A new book on socialism, titled Why Socialism Works, was published earlier this month. Unbeknownst to some, Harrison Lievesley, the author of the book, wrote it as a satire. As a result, those who bought it thinking it was legitimate were outraged to find that every page repeated the same two words: “it doesn’t.”

For example, one of the disappointed customers, who left a one-star review on Amazon, wrote, “Why Socialism Works or why did I pay $$ for this POS should be the title!”

A second upset customer, whose comment appears to have been deleted, wrote, “absolute piss take I am furious as each page just says it doesn’t !!!!! Sending crap back.”

Apparently, neither of them read the book’s description, which stated, “this is a comprehensive book on how and why socialism will work, despite you friends saying it has and always will be a failure. Please note this book only contains two words and is entirely satire.” If they did, they would’ve realized that the book was meant to be funny.

Most of the reviewers, however, played along with the joke and gave the book five stars. “I was using this book in a course about capitalism and it provided exactly the perspective that I wanted for students to understand socialism as an alternative. It explains the good points and motives of Socialism and why it works in comparison to those of capitalism,” wrote one user.

Another five-star review stated, “I found this book to be very informative on the subject. The author is very concise and too [sic] the point and clearly understands the social, economic, and political benefits of socialism. I just bought several more copies. Can’t wait to share them!”

Although the book is meant to be a joke, it’s not wrong. Socialism, which is an economic system where the means of production are controlled by the workers, simply doesn’t work in practice. Every time it’s been tried, it has failed. The most recent example of this is Venezuela, where socialism has led to a food shortage, an increase in crime, and an energy collapse.

The problems in Venezuela have gotten so bad that people have started protesting in the streets. “Sometimes I only eat once or twice a day,” mentioned one of the protesters, noting “today I couldn’t find bread (for breakfast) at any bakery, and I came here because I can’t just stay home watching this country fall to pieces.”

Many proponents of socialism argue that countries like Venezuela have failed because they aren’t truly socialist. However, saying this is completely absurd. To be more precise, it’s a type of “no true Scotsman fallacy,” which is a form of “faulty reasoning [that renders one’s belief] unfalsifiable because no matter how compelling the evidence is, one simply shifts the goalposts so that it wouldn’t apply to a supposedly ‘true’ example.” By doing so, they’re avoiding completely valid criticism.

This is not the first time a book like Why Socialism Works has been published. Earlier this year, the book, Reasons to Vote Democrat: A Comprehensive Guide by Michael J Knowles, became an Amazon bestseller despite the fact that every single page was blank. During an interview on Fox News, Knowles explained why he left every page blank. Specifically, he said, “it took a very long time to research this book. I’ve been observing the Democratic Party for at least 10 years now and when I observed their record and reasons to vote for them – on reasons of economics or foreign policy or homeland security or civil rights and so on – I realized it was probably best to just leave all the pages blank.”

Knowles’ book even got an endorsement from President Donald Trump. On Twitter, he wrote, “a great book for your reading enjoyment: “REASONS TO VOTE FOR DEMOCRATS” by Michael J. Knowles.”

A great book for your reading enjoyment: "REASONS TO VOTE FOR DEMOCRATS" by Michael J. Knowles. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2017

Conservatives must continue to stand up against socialism. It’s a failed economic system that has ruined the lives of countless people. Those who think it’s a good idea need to be given Lievesley’s book. Hopefully, it’ll help open their eyes.