A Book to Read: P.J. O'Rourke's "Driving Like Crazy."

Think about P.J. O'Rourke's latest book, Driving Like Crazy, as a hilarious combination of Jeremy Clarkson (sarcastic wit intact), "Top Gear," and Mario Kart Wii -- or at least my description of said game as "completely unhinged vehicular pandemonium" that's also loads of FUN.

As a paean to the internal combustion engine, with arias devoted to various forms of hysterical self-inflicted Carmageddon scenarios and bouts of unrepentant automotive addiction, O'Rourke's book is an opera of gonzo journalism that had me laughing out loud.

I can't recommend a better book to be the last laugh of the summer -- end the season with O'Rourke's inimitable style, now behind the wheel of a car and cheerfully defying all known speed limits and safety protocols.

Here's a little blurb to get you interested:

But pity the poor American car when Congress and the White House get through with it -- a lightweight vehicle with a small carbon footprint, using alternative energy and renewable resources to operate in a sustainable way. When I was a kid we called it a Schwinn.