Diving into the bestseller The Achievements of Kamala Harris: why is this book so popular?

Social media users and reviewers contribute to the book's viral success

The satirical book "The Achievements of Kamala Harris" recently became an Amazon bestseller. It is also sold at Walmart, the largest US retailer in the world.

The book, written by Jason Dudash and Michael Boles, has attracted the attention of the world for its unique design—all the pages are blank. Unsurprisingly, the book, which humorously criticises Vice President Harris's achievements, has been widely reacted to on the internet, with social media users and commentators contributing to its viral success.

The book's concept and direction are clear: it aims to satirize Harris' political career.

There are 191 blank pages in total. However, this does not seem to have prevented the latter from breaking the popularity record. The satirical book, written by Dudash and illustrated by Boles, claims to be a very detailed "account" of Harris's 20 years in the civil service. It is probably not for nothing, then, that the Amazon description calls it "the most comprehensive account to date" of Harris' career... 

The book is, in fact, largely empty. This is highlighted by a video of the book's illustrator, TikTok, showing it in a Texas Walmart store, revealing the mysterious publication's white pages^[1].

Internet users can't stop laughing - they give the publication the maximum score

The exclusive book "The Achievements of Kamala Harris" has gone viral and received the maximum five-star rating. The video introducing the book has received more than 2 million views on Elon Musk's platform with thousands of retweets.

Despite its ambiguous exclusivity, the book's "hook" is making internet users laugh and buy it in large quantities.

One of the book's readers shared that the publication inspired him. Another described it as a "brutally honest read" about the Vice-President. The clip, posted initially on TikTok, shows one of the content creators walking past shelves in a shopping mall proudly displaying books featuring the Vice President, now the Democratic candidate, with her characteristic smile on her face, promising to list her achievements... However, when one picks up the book and opens it, one is greeted by a sea of blank pages with only a few highlighted words.

People order several Kamala Harris books costing a few dollars each

"Only $14.00? That's priceless", jokes one Internet user, who claims to have ordered a total of 3 books on Amazon, one of which was supposedly delivered to a liberal neighbor in Colorado, and the other 2 will be given away. Even though, in Harris' 20-year career in public service, this book is supposedly the most "comprehensive" report to date on the reasons why Harris might be worthy of support, the reader finds it very handy and versatile, as it is possible to rewrite history by filling in the blank pages. 

However, what has cheered up the internet users most is the feedback on this product, which is supposedly authentic and amazing: 

"A friend recommended it to me, and now I know in my heart why I bought this book", said one reader about the 191-page book, adding that it made him ask himself whether we are all doing enough in our lives. The (invisible) text of the book has stimulated a dialogue with friends and family - making it a must-buy for everyone, according to those who commented^[2].

Harris is known to have held various positions in her life: she served as District Attorney of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011, Attorney General of California from 2011 to 2017, and in 2016 she was elected to the US Senate, where she served until becoming Vice President. She made history by becoming the first woman vice president and the first black and South Asian woman to hold the position after Biden chose her as his running mate in the 2020 elections.

While some criticize Harris's initiatives and who publish empty books, there is another side - this time a breathtaking and nail-biting side.

Despite the blank reader initiative, Harris fans are pushing for a recent victory with themed nail polishes. Supporters are launching a line of nail polishes themed around Democratic campaign moments.

"We wanted something playful and fun, accessible to people who are not very involved in politics," said Amy Rosenthal, co-founder of Colors for Kamala^[3]. 

The neutral shades, called "Bitch", "Nasty" and "Have You Heard Her Laugh", are supposedly intended to satirise the way Donald Trump attacked the vice-president, his Democratic rival, during the campaign. The brighter colours also have a symbolism: from the orange shade, reminiscent of US prison uniforms and of Harris's former career as a prosecutor in California, to the classic red for the childless women of whom the Republican vice-presidential candidate, J.D. Vance, spoke. 

It is hoped that the removal of nails in the appropriate colours will become a form of "silent agitation".