Book Cover

But not only didn’t he read, he didn’t listen. He preferred to be the person talking. And he trusted his own expertise—no matter how paltry or irrelevant—more than anyone else’s. What’s more, he had an extremely short attention span, even when he thought you were worthy of attention.

# Review

The book covers the various characters and events during the first 100 days of the Trump Administration, one of the most polarizing in recent history. The books covers narratives from Bannon's rise and fall, to Comey's ousting, to Trump's relationships with his billionaire friends. Wolff makes the first days of the 45th presidency appear like a mix of Machiavelli's The Prince and the sitcom The Office; Wolff portrays Games of Thrones-esque levels of intrigue and back-stabbing within the Trump administration (mainly between the Bannon camp and the Kushner/Ivanka camp) but fraught with comedically incompetent officials making exaggerated blunders.

The book was clearly written to be as provocative as possible, with very unflattering anecdotes of Trump, such as the alleged stories of him trying to seduce his friends' wives. While entertaining, the book is more like the gossip section of a tabloid than serious journalism. The stories are mostly unsubstantiated, and are probably either greatly embellished or completely untrue. The omniscient narrator makes various unattributed assetions, including what people think and what their motives are. This book should not be taken seriously; it is literally "fake news".

# Conclusion

This book should only be read for entertainment value; it does not add much to the narrative to the Donald Trump presidency.

# Overall rating: 6.0

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