Peril by Bob Woodward
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I liked it but I am disappointed. Disappointed because of all the spoilers. No, not on Amazon, Goodreads or elsewhere, but on the news media. Most of the blockbusters were discussed on cable news (often times with Woodward and Costa) or quoted in web news. One could reasonably expect the reading audience would be folks who watch or read such reports. If so, what new you learn from the book are details. Details that serve to illustrate or confirm the journalistic and writing credentials of the authors and stuff not juicy enough for prerelease.
From that experience, if you are a person like me, you would be best served avoiding all reports and promos and taking on faith that writers you know will offer something startlingly good. For a book like this, that would be difficult at best given all the coverage.
The one major surprise was the significant amount of reporting on Biden’s campaign, decision making and more. That covers some number of years and events. Possibly as much as fifteen percent or more of the book. Trump and his cult followers, formerly known as the Republican party, are covered in depth on the peril they pose for American democracy’s future. That threat continues growing.
If you don’t follow news of any sort, this book may offer a lot of shocking information to you. Otherwise, it offers some element of schadenfreude–along with increasing your fears for the country.