Angry Optimist

August 11, 2014
In this pseudo-biography of Jon Stewart (né Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz), Rogak (Hillary Clinton in Her Own Words) packages a canned chronology of a figure's life and career. Starting from the very beginning, she tracks Stewart's childhood a short, Jewish kid in the WASPy neighborhood of Lawrenceville, N.J.; his adolescence as a class clown and talented soccer player; his first attempts at stand-up at the Bitter End and other New York haunts; his early stints on TV; his landing on The Daily Show in 1999; all 15 years of his tenure there up to the present; and all the various projects he has taken on in the meantime (including three books, several movies, award shows, and much more). While the thought-provoking questions surrounding Stewart's tenuous, and often contradictory, relationship to his work as both a fake-news-show host and an influential political pundit hang in the air, Rogak does little to shed new light on the topic. Instead, she borrows from other journalists to create an uninspired collection of repurposed quotes, which are interspersed with her own repetitive prose.

August 1, 2014
A prolific biographer (Stephen King and Colbert are among her subjects) returns with a good-news/bad-news account of the career of the host of the Daily Show. Rogak's endnotes (One Big Happy Family: Heartwarming Stories of Animals Caring for One Another, 2013, etc.) indicate that virtually all of her many quotations come from previously published sources (she does mention a few phone interviews, though not with Stewart himself), so there's kind of a highly competent term-paper feel throughout her breezy narrative. She begins by calling Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz in 1962) "a bundle of walking contradictions"-the principal one being the contrast between his very popular public self and his intensely private life. Those who know Stewart only in his current capacity will be surprised to learn about his chops as a high school trumpet player and his talent in soccer (he played for the College of William and Mary). Readers won't be surprised to learn that he was a joker throughout his life; he was named the senior with the best sense of humor in his high school. Rogak follows his early struggles to become a professional comedian (his first appearance was less than auspicious) and his steady rise through the ranks of his competition (which included Ray Romano, Chris Rock and Louis C.K.), his early experiences on TV, his near misses for prestigious jobs, his arrival in 1999 at the Daily Show and its ensuing steady success. In the early chapters, the author is highly flattering; later, she quotes some tough things about Stewart from former employees who talk about the harsh work environment, Stewart's temper and his failures to include many women on the staff. She also rehashes his media battles with Crossfire and Mad Money and mentions those who have left his show to succeed elsewhere (Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert). Rogak unearths just a bit about his personal life-a quiet, happy marriage and fatherhood. In the forest of quotations, Stewart still often eludes his pursuer.

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October 15, 2014

Born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz, Jon Stewart enjoyed the typical middle-class life in suburban New Jersey. He learned from an early age that despite his small stature, his humor could ward off the bullies. He was class clown and a troublemaker, but he excelled at soccer, even attending college on a sports scholarship. But after graduation at age 24, the late-night host headed to New York City to pursue his dream of being a stand-up comic. For seven years, Stewart suffered the usual indignities that new comics suffer, until MTV came knocking. The Jon Stewart Show debuted in 1993, and when it was canceled, Stewart moved to L.A., where he acted in films until he landed The Daily Show hosting gig in 1999. Rogak, author of biographies of Stephen Colbert, Stephen King, and others, sheds light on Stewart's personal life, what goes on behind the scenes at The Daily Show, how the show evolved from Stewart talking about the absurdity of current events to it becoming a major liberal voice in the United States, and where the TV host is headed next (directing). VERDICT Not much has been written about Stewart and this is a well-researched, well-written addition to the biography genre that readers will welcome.--Rosellen Brewer, Sno-Isle Libs., Marysville, WA

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2014
Industrious Rogak constructs rudimentary living portraits of such innovators as Stephen King, Stephen Colbert, and, in this assemblage of secondary sources, the ingenious, gutsy, and very private Jon Stewart. Though skillful in meshing together previously broadcast and published interviews with other material, Rogak can be banal and clich'd in her analysis. Nonetheless, anyone interested in how a boy from Jersey named Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz took the helm of cable television's hilarious and surprisingly influential The Daily Show and The Colbert Report will read on undaunted. Her writing sharpens as Rogak covers Stewart's rage at his father for deserting their family and his struggles as an aspiring stand-up comic. We also see, in behind-the-scenes accounts of The Daily Show's creative frenzy, how the discipline, endurance, and competitiveness Stewart developed as a college soccer player serve him well as a diligent and daring host and executive producer with exacting standards. Rogak also maps the unstable realm of fake news as she explores how and why this self-deprecating and driven comedian became an inspiring international figure of political conscience and responsibility.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

November 24, 2014
Cassandra Campbell brings a relaxed, casual tone to her narration of this unauthorized biography of political comedian Jon Stewart. It’s hard to imagine Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz, born into an ordinary middle-class household in New Jersey, would grow up to become the satirical voice of a generation. Rogak chronicles this trajectory from childhood soccer player, to stand-up comedian, to Daily Show anchor. Along the way listeners learn of Stewart’s love of rock legend Bruce Springsteen, his supposedly mercurial temperament, and bits from his personal life. Most of this content is taken from previously published interviews rather than original reporting. To reader Campbell’s credit, she narrates Rogak’s superficial bio with a smooth, professional delivery that keeps the book moving at an easy pace for listening. She avoids trying to imitate Stewart’s voice, but manages to slip in just the right amount of humor when quoting him. This is an entertaining overview of Stewart’s life read well by Campbell. One only wishes the material had more depth. A St. Martin’s/Thomas Dunne hardcover.