Game Change

Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime

By: John Heilemann, Mark Halperin

Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris

Length: 14 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

"This shit would be really interesting if we weren't in the middle of it."--Barack Obama, September 2008

In 2008, the presidential election became blockbuster entertainment. Everyone was watching as the race for the White House unfolded like something from the realm of fiction. The meteoric rise and historic triumph of Barack Obama.... The shocking fall of the House of Clinton - and the improbable resurrection of Hillary as Obama's partner and America's face to the world.... The mercurial performance of John McCain and the mesmerizing emergence of Sarah Palin.

But despite the wall-to-wall media coverage of this spellbinding drama, remarkably little of the real story behind the headlines has yet been told. In Game Change, John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, two of the country's leading political reporters, use their unrivaled access to pull back the curtain on the Obama, Clinton, McCain, and Palin campaigns. How did Obama convince himself that, despite the thinness of his résumé, he could somehow beat the odds to become the nation's first African-American president? How did the tumultuous relationship between the Clintons shape - and warp - Hillary's supposedly unstoppable bid? What was behind her husband's furious outbursts and devastating political miscalculations? Why did McCain make the novice governor of Alaska his running mate? And was Palin merely painfully out of her depth - or troubled in more serious ways?

Game Change answers those questions and more, laying bare the secret history of the 2008 campaign. This is a reportorial tour de force that reads like a fast-paced novel.

©2010 John Heilemann and Mark Halperin (P)2010 HarperAudio

More of the same

The book became boring after a couple hours of listening. Nearly all of this information is a retread of what's already been presented by the talking heads on tv or in mainstream media. I wish I hadn't wasted my credit.

Worthwhile insight

I enjoyed this book a lot because it gave me good insight into the personalities of the "major players" for the 2008 election.
It's a good read, not quite a 5 out of 5, but at least a 4 out of 5.

Love It

This is a very good telling of the 2007/2008 campaign season. I've read a few books about on this topic, and all of the accounts and stories in Game Change line up (for the most part). There are very good insight into many aspects of the trail not perviousy talk about.

I would put the bias needle right at about 50/50 here. John Heilemann and Mark Halperin do a great job keeping it fair.

Great insight into several presidential campaigns

What made the experience of listening to Game Change the most enjoyable?

The behind-the-scenes feeling that I hard while listening was different than other political books I have read.

What other book might you compare Game Change to and why?

Theodore White's book on JFK would be the closest because of an insider's look at political intrigue.

Which scene was your favorite?

John McCain's complete ignorance of the what makes leader's great.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Extraordinary look at several campaign's efforts to win office

Any additional comments?

Great review of all the campaigns' efforts to win. Current movie only relates the story of how and why McCain lost. Bad judgment appears to be the downfall of many a man.

Game Change

Excellent book to listen to. Well read and very interesting

An Outstanding Listen!

Being Canadian, watching American politics from the sidelines, is often like watching a sideshow in a circus, as politics in the USA is a somewhat different animal than what we are used to.
The narration was done beautifully first off, and the story behind the Obama election with all the personalities involved was more than interesting.
The authors of Game Change have brought the best and worst of the most well known political figures to the table; McCain, The Clintons, Sarah Palin, and of course Obama in all his glorious arrogance. The thing I found most interesting was how "human" the authors portrayed these politicians. Their failings, their fears, going deep inside their personal lives, and just how vulnerable they are, or can be. These are faces of these people that one doesn't see in TV soundbites or when they are delivering speeches. I applaud the author in this regard, because literally nothing was held back, including the decision making which affected the nation at large. How President Obama finally had Hilary Clinton agree to take over the Sec of State position, after she vehemently told him no. Or how and why McCain chose the loose cannon in Sarah Palin as a running mate, when he had unbelievably qualified and capable people who may have changed the course of history for McCain had he selected them. The stories are raw, the dirt seems real. I enjoyed the book thoroughly and if there is an interest in President Obama and his politics, or how he climbed to the echelon of American politics while steamrolling over his opponents, this book is recommended.

Game Change, a Game Changer

Game Change is a great book and it has set the bar high for future writers of Presidential campaigns. The detail and the level of documentation is incredible. I learned a lot from the audiobook, and it was refreshing to hear some behind the scenes details to some critical moments and decisions. Game Change read like a great novel at times, in fact there were times where, like with a great novel, I kept listening to see what was going to happen next, even though we know the final outcome of the 2008 election.

My only problem with the book is that the great majority of it is focused on Obama/Clinton. In the audio version, McCain/Palin don't even get coverage until well into the 2nd of the 2 audio files. What was in the book about McCain/Palin was very well done though. Just seems that for as detailed as the democrat side was covered, the republican side was covered less. Maybe that's from people being less willing to talk, or maybe from less factual conversation to actually document.

Finally, I don't normally get worked up over narrators, but the reader of this book was very enjoyable. I thought his slight voice changes to quote certain people were very well done. As an overall audiobook, it gets 5 stars.

Interesting and Informative

Would you consider the audio edition of Game Change to be better than the print version?

I am not able to evaluate the difference. I did enjoy the audio version.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Game Change?

Palin Issues

Which scene was your favorite?

not sure

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

several areas were funny, but i believe that is related to my political leanings.

Any additional comments?

no

Great insider look at 2008. I loved it.

Narrator had a nice voice BUT!! If you're reading fiction, it's fine for the narrator to pronounce given names as he/she wishes. But when you're dealing with real places (Kissimmee) and public figures (Malia Obama, Senator Bayh, (I forgot the name he botched in Part 1), it is totally unprofessional and disrespectful to not find out the proper way to pronounce a name properly. I doubt I would listen to another book narrated by him.

Should have been longer

I got the book mostly because I wanted to understand why "my man" McCain chose Sarah Palin as a running mate. But I learned so much more from the book. My only criticism is that the book could have, and maybe should have, gone behind the scenes with the other candidates. Mike Huckabee would have made a fascinating study, because he was so different from the others, for example. Romney had to deal with the perceptions of his religion - not mentioned. And a lot more could have been said to round out the picture. Nothing was mentioned about McCain's mother campaigning with him, yet not a word was said about that. Bottom line: it should have been longer.