In Sarah Vowell's book The Wordy Shipmates, the tone is immediately set. From the first sentence to the last she continuously prods at the plethora of myopic views upheld by some of the more (if not most) ignorant characters in society. The first line reads "The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief. And by dangerous I don't mean thought-provoking. I mean: might get people killed." (Vowell, pg.1) This sentence alone is more telling than the title; it's a "taste test" for the entire book. Whether the next 248 pages takes them four weeks or four hours, the reader will know what's coming.
This book is not the typical history lesson. It's surprisingly much more palatable and engaging to the reader (that is, if you enjoy blunt opinions). The way she uses sarcasm is not only fun and attention grabbing, but also necessary; there is no better way to respond to the cretinous and sometimes callow individuals that Vowell observes. Examples of her humorous writing style are thankfully common throughout the book, one in particular (explaining the difference between the puritans on the Mayflower and the puritans on the Arbella) caught me of guard considering its rather early placement, "... might look deep into their own hearts and identify their own semantic lines in the sand. For instance, a devotion to The Godfather Part II and equally intense disdain for The Godfather Part III. Someday they might find themselves at a bar and realize they are friends with a woman who can't tell any of the Godfather movies apart and asks if Part II was the one that had "that guy in the boat." Them's fightin' words, right?" (Vowell, pg. 5)
As the humor in Vowell's writing is apparent, so are the connections to modern topics, (it's not like the puritan watched The Godfather on their voyage to New England). She often brings historical events out of the text and compares them with the world (and all of its problems) today. For example, Vowell compares the difference between the puritans on the Mayflower and the puritans on the Arbella, to the "seemingly trifling Sunni-versus-Shia rift in Islam" (pg. 5). It is clear that she has a striking proclivity to relate to modern day, (regardless if it's a topic, person, or idea), and whether her writing is loved or despised, it is unarguably unique to herself as an author and an individual.
Henre, I think we were both truly surprised and amazed by Sarah Vowell's writing style. I very much agree with you about your opinion that Vowell's sarcasm makes the reading much more enjoyable. I doubt either of us have read anything like this. I don't know about you, but it took me a very long time to become used to the writing style. I was confused several times about some parts of the book. I often had to reread sections. Although I thought the book was very unique, I had some trouble reading it.
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