A collection of essays and articles by Gore Vidal, ranging from book reviews and literary criticism to political history and activism. For those not interested in both politics and literature, this will be a mixed bag, but anyone with a wide scope of interests - even if not as wide as Vidal's - should enjoy this collection from cover to cover.

Being unfamiliar with most of the novels discussed in the literature-themed essays, I still found them interesting and informative. But in reading Vidal's political commentary from the fifties and sixties while firmly planted in the stark reality of Donald Trump's second term as President of the United States, I found myself overwhelmed at times by the sense of Déjà vu when confronted with the actions and attitudes of the Republican Party during the 29th Republican Convention's nomination of Richard Nixon as the presidential candidate. Hindsight is 20/20, but the parallels between Nixon and Trump go above and beyond the individual's and their corruption scandals. Vidal's views on the Kennedy "Holy Family" is also relevant as a refreshingly sober examination of a political dynasty that has been overly whitewashed and sanctified - some might even say deified - by time and carefully crafted historical public relations.

Another interesting aspect of Vidal's sociopolitical commentary is his repeated focus on overpopulation as one of the most pressing dangers facing mankind, repeating predictions that the current rate of population growth would result in a global famine by the late 1980s. Roughly fifty years later the doomsday predictions involve climate change, and while this does not negate the importance or severity of either concern - a failed prediction does not discredit the overall dangers - it is a learning experience to watch the evolution of activism over time.

Vidal's essays are not meant for a wide audience, but as I stated previously, if you are a student of both literature and politics, there is very little worth throwing overboard to keep this ship afloat. ( )