The New New Rules: A Funny Look At How Everybody But Me Has Their Head Up Their Ass%E2%80%A8

Controversial ultra-liberal comedian Maher follows his acerbic New Rules collection with more irreverent musings adapted from his popular weekly HBO show Real Time.%C2%A0Addressing his pet peeves from 2005 to the present, the book tackles everything from The Jersey Shore, to Ted Haggard, to porn addiction, to Rick Perry, as Maher traverses what things irritates him most and ruin his American experience.%C2%A0His alphabetized rules are interrupted by longer screeds, including his 2005 foresight about the financial and foreclosure crises of 2008, and a get-out-now letter to Levi Johnston, who fathered Bristol Palin's baby, around the time of the 2008 Republican National Convention.%C2%A0The nonlinear nature of the book takes readers back and forth through the later years of the Bush Administration and the first three of the Obama Administration, showcasing Maher's consistently unforgiving wordplay, snark, and strangely self-aware humility.%C2%A0His satire can be surprisingly humane, though he never misses the opportunity to pun, which makes every entry capable of surprise.%C2%A0The fearless and honest Maher remains the best cultural critic since George Carlin, and his most recent effort is as hilarious as it is precise. (Nov.)