cover image Republican Party Reptile: Essays and Outrages

Republican Party Reptile: Essays and Outrages

P. J. O'Rourke. Atlantic Monthly Press, $9.95 (220pp) ISBN 978-0-87113-145-4

The humorous essays in O'Rourke's first collection originally appeared in publications ranging from Harper's, House and Garden and the Wall Street Journal to National Lampoon. Certainly the title will not appeal to most liberals, and selections like ""How to Drive Fast on Drugs While Having Your Wing-Wang Squeezed and Not Spill Your Drink'' will make conservatives frown. Perhaps the audience is limited to the eponymous ``Republican Party Reptiles,'' whom O'Rourke describes in the following terms: ``We look like Republicans, and think like conservatives, but we drive a lot faster and keep vibrators and baby oil and a video camera behind the stack of sweaters on the bedroom closet shelf.'' Those who have previously read and enjoyed the refreshingly funny ``Moving to New Hampshire'' and ``An Intellectual Experiment'' might find the rest of this collection disappointing and pointlessly offensive. (April)