Assassination Vacation

By: Sarah Vowell

Narrated by: Conan O'Brien, Stephen King, Dave Eggers, Jon Stewart

Sarah Vowell exposes the glorious conundrums of American history and culture with wit, probity, and an irreverent sense of humor. With Assassination Vacation, she takes us on a road trip like no other, a journey to the pit stops of American political murder and through the myriad ways they have been used for fun and profit, for political and cultural advantage.

From Buffalo to Alaska, Washington to the Dry Tortugas, Vowell visits locations immortalized and influenced by the spilling of politically important blood, reporting as she goes with her trademark blend of wisecracking humor, remarkable honesty, and thought-provoking criticism. We learn about the jinx that was Robert Todd Lincoln (present at the assassinations of Presidents Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley) and witness the politicking that went into the making of the Lincoln Memorial. The resulting narrative is much more than an entertaining and informative travelogue, it is the disturbing and fascinating story of how American death has been manipulated by popular culture, including literature, architecture, sculpture, and, the author's favorite, historical tourism.

Though the themes of loss and violence are explored and we make detours to see how the Republican Party became the Republican Party, there are lighter diversions into the lives of the three presidents and their assassins, including mummies, show tunes, mean-spirited totem poles, and a 19th-century biblical sex cult.

In Order of Appearance:
Conan O'Brien...Robert Todd Lincoln
Eric Bogosian...John Wilkes Booth
Stephen King...President Abraham Lincoln
Dave Eggers...Mike Ryan
Catherine Keener...Gretchen Worden
Jon Stewart...President James A. Garfield
Tony Kushner...John Humphrey Noyes
Brad Bird...Charles Guiteau & Emma Goldman
Daniel Handler...President William McKinley
Greg Giraldo...President Theodore Roosevelt
David Rakoff...Leon Czolgosz

©2005 Sarah Vowell (P)2005 Simon & Schuster Inc. AUDIOWORKS is an imprint of Simon & Schuster Audio Division, Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Critic reviews

• 2005 Audie Award Nominee, Multi-Voiced Performance
• 2005 Publishers Weekly Listen Up Award, Humor

"Vowell has a perspective on American history that is definitely funny." (School Library Journal)
"Wacky, weirdly enthralling....This is history at its most morbid and most fascinating and, fortunately, one needn't share Vowell's interest in the macabre to thoroughly enjoy this unusual tour." (Publishers Weekly)
"An engaging tour....Audiobook listeners get serious bang for their buck, including guest appearances by Stephen King (as Lincoln), Jon Stewart, Conan O'Brien, and Eric Bogosian, among others." (AudioFile)

Neurosyphilis never seemed so funny

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I would recommend this audiobook to a friend, especially if that friend loves history and sarcasm. In her usually witty style, Vowell elucidates fun facts about presidential assassins that the general public doesn't know (like the fact that the grandiose and crazy Charles Guiteau was part of a peace-loving sex cult and may have had neurosyphilis). She also breathes life into characters that are usually forgotten or altogether unknown (poor President Garfield). After listening to this book it will also be fun to look at monuments, particularly in New York, which usually fade into the city landscape, but are evinced and imbued with historical significance throughout her travels.

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favorite character in the book is Sarah as herself, as it is hilarious hearing her various reactions (sometimes severe and visceral) to the various historical sites she visits.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Nope.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

This audiobook inspired me to go see the musical titled "Assassins." The audiobook was way better than the musical.

A little uneven

This is a fantastic history with nice little intervening anecdotes---that sometimes are a bit distracting. She really focused nicely on the characters in both sides of the assasination, but pays much more attention to some minor players than is useful, such as Robert Todd Lincoln.

I love Vowell's narration...

Would you listen to Assassination Vacation again? Why?

...because her voice sounds, to me, and endearingly so, exactly like the voices of the characters in the animated Peanuts specials. Love it!

Fantastic

If you like Sarah Vowell on the radio, you will absolutely love this audiobook. I have to take issue with those who complain about Vowell's voice, and say it would be better to read than listen. Quite the opposite. Sarah's quirky voice only adds to the experience -- her unique/odd inflection only gives the words additional layers of meaning and nuanced humor; the storytelling is truly in Vowell's voice, both narratively and literally, which is good. Vowell is a delight, and listening to this audiobook was truly a delightful experience. I would give it 6 stars if I could.

Interesting history

I love Sarah Vowell’s take on history always, and I always learn something new about history. In this book, I learned the back stories about the deaths of Lincoln, Garfield, & McKinley.

Great book. Difficult performance.

This is a wonderfully researched book. It's funny and most of the detours from the main story line are interesting or entertaining. I love her political wit. She had a slightly sardonic way of speaking that'd works well with the story line. She's an endearing reader. But using a sardonic tone of voice produces many drop offs in the tone. As an elderly listener it made it difficult to hear; making me resort to using earphones and concentrate more on simply trying to catch the words.

I did not like at all the interjection of the music which most of the time went along with the reading making it almost impossible for me to hear her words. Equally distracting were all the other voices. Sometimes it worked but most of the time it didn't.

In short I loved the book but had some problems with the performance.

Outstanding book - just finished it - 2 thumbs up!

I am now a certified Sarah Vowell fan - this is the third novel I have read by her - and I just find her humor, asides, tangents, and FACTS a perfect way to spend my audible credits. Kudos to her, and her friends and family who drive her all over kingdom-come. Please write some more historical books for us! (Also love hearing about Owen!!!)

Can’t get enough

I love all things Sarah Vowell, especially her audiobooks. Her wry tone & authentic love of American history coupled with her genuine civilian concerns for the American present remain consistently relatable. This is not the text for American apologists, but for conflicted history buffs who hope in the midst of disappointment. I have listened to her book on Lafayette a dozen times and am now listening to all the rest.
This is one of the rare books where I can't recommend the audiobook version over the hardcover enough. The late, great David Rakoff is as wonderful as ever. Stephen King is Lincoln. Conan O'Brien is his son. Jon Stewart is James Garfield. If you love This American Life, RadioLab & WireTap, you'll enjoy every audiobook of hers.

Quirky and Enchanting

I can see how Sarah Vowell's voice may seem grating, but I suppose years of hearing her pieces on "This American Life" has conditioned me to expect greatness whenever I hear it.

This book isn't any different. It reminds me a great deal of some of those bits on "TAL" dealing with historic figures (Lafayette was a recent one). Her obsession with Presidential assassinations is cleverly portrayed in her well-crafted writing style, and her narration is dead-on.

Any complaints about Vowell's "Bush-bashing" should be taken very lightly. She takes a few jabs at our current President, but only to make a few points about the arrogance of assassins... people who deign to make the decision for the country on whether or not a given person is suitable to lead us. I think she raises a very valid point by bringing up Dubya.

A pleasure to listen to, thanks in no small part to Vowell's group of buddies lending narrative variety to our country's cast of characters. Particular kudos to Brad Bird for his funny-but-creepy readings of Charles Guiteau's gallows-poetry.

Painful listening to terrific storytelling

I learned more about Lincoln, Garfield (who?) and McKinley than I ever imagined. The stories of the assassins themselves and their motives, backgrounds and post-shooting history was a step back into an Americana that possesses many surprising similarities to today's America.

Unfortunately, listening to the narrator's voice was so painful for me. I slugged through it with only one break to hear what was coming next because I was on a plane; if I had several breaks, I would've been tempted at any time to not continue, just to avoid that voice! Lisa Simpson-esque, full of awkward starts and stops and pauses -- DEFINITELY listen to the sample first (I didn't).