Never Shake Hands with a War Criminal

By Barry Crimmins

Never Shake Hands with a War Criminal is a personal and political history told with acid humor and a loving heart. Barry Crimmins, a writer and commentator on Air America Radio, travels from a skeptical childhood in frozen upstate New York, through the founding of the Boston comedy scene, to a career as a satirist and activist. No villain is spared; no hero is forgotten. Crimmins also cuts a hilarious swath through our political tormentors, in the spirit of Mark Twain, Will Rogers, and Lenny Bruce.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1583226605
• ISBN13: 9781583226605
• Release Date: November 2004
• Publisher: Seven Stories Press
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.78 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.8" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

a memoir and political essays -- and all very funny

Barry Crimmins grew up in Skaneateles, NY, and was a fixture in Boston stand-up comedy or years. We learn a lot about this, his family, and his opinions about politics today in this series of very funny essays covering topics such as 9/11, corporate corruption, Henry Kissinger, the Clintons, activism, Dennis Miller, comedy, Reagan, Air America Radio, NPR, the Iraq War, etc. Scattered between the essays are one-liners (Bush says he is eating beef and isn't vaguely concerned about the possibility of mad cow disease. Of course he isn't--the disease attacks the brain.) If you're a progressive, there are lots of lines that will make you nod or smile or laugh (Not since Ronald Reagan have we had a president who is as stupid as he is evil.) Conservatives who've drunk the Bush kool-aid will not enjoy this, but all others will.

Sanely Funny

In this age when dishonest and careless people cloak themselves in Christianity, and when fair and balanced is anything but, it is a relief to read Barry Crimmins. Never Shake Hands with a War Criminal combines humor with humanity and courage with the truth. The chapters about Crimmins' dying friend and the Oklahoma City bombing made me cry and the chapters about surfing on the Niagara and Newt Gingrich made me laugh. And all of it made me want to stand up for what is good in each of us. I recommend this book for anyone whose soul needs a drink of something clean and refreshing.

Awesome, Hilarious Book

I got an early Christmas gift - Barry Crimmins Never Shake Hands With A War Criminal and I ended up - in-between picking myself up off the floor, having tumbled from laughter - reading this tremendous work non-stop, cover-to-cover. Crimmins is incredibly talented, writing with great clarity and conviction, without pandering for laughs. He's a master humorist, a modern day Twain ... His 'Rushmore of Wrong-Headedness', his riff on Gingrich and more are all side-splitting ... If you like well-written humor, run, don't walk, to your nearest bookstore (or, if you're reading this review, click back and hit the order button) to get this work ... It's tremendous Peace JTD

Shake hands with Barry Crimmins

Crimmins' satire can lacerate like razor wire. It's also laugh-out-loud funny. His comments on the current White House administration, and Conservatives of nearly any ilk, are biting and savagely witty. But even those who don't subscribe to the author's partisan ideology should be impressed by several thoughtful essays in this book - ruminations on his hometown near the Finger Lakes, a eulogy for a cancer-stricken friend, his fond memories as founder of the Boston comedy scene circa 1979, his introspective examination of how annual copious snowfall in Central New York state creates hearty skeptics, an encounter with a lost boy and a Good Samaritan. These essays and others show that the author is more than just a political animal. He's also a keen observer of the human condition (a hallmark trait of any fine satirist). Mainly, though, the book focuses on Crimmins' high-principled views, which are insightful, unapologetic, and often very funny.

Cool drink of reality

In a world where the Emperor's Clothes have become the Emperor's news media, Barry Crimmins voice has the ring of honesty. His biting humor and painfully honest historical revelations remind readers that there is still value in truth, however hard that truth may be. On top of that, Never Shake Hands with a War Criminal is a great read. Crimmins' writing is amazingly skillful and multi-textured. This book is a cool drink of reality, satisfying both the soul and the mind.