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angus_mckeogh's review against another edition
5.0
I couldn’t have finished this book at a stranger time. Turned the last page yesterday and awoke to find Trump has contracted the coronavirus. I don’t probably need to even say how many times in the book Trump states, “Don’t worry about the virus Bob. It’ll go away. I don’t wear a mask because I’m just not worried about it. Just wait...it’ll just go away.”
cunningba's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting, to a point. Although Woodward offers brief judgments throughout and at the end, reading the meticulously transcribed evasions and prevarications Trump presents over and over again in their interviews, the book frequently feels more like an apologetic than insightful journalism.
ryantlabee's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent reporting from Bob Woodward. Trump's narcissism and fragile ego are on full display. In some ways, it's not as bad as we thought, but in others (in the ways that count most), it's far worse than we could have imagined.
sweetcaroline76's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.0
teokajlibroj's review against another edition
3.0
One thing I noticed in this book and in "Fear" is Woodward's reliance on sources. Unfortunately, I think he relies too heavily on them and allows his sources to paint themselves in the best light. It's easy to know who his sources are because they get a huge amount of positive detail about their thoughts and feelings. No context is provided, so if his sources thinks something is a good idea, Woodward doesn't challenge it.
Woodward gets tunnel vision on certain issues, like foreign policy (perhaps because those are his sources) and dedicates a huge amount of time to them while completely ignores everything else. This book is remarkable for the number of interviews Trump did with him, however because Trump has no self-awareness these interviews don't provide much insight.
This was a quick and mostly enjoyable read but it didn't tell us that much new.
Woodward gets tunnel vision on certain issues, like foreign policy (perhaps because those are his sources) and dedicates a huge amount of time to them while completely ignores everything else. This book is remarkable for the number of interviews Trump did with him, however because Trump has no self-awareness these interviews don't provide much insight.
This was a quick and mostly enjoyable read but it didn't tell us that much new.
smurf2416's review against another edition
3.0
I thought this was better than Fear. The first 40ish% is booooring. But as soon as the book turns to North Korea and the COVID-19 pandemic, it becomes a lot more interesting. Neither Trump nor Bob Woodward come across as likeable people.