Well, "The Book" has arrived. It was ballyhooed, embargoed and written in a hurry: 400+ pages whipped into shape in four months. As Carl Hiaasen wrote for the MiamiHerald.com in the form of a faux memo to Palin from her editor: "Thank you for turning in the manuscript so quickly. I thought only Stephen King could crank out 400 pages in four months!"

Lynn Vincent, the professional writer who pulled it together, must have needed B12 shots every eight hours to achieve that output. Such speed would not be possible for, shall we say, a serious, carefully wrought book. (It is said that Ms. Palin, with family in tow, moved into the writer’s home so she could kinda explain her opinions about various things and people. That way, the writer wouldn’t say anything Sarah did not mean and, well, go rogue.)

The writer and publisher were carefully chosen by Palin’s agent, Robert Barnett in Washington. (Hi, Bob.) The former governor’s fan base was a perfect match for the Christian imprint of HarperCollins that is publishing the book. It is somewhat unusual for the writer’s name not to appear on the cover; most ghosts and co-writers do. Of course the scribe is thanked in what we in the biz call "the acks," (the acknowledgments) … though not in the No. 1 spot. Palin thanks Vincent and some other people for "indispensible help in getting the words on paper." Well, yeah. The important thank you to Vincent, however, was a portion of Palin’s advance.

Without a doubt, Sarah Palin is unique. In a seminar at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government a few weeks ago, I heard the columnist
Kathleen Parker speak. She’s considered a conservative, and she adjudges Palin to be charismatic, good-looking and bright. I probably would have said savvy and street smart, but her assessment was "bright." Parker’s prediction for Palin’s future is that should she get the nomination in 2012 she couldn’t win … and then the party would have to retool because they’re half-dead now, Parker said; done in by incivility and rigid ideology.

I can’t imagine that the buyers of this book expect to learn anything they didn’t already know. I think the knock-your-sox-off sales, especially for pre-orders, have to do with showing support … kind of voting for Sarah.

She is in the unusual position for a memoirist of having her supporters already pretty familiar with the essential details of her life, and the rest of us knowing her weak points. Hiaasen hilariously riffs on a few of these, mostly having to do with her propensity to exaggerate and her indifference to facts. Still in the guise of her editor, Hiaasen writes: "Before we move ahead, the fact-checking department has asked me to pass along a few notes and comments that may require some revisions on your part.

"Eric Clapton spells his last name with a C. More significantly, his publicists tell us that you were not the inspiration for "Layla," and … he doesn’t recall ever having an affair with you.

"The mainland of Russia is indeed visible from parts of western Alaska during favorable weather conditions in the Bering Straits. Considering the ridicule you endured over this issue during the campaign, your desire to set the record straight is understandable. Still, 78 pages is a big chunk of the book. Perhaps it’s possible to deal with the I-can-see-Russia controversy a bit more succinctly.

"Our researchers can find no evidence that Tina Fey belongs to the Taliban. Could you send us the sourcing for that reference?

"Even though you quit with 18 months remaining in your term, your achievements as Alaska’s governor will be of great interest to your readers and political supporters. How about expanding that section of the book to a full chapter?

"Our copyeditors are still struggling to sort out the many colorful characters in your manuscript. In one chapter the children are called Bristol, Piper, Track, Willow and Trig, yet only 44 pages later they appear as Caribou, Cessna, Herring, Juniper and Scrod. Maybe you could check with Todd and get back to us on that.

"’Mexican’ is not a language. (See manuscript page 188).

"Tony Blair was the prime minister of Great Britain. Tony Orlando is an American pop singer. (See manuscript page 341)."