Unipolar captivated me with its unpredictable twists, leaving me turning pages to uncover the multiple mysteries. Donald has finished a seminar presentation that he has dubbed the Joy Shop. He is called to his boss’s office, where Mr. Begerest applauds his work. Then he fires him because the company, Loose Change, is bankrupt. Donald was unsure how he would continue to afford medical insurance for his mother's disability, adding to his worries. To shield his mother from the harsh reality, he adopts a vegetarian diet and fabricates a story about meeting a girl. The following morning, Donald goes to the Joblessness Centre. He encounters twins in front of the entrance, who state their names are Harley and Quin. They offered him a job traveling to London and back, delivering packages. When Donald hesitates, Quin produces a bat and threatens him. Later that day, Mr. Begerest calls Donald, stating that if he could do a presentation in Soweto, they might get more funding, and he could get his job back. In Soweto, Donald does his best to impress the thirteen strange people. At the end, the leader of the group claims he is their preferred party leader. Donald struggled to grasp the meaning of the man's words. When he returns home, Donald is instructed to pick an assistant to accompany him to meet Ms. Unifact. An inexperienced Amber is the only candidate available for the position. During the meeting, Ms. Unifact told Donald he was the candidate for the Citizens for Citizens political party. If Donald doesn't win the election, then a mystery person, the Joker, will kill him. Tara Basi’s Unipolar is a fast-paced story involving a cast of characters with conflicting ideas. The details assigned to each character endow them with unique personalities. Donald may have filled the role of provider for his mother, but his life revolves around food. In multiple meetings, Donald's mind wanders to thoughts of indulgent, fattening foods, hindering his focus on the conversations at hand. At one point, when a gun points at him, he believes it is chocolate being offered to him. The unpredictable plot twists added intensity to the suspense. Who is the Joker? Why was Donald picked as a candidate in a political election? Unipolar captivated me with its unpredictable twists, leaving me turning pages to uncover the multiple mysteries. As the events unfolded, I gained understanding alongside Donald. For this reason, I have nothing negative to say about this intriguing novel. I rate Unipolar five out of five stars. The character development was exceptional, and the presence of witty remarks provided humor. The supporting characters added depth to the story. For instance, Mrs. Scout hates dogs and wants Donald to ban dog supporters. Mr. Bling is a Nazi war criminal who believes that Donald should take down the cat cabal. The vivid details made every moment easy to envision. The conversations were engaging and brought to life each character’s role in the story. Adult readers who like following a bumbling character navigating an unsuitable role will find Unipolar appealing. The profanity in this story could be offensive to some people.

I enjoyed everything about this book. It had so many twists, it had me guessing up to the last page. While just trying to make enough money to take care of his mother in a poverty-stricken country, management consultant Donald is swept up in a bid to save his country. Tara Basi’s Unipolar is a fictional tale of a bumbling businessman, identified his whole life by a supposed behavioral disorder, who somewhat clumsily does his best to protect the people that he loves. Donald lives a quiet life as a Change Facilitator for a consultant company in the country of Kent. He floats through life with a somewhat delusional and unwaveringly optimistic outlook on the world around him. He calls it his “unipolar superpower” and it is constantly getting him into dangerous hijinx. His superpowers will be put to the test when he comes face-to-face with a shady cartel and corrupt government. His simple world is rocked when he is thrust into the spotlight and given the daunting task of winning the election for leader of his country and turning its failing economy around. Will his ragtag team of councilors and his extreme optimism be enough to save him and his entire country? Can he outsmart the cartel and the evil government officials fighting against him in the election? I enjoyed everything about this book. It had so many twists, it had me guessing up to the last page. The way Donald is able to find himself in terrible situations yet somehow obliviously come out on top had me laughing out loud more than once. My favorite part of the book was how well-written each character was. They all had very different personalities that made each of them lovable for their own unique reasons. The only suggestion I have would be for the bad guy to be revealed at the end. The story left me wanting more. There were very few grammatical errors as well. For these reasons, I give this book a five out of five stars. It was such a fun read, from beginning to end. There were a few allusions to sexual situations and some profanity, so I would recommend this book for young adults to adults who enjoy crime/ mystery fiction with a funny twist.

Here, we have the helpless being led by the clueless against the merciless in this frenetic, dystopian, post-apocalyptic, and funny political satire Unipolar. Donald Druck, the young, chubby, “Change Up!” in-house trainer for the Loose Change company, is declared redundant and must suddenly face unemployment. County Kent has no jobs, ruined infrastructure, no essential services, and no hope. Kent’s citizenry is “undesirable” in surrounding areas that are not much better off than Kent’s. The county won independence from London without considering the consequences, and the crushing economic and social depression affected everyone. In this environment, Donald seems unquenchably upbeat until the whole meaning of redundancy sinks in. He must find a job with medical benefits for his ailing mother, and he begins to feel desperation, especially when he can no longer indulge his passion for food. So, the downtrodden formed the Citizens for Citizens (C4C) political party with Donald as its leader. There is only one uniting cause in the party: jobs. Unipolar is a fast-paced novel that describes almost any real-life campaign. Donald understands nothing about the backroom dealings, the characters involved, and why his diet is severely constrained. Still, he considers positivity to be his superpower, so, of course, he is the face and principal figure for the C4C. Humor is abundant for the reader, if not for the individuals in the book. The author provides delicious descriptors, wonderful wordplay, and accurate assessments of the political, social, and physical environment. It is well-written and very engaging. The characters are sympathetic, and their travails are almost painful if they weren’t so funny. This page-turner proceeded frantically with few pauses, leaving me breathless much of the time. Slowing down just isn’t an option. Some familiarity with British spelling, grammar, and colloquialisms is helpful but not required to enjoy the book. The writing style and vocabulary are not geared to younger readers, although some may enjoy them. I liked Unipolar; I’ll seek out more of Tara Basi’s work and rate this one five out of five stars.

The author brilliantly lays out a tapestry of a soul who is striving to find his way between reality and fantasy. Tara Basi begins Unipolar in a positively intriguing manner by naming the first chapter “The End.” From this tantalizing stance, Basi conducts readers along the bumpy sojourn that is the life of Donald Druck, our protagonist. The mental health labels that burden Donald are based on how others perceive him. Armed with clever narrative and quick-witted dialogue, Basi delves into themes of self-awareness, social stigma, and mental health issues. When Basi introduces Donald on the first page, he vividly paints an image of a lovable, chubby, clumsy misfit whose hysterical antics captivate our attention. Basi measuredly reveals Donald’s character to reflect the growing pressure he feels as other people mislabel and misunderstand him. The author brilliantly lays out a tapestry of a soul who is striving to find his way between reality and fantasy. Basi methodically develops the narrative, allowing readers to follow Donald’s progress in which he experiences lucid moments of self-examination. Donald experiences some setbacks, but he also experiences growth. I like Basi’s narrative style very much. My favorite literary technique in the novel is Basi’s use of dialogue. With funny banter, the author maintains a light tone and provides welcome comic relief, and he salts in a few humorous surprises throughout the book. Basi’s narrative also makes it obvious that mental health is a rugged landscape, littered with a plethora of integrated emotions and experiences. The author finds a delicate balance between telling the story and telling the truth about mental health issues. It is refreshing to find a book that includes poignant themes, titillating dialogue, and vivid imagery can be entertaining and thought-provoking at the same time. I didn’t find anything at all to dislike about this book. I respectfully suggest that American readers might appreciate a glossary of British colloquialisms. I found myself having to stop reading to go to the internet for definitions. It interrupted the flow and detracted a little from the pleasure of reading. Since this is a personal idiosyncrasy in reading, I won’t deduct a star. This book is exceptionally well-edited, and it is also delightfully well-written. For these reasons, I am happy to give 5 out of 5 stars to Tara Basi’s Unipolar. I recommend it to adults and older teens who are comfortable with colorful language and adult themes.

Hilarious! A one-word description of the comedic satire Unipolar doesn’t really do it justice. The story uses a local UK election where Donald, a clueless newcomer, is recruited to run for office. He sees little choice as he must maintain employment to qualify for health insurance for his mum. His changing reactions to his predicament and the situations he faces pull the reader into the story. You’ll recognize the subject of the satire much more quickly than I did, but even if you don’t, the story speeds along with constant laugh-out-loud moments. A bit of mystery adds to the political intrigue. Donald is constantly driven by his desire to eat, and his interaction with the other characters, especially Amber, Kerry, and Mr. Bigerest, is brilliant. It sometimes reminded me of an Abbott and Costello routine where one person misconstrues what the other person says, with hysterical results. The author satirizes many of the good and bad things that happen during an election using a multitude of characters. Donald finds himself caught in the middle between these sharply defined characters and their competing groups, and the misinterpretations are very funny. One of my favorite characters in the story was Mr. Bling with his over-the-top adulation of Donald. I wouldn’t recommend you drink coffee while reading it. The author shows their writing chops with unique descriptions of the main character’s reactions to everyday things, for example, “His stomach was mixing cement and the blood in his head was pounding harder than a messianic Jehovah’s Witness on his mum’s front door.” Food is frequently used in these descriptions too. The story is well-written and the editing is nearly perfect. If you are offended by the subject of obesity, this book will not be for you. But if you understand what a satire of an election with an obese character is about, then you’ll understand the satiric use of obesity in the story. The good news is that character trait is not the defining one eliciting the most laughs. This author has a winner here. I give this a rating of 5 out of 5 stars, and highly recommend it to those looking to include some laughter in their reading list.

I would highly recommend this book to people looking to find humor in a grim political climate and who are looking for a more recent writing in a similar vein to books like Animal Farm. Tara Basi’s novel Unipolar is a wonderful political satire revolving around the absurd, bumbling idiot character of Donald as he is forced to create a political party and run for office in a matter of days in order to save Kent. Donald’s “condition” is his eternal optimism as well as his inability to comprehend anything that is happening in his life. The book opens with Donald as a management consultant who unwittingly has a run-in with the cartel as he attempts to find a job due to his recent unemployment. Without ever realizing how much danger he and his family are in, Donald navigates threats with eternal optimism, always assuming he has misunderstood the person threatening him. In order to save his original job and his mother’s health insurance, Donald becomes mixed up in rampant political corruption as he is forced to run for office, find chancellors, and create a manifesto for his political party. He hilariously combines many opposing viewpoints for his party’s political agenda in order to follow the rules and threats assigned to him. Almost everyone Donald interacts with perceives his vacancy and ineptitude as an act, allowing him to have unearned success throughout the book while he has no idea how close to danger he truly is. Basi’s writing is hilariously absurd, creating a well-written political satire that is meant to cause frustration towards the main character in the reader. Using Donald’s point of view for the book is clever, as the reader only sees things through the lens of the most absurd character. This allows the author to poke fun at politics without coming off as preachy. Donald cares about very few things, most notably food. Anything that may be worrying or scary he will immediately put out of his mind. He forgets about the death threats from the cartel, he fails to see how he is being used for political gain, and ignores the political contradictions of his councilors in order to do as he is told. Time and time again, he fails to see how he got himself into any of his messes, and only through fortuitous accident does he come out on top. Unipolar is a very well-written, tongue-in-cheek, political commentary on the recent state of American politics. Writing a book like this can be a tough task in today’s day and age, but Basi accomplishes this beautifully. The reader grows rightfully frustrated at Donald alongside other characters as he bumbles his way to success. One of Donald’s counselors is clearly made to be a caricature of Nazi extremists whom the other characters just write off as being “a bit weird.” Donald creates a manifesto with these beliefs as well as Christian Socialist and anarchist beliefs that becomes a hypocritical mess that revolves around one point: more jobs. This book is able to achieve well-crafted political satire because Basi is successful in pointing out the farce and corruption in both sides of the political spectrum. While I was skeptical of this book at the beginning due to the unlikeable nature of the character of Donald, the book develops beautifully with clever satire and prose that allows the story to be engaging without necessitating the reader liking the character of Donald. This novel is absurd and humorous while presenting a clear political commentary. I thoroughly enjoyed this book as the characters were well-crafted, the writing style was engaging, and the absurdity of the situations made the book really enjoyable while still maintaining a clear political commentary. I would highly recommend this book to people looking to find humor in a grim political climate and who are looking for a more recent writing in a similar vein to books like Animal Farm. For these reasons, I would rate Basi’s novel 5/5 stars.

Each chapter unfolds with palpable tension, which left me eager to see Donald's next move. Basi masterfully balances moments of despair with glimmers of hope, ultimately crafting a unique and creative testament to the human spirit. Tara Basi’s "Unipolar" is a fast-paced tale about bumbling businessman Donald living a quiet life, working to take care of his mother in the poverty-stricken country of Kent. We see Donald clumsily get by in life with a steadfast optimistic, sometimes delusional outlook on the world around him—he refers to this as his “unipolar superpower” which unknowingly puts him in dangerous situations often. When Donald is fired from his facilitator job for the company Loose Change due to bankruptcy, he worries about how he'll continue to take care of his mother and her medical insurance; opting for fabricating a lifestyle to keep her from the truth, Donald seeks assistance at the Joblessness Center. Upon his arrival, he is threatened into a delivery job to and from London by a set of shady twins. Not long after, his former boss presents him with an opportunity to get his job back, but this task thrusts him into becoming the candidate for the Citizens for Citizens political party. Donald's simple life is shook with the formidable task of winning the election to the country's leader and fix their economy or meet death in the form of the mysterious Joker, all while facing hardships from an evil cartel and the country's very own government corruption. Each chapter unfolds with palpable tension, which left me eager to see Donald's next move. Basi masterfully balances moments of despair with glimmers of hope, ultimately crafting a unique and creative testament to the human spirit. Every twist and turn is expertly crafted and unpredictable. I found myself on the edge of my seat often as secrets unraveled and alliances shifted. With its rich character development and unique focus on details, "Unipolar" is definitely an experience that lingers long after the final page. I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of this book, especially the engaging conversations and the witty banter. One thing though, I wish we got to learn more about who the Joker character was and why he couldn't be the one to do the things asked of Donald. Nonetheless, I rate this book five out of five stars. The story is fun and enthralling start to finish.There weren't grammatical errors as far as I saw, a few sexual situations are insinuated and there's some profanity, but that doesn't take away from the enjoyable experience. I recommend young adults and adults alike who enjoy crime and mystery stories with comedic aspects to check this out.

Basi’s writing had me snorting and giggling through each chapter. Unipolar by Tara Basi is a satirical political drama centered on Donald Druck; an individual who is diagnosed as Unipolar. Donald is naïve, overly optimistic, and somehow manipulated into running for office. There is drug smuggling, intense dieting, and the overwhelming threat of unemployment should Donald fail to infiltrate the government. This book contains a cast of characters that are somehow both bizarre and loveable. The themes and environment are comically dystopic, like the 2006 movie Idiocracy. I would rate Unipolar as five out of five stars. Basi’s writing had me snorting and giggling through each chapter. The book is written through the perspective of Donald, and reading about a goody-two-shoes trying to navigate the shady underworld is so silly. The protagonist’s unipolar personality makes him an unreliable narrator who sugarcoats his dystopic world. Even when he is bonked on the head he does not “faint,” he simply “decides it is a good time to take a nap.” Something subconsciously tells our hero that he is collaborating with shady individuals, but how can they be bad people when they have such pretty eyes? This makes the reader laugh alongside with Donald, despite several violent threats being made on his life. Aside from the comedy, the author makes clever commentary about society. Unemployment and mass poverty are smartly exaggerated. This includes events such as the “unemployment lottery”. Where gaining an interview means being lucky enough to have your name drawn from a job raffle bin filled with hundreds of names. It is morbid, but honestly what it feels like when you are looking for a job after being laid off. Aside from Donald, there is a diverse cast of misfits who also drive the story. The members of Donald’s party are extremely diverse, ranging from Anarchists, Socialists, Marxists, and an unnervingly enthusiastic Mr. Bing who glamorizes 1930’s Germany. Despite this strangeness, it is again a smart exaggeration. No matter one’s political affiliations, the public can agree on stability and jobs. I would love to see this story adapted into a series or a movie. I looked forward to every new plot point.

Every character played their part to make Unipolar a great read. I flew through it because I just had to see what would happen next. To be honest, I could rarely predict it. Every character played their part to make Unipolar a great read. I flew through it because I just had to see what would happen next. To be honest, I could rarely predict it.