I Alone Can Fix It

The subtitle of this political non-fiction says it all - Donald J. Trump's Catastrophic Final Year.

Prior to picking up I Alone Can Fix It by Carol Leonnig  and Philip Rucker, I thought I'd heard most of what was covered in the book. And I had. But it was a quick, easy read (perhaps because I had heard so much already) and gave a slightly deeper coverage to things I was already aware of. As I read through the book, I'd actually be able to recall when most of the events covered in the book took place.

Having said that, not much else to say about this one.

If you're interesting in getting a little deeper, you might be interested in reading this one. If you're not... then pass this one up.
 

Rage

I had no desire to read yet another book about the trump presidency. Plus I figured I'd heard all the key points in this narrative by journalist Bob Woodward by just watching TV. For awhile, it seemed that every day a new tape was released or that Woodward was being interviewed somewhere. But, my older daughter had requested this book from her library and when it became available, it was in e-Pub format (which she knows is my preference) and not Kindle format (which is hers). So I read it.

As expected, there were no real surprises. So much of trump's interviews had already been broadcast... and I'd already wondered why the heck trump would submit to the interviews and then answer in ways that were less than flattering and in many cases idiotic? I guess that's another book that Mary Trump might  want to write.

What will really stick with me, though, after reading Rage, is that my long held suspicion that things were undisciplined in the White House from day one was 100% spot on. 

Bob Woodward will need to write a follow-up book or update the epilogue or in some way update this book once we are looking at trump through the rear window. It's very current. Reaffirms things I'd already been thinking but until this nightmare of a presidency is over, the story cannot be fully told.

And now, for now, I am putting the trump book club on pause! With just a little over a week left until "Election Day" (whatever that exactly means this year), I just can't take anymore.

Disloyal: The True Story of the Former Personal Attorney to President Donald J. Trump

I seem to be reading all the trashier tell-all books about trump. Michael Cohen’s memoir, Disloyal: The True Story of the Former Personal Attorney to President Donald J. Trump, was the latest.

If you’ve ever heard Michael Cohen speak, well, that’s exactly how he writes. Doesn’t appear to be any ghost writer here! In my opinion, he seems sincere. He’s sincere about coming to the realization that sticking with trump was cultish. This book also seems like a sincere attempt at getting back at trump in some way. And I’m totally fine with this. I took what he said with a grain of salt, but even if only half of it is totally accurate, that’s a lot of bad stuff.

Because Mary Trump is a psychotherapist, I expected to find her book, Too Much and Never Enough, the most insightful regarding trump’s mental health. I actually found Cohen’s book more revealing. I definitely have a better understanding of trump’s behaviors after reading this book.

It’s a sad story. Yes, Michael Cohen was thrilled to be in trump’s orbit. However, he really paid a price with his family, even before he spent time in prison. And the story of trump makes me feel sad for any involved in his wrongdoings who just kind of got sucked in.

Next up in the tell-all book club… Stephanie Winston Wolkoff’s Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady. This e-book checked out of the library just as I started Disloyal. No way could I read these two back-to-back.

I started Moonglow by Michael Chabon right after finishing Disloyal. I thought that would be a big change. It was. Unfortunately, Moonglow was a bit too heavy for me to read right now. I need lightness. I dropped Moonglow and am now reading Squeeze Me. It’s never a bad time to read Carl Hiaasen.

Too Much and Never Enough

By the time I read Mary L. Trump's portrait of her uncle, Donald, Too Much and Never Enough, two days after it's publication date, most of the really juicy parts had been released through the media. I was still anxious to read this book, but for much more personal reasons than for the more seemingly popular reasons.

Donald Trump reminds me a of a person in my life and I guess I was really curious to see how much of his story would be relatable to the history of the person he reminds me of. Thankfully, there were a lot of parts that made me nod my head, but that was about it. I do wonder if I found this book more believable than the average reader, simply because I do have this experience.

It was interesting to read how the members of the Trump family fell into the roles they held from an early age until now. The book makes me curious about many of the members of the family.

I grew up in Brooklyn so was familiar with the Trump family early on. This gave me a little bit more history than I previously had. I was also interested to learn that Fred Trump grew up in Woodhaven, Queens as I had a great aunt, married to a German Jew, living in Woodhaven, Queens. Was it a German neighborhood?

The question that remains is why she really felt it was necessary to come out with this book at this particular moment in time and why she never spoke out about her worries about his presidency until now. She tries to address that, but if there was anything missing in the book, that's what it is.

This was a quick, easy read. Nothing earth shattering but interesting nonetheless.

This is not a political post

I try so hard not to post anything political on my Facebook page. As I finished reading Katy Tur's memoir of covering the Trump presidential campaign of 2016, I wondered how I was going to present the book without being too political.

The memoir was interesting. I wanted it to be fascinating. I had very high hopes for it and on many levels they were met. It was much more about Katy Tur and her career than about the campaign, but that was okay. She spoke with an authentic voice and her writing style was very easy to get through. This wasn't meant to be a historical accounting by any means - although it does cover some pretty important history. It's more about Katy's life during the campaign. I'd recommend it to anyone who got to know Katy Tur and enjoy her reporting during the campaign. She also gives you much of her personal self. It was a pleasure getting to know her.

Prior to reading Unbelievable, I wondered how different correspondents got selected to cover which particular candidates. Turns out that it was probably a little more random than I'd thought about before. That was surprising. I learned why I'd never really heard of Katy Tur before.

What was very remarkable was Katy Tur's upbringing. I'd heard her speak on "Take Your Child to Work" day last spring, about how she had been in a news helicopter over LA during the Rodney King riots. At the time, I was fascinated. This part of the book did not disappoint.

Katy Tur was the embodiment of "fake news" during the last presidential campaign. She was called out often by Trump at rallies. Sometimes it seems like he was flirting with her. Other times it seems as though he was threatening. Even when he wasn't threatening, it seems as though some of the mobs at his rallies did threaten Katy. Reading about her fears was absorbing. A few times she mentioned her mother fearing for her safety. My kids are not much younger than Katy is. Putting myself in her mother's place, there would have been a very fine line between being proud of my daughter for the job she was doing and frantically worrying about her safety at all times. Not to mention what a grueling job it is to follow a presidential campaign from start to finish. She covered the campaign with polish and class.

I think that's all I'm going to say.

Feel free to comment or ask questions about the memoir. Please don't post anything political. Thanks.