Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success

by Michael D'Antonio

In the summer of 2015, as he vaulted to the lead among the many GOP candidates for president, Donald Trump was the only one dogged by questions about his true intentions. This most famous American businessman had played the role of provocateur so often that pundits, reporters, and voters struggled to believe that he was a serious contender. Trump stirred so much controversy that his candidacy puzzled anyone who applied ordinary political logic to the race. But as Michael D'Antonio shows in Never Enough, Trump has rarely been ordinary in his pursuit of success and his trademark method is based on a logic that begins with his firm belief that he is a singular and superior human being.

As revealed in this landmark biography, Donald Trump is a man whose appetite for wealth, attention, power, and conquest is practically insatiable. Declaring that he is still the person he was as a rascally little boy, Trump confesses that he avoids reflecting on himself "because I might not like what I see" and he believes "most people aren't worthy of respect."

A product of the media age and the Me Generation that emerged in the 1970s, Trump was a Broadway showman before he became a developer. Mentored by the scoundrel attorney Roy Cohn, Trump was a regular on the New York club scene and won press attention as a dashing young mogul before he had built his first major project. He leveraged his father's enormous fortune and political connections to get his business off the ground, and soon developed a larger-than-life persona. In time, and through many setbacks, he made himself into a living symbol of extravagance and achievement.

Drawing upon extensive and exclusive interviews with Trump and many of his family members, including all his adult children, D'Antonio presents the full story of a truly American icon, from his beginnings as a businessman to his stormy romantic life and his pursuit of power in its many forms. For all those who wonder: Just who is Donald Trump?, Never Enough supplies the answer. He is a promoter, builder, performer and politician who pursues success with a drive that borders on obsession and yet, has given him, almost everything he ever wanted.

Genres: Biography, Politics, Nonfiction, Business, History, Presidents, Audiobook

400 pages, Hardcover

First published September 22, 2015

About the author

A Pulitzer Prize winning writer of books, articles, and original stories for film, Michael D’Antonio has published more than a dozen books, including Never Enough, a 2015 biography of presidential candidate and billionaire businessman Donald Trump. Described variously as “luminous,” “captivating,” “momentous” and “meticulous” Michael’s work is renowned for its clarity, balance, and thoroughness.

His works a have been noted as “best books of the year” or “editors’ picks” by The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor, Businessweek, The Chicago Tribune and Publisher’s Weekly. He has appeared on Sixty Minutes, Today, Good Morning, The Morning Show, America, Larry King Live, Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Diane Rehm, Coast-to-Coast, and many other programs.

Before becoming a fulltime author, Michael worked as a journalist in New York, Washington, and Maine. He has written for Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, The Times of London Magazine, Discover, Sports Illustrated, The Los Angeles Times Magazine and many others. He has received numerous awards including the 1984 Pulitzer Prize, shared with a team at Newsday that explored the medical, legal, and ethical issues surrounding the Baby Jane Doe case.

In 2016, Michael has became a regular contributor for CNN, both on-air and on their website. His pieces can be read here: http://www.cnn.com/profiles/michael-d...

D’Antonio has been the recipient of the Alicia Patterson Fellowship, the First Amendment Award, and the Humanitas Award for his Showtime film, Crown Heights. Born and raised in New Hampshire, Michael now lives on Long Island with his wife, Toni Raiten-D’Antonio who is a psychotherapist, professor, and author of three acclaimed books.

Reviews

[Delee · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have been looking in at my reviews here and there- or have been paying attention to my absence on and off over the last year or so- you will have noticed I am not on here much anymore. The few reviews I have written have lost their sparkle, and their lightness. I have become kind of angry- and to me, anyways, I have noticed most of my reviews have been quite bitter. I hate that. The one thing I liked about myself was I was able to see the humor in darker moments- whether it be in my life or in my reading.

This year- has drained that ability from me-and although plenty of it has to do with some personal things I am dealing with as well as some internet issues- I blame a bit of it on what is going on outside my life-when I can't help but watch the bigger picture playing out-each and every day.

Initially, I wasn't going to write a review for this book. Why rock the boat- or lose friends by expressing my political views? But while watching the season premiere of The Walking Dead..I had an "Ah Ha riled up" moment..which made me not give a f@#K!

So here is to not giving a F@#K!

Trumpland-

The day will come when you won't be....

Bet you all thought you were going to grow old together- sitting around the table at Sunday dinner. It doesn't work like that. Not anymore. Think about what happens...

You answer to me. You provide for me. You belong to me. You speak when you're spoken to.

We did it. All of us. Together. Even the dead guys on the ground. They get the spirit award for sure. Today was a productive damn day. I hope for all your sake that you get it now. That you understand how things work. Things have changed. Whatever you had going for you, that is over now.

Negan, The Walking Dead


Dramatic? Maybe. But this is Trump speak- with a few bigger words than he is used to spewing- and hopefully less one baseball bat with barbed wire. This will be all too familiar, I think, if heaven forbid he is actually voted into the most important position in the free world.

Why is this my business? Because I live in the world. A world that will be forever changed by the decisions made on Tuesday, November 8th, 2016...not just for you..for all of us. It will change the way the world looks at you. It will change who are your Allies and who no longer puts stock in what you say and do.

If you vote for a person who has called its Allies leeches, and unnecessary-decided he wants to undo his country's written word and back out of agreements signed/made by others. When that man you vote for- wants to be in office to seek revenge on people he feels have hurt his feelings. When he pisses off the wrong Foreign leader..or when recession hits worldwide because he is unstable which makes markets unstable...which makes dollars unstable...when over half the population (women and minorities) feel shit upon or less than, When white supremacists rise up because they feel this is the man that hears their call...when democracy is undone- by talk of rigged elections and and jailed opponents. The USA may not have the rest of the world rallying around them. And that is a problem for me- because, as I said before in my reviews- I live next door-and the USA was where I was born and where I grew up- it is where half my family still lives- and I care what happens there and to the people who want what is best for the country- not the ones that want to blow it all to hell and start over again.

A lot of Canadians are taking to Twitter and making sweet videos on YouTube, gently trying to urge US voters to make the right decision, not just for the sake of themselves- but for the world as a whole. The only sane informed decision. That is lovely and all- and I am proud of them being able to be that adult about it...but that is so not me anymore.

I'm sure it is easy to live in your weird alternate universe full of lies- if your "news" diet consists of Fox unbalanced and unfair "news", Breitbart conspiracytheory.com, The Oh soooo Drudgey Report, and Lunatic Alex Jones...but if you live in the real world like a lot of us do- it is a tad jarring to see potential voters who are basing their views on the word of Trump and his deplorable talking heads.

In THE TRUTH ABOUT TRUMP- Michael D'Antonio goes back and looks at Trump right from the very beginning to see if somehow he can explain his behavior- to see what made Trump..Trump...and to me- there are no excuses...and D'Antonio, while critical- is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too nice and way more fair than I would have been.

I am going to use Trump's own words back at him- because the not-so-funny thing is, any words Trump throws at people can be used to describe him x 20. Hypocrite, liar, crooked, corrupt, thief, racist, ugly, loud talker, dead-beat, small, over-rated.....LOSER.

If you can squeeze in one more read before elections- this should be one of them- The other (so you can stop believing all the crap you read about Hillary and have a more informed opinion about her) you can also add- A Woman in Charge The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton by Carl Bernstein.

Orrrrr if you want to keep living in your alternate universe bubble. Good luck to you...and have a nice day.



*Hopefully after the election I will get some of my humor back...

[Scott Rhee · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10/2024 addendum: Originally published as "Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success", Michael D'Antonio's "The Truth About Trump" is still one of the better in-depth Trump biographies. This is a pretty damn long review, but I felt that there was a lot that needed to be said. Granted, D'Antonio said it much more eloquently than I could...

Donald Trump supporters love the idea that they support Trump because he “says things that most people are afraid to say”, which, on the face of it, sounds great as a testament to his blunt, brutally honest lack of political correctness but, in reality, tends to point out the fact that, if true, then “most people” are walking around with extremely racist, misogynistic, and xenophobic thoughts that they know are unhealthy or wrong, otherwise they wouldn’t be afraid to voice them. This is NOT something for which Trump should be commended.

Actually, there is very little for which Trump should be commended, as he stands among a very small but powerful group known as “celebutards” (a term that my cousin probably didn’t invent but I’m going to give her the credit anyway) that includes the Kardashians, the Desperate Housewives (all of them), anyone who has starred on “The Bachelor” or “The Bachelorette”, those guys on “Duck Dynasty”, and Ryan Seacrest. These are basically people with no innate talent or any real reason to live but have somehow managed to gain fame and fortune way beyond their just deserts.

Journalist and author Michael D’Antonio had the privilege (a term used loosely here) to interview Trump for a book about him. He managed to rope about ten good interviews before Trump, in (as D’Antonio called it) “mean girl style”, stopped the interviews and threatened to sue him for libel. For a book he hadn’t written yet.

This is, according to D’Antonio, pretty normal behavior for Trump.

Originally titled “Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success” and published last year, “The Truth About Trump” is less of a biography than it is a case study of an incredibly dangerous---albeit somewhat charming---asshole.

D’Antonio, who has won a Pulitzer Prize for journalism and has published 16 books, has too much class to call Trump an “asshole”. He’s actually pretty nice to the guy, actually going so far as to call Trump a real estate developer, as if that’s actually what Trump does. To be fair, even D’Antonio hints, more than a few times, that Trump’s real (and only) talent is shameless self-promotion.

He gets it naturally, apparently, being the son of Fred Trump, a man who was notorious for extremely unethical business practices that made him a shitload of money and screwed over a lot of people, all carefully calculated within the bounds of legality.

Trump is, according to D’Antonio, a product of the wealthy Baby Boom generation who grew up not really wanting for anything. Tough, individualistic, and arrogant, Trump was born to be Trump.

He managed to come into his own during a very volatile time in American history: Vietnam, the Civil Rights movement, feminism, Watergate. He grew up watching the “Leave it to Beaver” innocence of the 1950s devolve into a mistrustful and conspiracy-rich world that was the late-‘60s and early-‘70s.

It was a transition period in which “[f]ully 70 percent of those polled in the early 1960s said they had faith in their political leaders. By the early 1980s only 25 percent expressed the same sentiment. (p. 125)”

Trump took advantage of the tumultuous zeitgeist. For him, it was a new golden era of always striking while the iron is hot: “Although many felt unmoored by the events of the seventies, young Donald Trump would consider Watergate and the lies told to justify the Vietnam War evidence of the world as it was---dangerous, corrupt, and full of intrigue. An intensely competitive young man who believed he was superior to others, Trump accepted that people would seek advantages wherever they could find them. (p.125)”

Trump took the words of fictional character Gordon Gekko (Wall Street, 1987)---”Greed, for lack of a better word, is good”---to heart. Greed was good to Trump. Greed was his mantra. Greed was his philosophy.

It helped that one of Trump’s primary personality traits---narcissism---helped in alleviating any crises of conscience he might have experienced in his numerous business deals. Guilt was not something Trump has ever succumbed to. Guilt is a sign of weakness.

The 1980s was a weird time of corporate and social corruption. Morality was constantly shifting, especially in the ever-growing wealthy class. It was a time of rampant self-making, and Trump was the epitome of “self-made”.

D’Antonio writes, “The notion that one could and should construct a self and then draw attention to it was hardly limited to the rich and famous. As the writer Tom Wolfe had made clear in a seminal New York magazine essay titled “The Me Decade”, Americans were generally enthralled by the prospect of “changing one’s personality--remaking, remodeling, elevating, and polishing one’s very self... and observing, studying, and doting on it. (Me!)” People from all walks of life were committing themselves to the kind of self-interest that permitted men to “shuck overripe wives and take on fresh ones” and encouraged women to resolve their unhappiness in affairs and threesomes. A key element in this, Wolfe noted, was to get others to pay attention to you as you accomplished your self-conscious transformation. (p. 148)”

Trump is very good at getting people to pay attention to him. There is a charisma there, undeniably. And when Trump realized that people were paying attention, he used it to his advantage. Fortunately for Trump, the Me Decade was also overlapping with the Entertain Me Decade, a time when everything from television news to public education was adopting the premise that people will only listen to you if you have something interesting or entertaining to say.

“Although Tom Wolfe wondered if the Me Decade represented a kind of spiritual crisis,” writes D’Antonio, “historian Christopher Lasch saw it as the mass psychological response of a society dominated by huge bureaucracies, saturated in images---advertising, TV programs, films---and subject to countless pseudo-events that were managed like theater productions. In his 1979 book, “The Culture of Narcissism”, Lasch described an America in which people accepted that one’s image, whether it was transmitted on television or in a family photo album, was a vital source of identity and power. (p. 149)”

Spots on the popular TV show “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”, interviews with Barbara Walters, cameos on "Saturday Night Live"---all of these pseudo-events were more than just good-natured “funnin’” with celebs; they were platforms to unveil Trump’s worldview. This was all part of the Trump Show, and the world was his audience: “Publicity came so naturally to Donald Trump, who grew up watching his father accept plaques and present bathing beauties to the eager press, that he was able to grab more than his almost without trying. (p.151)”

When his marriage to Ivana failed, Trump wasn’t broken up about it. Or, if he was, he wasn’t about to show anybody that side of him. He already had a new and improved model waiting in the wings for him in Marla Maples.

The fact that Ivana and Marla were real women, with real feelings, seemed to elude the general public and, for that matter, Trump himself. If Trump didn’t view his women as nothing more than trophies, it certainly didn’t seem that way to the rest of the world.

The short-lived marriage to Maples was, for Trump, primarily a PR tool: divorce and adultery was a downer, but a new marriage was always exciting press. As Maples quickly learned, however, life with Trump was, as D’Antonio described it, a “concoction of crass and class (p.287)”.

Eventually, of course, Trump dumped Maples for an even younger model, Melania. This history of discarding wives and working on the next, in many ways, paralleled the way he ran his business. Project followed project at a machine gun pace. Some panned out, some didn’t. Trump didn’t seem to be interested in creating anything of lasting value. He just wanted big, gaudy buildings with his name on them.

One architect dubbed Trump’s collection of Manhattan buildings a “trail of tears”. “Trumpification” was a word, according to writer Elizabeth Kolbert, that in architectural circles came to mean “big, shiny and self-absorbed.”

Architecture critic Carter Wiseman said, of Trump’s buildings: “I can’t think of anything that he’s done that has any lasting urban or esthetic value,” (p.304)”

Narcissism alone, however, couldn’t sustain Trump’s celebrityhood. While he sounds like an 8-year-old schoolyard bully when he talks, hidden behind that orange face and those Jim Traficant hair plugs (he insists it’s his real hair) is an intelligence that is as difficult to believe as it is to ignore. That, and an overabundance of self-confidence.

“Trump was willing to say and do almost anything to satisfy his craving for attention. But he also possessed a sixth sense that kept him from going too far. (p.331)”

Perhaps this is why so many critics and fans alike didn’t take him too seriously when he announced his bid for nomination for Republican presidential candidate in early 2016. It didn’t make sense, really. Why would a guy who seemingly had everything want the presidency?

Perhaps it’s because he didn’t have the presidency.

It’s not a punchline, and Trump has proven that he’s no joke.

Even his failures---Trump University, Trump steaks, birtherism, just to name a few---are still being talked about. Not necessarily in good ways. (Okay, maybe his steaks aren’t being talked about.)

Oh, yeah, that birtherism thing: Trump loves taking credit for it, but, for the record, it was actually the brain-child of a lawyer/asshole named Andrew Martin in 2004. He admitted to making it up, by the way. Yeah, that thing that nearly 30% of really stupid Americans actually believe is true, twelve years after he started the rumor. It's bullshit. But Trump has yet to apologize for it, or even acknowledge that it's bullshit.

That’s so Trump, though, according to D’Antonio. Here’s a guy who will never admit to doing or saying anything wrong, because to do so would be a sign of weakness. It also helps to explain Trump’s complete inability to talk about his past or reflect deeply on anything.

It also may help explain some of his followers. They are basically the same as Trump, and Trump knows it: “What Trump understands is that anyone he might offend by, say, calling Obama “Psycho!” rejected him long ago, and those who like him draw nearer when he does this sort of thing. In a nation of 300 million people, a following as small as 20 percent is such an enormous market that he doesn’t need anyone else. (p.436)”

D’Antonio’s examination of Trump and the world in which he inhabits is damning, indeed, but it’s not necessarily JUST a condemnation of Trump. It’s also an indictment of society itself: “But it is not Trump’s outrageousness that makes him worthy of interest. More important is that he has succeeded, like no one else, in converting celebrity into profit. (No matter how many billions he has, we are still talking about billions.) Somehow he has done this even as a substantial proportion of the population, arguably more than 50 percent, consider him a buffoon if not a menace. What does it say about Trump that he is so undeniably successful by the two measures that matter the most to him---money and fame? And what, pray tell, does it say about us? (p. 423)”

[Daniel Threlfall · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this book with a very low opinion of Donald Trump. Having read the book, I have an even lower opinion of Donald Trump.

D'Antonio chronicles Trump's scandal-ridden rise to prominence, detailing his nefarious dealings and narcissistic lifestyle. Never Enough is more of an exposé than anything else, though the author seems to attempt neutrality.

One thing I appreciated about the book was how D'Antonio not only discusses Trump's life, but also interacts with broader cultural thinkers and trends. He explains many of the cultural tectonic shifts that impacted Trump and his pursuit of success.

[Denise Spicer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overly lengthy and frankly somewhat tedious book lays out the author’s view of the life of businessman and now, presidential candidate, Donald Trump. Way too much info on other people, especially business or other acquaintances/associates of Trump and way too much background detail.

[Scott Rhee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Donald Trump supporters love the idea that they support Trump because he “says things that most people are afraid to say”, which, on the face of it, sounds great as a testament to his blunt, brutally honest lack of political correctness but, in reality, tends to point out the fact that, if true, then “most people” are walking around with extremely racist, misogynistic, and xenophobic thoughts that they know are unhealthy or wrong, otherwise they wouldn’t be afraid to voice them. This is NOT something for which Trump should be commended.

Actually, there is very little for which Trump should be commended, as he stands among a very small but powerful group known as “celebutards” (a term that my cousin probably didn’t invent but I’m going to give her the credit anyway) that includes the Kardashians, the Desperate Housewives (all of them), anyone who has starred on “The Bachelor” or “The Bachelorette”, those guys on “Duck Dynasty”, and Ryan Seacrest. These are basically people with no innate talent or any real reason to live but have somehow managed to gain fame and fortune way beyond their just deserts.

Journalist and author Michael D’Antonio had the privilege (a term used loosely here) to interview Trump for a book about him. He managed to rope about ten good interviews before Trump, in (as D’Antonio called it) “mean girl style”, stopped the interviews and threatened to sue him for libel. For a book he hadn’t written yet.

This is, according to D’Antonio, pretty normal behavior for Trump.

Originally titled “Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success” and published last year, “The Truth About Trump” is less of a biography than it is a case study of an incredibly dangerous---albeit somewhat charming---asshole.

D’Antonio, who has won a Pulitzer Prize for journalism and has published 16 books, has too much class to call Trump an “asshole”. He’s actually pretty nice to the guy, actually going so far as to call Trump a real estate developer, as if that’s actually what Trump does. To be fair, even D’Antonio hints, more than a few times, that Trump’s real (and only) talent is shameless self-promotion.

He gets it naturally, apparently, being the son of Fred Trump, a man who was notorious for extremely unethical business practices that made him a shitload of money and screwed over a lot of people, all carefully calculated within the bounds of legality.

Trump is, according to D’Antonio, a product of the wealthy Baby Boom generation who grew up not really wanting for anything. Tough, individualistic, and arrogant, Trump was born to be Trump.

He managed to come into his own during a very volatile time in American history: Vietnam, the Civil Rights movement, feminism, Watergate. He grew up watching the “Leave it to Beaver” innocence of the 1950s devolve into a mistrustful and conspiracy-rich world that was the late-‘60s and early-‘70s.

It was a transition period in which “[f]ully 70 percent of those polled in the early 1960s said they had faith in their political leaders. By the early 1980s only 25 percent expressed the same sentiment. (p. 125)”

Trump took advantage of the tumultuous zeitgeist. For him, it was a new golden era of always striking while the iron is hot: “Although many felt unmoored by the events of the seventies, young Donald Trump would consider Watergate and the lies told to justify the Vietnam War evidence of the world as it was---dangerous, corrupt, and full of intrigue. An intensely competitive young man who believed he was superior to others, Trump accepted that people would seek advantages wherever they could find them. (p.125)”

Trump took the words of fictional character Gordon Gekko (Wall Street, 1987)---”Greed, for lack of a better word, is good”---to heart. Greed was good to Trump. Greed was his mantra. Greed was his philosophy.

It helped that one of Trump’s primary personality traits---narcissism---helped in alleviating any crises of conscience he might have experienced in his numerous business deals. Guilt was not something Trump has ever succumbed to. Guilt is a sign of weakness.

The 1980s was a weird time of corporate and social corruption. Morality was constantly shifting, especially in the ever-growing wealthy class. It was a time of rampant self-making, and Trump was the epitome of “self-made”.

D’Antonio writes, “The notion that one could and should construct a self and then draw attention to it was hardly limited to the rich and famous. As the writer Tom Wolfe had made clear in a seminal New York magazine essay titled “The Me Decade”, Americans were generally enthralled by the prospect of “changing one’s personality--remaking, remodeling, elevating, and polishing one’s very self... and observing, studying, and doting on it. (Me!)” People from all walks of life were committing themselves to the kind of self-interest that permitted men to “shuck overripe wives and take on fresh ones” and encouraged women to resolve their unhappiness in affairs and threesomes. A key element in this, Wolfe noted, was to get others to pay attention to you as you accomplished your self-conscious transformation. (p. 148)”

Trump is very good at getting people to pay attention to him. There is a charisma there, undeniably. And when Trump realized that people were paying attention, he used it to his advantage. Fortunately for Trump, the Me Decade was also overlapping with the Entertain Me Decade, a time when everything from television news to public education was adopting the premise that people will only listen to you if you have something interesting or entertaining to say.

“Although Tom Wolfe wondered if the Me Decade represented a kind of spiritual crisis,” writes D’Antonio, “historian Christopher Lasch saw it as the mass psychological response of a society dominated by huge bureaucracies, saturated in images---advertising, TV programs, films---and subject to countless pseudo-events that were managed like theater productions. In his 1979 book, “The Culture of Narcissism”, Lasch described an America in which people accepted that one’s image, whether it was transmitted on television or in a family photo album, was a vital source of identity and power. (p. 149)”

Spots on the popular TV show “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”, interviews with Barbara Walters, cameos on "Saturday Night Live"---all of these pseudo-events were more than just good-natured “funnin’” with celebs; they were platforms to unveil Trump’s worldview. This was all part of the Trump Show, and the world was his audience: “Publicity came so naturally to Donald Trump, who grew up watching his father accept plaques and present bathing beauties to the eager press, that he was able to grab more than his almost without trying. (p.151)”

When his marriage to Ivana failed, Trump wasn’t broken up about it. Or, if he was, he wasn’t about to show anybody that side of him. He already had a new and improved model waiting in the wings for him in Marla Maples.

The fact that Ivana and Marla were real women, with real feelings, seemed to elude the general public and, for that matter, Trump himself. If Trump didn’t view his women as nothing more than trophies, it certainly didn’t seem that way to the rest of the world.

The short-lived marriage to Maples was, for Trump, primarily a PR tool: divorce and adultery was a downer, but a new marriage was always exciting press. As Maples quickly learned, however, life with Trump was, as D’Antonio described it, a “concoction of crass and class (p.287)”.

Eventually, of course, Trump dumped Maples for an even younger model, Melania. This history of discarding wives and working on the next, in many ways, paralleled the way he ran his business. Project followed project at a machine gun pace. Some panned out, some didn’t. Trump didn’t seem to be interested in creating anything of lasting value. He just wanted big, gaudy buildings with his name on them.

One architect dubbed Trump’s collection of Manhattan buildings a “trail of tears”. “Trumpification” was a word, according to writer Elizabeth Kolbert, that in architectural circles came to mean “big, shiny and self-absorbed.”

Architecture critic Carter Wiseman said, of Trump’s buildings: “I can’t think of anything that he’s done that has any lasting urban or esthetic value,” (p.304)”

Narcissism alone, however, couldn’t sustain Trump’s celebrityhood. While he sounds like an 8-year-old schoolyard bully when he talks, hidden behind that orange face and those Jim Traficant hair plugs (he insists it’s his real hair) is an intelligence that is as difficult to believe as it is to ignore. That, and an overabundance of self-confidence.

“Trump was willing to say and do almost anything to satisfy his craving for attention. But he also possessed a sixth sense that kept him from going too far. (p.331)”

Perhaps this is why so many critics and fans alike didn’t take him too seriously when he announced his bid for nomination for Republican presidential candidate in early 2016. It didn’t make sense, really. Why would a guy who seemingly had everything want the presidency?

Perhaps it’s because he didn’t have the presidency.

It’s not a punchline, and Trump has proven that he’s no joke.

Even his failures---Trump University, Trump steaks, birtherism, just to name a few---are still being talked about. Not necessarily in good ways. (Okay, maybe his steaks aren’t being talked about.)

Oh, yeah, that birtherism thing: Trump loves taking credit for it, but, for the record, it was actually the brain-child of a lawyer/asshole named Andrew Martin in 2004. He admitted to making it up, by the way. Yeah, that thing that nearly 30% of really stupid Americans actually believe is true, twelve years after he started the rumor. It's bullshit. But Trump has yet to apologize for it, or even acknowledge that it's bullshit.

That’s so Trump, though, according to D’Antonio. Here’s a guy who will never admit to doing or saying anything wrong, because to do so would be a sign of weakness. It also helps to explain Trump’s complete inability to talk about his past or reflect deeply on anything.

It also may help explain some of his followers. They are basically the same as Trump, and Trump knows it: “What Trump understands is that anyone he might offend by, say, calling Obama “Psycho!” rejected him long ago, and those who like him draw nearer when he does this sort of thing. In a nation of 300 million people, a following as small as 20 percent is such an enormous market that he doesn’t need anyone else. (p.436)”

D’Antonio’s examination of Trump and the world in which he inhabits is damning, indeed, but it’s not necessarily JUST a condemnation of Trump. It’s also an indictment of society itself: “But it is not Trump’s outrageousness that makes him worthy of interest. More important is that he has succeeded, like no one else, in converting celebrity into profit. (No matter how many billions he has, we are still talking about billions.) Somehow he has done this even as a substantial proportion of the population, arguably more than 50 percent, consider him a buffoon if not a menace. What does it say about Trump that he is so undeniably successful by the two measures that matter the most to him---money and fame? And what, pray tell, does it say about us? (p. 423)”

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book covers the public life of Donald Trump. It assembles prior media coverage and provides some commentary and context.

You see how business was in the blood of his grandfather (ran “hotels” for gold rushers) and his father (who built the family fortune). You see Trump Sr.’s faith in his second son and his mentorship.

There is focus on selected projects such as the Commodore Hotel (his first), Trump Tower, and the Atlantic City casinos, and selected feuds such as those with Rosie O’Donnell, Mayor Koch, the Helmsleys, Timothy O’Brian, (the author of “Trump Nation” which challenges Trumps claims about his wealth), the people of Aberdeen and many others whom he calls, losers, liars and scumbags.

Typical of the coverage is the narrative on the “Apprentice”. There are pages on the history of reality TV and how it fits into popular culture. There is some biographic info on Mark Burdett, the program’s originator. Much of the text was questionably germane and a lot of it is probably known by many readers.

Here are some take-aways:
-Donald Trump is very much his father’s son.
-The Trumps made a lot of money off the US, NY & NYC taxpayer,
-Donald had a medical deferment before he got the low draft number he claims that kept him from the Vietnam War.
-Ray Cohn was his lawyer until Cohn’s illness and death
-Ivana is probably not an Olympic skier – She may be Czech or Austrian? Her mother didn’t attend her wedding, but her father did.
-Trump’s casinos never made money, but Merv Griffin’s did.

I’m guessing that the writers (there are at least two) used the info they had at hand making it a book on the public life of Donald Trump with little on his personal life. This means that there is more on Donald’s mother’s home town on Scotland than there is on her and transitions are filler with stories such as Martha Stewart’s insider training and the philosophy of Norman Vincent Peale.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Obvious that the author did his best to present an objective, evenhanded portrait of the subject. However, Trump's paranoia and narcissism trump all. Having been raised in the New York area when he was in his heyday, I was quite familiar with him as a public figure over a generation ago, but wanted to fill in some background as well. Two of the segments that affected me most were Marla Maples admitting how naïve she was in thinking that Donald might pull himself away from the news for more than an hour at a time, in search of mention of himself, to pay attention to her or his children, as well as the last chapter showing how Trump terrorized some residents at the Scottish seaside when he wanted their land to build a YUGE golf complex.

To those who are astounded by his outbursts now, he's always been this way. Unfortunately for his fans, even if he agreed to work with a battery of top-notch mental health professionals on a full-time basis, it would take a lot longer than 90 days to even begin to see some results.

[Steven Z. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This morning I spent an inordinate amount of time reading the MUELLER REPORT. It is not my purpose to recount what was divulged, but what concerns me most is the dysfunction that exists at the pinnacle of our government. What does it say about us as a people, and what does it say about the man who is responsible for trying to block American citizens from learning about Russian penetration of our elections, his refusal to even accept that it occurred, and the fact that his administration refuses to take any action to secure our elections for the future. Denial is one thing, but outright deception and overt lying is another. So, one must ask what type of individual would use the American electoral process as a “branding opportunity,” and upon learning of the appointment of the Special Counsel from then Attorney-General Jeff Sessions responds that “Oh my god, this is terrible. This is the end of my presidency. I’m fucked.”* The answers to these questions are provided in Michael D’Antonio’s book, THE TRUTH ABOUT TRUMP.

To D’Antonio’s credit his narrative is based on thorough research and he even had access to Donald Trump until he started interviewing people who were critical of him. He has written an entertaining and fair biography and has created the foundation for several books that have followed his publication which repeatedly cite his work. Whether you have read TRUMP REVEALED by Michael Kranish and Marc Fisher, THE MAKING OF DONALD TRUMP by David Cay Johnston, or TRUMP NATION: THE ART OF BEING THE DONALD, by Timothy L. O’Brien they all tell similar stories and anecdotes and all seem to agree on their characterization of Trump’s early life, career, business practices and philosophy, personal life including his marriages and affairs. However, what sets D’Antonio’s book apart is the detail provided and his ability to integrate the political and economic history of New York City and its unique personalities like Mayors Ed Koch, Abe Beame, and John Lindsay as well as Trump’s mentor Roy Cohn among many other fascinating characters throughout his narrative. In addition, the author places the Trump family and wealth in the context of American history, going as far as comparing the post 1980s to the Gilded Age of the 19th century as he discusses Trump’s life in the context of broader social, psychological and technological trends throughout the 20th century.

As part of his discussion of New York’s economic crisis of the post 1960 period, D’Antonio describes the urban decay and blight that began to affect Brooklyn, the home base of Trump’s father’s wealth and operations. Trump was very perceptive as he witnessed white flight to the suburbs, civil rights violence, and the poverty endemic to New York’s economic collapse. Trump realized that this situation depressed real estate values and that a move to Manhattan could be very profitable. Trump would be at the forefront of trying to displace the poor and middle class in Manhattan who lived in rent-controlled apartments as he sought to turn buildings into expensive condominiums which he will accomplish over a period of years greatly enhancing his wealth into the 1980s.

If there is a failing in D’Antonio’s approach is that in addition to the amount of detail pertaining to Trump’s lifestyle and accumulation of wealth are his constant tangents. The author will be describing any one of many complications associated with Trump’s business dealings and other affairs and then will turn to a full accounting of the lives of other individuals’ attendant to the original discussion I.e., Liz Smith, the gossip columnist, Ed Koch’s biography, or discussing what made a man sexy in the 1980s according to Playgirl magazine or any number of other seemingly irrelevant digressions.

One of the more interesting aspects of D’Antonio’s methodology is his dissection of Trump’s financial dealings, the creation of his fortune, his dance with insolvency and bankruptcy, and his economic recovery. D’Antonio delves into various financial transactions dating back to Fred Trump and how he took advantage of Lehrenkrouss and Company, a Brooklyn Mortgage Company in the 1930s; Donald Trump’s manipulation of New York bankers, politicians, and others to acquire various properties including the Commodore and Plaza Hotels; how Trump was able to wedge himself into the casino industry in Atlantic City and the fallout from those transactions; and his success in branding so many buildings with his name. Other interesting chapters deal with Trump’s battle with author Tim O’Brien over his book TRUMPNATION that argued that “the Donald’s” wealth was far below what Trump stated. What follows is a detailed description of the legal battle that ensued. In similar fashion D’Antonio relates the battle over Trump University that would lead to a financial settlement for many of the students that were fleeced.

D’Antonio describes Trump’s early years, most importantly the impact his father had upon him and how he wanted to mirror Fred’s business tactics. Another important component of Trump’s upbringing was his experience at the New York Military Academy, where under the auspices of Major Theodore Dobias cadets were instilled with a feeling of confidence that would propel them through life with a sense that they deserved great success because the academy made them better than everyone else. Trump took his father’s lessons and his experiences under Dobias to heart to create the foundation of the narcissistic personality that would dominate his adulthood that emphasized winning at all costs and avenging those who were critical of him. Further lessons were learned from Roy Cohn, Trump’s lawyer for many years who believed in stalling, duplicity, threats, law suits, and never admitting that you made an error. In dealing with the origin of and later manifestation of Trump’s need to be the best at everything, no matter how insignificant, D’Antonio is correct in arguing that it is not important that Trump lies per say, but he actually believes the lies that he tells and then acts upon them – the mark of a truly disturbed personality.

What is clear from D’Antonio’s biography and numerous other books pertaining to Trump’s journey in life is that he spent a lifetime constructing his personal image. When that façade is threatened by a negative comment or something or someone, he perceives to be untoward he goes ballistic and seeks revenge employing the “Roy Cohn/Roger Stone” strategy. What is interesting today as Trump fumes and derides people who worked in his administration who testified for the Special Counsel, the White House is filled with fear from presidential retribution. If one compares his behavior today with the collapse of his casino empire and fear of bankruptcy in the early 1990s it is the same, even to the point of blaming his financial debacle on three of his executives who were killed in a helicopter crash who had helped administer the Atlantic City hotels and casinos.

Trump is the master of self-promotion and much of his wealth is tied to his brand not his ability to make “deals.” Trump figured out that fortune and fame go together, and superficiality is more important than substance, the result is that he is the epitome of both concepts. As other authors have also argued D’Antonio is clear that Trump is a classic case of narcissism. Narcissists enjoy conflict and will exaggerate or obfuscate to gain the upper hand, a strategy that Trump has pursued in political, business, and personal conflicts that he has either caused or exacerbated when the opportunity presented itself as he views publicity whether good or bad, as good.

No one should be surprised at the type of President Trump is, the signs were clear long before he ran for the White House and we are now experiencing the fallout from the admonitions of authors, reporters, and Trump associates about before the 2016 election. Perhaps D’Antonio is correct as he portrays Trump in the context of what Christopher Lasch developed in his 1979 book, THE CULTURE OF NARCISSISM: AMERICAN LIFE IN AN AGE OF DIMINISHING EXPECTATIONS – “Trump represented….the pathology of our age.” Our society, in part may be responsible for the creation of a Trumpian character as it evolved over the decades, now we reap its benefits!

[Charlie Haviland · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took heat for reading this book as if I liked the guy. To be sure, I read biographies of those I admire – Mickey Mantle and Daniel Moynihan. I picked up this copy of Trump's biography for two reasons: Trump was peeking in popularity and I wanted to know the man behind the bluster, and two – it was written by a bona fide journalist.

I grew up in New York City and became aware of the man Donald Trump in the 70s. This good biography held my interest, in part, because I recognized the players.

If you love Donald Trump you won't get through this biography. The chronicler is fair and this work may be the best on this subject to date

[Gail · Rating 1 out of 5]

I knew going into reading this book that I would have a very low opinion of Donald Trump. Having read this book, my opinion is even lower of Donald Trump. The reason why people are listening to him is because they are so frustrated with the government. But just because we are so frustrated with the government Donald Trump, is not the answer.

[Alex Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course most people who would read this book would want to judge Donald Trump. I don't really see the point of this, except maybe in that it would make some people feel better about themselves.

D'Antonio presents a sometimes ironic picture, sometimes speaking in unadorned language about the difference between presentation and intention. He paints Trump has someone who grew up in the right moment to take advantage of the upswing and downswing in real estate; someone who is afraid to examine himself; someone who uses others for the purpose of making money. In a way Trump becomes a stand-in for the values of our current society. He rides on a crest of media frenzy because he covets the attention and the validation. Trump is completely thoughtless in that the people who are "good" are people who support him and do what he wants. People who are "bad" are people who oppose him. Essentially Trump is acritical because he's never had to look back. He doesn't care for truth because he can get around it. Truth hasn't bothered him. He was handed much to start with, and he's made the most he can of what he has gotten. He believes in the values of today because by following those values and pushing them forward he's been vastly rewarded. Essentially people dislike Trump because they dislike the values of todays society, a society who would reward someone as thoughtless as Trump. But rather than blaming the abstract whole of society, people would rather attack someone who embodies them, as though that would change anything! It won't.

In a way, especially with the current election swing, everything that Trump is was obvious from reading this book and seeing him on the TV. The problem is, people see what they think. If they like this society they will like Trump. If they think the values serve them, then they will see him as evidence of that serving. For such a problematic character, D'Antonio does a fairly good job at staying mostly neutral but it seems sometimes he gets a little snarky about how fake everything is. It's hard not to, because what is fake is seen as bad because we want the actual value to be actual rather than the appearance of its actuality as an excuse for it to be valuable.

[Kim Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Believe it folks, this guy is as big of a jerk as you think he is! He's a con man and a narcissist, bilking fellow investors, contractors and small business owners out of millions of dollars, all the while making sure that "TRUMP" was in the brightest shade of gold. He will cause unbelievable damage to this country.

[Justin Tapp · Rating 4 out of 5]

"For the most part you can't respect people because most people are not worthy of respect" - Donald J. Trump (from the author's interviews with Trump in the book's postscript).

That quote alone sums up why I can neither vote for Trump nor understand why others are so enthusiastic about him. The title of the book sums it up well. Trump gets bored with his buildings, his toys, and his wives, and moves on to more. If he sells at a loss in moving on, so be it. He takes risks by taking on massive loans from multiple banks, leaning on politicians to give his properties favor, and cajoling or charming people to make the deal. D'Antonio paints him as someone who would have been comfortable among the "Gilded Age" barons of the 19th century, making names for themselves in New York City. He loves the spotlight, being called "the best," and the media seems to love giving it to him. It's about himself; he is supremely worthy of respect and no one else is worthy of praise unless they first--and consistently--praise him. Why else are his offices filled with framed pictures of every magazine cover he has ever been on? Why else does he use an election-night victory speech to hock Trump-label water, steaks, etc?

I would not have read this book if I had not felt it was imperative to understand more about who might be the next President. I call it the "Mein Kampf rule," you need to take a leader at his word and not be surprised later when his policies match up with all of his previous history and writings. Don't let the negative reviews deceive you, this book is about as even-handed a biography you will read-- it is straight-up boring in that regard. Much of it is simply culled from publicly-available information along with a few granted interviews with former Trump partners, a chauffeur, and even ex-wives. Trump gave the author a series of interviews until he discovered D'Antonio had spoken with someone who had wronged Trump back in 1993, in which case Trump ended the interviews. You have to admire D'Antonio's courage, Trump's last biographer was sued by the Donald for millions, only to have a court decide in favor of the First Amendment. Where the author presents facts that are on their face unpleasant, he tries to rationalize Trump's decisions or behaviors; bending over backward at times to be "fair." The book is depressing in that there are a lot of events from Trump's past that have been under-scrutinized by the media and Trump's political opponents. It's almost as if Americans don't bother to read about the people they're voting for...

What I did not realize before this book were the essentially faux political campaigns Donald has run since 1987. Politico didn't run with this story until February, 2016. Donald gave a well-attended Rotary Club speech then railing about how Japan was "killing us" in trade, and "laughing at us" in foreign policy the identical soundbyte he uses today. He spoke about we needed a strong leader in the White House to stand up to the Ayatollah in Iran, someone who really knew how to negotiate. (And this is when St. Ronald Reagan was at his nadir.) “If the right man doesn’t get into office you’re going to see a catastrophe in this country in the next four years like you’re never going to believe. And then you’ll be begging for the right man.” He took out a full-page ad in several newspapers arguing that other countries should pay for the protection and benefits we offer as allies, similar to his argument about the Mexican wall. All of this was part of a larger promotional campaign for his new book-- The Art of the Deal.

Trump actually did run briefly as a candidate in 1999 when he and others joined the Reform Party; Trump said Oprah Winfrey would be an ideal running mate and probably set forth more substantive policy ideas than he has thus far in his 2015-2016 run. Wealth tax on the rich, gays in the military, and other un-conservative ideas. Trump gave a speech in St. Louis probably almost as well-attended as his rally there in 2016, but it was part of a speaking tour of motivational speakers like Tony Robbins. Same stump speech, same script about weakness in foreign policy and trade. Al Gore allegedly asked for his endorsement later. Like 1987, 1999 was another way to promote a book-- The America We Deserve. D'Antonio has made that chapter available online here, I recommend reading so you can see how little has changed in 16 years: (It also contains the only explicit error I noticed in the book, that Dick Vermiel was coach of the St. Louis Cardinals rather than the Rams.)

This book is lengthier than you might expect because the author has written it for audiences 30 years from now as well as today. He explains what reality television is, the history of real estate and fiscal crises in New York City in the 1960s and 1970s, what Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous was, etc. in order to provide context for Trump's decisions and fame. The conclusion I think D'Antonio wants you to draw is that Trump is simply a product of his time. Here's a summary:

Donald J. Trump is the grandson of German immigrants. His grandfather, Friederick Trumpf, initially joined the gold rush and dabbled in real estate speculation and opened a restaurant/brothel before returning to Germany and being expelled for tax and military service evasion. Back in New York, he began the family's interest in real estate. Donald's father, Fred, became a real estate magnate in Brooklyn and Queens; one of Donald's first jobs was to collect rent in his father's apartment blocks in Brooklyn. D'Antonio implies that the elder Trump was also a product of the Dale Carnegie 1920's era of salesmanship, traits that his children would later develop in their own generation. Fred Trump's big break came in entering a partnership with another magnate which positioned him to learn which tenants were delinquent and likely to be foreclosed on; this allowed him to buy up those properties cheaply and start his own empire. Complaints abounded about many landlords of the period, and Fred was no exception. What I did not realize was that Trump testified before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee in 1954 investigating how builders were enriching themselves off of FHA loans. President Eisenhower expressed his disgust at Trump and his ilk; the trial got less attention than it might have due to the McCarthy anti-Communist hearings happening at the same time. Trump was later sued by his tenants for his practices. Eventually, President Nixon's Justice Department sued Trump over racial discrimination in its renting policies. Trump consented to advertise vacancies in minority publications, and be more transparent about his practices. It was around this time that Donald J. came on board the family business.

Another striking quote from Donald is that when he looks in the mirror he is the same person he was in first grade. He means it as a form of authenticity, but it strikes me as a lack of personal development. He was sent to military school by 7th grade, in which tough love from drill instructors was combined with boys running amok with hazing and mob rule. Donald apparently experienced success in athletics, often referring to his abilities later in life. Despite this athletic skill, he received a medical deferment from the draft for his heel spurs.

By 1980, Trump was seen as sort of a Gatsby character in New York magazines; he was once named a Sexiest Man Alive. He turned his father's loan and connections from his father's business, particularly lawyer Don Cohn, into his own real estate success. D'Antonio interviews Trump's former chauffer, an ex-cop who speaks glowingly of Trump's loyalty and personal kindness. "He was a nice, considerate guy." Ivana, meanwhile, is a mystery. She claims to be a Swiss olympian, but no no record of athletic exploits or even her national origins exist-- only rumors. Trump's wealth is also mystery and rumor; at any time he has leveraged so much in debt that he admits to friends that his net worth is close to zero. He rails at Forbes and others when they make similar claims.

It was in the 1980s days of Savings & Loan scandals and Wall Street excess that Trump honed his crafts-- self-promotion and negotiation. Trump negotiates by staking out an outlandish or unreasonable position and then negotiating backwards to what he really wants. The author chronicles the construction of Trump Towers and the hiring of undocumented Polish workers. The local union, paid multiples of the Poles' earnings, supervised the workers who are sometimes paid sometimes not paid sometimes paid with vodka or threatened with deportation-- there was no shortage of supply. The building Trump demolished contained an Art Deco exterior that Trump pledged to donate to a museum, but were later destroyed-- possibly by accident. Trump invented the name of a media spokesman to make official statements to the press denying fault or assigning blame. The book has to delve into the real estate and construction markets of New York to make sense; this gets boring. Contracts for things like concrete have to be run through the mafia, and Trump has to navigate city hall as well as crime syndicates to get real estate deals done.

Trump Tower housed celebrities, which put Donald Trump in their midst and he increasingly became one himself, being featured on Robin Leach's show. There is little in the book about his personal family relationships, Donald doesn't talk about much and little is known other than what his ex-wives divulge or was picked up by other writers. His brother died as an alcoholic at age 42, something that apparently affects Trump's moderation in certain vices today. His friend, lawyer, and mentor Roy Cohn, a closeted homosexual, died of AIDS not long after. Most of Trump's friends in the book are currently deceased. Marla Maples apparently still speaks well of Donald, even after admitting their relationship was an ill-fated mistake. Her years-long seduction and the divorce settlement with Ivana-- in which Donald could not afford to pay the committeed pre-nuptial, which was updated and changed over the marriage-- is chronicled in detail. The Maples affair and Donald's business troubles with airlines and casinos eventually lead to tabloids taking a less-rosy view of Trump, to which he lashes out in his second book. Trump likes celebrity, but he doesn't like to be criticized as celebrities always are; he can dish it but he can't take it.

Trump and his lawyer-mentor Roy Cohn were always actively engaged in local politics from regulations to police. One of Trump's nemeses was three-time mayor Ed Koch. Trump would get vocal and take out full-page ads, write editorials, and others in New York newspapers when he felt the need to trumpet his successes or properties and sway the public toward reform-- such as calling for New York to reinstate the death penalty. The author provides details of New York's fiscal crisis of the 1970s, the book is almost about New York's societal and financial struggles as much as it is Donald Trump's.

The author addresses the claims that Trump is a racist, dating back to his father's company's housing discrimination of the 1970s, to which he was party. D'Antonio reaches a conclusion that Trump is better attributed with "insensitivity" rather than "outright bigotry." At the height of a crime epidemic in 1989, Trump took out full-page ads calling for a reinstatement of the death penalty for a group of black teens arrested and charged with rape in Central Park. While convicted, DNA evidence later exonerated them as the real culprit confessed. The author suggests it is possible to frame this in Trump's larger statements about "roving bandits" committing crimes; it is not actually targeted at any one race but rather a class of people. While there are anedoctes from the 1970s that Trump did not want blacks living in his buildings, it is more likely that he did not want low-income people who wouldn't pay their rent. Trump has employed plenty of minorities in his businesses and counted some as friends. But Trump, and his son Donald Jr., certainly believe their success is in part due to genetics. While Trump has railed against others for winning the "lucky sperm contest," his family believes they have God-given abilities that make them superior. There is an implicit racial bias in such statements. Trump's involvement, even leadership, in the "birther" movement is chronicled. Many see race baiting in that, although it is hard to make that charge stick exactly. More damning in the eyes of many were his comments about Mexican immigrants being "rapists" and other criminals, seemingly dumped on America by the Mexico that rejected them. Like Obama's birth certificate, Trump's comments do not stand up to scrutiny of the actual evidence and statistics.

While it's chronicled that Donald is really friendly with some of his employees, sometimes doling out cash and other favors, the only moment of true compassion revealed in the book is Trump's encounter with a boy dying from cancer. The boy was granted a wish from the Make A Wish Foundation to be fired by Trump like an apprentice contestant. Trump couldn't bring himself to do it, giving the boy money instead.

The book ends with the story of Trump's attempting to use a sort of eminent domain to build a world-class golf course in Scotland, for which he pulls out all the stops cajoling government officials. Trump faces a wave of grass-roots opposition from homeowners who do not want to be bought or forcibly removed from their land to build the golf course, eventually winning the public's favor. I would like to see the documentary You've Been Trumped made during this period. It seems the Scots are the only example of long-run collective defiance to Trump's desires, perhaps the Republican establishment can learn something from their battle.

D'Antonio concludes: "Life is a never-ending competition for Trump." This appears to be true throughout his life, "loser" is his ultimate put-down and fear for himself. This is why I would bet on Trump making a third party run if denied the GOP nomination. My concern is, should he win the presidency, how will Trump handle that need for competition with Congress, the Supreme Court, and world powers? D'Antonio is purely the biographer, he offers no grandstand predictions. Four stars out of five.

[Hal · Rating 3 out of 5]

So with this book we take on "The Donald", for better or worse as the case may be. First I need to confess my bias. I am a registered Independent voter, in my early years I considered myself a Republican. On Donald Trump I am for the most part neutral and in this book was looking for something maybe to hang my hat on with him.

I first tried to get a measure of the author's bias. I thought maybe he was neutral or since Trump had agreed to interview with him maybe leaning to the pro. I learned however that there was little if anything good he had to say about him. Not bashing him with enthusiasm like so many do, but more relating the many flaws in an almost matter of fact way. And taking this on face value maybe that is all one can surface in the man, Trump.

I was left with an impression of can a guy like this with so many perceived negatives by so many seriously win the Presidency? And I have to say no. But then again this is Donald Trump and he often does win, but that is in business. Politics, though businesslike at times is, well politics.

D'Antonio gives a profile on Trump in a quick manner skipping through his formative years through his career and personal relationships. For some reason at the beginning and the end he delves into detail on a number of real estate transactions that I found rather boring reading. Yet much of what Trump is about, as even he would tell you in glowing terms of course is his gift at deal making. In large measure he has succeeded in this, but his failures, and those left in the wake of these failures are indeed notable.

I finished the book as uneasy about how I should view Mr. Trump as I started it. What I think I know as probably many feel they do about him is here we have a man so focused on his self worth and success firmly rooted in his embrace of positive thinking that nothing can possibly stop him in his quest for whatever. On this course he feels it also necessary to stake his territory bombastically by dismissing and often denigrating those who oppose him or stand in his way. For him this formula seems to work or at least he believes it does. If nothing else it gets him the attention he so seems to crave. Whether it will work on a national political scale we have yet to see.

Trump seems to feel that his mastery of getting the upper hand in any deal is sufficient to take on the enormous complexities of a treacherous world stage in which questions of security and economic gravity present themselves nonstop, day in day out. Much is staked on image and in thinking of Trump as a Presidential figure, Bill Clinton comes to mind.
In any event the book was worthwhile in trying to get a better grasp on what this man is about. The emphasis is on trying, as with Donald Trump it may be impossible to define what really drives the wheels.

[Alicia Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was published in September, 2015, as Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president of the United States. The rush to print is evident in the various typos and lack of editing. Still, the book is good enough that had an editor gone through it and fixed these few issues, I'd have no complaints.

I started reading this during the campaign, and struggled to get through it because the book's information, coupled with the daily dose of Trump in the news, depressed me. After he won, I finished this book, rather than watch protesters on television.

Donald Trump is a d-bag in a family line of d-bags. I find him dangerous not because he has racist and misogynistic ideas. As far as his actual ideas go, if one can get past his bluster to discern them, he's not racist in the sense of personally having it out for any group. He's racist in that he holds a lot of prejudicial and stereotypical views about minorities and women. He's a throwback.

I find him dangerous because his entire life has been spent getting noticed by the press. He has taken the adage "no publicity is bad publicity" to the next level. He will say and do anything to get what he wants--and what he wants is always to his benefit, mindless of everyone else. He's not a person to be concerned if his comments annoy a million people, while getting another million to buy into whatever he's selling (a million who might not otherwise pay attention).

Does Trump really care if Obama is a *secret* Muslim, or if the Clinton Foundation is shady? Does he really believe that Mexican immigrants are thieves and racists? Is he actually a strong opponent of abortion? He offers different thoughts on these things depending upon what suits his agenda at the time, so my guess is that he doesn't actually think or care about these topics much at all. But he's clever enough to know that others do care--and that by pandering to them and riling them up (or at least giving them a nod by doing nothing), he can win their support. This is what he did, and it played a role in winning him the presidency.

Donald Trump is, for the most part, a failed businessperson. By most estimates, he likely isn't even a billionaire. But the media, for Trump's entire adult life, has given him the ability to convince the public otherwise. The media brought him to power, because positive or negative, stories on Trump have always meant ratings. Trump has spent a lifetime courting media attention, while complaining that the media are full of liars.

After this book was published, Trump spent a year campaigning. The media went on a feeding frenzy, and ratings went higher and higher with each new horrible thing Trump said. Then, the media collectively appeared shocked when Trump won.

[Ingeborg Moa · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read that manages to tell the story of how Trump became Trump and shed light on who the man is and how he operates.

The first half of the book could have been entitled "The Truth about the state of the New York construction-/real estate market in the 1980's" instead of "The Truth about Trump". The author falls into the trap of wanting to use all the information he has gathered about the history of the Trump-family. Parts of the background and history is definitely necessary in order to explain why Donald Trump has become Donald Trump, but some of it could have been cut without making the book any less interesting. Half-way through the book though, it becomes more intense and focused and although there are few shocking revelations, the author's diligent research paints a clear picture of how Trump has used, and is still using, exaggeration,threats and outright lies to get where he is today.

[Elyce Feliz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well worth reading; I have not been following Donald Trump for the past 40 years, so I learned a lot, not only about him, but about the culture -

I knew nothing about what Trump did in Scotland, where he harrassed elderly Scots in order to drive them out of their homes and sometimes deprive them of their livelihoods, just so he could "win" his golf course.

[John McDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

If anything in this book is to be believed, the world has not lived with a character like Donald Trump since the Persians, Greeks and Romans began identifying gods. I suspect that, if anyone asked Trump whether his life justified being placed in a Pantheon, he would not only affirm the placement but state that he was "greater" or even "more awesome" than any one of them.

After reading "Never Enough", it is easy to understand why Donald Trump seeks out beautiful women to escort or marry. Any other type of woman would imply the type of humility that does not emphasize the photogenic and would emphasize a more discerning nature, which, however noble, could not be used by the media to promote Trump. The same should be said for the statements he makes about the enormity of his wealth; about who he numbers among his friends; about the gratuitous personal attacks he makes against those who oppose him, his ideas, or his ideals; and the toxic statement he's made repeatedly in recent days that anyone who publicly criticizes him or his political campaign ."I will come back at him 10 times worse."

Trump is on a path of destruction, and with the help of the gods, his destructive efforts will turn into self-destruction. He lies openly and shamelessly. He uses the Courts to adjust his financial health, but claims he himself has never filed a personal bankruptcy. He creates his businesses in a manner that permits self-dealing and bankruptcy if a particular business fails or is no longer useful to him. Much of what he says cannot be supported with evidence or is unable to be verified. He abuses people who are far less powerful and monied, like those who declined to sell him property in Atlantic City and Balmedie, Scotland. He sues people for defamation as a means of harassment, andtypically withdraws his suit, knowing he cannot win but that he has wreaked havoc and expense on their lives. His marriages are, foremost based upon appearances in the media, and his opinions of and treatment of women verbally is the sort of conduct any decent mother would punish her son for.

It is interesting, after reading this book, that the author was unable to find anyone who called Trump a friend. He told his deceased brother Freddy, then a pilot, what's the difference between you and driving a bus, trying to make the point that Freddy could make only a limited amount of money and would not become well known. There was no one from Wharton who spoke fondly or in any other way of the Donald (Ivana's term), nor any professor there or at Fordham where he received his bachelor's degree. At Wharton, he said, he was "at the top of his class", unproved and unprovable because he won't permit his academic record to be released, even though he has publicly demeaned Barack Obama's matriculation at both Columbia and Harvard. There was no business colleague who spoke well of him. There were no representatives of charitable organizations who identified his personal or monetary contribution. There were 2 former employees who are said to have benefited from Trump's personal kindnesses. His divorces were not dissolutions of marriage, but warfare totally focused on the amount of money he would have to pay out. His children lived with Ivana, not with him, and Marla Maples, who seemed skeptical of carrying on with Trump while he was still married, commented that he didn't seem to spend much time there.

What one gets from this book is that Donald Trump is all about Donald. He conflates his lies, bombast, and
obnoxious personal attacks with honesty, and measures his personal worth according to his net worth. He understands implicitly that, in the world we live in, the number of times you are mentioned on the tradional and social media determines your success. In fact, each day, according to this author, the first thing Trump reviews is how many times his name was mentioned in the media.

This is the meanest type of bully, the kind who has to be publicly defeated in order to be stoppe. And, to boot, he is not particularly trustworthy. Much about his supposed wealth is open to question. Although he appears to be successful, the author does not state whether or not Trump inherited significant sums from his father's estate, who reportedly died with an estate of more than $200 million. It is is know that when one of Trump's casinos wasfailing, Fred Trump purchased more than $3million in chips which he did not redeem in order to infuse cash into Trump's casino operations without having to make disclosures or sign a contract. He has NEVER PROVED his net worth, although during his Presidential campaign he has publicly stated it to be between $8 and 14 billion, estimates so wide and wild that only the truly gullible would believe it. He has used contacts in government to obtain subsidies to build his properties. And when it comes to laying out evidence to support the bombast, he fails. Even his claim that his TV show, Celebrity Apprentice, was Number 1 in the ratings, a claim easily provable, it later was pointed out that it ranked 73rd.

The art of Donald Trump's deal is to use leverage--other people's money including his father's large fortune, other people's names, other people's media--in cause of relentless self-promotion, or as the author calls it, self referential enhancement and exaggeration of what he has done in his life, how much he has earned, how important he is to the world and New York City, and any other trait that can be exploited for exaggerate his image, really his self image, about how important he is. The goal, as one of the author's chapter titles states, is to show every one "The Beauty of Me." His run for the Presidency in 2016 has been based on bombast, prejudice, and fear, and he has managed to play into that in a significant portion of the Republican Party. His one contribution is to show us that he is precisely the opposite of good management, clear thinking, deliberative conduct, and Presidential stature. He has stated that the U.S. need a "deportation force" to haul undocumented migrants back to their countries; to maintain religious registries of Muslims, irrespective of citizenship; insists that building a wall across the Southern border is his first priority, ignoring the metaphor of the despised Berlin Wall; and said that "good management" will permit all these things. He seems to be blissful in his unawareness that he seems to be promoting ideals that the Gestapo and Hitler approved earlier. Perhaps that is the model he has in mind.

From a literary point of view, the book does have faults. Too often, a point designed to highlight some aspect of Trump's life that bears upon his character digresses into an extended discussion of points peripheral to the story. I found myself skipping large numbers of pages in the first 150 pages of the book, but after that, the editing and relevance was very sharp.

I also would have like to have seen the author really explore the Trump bankrupcies in greater detail and to take a forensic approach to the origins and claims of his wealth, especially since the Donald believes that his measurement as a human being is almost entirely predicated upon whatever wealth he has. I have personally maintained that Trump's bid for the Presidency will end when Trump is forced to pony up his own money to continue the campaign. At this date (11-23-15) he has raised insignificant sums from the public, not nearly enough to run a campaign, and I doubt that a man who has used his family's name, businesses, wealth, and other people's money will ever use his own, if indeed he has it.

[Marcin Boruchowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book summarizing Donald J. Trump's life until the start of the presidential campaign in 2016.
The author describes the history of the Trump family, and then Donald's childhood and entire business life.
Undoubtedly, DJT is a unique, colorful figure in the world of not only business, but also show business and, ultimately, politics.
In my opinion, the author's lack of sympathy for the character described is noticeable.

[Jef Sneider · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think that Michael D'Antonio does a good job, presenting a balanced look at Mr. Donald J. Trump, currently President of the United States, not being afraid to outline and clarify the subject's many faults and dysfunctional personal characteristics while reviewing the success of the billionaire real estate developer and political aspirant.

I have already had pushback from friends when I mention Mr. Trump's "accomplishments." They'll tell me, "yeah, but he cheated, and lied, and he started with Daddy's money," or "yeah, but look how he abuses people and goes bankrupt and lets his supporters and investors lose money while he gets away with the profits," and, "look how he sues everyone in sight to get what he wants!" Calm down, folks. It's true, and the author makes no apologies as he carefully documents The Donald's aggressive legal tactics, his little and not so little lies about everything from his own athletic abilities too his net worth.

Michael D'Antonio has done his homework and his analysis is carefully researched and referenced and unflinching. That's what we want from a book like this. Trump even threatened to sue the publisher because of what he considered unflattering remarks in the book, but eventually withdrew the threat (Why give the author free publicity?). Isn't that a ringing endorsement?

In the end, however, one must ask how it is possible for a man such as Mr. Trump can be so successful that he can amass a billion dollars and become president of the United States. You may not like it folks, but the Truth about Trump must be considered. He is the P.T. Barnum of the 21st century, but even more successful than old P.T. How did he do it? What does it say about our country and how we do business that he has been so successful? Does it say something more basic about how the world works and kind of leader that people want? Go figure, but don't blame the messenger!

[John Allen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Donald Trump is capable of more destruction and divisiveness than any of his predecessors, even the Condoleeza Rice/Dick Cheney/George W. Bush team. This book makes it very clear that he is worse than anyone has speculated, even with his public behavior as President Elect notwithstanding. George W. Bush was aware that he couldn't go further than he had already gone. There was a comical horror to that Presidency. There is not one funny thing about Donald Trump or his cabinet.

DT has his hooks in the enraged and steadily angrier parts of American society who are willing to and do regularly employ acts of violence to maintain their status as terroristic. Once he gets his hands on something--most especially the American Presidential Cabinet--he corrupts and destroys it. He is convinced of his own nonsense. Even a thoroughly bungled and botched individual like Steve Bannon was "made nervous" by Trump.

Everything that speaks of anomie, societal alienation, everything that is sheer merciless capitalism (not liberal democracy: there isn't a bit of Donald Trump which is democratic) is embodied in this figure, and he even makes a joke out of these things because he is indifferent to human life itself. Even when he leaves office, he will do it kicking and screaming and that will mean riots and things beyond imagination. The national news is tinged with a terror which is the result of a fascist breathing down public commentator's necks.

If the incidents in this book don't convince that this guy is like sixteen champagne bottles shaken and aimed at one person's head, nothing will.

[Marcia Call · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael D'Antonio lived just down the street from my family in the small town of New Castle, NH. As is true with most people from my childhood, I had no idea that he was a Pulitzer-prize winning author until my dad gave me this book for Christmas. Recovering from surgery, I read it cover to cover. It is incredibly well-researched and the picture it paints of the times in which Trump's father, family, and he grew up in are meticulously recounted. Although I won't be voting for him, I am exceedingly glad that I read this story and understand more about this bombastic, limelight-seeking, narcissistic character. Democratic friends, you owe it to yourselves and your party to read this book. You might just learn a thing or two.

[David Chabot · Rating 3 out of 5]

Donald J. Trump, the guy that's so polarizing at the moment. I started the book with an open mind, wishing his public persona was only that, a show for the crowds. After 400 pages, it is confirmed that this guy is a total narcissic liar. Yes, he's had a lot of success (and failures) as an entrepreneur and I will always respect that. However, the person inside the shell is what people will remind about you forever. Let's say DJT won't be adulated for his grandness and amiability down the road.

The book was not really well constructed and written to be honest. Many typos and wierdly structured sentence had me wondering what was the point of the sentence at times. However, overall the book was readable.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most detailed account of trump from a birds eye view. I believe the author despite his journalistic approach was in awe of Trump. I have a better understanding in chronological order of trumps family and rise up. It was interesting to find out what a major role Fred Played in Donald's life. This book does paint trump as a villain but he's like the villain in black mass whitey bulger that you root for in the end. I would of like it to go into more specifics for as long as it was about some of the nuts and bolts of newer deals trump has put together other then the casinos failing. The more I read the more I couldn't put it down.

[B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written and researched and a frightening read. The Pulitzer Prize winning author doesn't attempt to smear or praise Trump. It's an honest portrayal of the man and the major things he has done in his life. It's not the author's fault that Trump has engaged in many unethical, unkind, and detrimental activities! The book does not answer my burning question though: Why do so many people like this horrid man?

[Nic · Rating 2 out of 5]

Goodreads win.

This was an interesting read. I have never been a big fan of biographies and this book didn't change that. It was a quick read that was written well. It seemed well researched. Something I would recommend to people wanting to know more about Trump. A decent read.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent synopsis of the narcissism, delusion and media hype that is DJT.

[Steve Meleney · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Is that all there is? ... Then let's keep dancing" - Peggy Lee

[Linda Lipko · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a well written snapshot of Donald Trump, man of the good, bad and ugly components of his troubled personality are carefully noted with a long list of sources.

The book begins with the relationship he had with his father. A wealthy man who also dabbled in real estate in New York City to make his fortune, Donald quickly learned at the feet of the master. Greatly surpassing his father in accumulated, tangible assets, Trump wheeled and manipulated, using the infamous lawyer Roy Cohen to help sue his way to the top. The art of bombastic personality and the never ending need to deflate and defame those who do not agree with him has sadly landed him a conflicted person who makes it known when he does not agree with the way he is treated, never minding the way he treats others.

I won't make this review a political statement. I read the book to learn more about Trump and how his personality developed. This was a good reference.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Het boek schetst een ontluisterend beeld van een narcistische persoonlijkheid, met een constante drang naar aandacht en bevestiging. Iemand die geen kritiek kan verdragen, en degenen vernietigt die dat wel durft te doen. De auteur stopt in 2016, wanneer Trump zich kandidaat stelt voor de presidentsverkiezingen. Uit de toon van het boek kan ik afleiden dat hij zijn kansen eerder gering ziet. Hij moest eens weten.

Dit is een een goede biografie voor degenen die tot in detail willen weten hoe bvb zijn jeugd eruitzag onder het alziend oog van zijn vader Fred. Ook zijn relatie met Ivana, Marla en Melanie komen uitgebreid aan bod (wat ikzelf dan weer minder interessant vond).