Fire and Fury: Review
A few days ago, the New York Times bestselling author Michael Wolff was cast off the set of MSNBC’s "Morning Joe" due to a situation regarding his controversial book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House. When probed about the implications of his book regarding President Trump’s relationships with female members of his administration, Wolff stood by his story, much to Mika Brzezinski’s ire. With the Grammys recently sponsoring a skit featuring Hillary Clinton reading mocking excerpts from Wolff’s book, many critics have questioned Wolff’s journalistic style as well as the veracity of his remarks. From the context surrounding the book’s title to its actual content, Wolff has radically brought legitimate issues to the forefront despite his hyperbolic voice.
“They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen,” President Trump said at a meeting following major nuclear threats expressed by North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un. Unsurprisingly, over the next few days the news swelled with conversations centered around Trump’s brash comments and his reckless endangerment of our country. At that point in early August, however, this wasn't out of the ordinary. For six months, reporters and journalists had scrutinized the president’s every move. It was no shock to wake up and see a headline that included Trump’s name. For those who cared about current events, “Fire and fury” was just another ridiculous line used be a ridiculous man. But for Michael Wolff, it was the perfect title.
Fire and Fury is a well-written, but exaggerated, piece of literature that brought harrowing White House gossip to the top of everyone's social media feed.
Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House was officially published on January 5, 2018—excerpts were released before then—and within days, it was the hottest book in America. The headlines were no longer talking about the threat to North Korea, they were talking about the 336 page book that has thoroughly shaken the Trump administration. The author, Michael Wolff, used insider knowledge from current and past employees of the administration and his West Wing access to compile an entire book with the goal of dismantling the Manhattan billionaire.
At the beginning, news outlets had a field day relaying quotes to the millions of people unwilling to buy and read the book. Especially leftward leaning organizations, who have been looking for a way to destroy Trump since his election. Quotes citing Trump’s adultery, Trump and Melania’s sadness after he won the presidency, and his lack of intelligence flooded social media. For days, Trump’s team worked to limit the damage, even sending cease and desist letters to Wolff and his publisher. Of course, Trump got involved in the effort and began slandering Wolff on twitter. Trump tweeted multiple times on the subject, calling Fire and Fury a fictitious scam and reassuring the public that he, himself, was a "stable genius."
Fire and Fury laid out much of the hidden drama that plagued, and continues to plague, the Trump White House. Wolff depicted an incredibly erratic administration filled with disloyal and untrustworthy workers, many of whom don’t believe in their own boss. He gives multiple examples of important people who believe that the President is an insane moron completely unfit to lead a nation. The stories that Wolff retells display a work atmosphere that would be bad in a downtrodden McDonalds, but catastrophic in the executive branch of the United States.
Just Google the phrase “fire and fury most shocking quotes,” read a few results, and you will be amazed at what Michael Wolff has published in a nonfiction book. The book is a page turner; with every word, there is an unexpected or ridiculous piece of information that was written to keep the reader hooked. The outrageous demand for the book has landed it on the map, with some people even comparing it to the release of a Harry Potter book or a Star Wars movie.
This may be because Wolff writes what everyone on the left side of the political spectrum wants to read. Many people speculated that Trump is pretty crazy, clueless, and maybe underqualified for his job, but Wolff clearly spelled it out for them. He compiled it all down into one accessible book that you can have shipped to your doorstep in a matter of days in paperback or hardcover form (you can also opt for the E-book). For these reasons, Michael Wolff is a brilliant author who deserves the all the financial success where it’s due.
Unfortunately for all the readers looking to impeach Trump with the evidence in the book, Wolff stretched the truth a bit.
Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House didn’t fare well under the intense scrutiny of the public. People realized that Wolff couldn’t have possibly seen or heard everything that he claimed to. Even through his journalistic methods, it would’ve been impossible. As a result, the book’s credibility has been called into question, as many don’t believe that it can be considered nonfiction. With that said, the book does open a stream of dialogue on the topic of Trump’s administration. For instance, Trump’s adultery, which has been infamous since he started seeing his second wife while still married to his first, and his general objectification of women, has resurfaced.
With the multiple references to past and present events, Fire and Fury brings many important topics to the table. The book gives an especially interesting new view on the shenanigans between Trump’s campaign and his interactions with the Russians, but we will have to continue to wait for the aftermath. In sum, Fire and Fury is a well-written, but exaggerated, piece of literature that brought harrowing White House gossip to the top of everyone's social media feed.