''I Am a Pole (And So Can You!)'' is a 2012 spoof of inspirational children's books. It was written by

Stephen Colbert Stephen Tyrone Colbert ( ; born May 13, 1964) is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. He is best known for hosting the satirical Comedy Central program '' The Colbert Report'' from 2005 ...

and illustrated by Paul Hildebrand. The book tells the story of a fictional pole finding his purpose in life. The title is a play on Colbert's first book, ''

I Am America (And So Can You!) ''I Am America (And So Can You!)'' is a 2007 satirical book by American comedian Stephen Colbert and the writers of ''The Colbert Report''. It was released on October 9, 2007, with the audiobook edition released several days earlier. The book ...

''. All proceeds from the audiobook go to the United States Veterans Initiative, a non-profit dedicated to returning troops. The book is notable for a

blurb A blurb is a short promotional piece accompanying a piece of creative work. It may be written by the author or publisher or quote praise from others. Blurbs were originally printed on the back or rear dust jacket of a book, and are now also fou ...

of endorsement on the cover attributed to children's writer Maurice Sendak. During a January 2012 interview of Sendak by Colbert, Colbert shared a draft of the book with Sendak, to which Sendak stated "The sad thing is, I like it!"; the statement was used as the blurb for the cover. Soon afterward, Colbert reportedly secured a publishing deal for the book. Sendak coincidentally died the morning of the book's release, and, in tribute, ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show fo ...

'' aired uncensored previously unreleased clips of the interview, with Colbert encouraging those unfamiliar with Sendak's work to "read his books. And for those who don't read, they've got lots of pictures." Reviewers of the book noted that this book, while seemingly targeted to children, contains imagery which may be considered adult in nature, such as a scene of a stripper performing striptease on the eponymous pole. Colbert, parodying the marketing of inspirational books, mentioned on his show that the book is "the perfect gift to give a child, or grandchild, for their high school or college graduation. Also, Father's Day. Also, other times." On July 18, 2012, the

Rosenbach Museum The Rosenbach is a Philadelphia museum and library located within two 19th-century townhouses. The historic houses contain the collections and treasures of Philip Rosenbach and his younger brother Dr. A. S. W. Rosenbach. The brothers owned the ...

added the book to its collections, and displayed its manuscript and several artifacts that Colbert claimed were on his desk when the book was written next to the manuscript of '' Ulysses'', along with artifacts from the original interview. Other formats: *Ebook – 978-1-4555-2340-5 *Compact Disc – 978-1-61969-502-3

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External links

''I Am a Pole''
at

Colbert Nation ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show focu ...

2012 books The Colbert Report Parody novels Political satire books {{comedy-book-stub

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