The Partly Cloudy Patriot

By: Sarah Vowell

Narrated by: Sarah Vowell, Conan O'Brien, Seth Green, Stephen Colbert

In The Partly Cloudy Patriot, Sarah Vowell travels through the American past and, in doing so, investigates the dusty, bumpy roads of her own life. In this insightful and funny collection of personal stories Vowell - widely hailed for her inimitable narratives on public radio's This American Life - ponders a number of curious questions: Why is she happiest when visiting the sites of bloody struggles like Salem or Gettysburg? Why do people always inappropriately compare themselves to Rosa Parks? Why is a bad life in sunny California so much worse than a bad life anywhere else? What is it about the Zen of foul shots? And, in the title piece, why must doubt and internal arguments haunt the sleepless nights of the true patriot?

Her essays confront a wide range of subjects, themes, icons, and historical moments: Ike, Teddy Roosevelt, and Bill Clinton; Canadian Mounties and German filmmakers; Tom Cruise and Buffy the Vampire Slayer; twins and nerds; the Gettysburg Address, the State of the Union, and George W. Bush's inauguration.

The result is a teeming and engrossing audiobook, capturing Vowell's memorable wit and her keen social commentary.

This audiobook is read by Sarah Vowell, Conan O'Brien, Seth Green, Stephen Colbert, David Cross, Paul Begala, Michael Chabon, and Norman Lear.

©2002 Sarah Vowell (P)2002 Simon & Schuster Inc. All Rights Reserved. AUDIOWORKS is an imprint of Simon & Schuster Audio Division, Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Critic reviews

"This is a humorous, insightful, and informative look at one individual's sense of patriotism." (Booklist)
"Droll, intelligent, and persuasive." (Entertainment Weekly)

Voice? C'mon!

Alla youse who negated Sarah's narration are SO missing the point. These essays ARE Sarah. Who else could possibly narate her stories as well as she does? If you enjoy her stories...you enjoy the quintessential Sarah. If you enjoy the quintessential Sarah, then it is her VOICE you are drawn to. C'mon...listen with your head instead of your arse!

Sleeper hit

I had never even heard of Sarah Vowell before downloading this book from Audible, but I am now a big fan. Ms. Vowell, with her dry delivery and ironic wit, is often compared with David Sedaris. The difference is this: Mr. Sedaris makes funny observations about his life, while Ms. Vowell is a literate and well-read humorous commentator on American history and politics. While Mr. Sedaris might make you laugh (if you can stand his voice), Sarah Vowell might actually make you think.

i would have rated it 4 stars if...

if there hadn't been the irritating addition of extra narrators, which seemed awkward and artificial and totally unnecessary to me. Sarah Vowel's peculiar voice, which grew on me, suits her words just fine. She doesn't need to be augmented by other people. This is true even moreso with "Assassination Vacation." Anyway, i thoroughly enjoyed the writing, the attitude, and the humor. Not to mention the history information.

Always entertaining, even when biased

I adore Sarah Vowell, and I would read anything that she wrote, especially if I get to hear it in her own voice. This collection of essays is entertaining and informative for the most part. Where it bothers me is when she gets into the partisan politics. I don't mind her bashing the Right. I pretty much expected that. I'm sure she thinks she's trying to be balanced by poking a little fun at her own side. However, I think she misses the real point of what is lacking from the Left's position on the issues. If you're on the Left, you'll probably be cheering along with her from start to finish. For me, I'll stick with her other non-partisan stuff for now.

History and Satire in one

Another great look at American History from Sarah Vowell. She managed to pack in both satiric comments and true history into every chapter. The only negative is that some of the pieces are now a bit dated, like the one about Bush's inauguration. Still insightful and funny though.

Vowell's reading voice can take a little getting used to, but she is a good reader, and having the author read helps get the emphasis and humor in the right spots.

Magnificent!

What I said, above. (The rules here are: 15 unique words. But that would be overkill.)

History Finally Makes Sense

Sarah continues to make me actually CARE about history by telling me true stories about real people that delight, entertain and, more important, teach. Her inherently comedic tone makes her the perfect reader for her own work. If you want to make history interesting for young people, especially, give them all of Ms. Vowell's work.

Leans left, but good even for right wingers...

Sarah Vowell writes from her heart. I love to hear her read her work. For this reason I was able to get through the listening of "The Partly Cloudy Patriot". I believe, like Sarah, that this is a country of different voices and each has a right to express themselves. It is good to hear the fairness in Sarah's voice, painful to hear some of her opinions that make my head want to explode. I am tired of listening to Gore supporters complain about the "stolen" election, but refreshed to hear someone articulate it beyond the hanging chad even if they are wrong(joke there). Sarah's honesty about her family relations shows her love and intelligence and helped me to find a bit more tolerance for my daughter, even if I don't understand it. This is a good book for people on the right whose favorite book is Matthew to get a glimpse of someone who does not think like they do but is just as honest, loving, and patriotic--if not more--than they are.

If Bill Bryson and Jerry Seinfeld had a Child...

I always enjoy Sarah Vowell's work. She's got a great sense of humor and the kind of patriotism that loves election law more than hanging out flags on everyone's lawn. In fact, if you choose this audiobook, you'll learn her reaction to someone sticking a flag uninvited in her front yarn. (She was absolutely right, IMO, to react the way she did.)

Basically, this book is the product of the self-deprecating humor that was popular in the 90s (and maybe still is, I don't know) combined with historical tidbits and personal experiences in the style of Bill Bryson.

It's more a book that'll make you chuckle than one that wlll produce belly-laughs. I enjoyed it and I'd recommend it to many of my friends.

NB. I listened to this book at the end of 2014 and some of the material was starting to feel dated. So don't delay too long in choosing this title.

Great material, AWFUL voice

The producer should have sprung for an actor to do the reading. Listening to the author's voice is the equivalent of nails on a blackboard. She is has a high-pitched voice, which is made worse by a nasal tone which could only have been the result of placing a clothespin on her nose. It is made absolutely unbearable by her slow, deliberate monotone. I tried to get beyond it and listen to what she was saying, but after two hours I gave up. I'll get the book from the library because I really like the material.