The Curious Incident of the Wmd in Iraq

A title sure to pique the curiosity of Americans who oppose the Iraq war (especially those who have read The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time), this British political parody is at times clever and informative but, on the whole, does not translate well for U.S. readers. The tone stays extremely close to the original, using footnotes similarly and nearly duplicating key portions of the text: ""When I first met Alastair... he showed me this picture: And I knew it meant 'In Opposition'. Then he showed me this picture: And I knew it meant 'In Power'."" This technique is used to great effect initially; however, the book is far too long to sustain the close parroting, and it soon grows tedious. Tony Blair's personal history and the rise to power of his New Labour party make up well over half of the text; one of the characters even notes that it takes far too long to begin talking about Iraq. The book likely contains a great deal of good material on Blair, but those unfamiliar with British political parties and politicians will find it difficult to separate fact from fiction or to truly understand the majority of the humor. (Many quotes are formatted in such a way as to imply that they are real, but a number of them clearly aren't, which will make readers wonder whether any of the presented ""facts"" are true.) The primary implication of this parody seems to be that Blair is charismatic but secretly totalitarian and ruthless, thinking himself heir to a world empire and plotting behind even his friends' backs. Though the book contains a few bits of information that may prove revelatory to U.S. readers, its appeal will likely be limited on this side of the pond.