Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
BBC Books (1990), Paperback
Description
"We have had diaries from other Cabinet Ministers, but none I hink which have been quite so illuminating... It is a ascinating diary... It is shorter than Barbara Castle's... and lthough it is rather more accurate than Dick Crossman's, it s distinctly funnier' - Lord Allen of Abbeydale (formerly ermanent Secretary at the Home Office) in The Times'It has an entertainment and educational value which is nique. It is uproariously funny and passes the acid test of ecoming more amusing at every subsequent reading... I will o so far as to claim that in the characters of Jim Hacker and ir Humphrey Appleby, Messrs Lynn and Jay have created omething as immortal as P.G. Wodehouse's Bertie Wooster nd Jeeves' - Brian Walden in The Standard"
User reviews
LibraryThing member CharlesFerdinand
Although it is a bit dated now, this must still be the best politcal satire ever. We need something like this about the Blair years.
LibraryThing member MeditationesMartini
As a TV show (and I feel me a bit stupid, not only that I didn't read this WHILE working at the Ministry, but that I haven't sought out and sat down with the DVDs of the show, ever) this is pure 5, but as all TV or film adaptions (you see the same thing in JK Rowling, for some reason) do when they
That said. If the psychological realism is lacking, the grip on institutional practice is almost frighteningly sound. It ACTUALLY IS like that, with the ministers totally in thrall, except when they make a leviathan roll to achieve or abort something to poltical reasons, to their civil service, and all the way down the line everyone is trying to achieve whatever will cement their position, accrue more power to ministry and office, and provide a plausibe means to feather in cap, whether what they say they did has any relation to what they did or not. Statistics really are ALL MEANINGLESS, and they REALLY DO want it that way, because it you change the metrics year by year you can get them to support anything you might want. They REALLY DO measure success by size and responsibilities, number of "hats" - wastage. It's changed a lot for better and worse, no doubt - the stuff about women is pure unreconstructed the '70s, and there have been twenty years of New Labour/Third Way-typre reforms bringing in people from private sector and making everyone a lot more concerned with self-promotion and less secure. Dear lord, am I saying the modern public service combines the worst of "old government" with the worst of modern politics? Nah. Just that the human capacity for obfuscation in defense of one's own power is infinite, and this is a primer.
And it's FUNNY, of course.
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try to stick to line-by-line adaption of the dialogue, it suffers a bit, because you can see the strings. They make a valiant effort to take us into Hacker's brain, and it no doubt is super-interesting for longtime fans of the show who are used to seeing it as a little sketch, but the fact remains that it IS a little sketch and when you try to have him explain to the reader why he said this or what he thought when Bernard said that, it doesn't ring true because in fact there was no reason - it was because it was funny, and they were scripted to say absurd stuff because the funny is absurd.That said. If the psychological realism is lacking, the grip on institutional practice is almost frighteningly sound. It ACTUALLY IS like that, with the ministers totally in thrall, except when they make a leviathan roll to achieve or abort something to poltical reasons, to their civil service, and all the way down the line everyone is trying to achieve whatever will cement their position, accrue more power to ministry and office, and provide a plausibe means to feather in cap, whether what they say they did has any relation to what they did or not. Statistics really are ALL MEANINGLESS, and they REALLY DO want it that way, because it you change the metrics year by year you can get them to support anything you might want. They REALLY DO measure success by size and responsibilities, number of "hats" - wastage. It's changed a lot for better and worse, no doubt - the stuff about women is pure unreconstructed the '70s, and there have been twenty years of New Labour/Third Way-typre reforms bringing in people from private sector and making everyone a lot more concerned with self-promotion and less secure. Dear lord, am I saying the modern public service combines the worst of "old government" with the worst of modern politics? Nah. Just that the human capacity for obfuscation in defense of one's own power is infinite, and this is a primer.
And it's FUNNY, of course.
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LibraryThing member Oreillynsf
The funnier of the two books in my view, as was the TV series on which it was based. While some think of this as dated, I prefer to think of it as a time capsule back to the early 80s when Britain was going through such tremendous political upheaval. The three main characters are superbly
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developed. The pleasure of the book is in the dialogue, which is so superbly written for each character. Show Less
LibraryThing member datrappert
Having watched this British series and enjoyed every minute of it, I'm happy to say that it works just as well in book form. Perhaps it wouldn't be as enjoyable to someone reading the book who hasn't seen the series and can't imagine the faces and voices of the wonderful cast of actors. The sequel,
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Yes Prime MInister, is just as good. And I still occasionally think about the Eurosausage. Show Less
LibraryThing member LisaMaria_C
This has been collecting dust on my bookshelves for years. It's based upon a popular BBC comedy series in the 1980s about a cabinet minister all too ably er... managed by the bureaucrats who purportedly serve under him. I think my problem with this book is I know both too much and too little. On
And the "too much" part? Well, I worked in campaigns, political science was my major and I interned in the United States Congress. And alas, the points here haven't dated over the decades and don't miss anything in traveling over the Atlantic. I knew exactly where this was going too much of the time; it's as if I knew the punchlines before any ever landed. I find it too true, too very much the real world so that despite the wit and dry humor I can see in it I just couldn't find it funny. My bad. This is rated so low because of my personal reaction to it, which was to depress me more than anything. Not because it's not well-written and the characters well-drawn. If you're young enough to still feel inspired about politics or old enough to be so cynical it doesn't hurt anymore, you might enjoy this. Judging from the other reviews, most do.
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the "too little" side, I've never seen the program. I get the feeling there are all these subtle jokes and ironies whizzing by above my head. I'm also not British and have spent only a few weeks in England in my teens. Most of my knowledge about British politics and their parliamentary system comes from reading Archer's novel First Among Equals. Again, I have this sense of acid zingers landing upon my armor of ignorance and dissolving before they can penetrate.And the "too much" part? Well, I worked in campaigns, political science was my major and I interned in the United States Congress. And alas, the points here haven't dated over the decades and don't miss anything in traveling over the Atlantic. I knew exactly where this was going too much of the time; it's as if I knew the punchlines before any ever landed. I find it too true, too very much the real world so that despite the wit and dry humor I can see in it I just couldn't find it funny. My bad. This is rated so low because of my personal reaction to it, which was to depress me more than anything. Not because it's not well-written and the characters well-drawn. If you're young enough to still feel inspired about politics or old enough to be so cynical it doesn't hurt anymore, you might enjoy this. Judging from the other reviews, most do.
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LibraryThing member RajivC
I love this book! Absolutely. It is a classic, and a must read for anyone who wishes to build a career in politics, or in the corporate world!
Jonathan Lynn has created a masterpiece, and he should know it
Many years ago, I watched the series, and was laughing all the time. Then, I read the book, and
The writing is masterly, and I love that he brings out different view points, from Hackett, to Humphrey and Bernard. Awesome.
Jonathan Lynn has created a masterpiece, and he should know it
Many years ago, I watched the series, and was laughing all the time. Then, I read the book, and
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I keep laughing. A few years later, and wiser I hope, I read it with a new appreciation of the nuances. This is the third reading, and I read it again, with a greater appreciation of the games that are played across organisational structures. The writing is masterly, and I love that he brings out different view points, from Hackett, to Humphrey and Bernard. Awesome.
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Language
Original publication date
1981
ISBN
0563206659 / 9780563206651
Local notes
READIN, nightstand
also see british television series in dvdcollection
also see british television series in dvdcollection
Other editions
The Complete Yes Minister by Antony Jay (Hardcover)