SOCIAL SCIENCES

Republican Like Me: How I Left the Liberal Bubble and Learned To Love the Right

Harper. Oct. 2017. 304p. notes. index. ISBN 9780062460783. $27.99; ebk. ISBN 9780062460868. POL SCI
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OrangeReviewStarAmerica is more polarized today than any time in recent history—both sides of the aisle distrust each other and are increasingly disinclined to have anything to do with the other party. But Stern, former CEO of National Public Radio and author of With Charity for All: Why Charities Are Failing and a Better Way To Give, troubled by the blue bubble he lives in, wonders if Republicans and Democrats don't have more in common than they believe. To prove his thesis, he sets out to visit the other side, discussing highly polarizing issues such as abortion, gun rights, religion, immigration, the government, and more. Stern travels beyond the strawmen and the obvious figures of ridicule to hear from the multitude of voices and the variety of views that make up the Republican Party. What he finds is that issues are less clear and more nuanced than he, a lifelong Democrat, previously appreciated. The heart of the matter, he concludes, is that both sides need to put aside their differences and step outside their respective bubbles and work together. Simple perhaps, but increasingly rare.
VERDICT Highly recommended; Stern's empathy and deft writing are compelling.
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