# Mitt Romney's favorite book **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 12, 2012, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485 "2012-10-12T03:06:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/1 "2012-10-12T03:06:54Z")
Old news (it’s from the last election) but I just read it. It’s a standard question reporters ask a candidate, “What’s your favorite book?” Romney had what I considered a surprising answer: _Battlefield Earth_ by L. Ron Hubbard. One, it’s a science-fiction novel and I never saw Romney as a SF guy. Two, even putting aside the movie, it’s not a highly regarded book - a pulp adventure at best. Three, there’s the controversial Scientology issue. [Romney Favors Hubbard Novel](http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/04/30/romney-favors-hubbard-novel/) ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/2 "2012-10-12T04:17:35Z")
Huh. I read that book, and liked it OK, 25 years ago back when I was about 15. Knowing what I know know about Hubbard and Scientology, and the in-retrospect obvious subtexts, I can’t imagine enjoying it now without rolling my eyes till they fell out. Never saw the movie. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/3 "2012-10-12T04:26:59Z")
Saw the movie. Count your blessings. Forest Whitaker still wakes up screaming. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/4 "2012-10-12T04:33:26Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Saw the movie. Count your blessings. Forest Whitaker still wakes up screaming. Oh, be fair: It was filmed by the only camera operators in Hollywood without middle ears. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/5 "2012-10-12T07:50:12Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Saw the movie. Count your blessings. Forest Whitaker still wakes up screaming. Good God, don’t judge the book by the movie. I mean, the book wasn’t particularly good, but it kind of works on a schlocky-space-opera-parody kind of way. The movie is appalling and not in any way representative. And as someone who enjoyed _Battlefield Earth_, I think this suggests that Romney should read more. ---
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/6 "2012-10-12T15:24:36Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > And as someone who enjoyed _Battlefield Earth_, I think this suggests that Romney should read more. Hopefully he’ll have plenty of time to do so starting about the second week of November. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/7 "2012-10-12T15:49:11Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > One, it’s a science-fiction novel and I never saw Romney as a SF guy. Well, there are certainly elements of science fiction to his tax plan… _rimshot_ ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/8 "2012-10-12T15:52:13Z")
That’s weird to me. He might have said The Watchtower is is favorite publication. I’m surprised he didn’t mention some mormon book. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/9 "2012-10-12T16:12:53Z")
Mr. Romney is not keen to keep his Mormon faith central to his image. He doesn’t shy from it, but neither is he eager to remind. As to SF readers, it is a community so diverse that there is really no community. Wouldn’t shock me at all to hear Romney describe himself as an SF fan, though he most likely would be talking about Heinlein and not LeGuinn or Farmer. _Feh!_, as they say in Lubbock. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/10 "2012-10-12T17:26:26Z")
> [@Dogzilla](#): > > That’s weird to me. He might have said The Watchtower is is favorite publication. I’m surprised he didn’t mention some mormon book. Yeah – if he’s into science fiction, he should’ve named **Orson Scott Card**. Card is a zillion times better than Hubbard ever was, and he’s LDS to boot. He even scripted cartoons based on the Book of Mormon, not to mention a Mormon historical novel, _Saints_. And, of course, the indispensable _Saintspeak Dictionary_, which I cannot recommend highly enough. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/11 "2012-10-12T18:54:15Z")
At least he didn’t say _Hogg_. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/12 "2012-10-12T19:34:38Z")
I liked the _Battlefield Earth_ movie. What? ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/13 "2012-10-12T19:44:12Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Yeah – if he’s into science fiction, he should’ve named **Orson Scott Card**. > > Card is a zillion times better than Hubbard ever was, and he’s LDS to boot. He even scripted cartoons based on the Book of Mormon, not to mention a Mormon historical novel, _Saints_. > And, of course, the indispensable _Saintspeak Dictionary_, which I cannot recommend highly enough. Eh, if he’s into science fiction, he could have just said The Book of Mormon. 😉 (Just kidding.) ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/14 "2012-10-12T20:27:13Z")
Strangely enough, L. Ron Hubbard’s favorite book was The Book of Mormon. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/15 "2012-10-12T21:38:36Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Yeah – if he’s into science fiction, he should’ve named **Orson Scott Card**. > > Card is a zillion times better than Hubbard ever was, and he’s LDS to boot. He even scripted cartoons based on the Book of Mormon, not to mention a Mormon historical novel, _Saints_. > And, of course, the indispensable _Saintspeak Dictionary_, which I cannot recommend highly enough. Card’s [Homecoming Saga](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homecoming_Saga) is also based on the BoM. ---
**Author:** ![DeptfordX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DeptfordX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeptfordX)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2012, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/16 "2012-10-12T21:47:54Z")
Here [http://www.enworld.org/forum/tabletop-gaming/325009-white-dwarf-first-100-issues-read-through-review-3.html](http://www.enworld.org/forum/tabletop-gaming/325009-white-dwarf-first-100-issues-read-through-review-3.html) is a copy of the well-known (in SF fandom) review of the book by british reviewer Dave Langford. Page right to the bottom of the link for the passage. ---
**Author:** ![CatherineZeta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@CatherineZeta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CatherineZeta)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mitt-romneys-favorite-book/637485/17 "2012-10-16T20:57:15Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > At least he didn’t say _Hogg_. I almost spit out my fruit smoothie.