Sh*t My President Says: The Illustrated Tweets of Donald J. Trump

by Shannon Wheeler

Some people are saying, I don't know, you tell me, but a lot of people are saying this is the greatest book of the year. This guy, Shannon Wheeler, he draws these cartoons for the New Yorker, MAD, the Onion—he's very, very, good, okay? Now he's illustrated the most incredible tweets. Wow! You won't believe what he does with these tweets. I mean, these tweets changed the world, folks. It's true! It's very true. EVERYONE is going to want this book — even the haters and losers (Sad!).

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction, Politics, Comics, Graphic Novels, Ebooks, History

119 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2017

Reviews

[Greta G · Rating 2 out of 5]

Trump's tweets, appropriately illustrated with caricature drawings of Trump as a spoiled child.
Baby Trump's tantrums make perfect sense this way.
If he wasn't the President of the US, this would actually be funny. Now, it's deeply sad and worrying.

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shannon Wheeler (Too Much Coffee Man) turns his satirical pen to the tweets from @POTUS. Some will find this humorous, some will be offended - but I think it is healthy for us to try to see the 'other' point of view - and often humor is a safe place for everyone to meet.

[Lyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a Twitter account for about a year, to participate in that unique social media, and also because I had heard all this fuss about what Trump would tweet.

I thought, “Did he really say that?”

Most of the time, yes, verbatim!

The funniest for me was I woke up one night, couldn’t get back to sleep and so I looked at my phone (worst thing you can do when you cannot sleep) and I saw a Tweet from President Trump, and it said 12 minutes ago. I thought, wait, is he up tweeting???? It was just some random tweet but, yes!, in the middle of the night.

I had to get rid of that account BTW, Twitter is SO toxic. Here’s my interpretation of Twitter toxicity:

Tweet: I like red apples!

Responses: Another Granny Smith hater – BLOCKED!

I guess you’re too stupid to know to eat Gala apples.

By even saying you like “red” apples implies that you’re really racist – educate yourself before tweeting please!

Anyway – that’s why I much prefer the civil folks here on Goodreads.

So, Shannon Wheeler has here taken tweets from Trump and then illustrated some to make them more fun to look at. Here is a public figure, an elected official, who frenetically engages in social media. An intriguing social commentary.

While this is critical of the former president and serves as a pseudo-satire, many of the illustrations are very humorous, this also is a statement of our times, with a chief executive tweeting at all hours of the day and night.

Some classics are:

“Who is paying for that tedious Smokey Bear commercial that is on all the time – enough already” Jan 8, 2015 1:50 AM

“When somebody challenges you unfairly, fight back – be brutal, be tough – don’t take it. It is always important to WIN!” – Jun 27, 2015 10:50 AM

“While our wonderful president was out playing golf all day, the TSA was falling apart, just like our government! Airports a total disaster! May 21, 2016 6:56 AM

BTW – the irony of that last tweet was delicious. BUT – I’ve never understood the big deal about a president playing golf, it’s a great way to relax and you can still get some work done while you’re playing. If I were elected president, I’d play all the damn time!

“Thank you to the LGBT community! I will fight for you while Hillary brings in more people that will threaten your freedoms and beliefs” Jun 14, 2016 1:31 PM

“Mexico will pay for the wall” Sep 1, 2016 6:31 AM

“Thanks – many are saying I’m the best 140-character writer in the world. It’s easy when it’s fun”

[Taylor Kundel-Gower · Rating 4 out of 5]

With each new page, I could hardly decided whether to laugh, cry, or bash the book repeatedly against my own head.

[Ellen Zarate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I laughed. I cried. I cried some more. I considered sheet-caking...

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Main tweets from the Orange buffoon!

Sh*t My President Says by Shannon Wheeler is an illustrated book of Trump's tweets. Trump is drawn as a child for obvious reasons! 😁 it has many of his most childish tweets to date!

[Lisa Gerardy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful. The best book ever written. He writes the best tweets. Believe me when I tell you. We are going to make Twitter great again.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

You will find all the Trumpspiration you can stomach in the pages of this book.

Our President is gross. But, of course, you already know that. This book sits on my coffee table so that my children don’t forget it, and so that my relatives who voted for him (and who don’t have a Twitter account), when they happen to visit my house, will feel at home. Most of all, I want to remind my children that people can be popular and disgusting, wealthy and low-class, educated and unintelligent, blustery and weak, all at the same time. And that we should be extremely careful not to give people like that more power than they’ve already managed to grasp.

Perhaps I should purchase copies of this book as gifts for all my Trump-loving family and friends. It’d make an excellent stocking stuffer.

[Lissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really expecting to like this book more than I did. I'm not familiar with the illustrator, but people seem to talk favourably about him from a quick google search. And I mean, come on, it's skewering Trump's ridiculous tweets (of which there are many) - which may, honestly, be like shooting fish in a barrel, but still, it's fun. But the illustrations didn't add much to the book, at least for me. Trump's tweets are hilarious in and of themselves, of course, but you can read those for free online. Meh. It's a good pick up from the library, but I wouldn't recommend spending money on it.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really funny and really scary! The title should be taken literally, because I've never heard such "shit" come out of a person's mouth in a leadership capacity before. I thought George W. Bush was an imbecile.

[Zedsdead · Rating 4 out of 5]

An illustrated compilation of some of Trump's more witless and destructive tweets.

An observant bit from the author's introduction: "[Trump] encourages his fans to be themselves--not with aspiration, but indulgence. Be sexist. Be racist. Be fearful. Be selfish. Hate and fear the world. Consume."

And a sampling:
--News media is the enemy of the American people.
--Obama had my wires tapped at Trump Tower!
--Barack Obama's birth certificate is a fraud.
--(I wasn't aware of this one but Trump once had a Tweetstorm hard-on for...wind turbines?) They're obsolete and failing...a disaster for taxpayers...they destroy the environment...a scourge to wildlife...and if Obama (oh, there it is) keeps pushing wind energy the country will go down the tubes.
--Global warming is a Chinese hoax. And the fact that it's cold today proves global warming is a myth.
--My IQ is one of the highest.
--Obama is a bad president for playing golf! (just..........wow.)
--There are many cases of healthy children catching autism from vaccines.
--ABC having a show titled "Blackish" is racism at its highest level.
--Muslims were dancing in the streets of NJ to celebrate 9/11. I saw them on TV.
--There were millions of fraudulent voters and they pretty much all voted for Hillary.

The spare illustrations are largely innocuous, but occasionally they highlight Trump's profound hypocrisy or stupidity. For example, "Obama said in his speech that Muslims are our sports heroes. What sport is he talking about, and who?" is paired with an illustration of Muhammad Ali, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaq, Mike Tyson, and other famous Muslim athletes.

It is astounding that this idiot still has the support of 40% of American voters. I hope writers will continue to hold him up to the light like this (although I no longer have hope that it will make a difference.)

[Scottsdale Public Library]

Who actually likes to scroll through their twitter feed looking for hilarious tweets even if it is held to 140 characters; that is so hugely time consuming. Well, luckily, Shannon Wheeler did it for us! Wheeler is an amazing artist who took many of Trump’s most admired and controversial tweets and organized them with pretty pictures for everyone to enjoy. Birther movement; check! Golfing at the winter white house; check! Sad, covfefe, Kristen Stewart; check! Check! CHECK! No matter what side of the political spectrum you might find yourself you’ll get a kick out of our Commander in Chief’s tweets nicely wrapped into one little book. ~Ashley W.

[Coenraad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shannon Wheeler provides a fascinating perspective on the Twittering President. By drawing him as a brat of a child, not a senior bully, he undermines Trump's clout. By not placing the tweets chronologically, he ensures that we see certain themes from the Trump Tweet Collection: presidential golf playing, health care, support by voters and crowds, 'haters and losers', and a worrying sting in the tail in that very last cartoon. I hope this publication spawns a series, to be updated annually.

Wheeler se ondermynende siening van Donald Trump as VSA president bied 'n besondere perspektief wat meer as net snaaks is. Dit behoort 'n reeks te word met 'n nuwe boek elke jaar.

[Kyle Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was written by our most articulate president (#45). Shannon Wheeler was somehow able to channel those 140 characters and take us into the tiny mind of our president. Pick up this book! You'll be glad you did!

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know that this book is supposed to make me laugh, but it actually left me more frightened about the future of humanity and the state of the world than I was before I cracked it open....

[Brent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shannon Wheeler cartoons these famous Twitter rants. This fine book, published by Atlanta-area Top Shelf, grew in importance during the week I was reading a copy checked out of Atlanta-Fulton Public Library. The President's speech is embarrassing; his writing is unintentionally humorous.
Though a longtime fan of Wheeler and his Too Much Coffee Man (www.tmcm.com) , I was more enthusiastic about the cartooning of Robert Sikoryak and his parodies of Trump's speech in comic book covers, The Unquotable Trump; no overlap really, and in fact, Wheeler shares the appreciation for Sikoryak in the introduction here. Wheeler's book, despite the title, is more broadly appealing to a public audience.
Highly recommended.

[Sooraya Evans · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although somewhat repetitive, most of the tweets featured were hilarious by themselves.
So I don't see the point of 'cartooning' it with irrelevant doodles that add nothing.
Not to mention, a significant portion of the illustration is the twitter feed itself.
Might as well take the original screenshots from twitter.

[Sarrah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really hoping to have fun with this book--and some of the cartoon tie-ins were, indeed, funny; however, given the wealth of source material this was extremely unoriginal and more than a little repetitive (sad, given the short length).

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great concept and illustrations. I was left wanting more though, maybe a larger compilation or an updated version in the future? Most of the illustrations were right on point and I loved that the artist portrayed Trump as a child in them. A quick and fun, yet disturbing read.

[L. McCoy · Rating 2 out of 5]

WARNING: POLITICAL THEMES. IF YOU DON’T LIKE THAT DON’T READ THIS BOOK OR MY REVIEW FOR IT!

SUPER FAST REVIEW:
So in my attempts to read political shit in 2020 for the election I decided since I enjoy comics a lot to read a political comic book (this ended up being more like an adult picture book but still, could be good I guess)... not as good as I had hoped.
So this one looked funniest out of Hoopla’s selection that I found. The description made me laugh and I liked the cartoony drawing on the cover. That is the thing that makes this book anything: the drawings, while simple, are well done in it’s fun, cartoony way.
Cartoony pictures aren’t enough IMO to save this book that is in all honesty a great example of what “uncreative” means. Aside from a few clever ones this isn’t particularly funny and these drawings add little to nothing to these tweets. Wheeler just briefly slaps something together to go with a tweet, it’s almost like making memes and selling it as a book (though the typical browse through r/dankmemes will get more laughs from me than this did). Some inaccuracies are here too, most notably dismissing anything saying that places such as CNN and NY Times are biased because they’re news... umm... does this cartoonist also believe everything Fox News and The Daily Wire say? There’s bias in all of that shit and it’s bad either way. I also found some of the tweets used as examples to be odd choices (like out of all the things you could have chose, why bother with a tweet where Trump talks about visiting The Smithsonian?)
So yeah, this book was an uncreative waste of time TBH. I honestly don’t know why I even bothered. Some tweets and a (usually) not particularly funny drawing... I would expect that from some mediocre political humor page on social media but very disappointing for a book.

2/5

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the collection has value as a snapshot of a very particular and very unprecedented moment in American history, I’m not sure that the book really offers much value beyond that. Some illustrations appear to add very little comedic or analytic value to tweets that by themselves already achieve Kafkaeque levels of absurdity. The series of illustrations accompanying Trump’s various Mexico-wall-related tweets, for example, simply depicts Trump progressively building a wall around himself. But while there are illustrations that fall flat or miss the mark, there are also those that succeed in being genuinely funny or incisive. For example, Trump’s self-congratulatory tweet that “many are saying I’m the best 140 character writer in the world” appears next to a drawing of a book amusingly titled The Old Man and the Tweet. Overall, the book sometimes tiptoes the line of unoriginal and perhaps even derivative. The title is an obvious riff on Justin Halpern’s book/blog/TV show Sh*t My Dad Says, but it's not clear what Wheeler hoped to convey with the allusion, if anything. The final page of the book, maybe tellingly, lists various authors whose works the book either draws from or inadvertently mirrors, including the aforementioned Halpern, Bill Plympton (who has illustrated Kanye West’s tweets), and Robert Sikoryak (who has also illustrated Trump quotes). Is it inevitable that the idea of illustrating the things Trump says and does for comedic effect will occur to multiple people? Almost certainly. But does Sh*t My President Says bring a freshly original voice or vision to the concept? Alas, not really.

[Mike Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way the author adds illustrations to each text. It makes it hilarious and to think these were actual text ....

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much more sobering than humorous, which I didn't expect.

[Patricia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to laugh, which is why I picked up this book---Trump isn't that funny and neither are the illustrations. One is forgiveable as Trump is rarely trying to be funny, the other is not (Also, I don't believe Trump has ever tweeted with the end game to be the publishing of his tweets in a book). The saddest part of these illustration tie-ins is that they aren't very imaginative, insightful, or very witty either. They are not much more interesting than any elementary school kid could come up with. As an adult, I need more than that.

One would think that since half of this book was already written by President Trump that the illustrations by Shannon Wheeler would have been spectacular, hilarious or just more......grandiously entertaining in a BIGLY fashion as is due a person of Donald J. Trump's caliber/standing/aura/larger than life personality etc.

While I have to admit I was warned at the beginning of the book when Mr. Wheeler admits to portraying President Trump as a stereotypical antithesis: the childish brat, I hoped there would be so much more to this little book. In the end Wheeler's stereotypical portrayal proved too unoriginal for my taste. President Trump as the childish brat Mr. Wheeler chose to portray was simply too.....typical--a Donald J. Trump brat requires something more je ne se quoi---however that bent of je ne se quoi may go or be. A Donald J. Trump brat had to be the brat that trumps all brats. Deplorable pun intended? What difference does it make? It is sad that Mr. Wheeler didn't really even try to make this a book worthy of its title.

For all those individuals who always want something they don't work for, all I have to say is: See what happens when people don't do ALL their own work or when they rely on another person's work to carry their work? Especially creative work? You get a half-done half-part. It is the difference between listening to a singer who writes their own songs and one who doesn't (If you don't understand what is meant with that statement, I can't help you). It is sad when the half a book that wasn't meant to be a book to begin with is better and holds up its end more than the "half-done half-part" work that was made specifically for a book---this book. (Next time, please consider lowering the Earth's Global Temperature and don't print a book with a half-done half-part). I don't mind killing the Earth when it is worth it, but geez.......it sure hurts my conservative side when it isn't. Go trees!! Go Smokey the Bear!!

The only REALLY good thing about this book is that it counts toward my reading challenge for the year. Since I'm just a little bit behind due to my work ethic and liberal attitude toward the use of my time---laziness---this quick 5-10 minute read helped me catch up just a tiny bit!! If you need a book to add to your reading challenge and this book is handy, read it---you won't melt. You may even decide to go buy it so that "if you like it----you can keep it." Then again, you won't miss much if you don't, especially if you already follow President Trump on his Twitter page. If not and this book isn't handy, then, just read Donald J. Trump at his page in "real time" and skip this secondary nonsense. I will warn you, though, he isn't very funny or even that entertaining at his Twitter either. My warning is as the saying goes, “There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again."

......And just like this book passed very quickly, this presidency--like the last and all those in the future---will come to pass very quickly and still, the world will not end for either side of the political spectrum and NO, the world as a physical world won't end either.........

[Gabriel Infierno · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and I was very excited to get the opportunity to read it, I think that Wheeler get it very right in his illustrations, It was a little difficult to read for me because I'm not from north america so getting the background of the tweet give me a lot to google, but I think that it's important to remember and I think it's a pretty good resume of the things you have to know about Tr**p.
And I don't think that a book for having cartoons have to be funny, this book is criticism and it's politics, like all.

[Amy Gideon · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's surreal that these tweets are written by a political figure. It reads like something a bored 13 year old would write to troll people on the internet. The illustrations bring out the hilarity and hypocrisy in many of his posts. It's not a life changing read, but it's entertaining, as long as you don't think too hard about the fact that this is literally the President of the United States tweeting (or in many instances it was the future President tweeting).

[Ariel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought the illustrations fit nicely to the tweets, and there was a nice smattering of tweets from throughout Trump's career, but honestly, I got too disgusted reading the tweets to finish the book.
So Great book, shitty tweeter.

[Milijana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only sporadically funny, utterly unoriginal and very poor in content.

[Julie Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

This makes a good gift for Liberals who don't read a lot of books and therefore don't want to read a whole synthesized expository text regarding our president's embarrassing tweets. My husband was proud to have finally read "a whole book" because this was such a short read. I mean, it's just a bunch of tweets by our president. You would throw up if not for the funny illustrations that accompany the tweets, which force you to chuckle. It's really unsettling stuff, and it'd be actually funny to read, maybe 7 years from now if we are in a position to see this as just a troubling episode in American history. It won't be funny if this isn't...it will be a sad artifact portraying how we just poked fun at incredible ignorance and the careless words of a man with political power, and future generations will wonder how we could have been so flippant about it instead of taking to the streets. Anyway, I digress. A quick read, outdated already, but was a great gift for my husband. He'd give it 3 stars.

[Matt Graupman · Rating 3 out of 5]

So how do you make fun of a man who’s already a joke? In the case of National-Embarrassment-In-Chief Donald Trump, Too Much Coffee Man creator and “New Yorker” cartoonist Shannon Wheeler lets Trump’s ubiquitous tweets speak for themselves. In “Sh*t My President Says,” Wheeler’s doodles accompany a carefully curated selection of the Orange Blob’s Twitterrhea that demonstrate how petty, insecure, and ignorant a man he is. The cartoons are amusing, as you’d expect from Shannon Wheeler, but I guess it’s still too early in Tiny Hands’ presidency for me to truly enjoy this book; it’s too fresh and sad. Trump absolutely deserves all the scorn and ridicule we can heap on his bloated, hunched shoulders but I look forward to the day when “Sh*t My President Says” is a curious artifact from a ridiculous - hopefully brief - footnote is American politics.