Supreme Courtship

"Nothing raises the national temperature more," writes Christopher Buckley in Supreme Courtship, "than a vacancy sign hanging from the colonnaded front of the Supreme Court." Fictional president Donald Vanderdamp (whose approval ratings are in the "high twenties") finds out how difficult a job filling the spot can be. Two of his stellar candidates for the seat are taken out by the head-hunting Senate Judiciary Committee. In frustration, President Vanderdamp decides to give the committee a candidate they won't dare turn down--Judge Pepper Cartwright: young, sassy, and the star of television's highest rated show, Courtroom 6. The havoc that ensues is political satire at its finest and driest. Buckley mercilessly skewers everything political from presidential campaigns to lobbyists to the overweening egos of Supreme Court justices. He even throws in an oh-so-thinly disguised parody of a certain senator from Connecticut that will make Republicans snort into their coffee. Anne Heche's reading is the stuff that dreams are made of. Heche breathes such life into each character's individual accent and manner of speaking that it is easy to forget that only one person is speaking. All are brought to life vividly and believably. Buckley himself couldn't have hand-picked a better voice as the narrator: Heche manages to wring every ounce of dry humor from each satirical sentence. Supreme Courtship is a breath of fresh air in a year bedeviled with financial crises and political wrangling. Armchair Interviews says: Supreme Courtship is an outstandingly funny political satire made even more memorable by Anne Heche's stellar performance.

Without a doubt, this is the funniest book that I have read in years. I found at least one good laugh on every other page - hey Chris, put some funny stuff on the even numbered pages too. Without being a spoiler, and revealing any more of the plot than has already been revealed, I would like to say that the characters are somewhat stereotypical, but then the book is satire. There are quite a few plot surprises, however, I was able to predict one of the major plot elements. The only difficult part was understanding some of the legalese, but then that too is satire.

"Christopher Buckley, the author of the hilarious and hard hitting Thank You for Smoking, proves why he is one of the most entertaining writers today. This time, Buckley takes a swing at the powers that decide who is on the Supreme Court. If you like the twisted humor of Carl Hiaasen, then you will love this book."

If you think the 2008 presidential campaign has a tendency to collapse into absurdity on any given day, Christopher Buckley's wonderful new book, "Supreme Courtship", is the perfect companion book to the real-live antics we currently witness. Filled with sui generis characters who are only a half-step away from actuality, Buckley creates scenarios that, given a twist here or a turn there, could happen in fact. President Donald Vanderdamp has come upon a situation not unlike one that has been faced by former U.S. presidents...difficulty in getting a Supreme Court nominee through the Senate. Through a chance viewing of a court tv-like show, Vanderdamp hits on his choice... a straight-shootin' Texan host whose husband happens to be the producer. Meet Sarah Palin, southern style. Enormously unqualified to be a Supreme Court judge, Pepper Cartwright, nevertheless, becomes an instant darling of the nation and sails through her confirmation. On the court, however, responsibilities (and her personal life) catch up with her and all... well... fun breaks out, ending with a Constitutional crisis that would make Bush v. Gore seem like Law 101. Author Buckley has a breezy narrative style that sets things up perfectly. A chapter devoted to Pepper's first case on the court, infuses Latin beyond its limits and is the most creative and hilarious part of the book. But Buckley ratchets things up to the final election mess with such finesse that it's a shame when the book finally ends. I highly recommend "Supreme Courtship" for its humor...and its relevance to the folly of our elected and appointed servants in Washington.

In his latest novel, Christopher Buckley trains his trademark "outside insider's insight" on the Supreme Court to parody the political and personal undercurrents shaping how the Court works. The result is political satire at its best - a fun house mirror image of the inner workings of Washington that succeeds because it starts with a deep insight into the real world and then deftly distorts it to highlight the humor (and sometimes ridiculousness) of it all. In simple overview, Supreme Courtship tells the tale of an unpopular President who overcomes a self-interested Senator's opposition to his Supreme Court nominees by nominating a wildly popular television judge to serve on the Court. Underlying that simple story is a series of finely-drawn caricatures and "ripped-from-the-headlines" sub-plots that offer a foil for Buckley's intelligent and irreverent commentary on a range of political and social themes. Parodying the American public's infatuation with electing outsiders as President, Buckley presents President Vanderdamp as the ultimate outsider - a bowling fanatic who is actively trying not to be re-elected, which of course is just the boost his flagging popularity needs. Pitted against Vanderdamp is Dexter Mitchell, a Senator who so desperately wants to become President that he resigns his Senate seat to play one on TV, giving him just the name recognition and outsider status he needs to then run against President Vanderdamp. Pepper Cartwright, the former TV Judge whom President Vanderdamp appoints to the Supreme Court, combines Texas sass, New York sexy, and a frank and pragmatic Judge Judy jurisprudence to emerge as the Court's center of gravity and voice of reason. A host of other characters play their parts just as effectively - from the Scalia-like Justice Crispus to the "milk-the-formula's-success" TV producer Buddy Bixby (who is also Pepper's husband). The result is a thoroughly enjoyable read. Like a welcoming host who likes your company, Buckley brings you inside a world he knows intimately so together you can share a few hours of knowing smiles, LOL's, and occasional scary-true grimaces at the stranger-than-fiction world of Washington.