 
Summary: simplistic advice and partisan [junk]
Review: ... Save your money, here's the recap: communicate well; stay on message; Bill Clinton is God and James is his prophet. There you have it. The book is grossly partisan; while listing their favorite sound bites of all time Carville and Begala just look petty as they rip George W. for a learning disability! Hmmmm, I think the authors forgot a memorable little one-liner uttered by the man for whom they daily strap on kneepads. Something about not having an affair? Save your money world; no secrets here -- Just a rehash of ideas you'll find in any PR 101 text.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing Advice for all walks of Life!
Review: When I first saw that James Carville and Paul Bagala wrote a book i knew I had to purchase it. The two were famous form thier campaign work with President Clinton. After having it read it though, all my expectations were surpassed. The authors provide 12 incredably useful "rules" to get ahead in life. Even if you are not a politico this book is for you!
Rating: 
Summary: Someone Please Hire These Guys
Review: This was a bloody awful waste of money. And yes I have to admit to actually reading the whole thing! Arggg!! Think of a really bad Leno monologue, now imagine that he's fitted his jokes to a bunch of Democrats living in 1992, and imagine that he has no skill what-so-ever at setting up jokes. . . okay that's this "book". You'd think they'd have something better to do with their time but I guess when you fall on hard times (losing every election you get involved with for half a decade) there's always a way to live off long past success.
Rating:
Summary: Okay, I'm Breaking a Rule Here
Review:
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