Them (Sasse) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
Sasse emphasizes the importance of civil debate …and laments the extreme partisanship that characterizes public life in the Trump era. But "the dysfunction in D.C.," he says, stems from something "deeper than economics," and "deeper and more meaningful" than politics. "What’s wrong …is loneliness." … [A] little cloying …but what's curious …is not so much the careful avoidance of politics—politicians are really good at this—but Sasse’s repeated assertions that political solutions are meaningless.
Jennifer Szalai - New York Times


If Sen. Ben Sasse is right—he has not recently been wrong about anything important— the nation’s most-discussed political problem is entangled with the least-understood public health problem. The political problem is furious partisanship. The public health problem is loneliness. Sasse’s new book argues that Americans are richer, more informed and “connected” than ever—and unhappier, more isolated and less fulfilled.
George Will - Washington Post


Mr. Sasse’s experience as a senator in a time of hyperpartisanship gives his analysis a special poignancy… [his] remedies are wise and well-expressed… his prose has a distinctively cheerful warmth throughout. Perhaps at last we have a politician capable of writing a good book rather than having a dull one written for him.
Wall Street Journal


Sasse is highly attuned to the cultural sources of our current discontents and dysfunctions.… Them is not so much a lament for a bygone era as an attempt to diagnose and repair what has led us to this moment of spittle-flecked rage …a step toward healing a hurting nation.
National Review


Sasse is an excellent writer, unpretentious, thoughtful, and at times, quite funny …even if you disagree with some or all of what Sasse writes, it's an interesting book and his arguments are worth reading—as are his warnings about what our country might become.
NPR


An eloquent appeal for healing …what makes Them worth the read is Sasse's amalgam of realistic alarm and warning.
Guardian (UK)


Mr. Sasse’s strongly written analysis of our current existential unease should hit a national nerve.
Washington Times


The solutions [Sasse] proposes …are overwhelmingly social and personal, rather than political. Sasse’s philosophical musings are unlikely to convert many skeptics.
Publishers Weekly


Sasse presents a compelling, well-supported look at why… in our constantly expanding, internet-driven world, so many people feel lonely.… [W]hether readers agree… Them is a crucial contribution to a more open and productive social dialogue.
Booklist


The future of the republic depends on humility, empathy, and respect for pluralism.… Sasse offers a… recommendation for healing: identifying and nurturing common bonds. A sensible and thoughtful yet hardly groundbreaking political analysis.
Kirkus Reviews