海角大神

The release of "This Town,鈥� Beltway reporter Mark Leibovich鈥檚 examination of D.C. culture, has been eagerly anticipated by political buffs (and recently made the Monitor鈥檚聽list聽of the top 10 books of July). So does the book by Leibovich, who works as the chief national correspondent for The New York Times Magazine, live up to the hype?

Early reviews have been mostly positive. Washington Post writer Carlos Lozada called it 鈥渘ot bad鈥� and said the acidic look at our nation鈥檚 capital can be hard to take at first.

鈥淗is tour through Washington only feeds the worst suspicions anyone can have about the place 鈥� a land driven by insecurity, hypocrisy and cable hits, where friendships are transactional, blind-copying is rampant and acts of public service appear largely accidental,鈥� Lozada wrote.

However, the book by Leibovich does suck you in, says Lozada, who notes that while Leibovich wrote for the Washington Post, he has never met him.

鈥淥nly two things keep you turning pages,鈥� he wrote of "Town." 鈥淔irst, in Leibovich鈥檚 hands, this state of affairs is not just depressing, it鈥檚 also kind of funny. Second, you want to know whether the author thinks anyone in Washington 鈥� anyone at all? 鈥� is worthy of redemption.鈥�

New York Times writer David M. Shribman praised Leibovich鈥檚 ability to depict the often strange culture of Washington.

鈥淗e鈥檚 an insider, Mr. Leibovich is, first a reporter at The Washington Post, now the chief national correspondent for The New York Times Magazine,鈥� Shribman wrote. 鈥淵et he seems to wear those special glasses that allow you to X-ray the outside and see what鈥檚 really going on... Start to finish, this is a brilliant portrait.鈥�

Meanwhile, Politico writer Dylan Byers calls the main theme of the book 鈥淲ashington鈥檚 power to shape and corrupt.鈥�

鈥淸鈥淭his Town鈥漖 will benefit the reader,鈥� he wrote. "For the political junkie, the anecdotes included are top-notch.鈥�

鈥淭own鈥� is scheduled to be released on July 16.