Monday, November 12, 2018

Blog Tour: Your Own Worst Enemy - Gordon Jack

Your Own Worst Enemy
Gordon Jack
Series: n/a
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: HarperTeen
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Goodreads
Three candidates, three platforms, and a whirlwind of social media, gaffes, and protests makes for a ridiculous and hilarious political circus in Gordon Jack’s second highly satirical novel. Perfect for fans of Andrew Smith and Frank Portman. They say that with great power comes great responsibility. Unless you’re student body president at Lincoln High School. Then you get all the responsibility but none of the power. And the three candidates running for president know all about that.

Stacey Wynn is the front-runner, but she didn’t count on Julia Romero entering this race. Julia is challenging Stacey for the title while also putting the moves on Stacey’s campaign adviser and only friend, Brian. And then there is Tony Guo, the way outsider. Tony is usually oblivious to the school’s political campaigning, as he’s oblivious to anything that isn’t about getting high and drinking all the Space Cow chocolate milk he can stomach. But when his favorite beverage is banned at school, a freshman political “mastermind” convinces Tony to become the voice of the little guy. But what kind of voice is that, really?

If this were an ordinary high school election, the winner would be whichever candidate was the most popular. But this year, each candidate may have to sink to a new low to win an election that could change the course of...very little.
REVIEW

I had featured this book as one of my Can't-Wait Wednesday picks. I had been expecting something along the lines of the movie Election, where the whole political process was depicted in a satirical way, and Gordon Jack definitely delivered that in Your Own Worst Enemy.

What seemed like a sure thing for Stacey turned into a cutthroat political race, which included false accusations, mud slinging, and even maligning by the media. Both Tony and Julia came out of nowhere to challenge Stacey, and to stop her rise to power.

I must say, I really liked all three candidates, even Tony, who was pretty ridiculous and really hilarious. Jack did a great job creating these characters, because though they were each crafted in a way to represent a specific type of political voice, they were still very human. It was their flaws, which helped me empathize with them, even when they were running off the rails a little.

It was easy to pick out all the current issues and ploys from the current state of American politics. However, because Jack was depicting all sides of just about every political hot button topic out there in an exaggerated manner, it didn't bother me. In fact, because he was showing all these things to the extreme, it showed how ridiculous we are about some things, while still shedding light on particular issues.

One thing I can tell you is that I laughed, a lot. This book was really funny, even hilarious at times, but it was also kind of deep and thought provoking, in a good way. Some truths are easier to digest when served with humor, and I found Jack's examination of the the political process and the current issues facing Americans to be quite palatable.

Overall: A hilarious and pretty honest look at American politics that left me laughing and thinking.

* ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

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BOOK LINKS


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gordon Jack always wanted to be a writer. In third grade, he put that on his “What I want to be when I grow up” list, just behind astronaut and professional dog walker. While working towards this goal, he had jobs as an advertising copywriter, English teacher, librarian, and semi-professional dog walker. The Boomerang Effect was his first novel. He lives in San Francisco with his family.



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26 comments:

  1. I'm glad to hear you ended up really liking this one. I do love a book that can make me laugh, and sometimes certain topics are better discussed with humor.

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. Definitely very fun and funny. I appreciated Jack's ability to go to that extreme, but still make me care about the characters

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  2. Sounds like a fun take on politics. I'm not sure I would want to read it though because American politics give me too much anxiety.

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    1. I was worried before I read it, but Jack did keep it on the OTT satirical side. It was probably almost 4.5 stars for me in all honesty

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  3. Love this review!! I just started this book and I can already tell that it's satirical enough that I won't be annoyed. I'm over all the political stuff being SHOVED at me, but this seems like it's more fun than it is being a MESSAGE. Thanks for being on the tour!!

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    1. I thought Jack gave equal time to all sides of the issues and tried to be impartial. It was really funny and sweet at times too

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  4. I loved the movie Election so I'm certain I'll love Your Own Worse Enemy. It sounds like the author did a good job of relating our current political environment through realistic characters and humor. Great review, Sam!

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    1. It was a lot of satire and laughs, but also touching at times. I really enjoyed it

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  5. Well Sam this is always wonderful when a book makes you laugh so much! Sophie @bewareofthereader

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  6. This sounds very fun and a good escape from our current political climate!

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    1. Not so much an escape, but more another way to look at where we are right now, at least for me. I think everybody is a little OTT these days.

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  7. This sounds like so much fun and for some reason reminds me of the TV series Felicity and the season when Felicity tried to run for student body President.

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    1. Yes. It's all about how extreme things can get, so definitely reminiscent.

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  8. This sounds like a fun look at politics. Glad you enjoyed this one, Sam!

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  9. This sounds like so much fun! But I also appreciate that it's taking the state of things in the US, and managed to be thought provoking and humourous at the same time about it.


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    1. I was nodding my head up and down quite a bit as I laughed.

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  10. I'm not sure I would read about politics since I read to escape from them but this sounds fun! I 'm glad you enjoyed it Sam!

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    1. I usually feel the same way, but this was satirical, so it was ok.

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  11. I remember when you featured this on your WOW. I think I need to read this as I want a humorous take on our current political situation. I am happy to hear you laughed a lot.

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    1. The fact that I was able to laugh about it says a LOT, because I have essentially muted almost anyone, who utters a political barb on my social media feeds, but this was more or less equal opportunity and pretty much represented all the political archetypes out there in an OTT way.

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  12. Ooooooh I'm so so glad that this was a good one for you! I have wanted to read it since you mentioned it on a CWW. I love that you said you laughed a lot in this. I can't wait for it! Great review! :)

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    1. I really needed something like this to make me look at the atrocious behavior of way too many people these days and just laugh at it. It had some great messages too and very endearing characters.

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  13. I remember you featuring this one and I am glad you got to read it and have since enjoyed it so much. I want to read it because I love reading political kind of fictional stories, and it sounds like this one has a lot to say about the present day situation without becoming too preachy either. Love it :D

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    1. It had a lot to say, but it was done in a way that did not alienate me, because the satire was spot on.

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