What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America by Thomas Frannk

Backstory: I had heard of this title several times as an explanation of why the Dems lost on Nov. 2. Then my dad recommended it to me and I was trying to avoid reading another book I really need to finish. A trip to St Mark's Bookshop sealed the deal.

Notes: Funny, smart and personal, like everything Frank (founder of the legendary humor magazine The Baffler) does. The analysis is a little repetitive at times and is weak on exactly why former leftists have gone conservative. Perhaps he would have been aided by looking a little beyond Kansas, to put the tranformations of his home state in a larger social and political context. It's a delicate balance here, between the personal and the political. Frank almost gets it.

Verdict: Great for post Nov. 2 ire but probably not one for the ages.