If he doesn't know you allthat well and you've just told him something 'important,' something earnest oremotional, he will lock in and honor you with a two-hander, his left handoverwhelming your wrist and forearm.

He'll share a laugh or a secret then-a light secret, not a realone-flattering you with the illusion of conspiracy. If he gets any higher up your shoulder-ifhe, say, drapes his left arm over your back, it is somehow less intimate, morecasual. He might put it on yourelbow, or up by your biceps: these are basic, reflexive moves. I can, however, tell you a whole lot about whathe does with his other hand. My inability to recall that particular moment more precisely isdisappointing: the handshake is the threshold act, the beginning of politics.I've seen him do it two million times now, but I couldn't tell you how he doesit, the right-handed part of it-the strength, quality, duration of it, therudiments of pressing the flesh. I am small and not so dark, not very threatening to Caucasians I do notstrut my stuff. He was a big fellow, looking seriously pale on the streets of Harlem in deepsummer. Here's the first chapter of Klein's 'Primary Colors.' Judge for yourself. The similarities between the book and Clinton Administration are hard to ignore, and a film based on the book captures some of the surface qualities of the current White House. The novel is one of the most popular political books ever.

But whatever criticism he received, he more than made up for it in book sales. 'Newsweek' columnist Joe Klein finally emerged as the author and drew some ricocheting verbal fire. 'Primary Colors' is an unblinking and clever look at a womanizing, doughnut-eating Southerner seeking the presidency, come hell or high water. And the kicker was, the author was Anonymous. (CNN) - It hit book store shelves with a thud heard all over Capitol Hill. CNN - Books: 'Primary Colors' by Joe Klein - April 1, 1998

Joe klein primary colors