I Am America (And So Can You!)

Infobox Book
name = I Am America (And So Can You!)


image_caption =
author = Stephen Colbert
Rich Dahm
Paul Dinello
Allison Silverman
with
Michael Brumm
Eric Drysdale
Rob Dubbin
Glenn Eichler
Peter Grosz
Peter Gwinn
Jay Katsir
Laura Krafft
Frank Lesser
Tom Purcell
country = USA
language = English
subject =
genre = Political satire Humor
publisher = Grand Central Publishing
release_date = October 9, 2007
media_type = Hardback & Audiobook
pages = 250 pp (1st edition)
isbn = ISBN 0-446-58050-3 (first edition, hardback)

"I Am America (And So Can You!)" is a satirical 2007 bestseller by American comedian Stephen Colbert and the writers of "The Colbert Report". It was released on October 9, 2007, with the audiobook edition released several days earlier. The book is loosely structured around Colbert's (fictionalized) life story; as he claims to be America, this book is supposedly America's story. As of the April 6, 2008 publishing, the book had been on the New York Times Bestseller List in the Hardcover Nonfiction category for twenty-four weeks, ranking number one for fourteen of them. [cite web | url = http://www.nytimes.com/pages/books/bestseller/ | title = "New York Times" Bestseller List | publisher = "The New York Times" | accessdate = 2008-04-02]

Description

"I Am America (And So Can You!)" is described as being a "pure extension" of "The Colbert Report", delving into the views of Colbert's "well-intentioned, poorly informed high status idiot" [cite news | last = Solomon | first = Deborah | url = http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/25/magazine/25questions.html?_r=2&oref=slogin | title = Funny About the News | publisher = "New York Times Magazine" | date = 2005-09-25 | accessdate = 2008-01-05] character on what he considers to be the most pressing issues facing America. The book draws some influence from the literary endeavors of the character's pundit models, such as Bill O'Reilly's "The O'Reilly Factor" (2000) and Sean Hannity's "Deliver Us From Evil" (2004), which Colbert says he "forced" himself to read as a reference. [Colbert, Stephen (October 16, 2007). [http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=266215977&s=143441&i=20072008 "Meet the Author" podcast] . Retrieved on 2007-10-27.]

Red margin notes appear throughout the book, providing humorous reactions and counterpoints to Colbert's arguments in a style comparable to the "Report"'s Wørd segment. [cite news | last = Maslin | first = Janet | title = It May Be a Book, but You Can Read It | url = http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/08/books/08masl.html?_r=1&oref=slogin | publisher = "The New York Times" | date = 2007-10-08 | accessdate = 2008-01-05] The cover features a sticker depicting a burning book, declaring "I Am America" to be the winner of "The Stephen T. Colbert Award for the Literary Excellence." A sheet of twelve similar stickers are provided inside, with which readers are provided to nominate other books for the award. A second sheet of stickers containing positive expressions such as "Hell Yeah!", "Nailed It!" and "It's Morning In Colbert-ica" is included for readers as bookmarks to remind themselves "when you agreed with me most."Colbert, Stephen (2007). "I Am America (And So Can You!)". New York: Grand Central Publishing. ISBN 0-446-58050-3]

Colbert, whose character frequently uses his show to advertise his own fictional products, frequently promoted "I Am America" on screen prior to and immediately following its release. On October 9, 2007, the day of the book's release, Colbert interviewed himself as the show's featured guest.

Table of contents

* Preface
* Part 1: My American Childhood
** Chapter 1: The Family
** Chapter 2: Old People
** Chapter 3: Animals
** Chapter 4: Religion
* Part 2: My American Adolescence
** Chapter 5: Sports
** Chapter 6: Sex and Dating
** Chapter 7: Homosexuals
** Chapter 8: Higher Education
** Chapter 9: Hollywood
* Part 3: My American Maturity
** Chapter 10: The Media
** Chapter 11: Class War
** Chapter 12: Race
** Chapter 13: Immigrants
** Chapter 14: Science
* Conclusion: The Future
* Appendix
** The White House Correspondents' Dinner

Audiobook cast and crew

Starring:

*Stephen Colbert as Himself and as Gil Honeycomb, oldest man in the world (ch. 2, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Amy Sedaris as Dolores Grierson, old maid (ch. 1, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Raymond Whitman as Young Stephen (ch. 2, seven-year-old's note)
*Evelyn McGee as Cow #L73NR, a cow (ch. 3, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*David Pasquesi as God, maker of all that is seen and unseen (ch. 4, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Kevin Dorff as The Guy Sitting Next to You at The Stadium (chs. 5 and 13, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Allison Silverman as Your Soulmate (ch. 6, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Paul Dinello as Austin, a formerly gay man (ch. 7, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Brian Stack as Dr. Bernard Brunner, distinguished professor (ch. 8, Stephen Speaks For Me) and as Thomas Bindlestaff, executive assistant to Mr. Stephen Colbert (ch. 11, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Jon Stewart as Mort Sinclaire, former TV comedy writer and Communist (ch. 9, Stephen Speaks For Me)
*Greg Hollimon as Rev. George A. Lewis, ex-civil rights leader (ch. 12, Stephen Speaks For Me)

Abridged by Paul Dinello, directed by Paul Dinello, produced by Paul Dinello and John McElroy.

See also

* "America (The Book)"

References

External links

* [http://www.makemeamerica.com/ Official book website]
* [http://www.hachettebookgroupusa.com/books/41/0446580503/index.html Publisher website]
* [http://www.hachettebookgroupusa.com/media/iamamerica.mp3 Audio excerpt]