Rating: 
Summary: hysterical!!!
Review: I honestly cannot remember how many times i laughed out loud while reading this book. A must-read!
Rating:
Summary: Funniest book I've read
Review: I've read both "Lies" and "Rush Limbaugh" and really enjoyed them feeling that Franken had made some excellent points and made me laugh at the same time. "Why Not Me? is meant to be funny. I've never laughed so hard reading anything before (well...maybe "The Onion.") I've read other reviews and I guess I'm rather stunned at people who just hated the book. Al Franken is a comedian, he's going to make offensive jokes and say immature things like almost all comedians. Maybe i'm just immature but the drugs and hooker jokes never got old. It can be like an extended SNL skit WITH profanities included.
Rating: 
Summary: Trial run for "Lies..."
Review: Let's consider 'Why Not Me' a trial run for Al Franken's better written follow-up 'Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them.' All of Franken's work bears the hallmarks of his sketch comedy background - it's an ensemble of pieces, some of which work, some of which don't. In 'Lies,' roughly 80% or more of the pieces hit the mark (I wasn't a fan of the cartoons). In 'Why Not Me,' it's about 50%. Like the Bob Woodward parody ('The Void'), for example: funny for about the first five pages (you laugh when you see Franken's nailed Woodward's melodramatic scene-setting and habit of assembling conversations as if he were in the room). But it drags on and on. How many readers got though the whole piece? Not many I bet.
Like others, I agree that the campaign diary worked the best, followed closely by the faux Newsweek piece - the classic campaign shot of Franken chopping wood with Golden Retriever at his side is a howler. Talk about spot-on. I think the best part of the entire book is the 'one issue' campaign (elimination of ATM Fees) and how Candidate Franken steers all discussion back to that point. Watching both Bush and Kerry try to route every question back to stump speech set pieces makes you realize that there's sometimes a fine line between parody and reality.
Rating:
Summary: one of the finest pieces of political satire ever written
Review: I am saddened to hear that Franken is now considering a run for political office, for it would surely preclude him from writing such dead-on political observations such as this. Buy this book, then buy the audiobook- you will be coming back to them time and again over the years!
Rating:
Summary: Gutbustingly hilarious and poignant too
Review: This is the third Franken book I've read - I read _Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot_ and _Liars..._ before this 1999 book. In the other two mentioned Al Franken aims his deadpan and dead-aim wit at our nation's crop of so-called conservative (actually reactionary: conservatives want to keep the status quo; Limbaugh, Coulter, O'Reilly et al want to take us back to the good Old Days of the 19th Century) commentators and the politicians for/over whom they slaver.In _Why Not Me?_, Franken goes to town on the entire American political circus, skewering left right and center. The story of his fictitious campaign for President, landslide election, and brief dysfunctional presidency satirizes anyone who's ever thrown their hat into nomination ring, as well as the corrupt dog and pony show of campaign politics. He takes on not just the politicians themselves - particularly his "rival" for the nomination, Al Gore - but also the pundits, consultants, campaign handlers and groupies, and corporate campaign contributors. I read _Why Not Me?_ in two sittings, interrupted only by fits of hysterical laughter. Anyone with the slightest interest in American politics needs to read this one - although I should warn you that you may laugh yourself painful.
Rating:
Summary: Astonishing. Conservatives should check this one out.
Review: Al's first work of political satire, "Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot", alienated many with its attacks on conservative icons. His second such work, this one, should prove palatable to anyone interested in Presidential Politics. Franken satirizes the process of becoming President. First, he gives us "Daring To Lead", his fluff-piece autobiography that announces his hat's presence in the Presidential ring. Then, through his unedited diaries, we watch him slog through a messy, illegal, incredibly amoral, and hilarious Primary process. We move quickly through the actual Presidental election, and then into the final portion of the book where Al's Presidency tumbles due to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (the least amusing and successful portion of the book). The level of imagination displayed is astonishing. The level of detail and insight into politics is impressive and revealing. Franken's gift for humor is gigantic. This is one great book. My only complaint is that, as is his wont, Franken occasionally becomes more abrasive with his humor than he has to - shades of SNL and 1970's humor - if a few less people had been maimed in this book, I would have enjoyed it more.
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