by Thomas Frank
First published 1999
Thomas Frank compiles two issues of The Baffler magazine that dissect American culture with sharp wit. Issue 11 focuses its satirical lens on middle America and contemporary pop culture. The magazine staff delivers their trademark irreverent commentary alongside bowling shirt imagery and includes a flexidisc featuring Dead Moon performing the "Good Times" theme song. Issue 12 ventures into America's heartland to examine how "plain folk" have changed. Frank and his contributors explore the world of armed millennialists, Christian patriarchists who embrace touchy-feely approaches, and the vast landscape of chain restaurant workers at establishments like ChiChi's, Chili's, Cheddar's, Shoney's, and Denny's. The collection captures The Baffler's mission to challenge assumptions about American life through biting social observation.
Genres: satire, american-fiction, american, non-fiction, 21st-century, cultural-studies
Vibes: biting, irreverent, thought-provoking
Tropes: satire, social-commentary
Setting: America, Midwest
Period: 21st Century
128 pages · Paperback · Baffler