“Let's Not Do That Again” by Grant Ginder – The Perfect Political Family

 

Short Summary

Grant Ginder has added his unique voice to the realm of political humour about a decade ago, and since then has made many valuable contributions, the latest of which is titled Let's Not Do That Again. It tells the story of Nancy Harrison, whose run for senate would have been perfect, if not for her daughter Greta. 

Caught making headlines with extremist protesters in Paris, she threatens to sink Nancy's campaign, forcing her along with her son Nick on a search for Greta before it's too late for everyone.

Grant Ginder Creates a Mismatched Family

Different families work in different ways, but despite the differences we have with our neighbours' way of living, we can still make educated and generally-accurate guesses about their values and habits. However, social stratification makes certain types of families more difficult to ascertain than others, and in his novel Let's Not Do That Again Grant Ginder takes us into the heart of a most mysterious family type: the political one.

The story begins by introducing us to Nancy Harrison, mother of two and quite successfully running for Senate, inches away from achieving the dream which means everything for her. She did the speeches, shook all the hands, kissed all the babies... in short, she literally made all of the right moves to succeed, but there's still one factor holding her back: her own children.

On one hand, there's Nick Harrison, failing and stumbling in his attempts to write a musical about Joan Didion, having quite a lot of trouble finding his footing in a world which, as he discovers, can be quite harsh on artists of all kinds. Though he's definitely not the golden boy Nancy dreamed of, he's still the better half of her two kids.

On the other hand, her daughter Greta is a bit more of a troublemaker, being quite unmotivated in life despite having the looks, the smarts and the money to go along with it. She works at an Apple store and is quite content with merely watching life pass her by. However, one day things take a sudden turn for the worse as Greta starts to make headlines all over the world.

She has been caught on film banding along with some extremist protesters in Paris, going as far as throwing a champagne bottle through a bistro's front window. Needless to say, this puts Nancy's campaign in great danger, threatening to crumble the castle she has been building with so much care and effort. Having no other choice, she takes Nick along with her and together they try to find Greta and bring back down to Earth and then home, before it's too late for everyone.

The Comical Mystery of Politics in Let's Not Do That Again

I think I'll speak for most people when I say that if politics didn't have a direct impact on our lives as well as the world as whole, most of us wouldn't really bother following them if it was any other way. In other words, they feel like a necessary evil more than anything else, and if we can't avoid them, might as well laugh at them.

Not every author is capable of taking a topic which would, admittedly, bore many readers, and write a truly humorous and engaging novel around it, but I think that's precisely what Grant Ginder managed to achieve with Let's Not Do That Again. While there is indeed a heavy element of family drama involved, I'd first like to look at the political side of things.

As you might have guessed, Nancy is our real main character, and being immersed in the world of politics, we have no choice but to witness it alongside her. The author's personal experience in the domain shines through time and time again, bringing to light little details and absurdities we'd be hard-pressed to think of on our own.

One interesting aspect he also looks into is how people get sucked into extremist political movements, especially those who seem like the last people to join up any cause. There are also some bits of humour interspersed here and there when following Greta's political involvement, but these parts feel like they were genuinely written as an attempt to shed light on something many of us find difficult to comprehend.

While Grant Ginder does describe various political institutions and processes, he never delves into them any deeper than the story requires, keeping it as simple and concise as possible. While I wouldn't say he outright teaches us anything extraordinary about the United States political system, he does successfully manage to turn it into the core of many laugh-out-loud moments, especially when things start veering towards the ridiculous.

The Endless Mess

In the previous section I mentioned there is also a heavy element of family drama involved, to the point where I think it wouldn't be unfair to classify Let's Not Do That Again under said umbrella, in addition to the political one. Much of the story is focused on Nancy's attempt to keep her family unit in line with her own ambitions, and in the process we come to know this mess of unit quite well.

Thankfully, Grant Ginder strayed away from having a large cast of characters, instead placing his focus on a few people, allowing him to delve much deeper into their inner worlds than he would have otherwise. Specifically, I'm referring to Nancy, Nick and Greta, who consistently evolve and reveal more of themselves as the plot progresses.

Watching their mismatched personalities clashing against each other is, for the most part, quite hilarious, the author demonstrating his strong grasp on human behaviour and psychology in the process. There is always something going wrong for someone, and I can't speak for everyone, but the nature of the problems faced by the characters often seemed of an absurd nature, mirroring quite well the modern human being's propensity to create their own problems out of thin air.

As the characters are explored individually, their family is also explored as a unit, its unique dynamics examined by the author this way and that under the microscope. While I can't exactly vouch for the veracity of his depiction of how things work in a political family, something tells me he isn't too far off the mark, and considering he himself worked in this field, I have a tendency to trust him.

Ultimately, beneath all the laughs and quirks, it's, I believe, a story about a mother trying to balance her dream with her family, the sacrifices she is consistently forced to make and the strength she must find to press onward on her own. It serves as a needed reminder of the herculean task many women face on a daily basis, an ode to motherhood in one of its more comical forms.

The Final Verdict

Let's Not Do That Again by Grant Ginder is an excellent humour novel, blending politics and family drama seamlessly together to create something amusing, at times ridiculous and perhaps even silly, but at the same time heartwarming and even insightful. The story seldom gives you time to catch a break from the last laugh before presenting you with a new one, and the characters make the ride only more enjoyable.

If you're looking for a comedy in realms of politics, motherhood and family dynamics, then I think this book will be an absolutely perfect fit for your desires.

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Grant Ginder Personal site Grant Ginder is an American academic, former political aide, and current published novelist. In 2009 came out his first novel, This is How it Starts, followed by Driver's Education in 2013. Since then he picked up the pace a little bit, focusing himself in the realm of political and social humour, having also written The People We Hate at the Wedding, Honestly, We Meant Well, and Let's Not Do That Again.