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Peril

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Peril

By: Bob Woodward, Robert Costa
Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
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About this listen

THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER
THE NEW YORK TIMES NO 1 BESTSELLER

The storming of the Capitol on 6 January 2021 revealed the transition from President Trump to President Biden to be one of the most dangerous periods in American history, with the result of the election called into question by the sitting president.

But, as internationally bestselling author Bob Woodward and acclaimed reporter Robert Costa reveal for the first time, it was far more than just a domestic political crisis. At the highest level of the US military, secret action was taken to prevent Trump from possibly starting a war.

Woodward and Costa interviewed more than 200 people at the centre of the turmoil, resulting in a spellbinding and definitive portrait of a nation on the brink. They take readers deep inside the Trump White House, the Biden White House, the 2020 campaign, and the Pentagon and Congress, with vivid, eyewitness accounts of what really happened. Peril is supplemented throughout with never-before-seen material from secret orders, transcripts of confidential calls, diaries, emails, meeting notes and other personal and government records, making for an unparalleled history.

It is also the first inside look at Biden’s presidency, revealing the background to his controversial decision to leave Afghanistan. He took office faced with the challenges of a lifetime: dealing with the continuing deadly pandemic and its crushing economic impact, all the while navigating a bitter and disabling partisan divide, and the hovering, dark shadow of the former president. ‘We have much to do in this winter of peril,’ Biden declared at his inauguration.

Peril is the extraordinary story of the end of one presidency and the beginning of another. The culmination of Bob Woodward’s bestselling trilogy on the Trump presidency, along with Fear and Rage, it is an essential read for anyone wanting to understand this tumultuous period.

©2021 Bob Woodward and Robert Costa (P)2021 Simon & Schuster, UK Americas Political Science Politics & Government United States World American History War

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Critic reviews

'The thing that is so bracing and nerve-wracking and important about this new book is what it reveals about how much worse it was than we knew, how much closer we came to real disaster than we have known before now.' (Rachel Maddow)
'Excerpts of the Woodward/Costa book in the Washington Post and CNN make the Trump administration’s operations in January 2021 sound like a bewildering blend of King Lear, The Decline and Fall of The Roman Empire, Dr Strangelove and Veep.' (Olivier Knox)
'A cliffhanger... Like an instalment of a deathless Marvel franchise, for all its spectacle Peril ends with a dismaying sense of prologue.' (John Williams)
'We know that the period between the election and the inauguration was a time of great domestic turmoil. And what Peril does is it shows that this was also a grave national security crisis.' (Isaac Stanley-Becker)
All stars
Most relevant  
very interesting look at events and inner workings of USA politics. Not usually reported in mainstream media.

insightful

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I thought I had read/listened to more than enough about the ex-president, through books and newspaper articles. Thought I would lightly skim through’Peril’ but found it riveting from beginning to end. Extremely well put together and presented. Recommend it to all who want to understand a little more about current American politics.

Beggars Belief

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I thoroughly enjoyed the first two Woodward books on Trump. This book returns to some of the themes included there - for example unelected officials seeking to thwart the will of the elected President. In the first book it was Gary Cohn ducking and diving to avoid withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In this, the equivalent is General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs. His conversation with Nancy Pelosi are the big revelation, at least for those of us outside the USA.

Beyond the role of the military - and no one does a character study the way Woodward does - the events of 6th January have been covered repeatedly in many other books and there’s little new that this study adds. The way Trump treats his subordinates, the way he demeans, insults, seeks to bully, praise and wheedle all as methods of control, are very firmly on record.

After January 20th the book turns to the passage of the American Rescue Plan Act (the coverage here could have been taken wholesale from the New Yorker; conservative Democrats from West Virginia are conservative, Republicans are prepared to hold the government hostage, shocker) and the withdrawal from Afghanistan. The latter was looked at superficially, in my view. It relives media coverage and comments made publicly at the time, with only sporadic insights into the private conversations of President Biden and the other key players - which is something Woodward usually excels at.

I enjoyed it, for sure, but Woodward has done much, much better work.

Entertaining but not as thorough as usual

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More in depth investigative journalism from Bob Woodward of Watergate fame, this time revealing the insiders story of the year leading up to the US election in which Biden defeated the Bush attempt at a second term of office and the immediate aftermath. From the copious quantity of news coverage, I had thought I knew it all. I was wrong. This fascinating account of behind the scenes shenanigans is, at times, quite terrifying in it's implications.

Well written and expertly read by narrator, Robert Petkoff, this is one to read for anyone with an interest in the politics of rule and survival, of the power of social media, lies and bullying, and the terrors of what could happen if a psychopathic personality rules one of the most powerful nations in the world. Definitely recommended

"It's the court of public opinion that matters."

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extensive research has obviously been undertaken to produce this book. very well read by narrator. in a few sections can get bogged down in almost too fine details but overall well produced. the extent of dubious financial activity is concerning and how anybody can get away with such financial irregularities perhaps the most lenient summation.

review

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Woodward and Costa present a rather chilling tale of two parties...and the courage of one man

Once you hear this book..you can't unhear it

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Not quite as purely ‘orange man bad’ as you may be expecting. Sure Trump and his staff come off as badly as you’d expect, however there are times when I feel they go easy on some of his GOP supporters, although this may be in an effort not to pontificate. The stories about Trump himself are probably the most interesting parts, he appears weak, panicked and oblivious that everyone in his party is using him to secure their own future. In fact if he weren’t the harbinger of modern fascism then you could almost feel sorry for him at times. Almost.

The book fauns over Biden too much in places, sure he’s the lesser of two evils but a lot of his well known shortcomings and past transgressions are either omitted or quickly skimmed over.

Overall it’s worth giving this a listen if you’re interested in any way in American politics. What it really hammered home to me is that across the political spectrum there are people doing whatever it takes and making deals with whatever devil offering them the most power and financial security at that moment in time.

It’s more than a Trump hit-piece

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Loved all of it, it was factual, strange, interesting, scary and definitely worth listening to. I learnt a lot!

The Narrator was superb!

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The opening was very frightening if not entirely unexpected. I expected a little more in the way of story regarding Trump, as he’s the one who put the whole world at risk. Still an enjoyable listen.

Very interesting and scary at times

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This is a shocking book. More shocking than the disgraceful narrative is that a very substantial minority of the American people applaud this monster and would welcome an authoritarian anti-democratic regime firmly under his iron grip.
This book and its earlier volumes needs to be read and its warning heeded.

Dangerous Foreboding

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