Fear: Trump in the White House

The book is a thoroughly reported accurate depiction on what's going on behind the scenes at the White House. Although he doesn't name sources, it's clear that Rob Porter, Gary Cohn, Reince Preibus, and Steve Bannon spoke with him extensively. The biggest draw back from this is you get a mostly self-serving account from their end. Porter and Cohn play neoliberal savior by hiding the ball on trade. Reince plays the adult in the room who tries to balance the GOP and Trump's ego (guess who wins). And Bannon plays the outsider firebrand nationalist who refuses to back down. They all say the f word like a teenager on xbox live. Some of the granular details are new, but for the most part, the fact that Trump is an ego driven lying idiot isn't all that ground breaking. However, the one big takeaway was that Trump's astounding inability to focus or remember anything keeps him from implementing half-baked ideas he hears on Fox News, which is our only saving grace.

Having read the paperback, I and now seeing the numerous disproves "facts" stated in the book I must say instead of going to books like these which are so very biased why not do independent research. I respect everyone's right to free speech but not their right to false statements sadly there is no way to separate opinions and facts in the political conversation anymore with emotion driving so many wants turned into "needs" I just wish we could all unify as one country.

True investigative reporting reflects the copious research, notes, interviews and factchecking to the finest details. I’d be hard pressed to find another author who could match Bob Woodward’s ability and dedication. “Fear” surprised me with its integrity and uneditorialized fact-based style. I thought it would be partisan. Instead the chapters put me in the room “listening” to the people we have seen on the news, yet refreshingly without commenting on their words or actions. I listened to this book through Audible. By the end I wanted to send the narrator back to voiceover class. EVERY sentence ended by emphasizing the last word. It was like watching an amateur actor flailing to emote using windmill arms. An author and book this prestigious and of this quality deserves the best narrator. Unfortunately Robert Petkoff’s reading of this book aloud fell far short and was downright irritating. I would listen to it again, though, with a better reader.