As Hillary Clinton went into the 2016 U.S. presidential election, there were any number of books that could tell you about her life. When Donald Trump won, however, the reams and reams about him, his past wives, and the rise of his fortunes were nearly only in the tabloids. Books about Trump were mostly written by Trump, and dealt primarily with his business philosophy. Hence, The Art of The Deal , in which he says he keeps his scheduled meetings to a minimum, or the books that followed in the same vein — Surviving at the Top, How to Get Rich, Time to Get Tough and The Art of the Comeback — were essentially paperback pulp versions that told you “how to…” rather than inform us about who Trump really is.
The drought is ending now, and we have several investigative works that look into his past. Perhaps the most anticipated book came from his first wife Ivana Trump (Raising Trump) in October 2017, but if you were looking for details about “The Donald”, you would be disappointed, as the book is really about her struggles as a mother. Three others, written by Trump’s colleagues and a journalist, are enlightening, but far too fawning for real insight into his personality. The first is former Speaker Newt Gingrich’s Understanding Trump , filled with anecdotes of his relationship with the U.S. President. Another is by former Trump campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski (with David Bossie), Let Trump be Trump , which also attempts to portray Trump as a misunderstood working class outsider to the system. Then there is The Faith of Donald J. Trump by Christian Broadcasting Network correspondent David Brody (with Scott Lamb), based on several interviews with the U.S. President, which tries to paint him as deeply religious, while glossing over reports of his “sins”, which they say only make him human. As a result, Michael Wolff’s sensational Fire and Furyis a much more satisfying read .
Two works by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Cay Johnston are equally probing, if even more critical of the President: The Making of Donald Trump and It’s Even Worse Than You Think . Two other more academic works to note are David Frum’s Trumpocracy: The Corruption of the American Republic and Michael Nelson’s Trump’s First Year. These are all ultimately books on what Trump has done, but one is still awaiting the definitive work on who Trump is, the man least expected to helm the most powerful country in the world.
