This Town

Two Parties and a Funeral - Plus, Plenty of Valet Parking! - in America’s Gilded Capital

By: Mark Leibovich

Narrated by: Joe Barrett

Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

One of the nation's most acclaimed journalists, The New York Times' Mark Leibovich, presents a blistering, penetrating, jaw-dropping - and often hysterical - look at Washington’s incestuous "media industrial complex".

The great thing about Washington is no matter how many elections you lose, how many times you're indicted, how many scandals you've been tainted by, well, the great thing is you can always eat lunch in that town again. What keeps the permanent government spinning on its carousel is the freedom of shamelessness, and that mother's milk of politics, cash.

In Mark Leibovich’s remarkable look at the way things really work in D.C., a funeral for a beloved television star becomes the perfect networking platform, a disgraced political aide can emerge with more power than his boss, campaign losers befriend their vanquishers (and make more money than ever!), "conflict of interest" is a term lost in translation, political reporters are fetishized and worshipped for their ability to get one's name in print, and, well - we're all really friends, aren't we?

What Julia Phillips did for Hollywood, Timothy Crouse did for journalists, and Michael Lewis did for Wall Street, Mark Leibovich does for our nation's capital.

©2013 Mark Leibovich (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"This Town is funny, it's interesting, and it is demoralizing.... I loved it as much as you can love something which hurts your heart." (John Oliver, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart)

"In addition to his reporting talents, Leibovich is a writer of excellent zest. At times his book is laugh-out-loud (as well as weep-out-loud). He is an exuberant writer, even as his reporting leaves one reaching for Xanax.... [This Town] is vastly entertaining and deeply troubling." (Christopher Buckley, The New York Times Book Review)

"It's been the summer of This Town. What lingers from This Town is what will linger in Washington well after its current dinosaurs are extinct: the political culture owned by big money." (Frank Rich, New York Magazine)

Great juicy gossip book with a message

Any additional comments?

One of the audiobooks I truly enjoyed listening to, and one that I recommend. I live in DC so l liked the salacious gossip about personalities. It also disappointed me to here how many people in this city (politicians, media personalities, lobbyists) are getting rich by sucking at the government teat.

My All-Time Favorite Audiobook (so far)

Mark Leibovich is a helluva writer. Joe Barrett reads him so well. This audiobook on 1.25 audio speed is ... *chefs kiss*. I really cannot recommend it enough for anyone looking for the inside scoop on white-collar life in the Washington Swamp. Can't wait for Mark's next book. _This Town_ will be tough to beat!

Uggh. Horrible, uninteresting name dropping...

So if you're looking to read about how many people the author knows, go ahead and get this book. Or, if by the off-hand chance you are mentioned in this "Hey I spoke to this guy and met that guy" book, then go right ahead. Otherwise, stay clear. Too much name dropping, not enough of the interesting. In a word: Boring. Sorry, but true.

The book IS Washington. Useless. A definite don't buy.

Guess you had to be there

Can't believe I got through it. Self indulgence laid out to a new level of boredom. The only people who would be interested in this are the people written about.

Boring stuff

What would have made This Town better?

Bland...nothing new...thought I might get some insight into DC....instead just a bunch of wanta bes...way to much kiss ass....author had favorites he wanted to look good so he wouldn't miss that next party invite...

Has This Town turned you off from other books in this genre?

It would have to be done by " Anonymous"....so you would get real reporting without fear of retaliation

What didn’t you like about Joe Barrett’s performance?

not much

What character would you cut from This Town?

cared about none

Snarky

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

This book is padded -it might be a great 2 hour book but its inside baseball that just bores

What do you think your next listen will be?

The Collaboration: Hollywood's Pact with Hitler

Would you be willing to try another one of Joe Barrett’s performances?

one dimensional

What character would you cut from This Town?

the author

Any additional comments?

no real insight except DC is made upindividual with huge ego and little talent

AUDIBLE TECHNICAL SUPPORTIS THE WORST!!!

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

BEING ABLE TO RESUME LISTENING AFTER THE FIRST 5 HOUR SEGMENT. WOULD NOT OPERATE AFTER THAT POINT, DESPITE MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS.

What was one of the most memorable moments of This Town?

WILL LET YOU KNOW IF I EVER GET A CHANCE TO LISTEN TO THE WHOLE WORK.

Which character – as performed by Joe Barrett – was your favorite?

TBD

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

TBD

Any additional comments?

ENHANCE YOUR TECH SUPPORT. 30 MINUTE WAIT TIMES WON'T GET IT DONE IN THE 21ST CENTURY.

Boring

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Too much insider information and it read/listened like a People Magazine. I was looking more for politics and inside information not a recounting of cocktail parties and gossip. If you like that type of thing then you may love this.

Don't bother

I was really looking forward to this insider's glimpse into the gossip, games, and politics of Washington DC.

Unfortunately the stories told are so bland that they hardly are interesting.

Maybe it's true that "Washington is Hollywood for ugly people" but these people are hardly interesting.

Depressing

Any additional comments?

This book was really tough to get throuh, and I found War and Peace to be a rather easy read. I would characterize it as a disjointed soap opera inspired by Lord of the Flies and Cosmopolitan (although you are robbed of the happy ending of Lord of the Flies because adults never show up). Any hope that may linger regarding the logevity of our civilization will evaporate after reading this book. If you are the kind of person who thinks schmoozing at parties and kissing up to power for the sake of lining your own pockets are worthwhile activities, you'll love this book.