Thought provoking satire.

Admittedly, this book surprised me time and time again while reading it. With the seemingly over glorified reviews within the cover of the book and the nearly untouchable subject matter, I honestly predicted a ridiculous fluke of a story. However, my preconceptions evaporated quickly with every page I turned. This is a deeply thought provoking satire of an all to real political-social epidemic in this country. This author has added the right amount of humor and twists to keep the reader engaged while opening their eyes to the dark side of this country’s underhanded power play with the very people the government depends upon. This is a book I would recommend to any intellectual free thinker and know they would not be disappointed. Standing ovation.
-Wolfess Rose

An Enjoyable, Funny Read

Who would have thought that the IRS could be this funny? “The Taxman Cometh” is in the best tradition of irreverent American satire from Mark Twain to “Saturday Night Live.” It makes fun of everything that deserves to be made fun of.

The plot is full of unexpected twists and surprises. It strikes the right balance between realistic and bizarre. The characters are great. The dialogue is clever. The story cruises along at high speed and entertains, even as it makes the point about intrusion into every aspect of our lives by an ever-expanding government bureaucracy.

Integrating troublesome real world events into the story makes it difficult to discern the line between fiction and an increasingly oppressive reality.

Whatever your political persuasion, after reading this novel you may just think twice before tossing out the old cliché that “America is a free country.”

Without giving much away, I will say that the story ends on a relatively high note. I just hope that America’s real story will start doing the same.
-Steve Buckstein

Humorous and educational

In ancient times, storytelling was the method used for passing on truths and information from one generation to the next. The stories provided a context for understanding the surrounding world and its complexities. Well, maybe we needn’t go so far back. Perhaps the Brothers Grimm will do.

What we have here is a modern fable complete with monsters, heroes, and capricious fates. And if you ever wanted to know how our modern tax system came into being, you’ll find that out here, too. In the old days they threw virgins into the volcano. These days we throw money at our government and hope that it, too, won’t blow up on us. (Just remember, more laws make more criminals.)

My best advice to you is to relax and enjoy the story. You don’t have to read the “rants” if you don’t want to, but I found that they were a nice break and they provided a foundation for the events and of the story.

The truth in life is that we rely on each other and that little bit of slack that greases the rails of our interactions. In fact, we rely on each other to reach our goals. Human beings weren’t intended for a “zero-tolerance” kind of existence where every action might result in a harsh, punitive response. America, certainly, wasn’t intended to become the mirror of the old Soviet “Big Brother” state where we are all supposed to turn each in. Yet, our agencies have become more militarized and intrusive. For instance, agents in body armor with automatic weapons are taking down Amish dairy farmers for selling raw milk. Sweet little old ladies are thrown on the floor and put in restraints while their dogs get shot for showing concern for their owners welfare. (Crack houses, you know.) Government agencies compelling the citizenry to give up its freedoms for “security.”

Wow, that was depressing. But this story isn’t. It’s funny and enlightening. It informs while it entertains. And I recommend for anyone who doesn’t mind thinking a little and laughing a little more.
-Marc B.

Surprising Satirical Novels

What a surprise! I never expected a book not published by a major publisher to be as good as the classic American novels. THE TAXMAN COMETH is a great read. It’s as funny as the best satirical novels like THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY series and CATCH 22. But it also compares to classic political novels like the works of Norman Mailer, on the left, or Ayn Rand on the right. I sometimes feel reading novels is a “guilty pleasure,” for entertainment only. Maybe it would be more productive to read an informative book about history, science, or philosophy. With THE TAXMAN COMETH I didn’t feel that dilemma. It was both highly entertaining and informative. Author Jim Greenfield managed to integrate political, historical, and economic information into the story in a way that flowed effortlessly and was painless. It makes a good case why we should abolish the IRS, an idea Americans for limited government favor.

The Taxman Cometh story about a used car dealer who gets screwed over by ruthless IRS agents who recognize no bounds to their power makes you think about the kind of society America has become. What makes the story so much fun is not only the great dialogue and unexpected plot twists, but the way the hero Sam Samson fights back, against all odds, man against the state, to take on and take down the system that is oppressing him. Samson will be recognized as one of the great characters in American literature. I don’t think it’s giving away too much to disclose that his female nemesis is Delilah, borrowing a page from the great Biblical story of the powerful Samson and the beautiful Delilah who betrays him. But Samson’s main adversary is the corrupt IRS Special Agent, Elliott Mess, who happens to look and dress just like Robert Stack as the “Untouchables” treasury agent Eliot Ness, who brought down mobster Al Capone. That’s a small sample of the humor found on every page of this terrific novel. Five stars and bravo!
-Michael Fortier

Awesome Read

I have to say that I was skeptical about this book. I wasn’t sure what to expect but don’t let the cover fool you. This is a great read! The story was very fast paced and it kept me turning the pages over and over again until I completed it. This is a wonderful satire that spoke the truth about our politics in this world. The author was able to add enough humor to the story and the characters to make it enjoyable. It definitely is an eye opener to read about the darkness of our country’s political professions. I highly recommend this book to anyone who does not want to be disappointed in a book!

-I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
-Zootzoot

Hilarious

Tax evasion, absolute reality, I am sure many people can relate to Sam’s character in this book. If you are the type of person who thinks that you can riddle the government and get your way, then this book will definitely show you who has the upper hand. Even if you think you feel you have legitimate case against the government, you will always end up at the bottom of the food chain. The author did a great job, well thought out.
-Bryan

Laugh Out Loud Funny!

Jim Greenfield has written a hilarious satire here that has seeds of truth in it. The IRS has too much unchecked power and can seize someones property or bank accounts and throw them in jail without a warrant or hearing. Citizens are assumed guilty til proven innocent, then good luck getting anything back. Sam Samson decide to fight back against the brutality that was brought down on him by the IRS and especially Special Agent Elliott Mess.

The characters well chosen names had me visualizing what they looked like as I was reading this funny book. Jim’s “Dubious Philosophical Musings” inserted throughout the book I found interesting and I enjoyed reading them as well. I definitely would recommend this book and I think it would make a funny movie too Jim. Thanks for writing and sharing this truly enjoyable book!
-Pammysue

The Taxman Cometh is really well written and thought-provoking. In the intro Norquist lets you know that in between the chapters of his novel he periodically will go on his own philosophical tangents about our political system and taxes, and he says you don’t have to read them because they will not add to the plot. I chose to read them all as I went through the novel and I personally really liked it. I don’t think I would normally enjoy an author throwing their opinion like this into their novel, because there are more creative and clever ways of weaving your opinions into your book, but in this instance it actually works. I believe it has to do with the fact that Norquist is so passionate about the subject that I did want to know exactly what he was thinking. It also helps that he is quite funny and it was really easy to breeze through his writing even when he goes away from the story into a philosophical tangent. The story itself is hilarious and we can all truly feel for the main character Samson who gets everything taken from him by the IRS and who decides to take the IRS down. All of these ideas in the book are definitely things to think about because we do have a huge spending problem in this country and maybe income tax is a big reason why.
-Stephanie

The Taxman Cometh is a strange book. The main story is an absurdist tale about the IRS going rogue and deciding to pursue all tax crimes aggressively and basically plotting to take over the government and becoming the most powerful entity in the US. They go after the middle class mostly, so as not to ruffle the feathers of more powerful people so they can gain power before they take them on. One of the people they go after is a used car salesman, Sam Samson. But Sam decides to put up a fight. His fight against the IRS is silly and over the top and a pretty good story. What makes this book a bit odd is that throughout the story the author puts in a few chapters where he just gives his opinion on taxes. These chapters take an aggressive stance against taxes. In my opinion these parts are the weakest part of the book as they just stick out so oddly and kind of throw off the progression of the story, although I respect the author for giving his opinion. All in all, I did enjoy the story itself; it was a fun and quick absurd tale.
-Katie

Jim Greenfield has taken a not-so-pleasant topic like tax collecting and turned it into a laugh out loud comedy.

“The Taxman Cometh,” is a story of fiction but has lots of factual information added, which I found very interesting and informative. It gave me a a clearer understanding about certain aspects of government that I never really bothered with before, mostly because of lack of interest and comprehension.

I loved how he opened each chapter with a couple of quotes from all different sources, such as writers, singers, song writers and even some biblical quotes. One of my favourites: “If you took all the money in the world and distributed it amongst all the people, within x amount of time- five years, three years, six months-the rich would be rich, and the poor would be poor. Why? Because some people know how to play Monopoly, and some people don’t know how to play Monopoly.” – David Marshall

Sam Samson, a used car salesman has neglected to file an income tax report for the last 17 years but the IRS are on to him to collect all the back taxes he owes and then some. After stealing all of Samson’s money and destroying his business, corrupt agent Elliot Mess is out to ruin him by jeopardizing his trial and getting him locked up for tax evasion. Things will soon turn around for both Samson and Elliot Mess when Samson decides to fight back.

A very entertaining book that I would highly recommend to anyone who loves a good laugh and enjoys reading.
-Tiziana

This book is a crack up. I really liked the character at the center of this story, Sam, I don’t think I would call him a hero, but he is very entertaining. Part conman, part income tax revolutionary, Sam gets stuck in going up against the IRS. And not just the IRS you know, but the IRS who has gone power hungry and vowed to stop all income tax fraud. Sam, who hasn’t filed taxes for years, is one of their targets. But they come after him, take his money, and beat him up, all which inspire Sam to turn the tables. I didn’t think I would root for someone not paying their taxes, but in this crazy story you definitely end up on Sam’s side. Somehow the conman becomes the hero! This is a funny, quick read. I don’t think Greenfield solves the debate on taxes, but I think he adds a lot to the conversation in a very wild way.
I received a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
-Bev

An intriguing novel on how the Internal Revenue Service and other government agencies are controlling the lives of Americans, even with actions that clearly violate the US Constitution. It is interspaced with chapters of factual data about the government. There are warnings implied that compare favorably to Atlas Shrugged and 1984. While a fictional work, it compels the reader to think about the government. This was a free advance reading copy.
-Fredrick Danysh

This was an interesting one for sure! The author writes about a man who gets screwed over by the government. It’s a book that I’m sure many of us can relate to! Sam tries to fight for his justice just as anyone of us in his position would do. The author did a great job with the character development and the book definitely makes you want to read on. I’d would definitely recommend this book.
-Marievic