About the Author

JOE KLEIN is a political columnist for Time, formerly a staff writer for The New Yorker, and the author of the novels Primary Colors and The Running Mate, as well as of two nonfiction books – Woody Guthrie: A Life and Payback: Five Marines After Vietnam.

Reviews

“The Natural is an important step forward for Clinton literature...[with] crisp writing and vivid images…[that] helps us to understand the very different time and nation we now inhabit.” – Ted Widmer, The New York Observer

“Klein…is a superb storyteller, a master at setting a scene, capturing the gestures of his characters, and most of all, at describing the twists and turns of the political intrigue that passes for democracy in Washington, D.C….I read – or rather inhaled – [The Natural] in one sitting.” – The San Francisco Chronicle

“... Brilliantly illuminating...There will be numerous books written about Clinton and his presidency, but they will be hard-pressed to capture the public and private Clinton as well as this one.” – Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“[A] thoughtful assessment of the Clinton presidency…a supremely fascinating look….No journalist is better matched to this subject than Klein.” – Kirkus Reviews

“[Klein] offers the real deal….His is a on Diogenesian quest to find out why things happened, not just the scandals but also the policy decisions that shaped both domestic and foreign landscapes. In the process, he manages to rediscover Clinton.” – Booklist

“[A] short, sparkling account of those presidential years….Among journalists, Klein is ideally placed to write this book.” – David Gergen, The Boston Globe

“Klein is a smart and engrossing writer….Readers who supported Clinton will discover new insights into why he didn’t accomplish more; those who opposed him will gain a sharper understanding of why he remained so popular with the public.” – Amazon.com

“Klein is an intelligent and shrewd observer of Clinton’s weaknesses and failures.” – John, J. Miller, The National Review

“[The Natural] is a book with insight, balance and bright writing….a century from now, some serious historian will be glad that Klein wrote this slender book. As raw material for real history, this book will be a mother lode of contemporary observations.” – Harry Levins, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

“Packed with revealing details…[Klein] can summarize a subject in a single well-phrased sentence.” – Bruce Fretts, Entertainment Weekly

“A book about the Clinton presidency that both Bill’s most ardent detractors and most enthusiastic worshipers can enjoy.” – The Times (London)

“A qualified success: It will make you reconsider Clinton’s eight years.” – Business Week

“Mr. Klein serves up a familiar but cogent analysis of what went wrong.” – Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

The Lewinsky affair and parting-shot presidential pardons helped obscure President Clinton's achievements, notes Klein, who as Anonymous wrote the thinly veiled Clintonian novel, Primary Colors. Haynes Johnson's The Best of Times: America in the Clinton Years (LJ 10/1/01) is a more substantial investigation, but Klein's provocative musings, based partly on three interviews with the former president, have the advantage of being written after the terrorist attacks of September 11. Clinton is not greatly faulted here for not hunting down Osama bin Laden because neither the public nor Congress would have tolerated a lengthy ground war during the Nineties. According to Klein, his major accomplishments saving the Democratic Party from possible extinction, rekindling an interest in public service, and improving the lives of America's poorest citizens were misunderstood, if not unrecognized, by a public bloated from a diet of scandal fed by a blood-lusting media. Arguably the best politician of his generation, Clinton was the inheritor, not the creator, of uncivil partisan battles, which began during the 1960s and metastasized 30 years later into the "Gingrichization of politics." Unfortunately, Clinton's unseemly behavior was an easy target for his enemies. Recommended for public libraries. Karl Helicher, Upper Merion Twp. Lib., King of Prussia, PA Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

"The Natural is an important step forward for Clinton literature...[with] crisp writing and vivid images...[that] helps us to understand the very different time and nation we now inhabit." - Ted Widmer, The New York Observer

"Klein...is a superb storyteller, a master at setting a scene, capturing the gestures of his characters, and most of all, at describing the twists and turns of the political intrigue that passes for democracy in Washington, D.C....I read - or rather inhaled - [The Natural] in one sitting." - The San Francisco Chronicle

"... Brilliantly illuminating...There will be numerous books written about Clinton and his presidency, but they will be hard-pressed to capture the public and private Clinton as well as this one." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"[A] thoughtful assessment of the Clinton presidency...a supremely fascinating look....No journalist is better matched to this subject than Klein." - Kirkus Reviews

"[Klein] offers the real deal....His is a on Diogenesian quest to find out why things happened, not just the scandals but also the policy decisions that shaped both domestic and foreign landscapes. In the process, he manages to rediscover Clinton." - Booklist

"[A] short, sparkling account of those presidential years....Among journalists, Klein is ideally placed to write this book." - David Gergen, The Boston Globe

"Klein is a smart and engrossing writer....Readers who supported Clinton will discover new insights into why he didn't accomplish more; those who opposed him will gain a sharper understanding of why he remained so popular with the public." - Amazon.com

"Klein is an intelligent and shrewd observer of Clinton's weaknesses and failures." - John, J. Miller, The National Review

"[The Natural] is a book with insight, balance and bright writing....a century from now, some serious historian will be glad that Klein wrote this slender book. As raw material for real history, this book will be a mother lode of contemporary observations." - Harry Levins, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

"Packed with revealing details...[Klein] can summarize a subject in a single well-phrased sentence." - Bruce Fretts, Entertainment Weekly

"A book about the Clinton presidency that both Bill's most ardent detractors and most enthusiastic worshipers can enjoy." - The Times (London)

"A qualified success: It will make you reconsider Clinton's eight years." - Business Week

"Mr. Klein serves up a familiar but cogent analysis of what went wrong." - Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times