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A Very Stable Genius

Donald J. Trump's Testing of America

Donald J. Trump's Testing of America

Donald J. Trump's Testing of America

Donald J. Trump's Testing of America

Donald J. Trump's Testing of America

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig
Read by Hillary Huber, Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker

By Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig
Read by Hillary Huber, Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker

Best Seller
Paperback $18.00

Feb 23, 2021 | ISBN 9781984877512

Large Print $32.00

Mar 24, 2020 | ISBN 9780593294963

Hardcover $30.00

Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9781984877499

Ebook $11.99

Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9781984877505

Audiobook Download $25.00

Jan 21, 2020 | 1107 Minutes

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    A Very Stable Genius by Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig
    Paperback $18.00
    Feb 23, 2021 | ISBN 9781984877512

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    • Paperback $18.00

      Feb 23, 2021 | ISBN 9781984877512

      Also available from:

    • Large Print $32.00

      Mar 24, 2020 | ISBN 9780593294963

      Also available from:

    Hardcover
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    • Hardcover $30.00

      Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9781984877499

      Also available from:

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      Jan 21, 2020 | ISBN 9781984877505

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    About A Very Stable Genius

    The instant #1 bestseller, now updated with new reporting.

    “This taut and terrifying book is among the most closely observed accounts of Donald J. Trump’s shambolic tenure in office to date.”
    – Dwight Garner, The New York Times

    Washington Post     national investigative reporter Carol Leonnig and White House bureau chief Philip Rucker, both Pulitzer Prize winners, provide the definitive insider narrative of Donald Trump’s presidency
     
    “I alone can fix it.” So proclaimed Donald J. Trump on July 21, 2016, accepting the Republican presidential nomination and promising to restore what he described as a fallen nation. Yet as he undertook the actual work of the commander in chief, it became nearly impossible to see beyond the daily chaos of scandal, investigation, and constant bluster. In fact, there were patterns to his behavior and that of his associates. The universal value of the Trump administration was loyalty—not to the country, but to the president himself—and Trump’s North Star was always the perpetuation of his own power. 

    With deep and unmatched sources throughout Washington, D.C., Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker reveal the forty-fifth president up close. Here, for the first time, certain officials who felt honor-bound not to divulge what they witnessed in positions of trust tell the truth for the benefit of history.

    A peerless and gripping narrative, A Very Stable Genius not only reveals President Trump at his most unvarnished but shows how he tested the strength of America’s democracy and its common heart as a nation.

    About A Very Stable Genius

    Washington Post national investigative reporter Carol Leonnig and White House bureau chief Philip Rucker, both Pulitzer Prize winners, provide the definitive insider narrative of Donald Trump’s unique presidency with shocking new reporting and insight into its implications.

    “I alone can fix it.” So went Donald J. Trump’s march to the presidency on July 21, 2016, when he accepted the Republican presidential nomination, promising to restore what he described as a fallen nation. Yet over the subsequent years, it has been hard to see beyond the daily chaos of scandal, investigation, and constant bluster. It would be all too easy to mistake Trump’s first term for one of pure and uninhibited chaos, but there were patterns to his behavior and that of his associates. Leonnig and Rucker, with deep and unmatched sources throughout Washington, D.C., tell of rages and frenzies but also moments of courage and perseverance. Relying on scores of exclusive interviews with some of the most senior members of the Trump administration and other firsthand witnesses, the authors reveal the forty-fifth president up close. Here for the first time certain officials tell the truth for the benefit of history.

    This peerless and gripping narrative reveals President Trump at his most unvarnished and exposes how decision making in his administration has been driven by a reflexive logic of self-preservation and self-aggrandizement – but a logic nonetheless. This is the story of how an unparalleled president has scrambled to survive and tested the strength of America’s democracy and its common heart as a nation.

    About A Very Stable Genius

    The instant #1 bestseller.

    “This taut and terrifying book is among the most closely observed accounts of Donald J. Trump’s shambolic tenure in office to date.”
    – Dwight Garner, The New York Times

    Washington Post     national investigative reporter Carol Leonnig and White House bureau chief Philip Rucker, both Pulitzer Prize winners, provide the definitive insider narrative of Donald Trump’s presidency
     
    “I alone can fix it.” So proclaimed Donald J. Trump on July 21, 2016, accepting the Republican presidential nomination and promising to restore what he described as a fallen nation. Yet as he undertook the actual work of the commander in chief, it became nearly impossible to see beyond the daily chaos of scandal, investigation, and constant bluster. In fact, there were patterns to his behavior and that of his associates. The universal value of the Trump administration was loyalty—not to the country, but to the president himself—and Trump’s North Star was always the perpetuation of his own power. 

    With deep and unmatched sources throughout Washington, D.C., Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker reveal the forty-fifth president up close. Here, for the first time, certain officials who felt honor-bound not to divulge what they witnessed in positions of trust tell the truth for the benefit of history.

    A peerless and gripping narrative, A Very Stable Genius not only reveals President Trump at his most unvarnished but shows how he tested the strength of America’s democracy and its common heart as a nation.

    About A Very Stable Genius

    The instant #1 bestseller.

    “This taut and terrifying book is among the most closely observed accounts of Donald J. Trump’s shambolic tenure in office to date.”
    – Dwight Garner, The New York Times

    Washington Post     national investigative reporter Carol Leonnig and White House bureau chief Philip Rucker, both Pulitzer Prize winners, provide the definitive insider narrative of Donald Trump’s presidency
     
    “I alone can fix it.” So proclaimed Donald J. Trump on July 21, 2016, accepting the Republican presidential nomination and promising to restore what he described as a fallen nation. Yet as he undertook the actual work of the commander in chief, it became nearly impossible to see beyond the daily chaos of scandal, investigation, and constant bluster. In fact, there were patterns to his behavior and that of his associates. The universal value of the Trump administration was loyalty—not to the country, but to the president himself—and Trump’s North Star was always the perpetuation of his own power. 

    With deep and unmatched sources throughout Washington, D.C., Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker reveal the forty-fifth president up close. Here, for the first time, certain officials who felt honor-bound not to divulge what they witnessed in positions of trust tell the truth for the benefit of history.

    A peerless and gripping narrative, A Very Stable Genius not only reveals President Trump at his most unvarnished but shows how he tested the strength of America’s democracy and its common heart as a nation.

    About A Very Stable Genius

    The instant #1 bestseller.

    “This taut and terrifying book is among the most closely observed accounts of Donald J. Trump’s shambolic tenure in office to date.”
    – Dwight Garner, The New York Times

    Washington Post     national investigative reporter Carol Leonnig and White House bureau chief Philip Rucker, both Pulitzer Prize winners, provide the definitive insider narrative of Donald Trump’s presidency
     
    “I alone can fix it.” So proclaimed Donald J. Trump on July 21, 2016, accepting the Republican presidential nomination and promising to restore what he described as a fallen nation. Yet as he undertook the actual work of the commander in chief, it became nearly impossible to see beyond the daily chaos of scandal, investigation, and constant bluster. In fact, there were patterns to his behavior and that of his associates. The universal value of the Trump administration was loyalty—not to the country, but to the president himself—and Trump’s North Star was always the perpetuation of his own power. 

    With deep and unmatched sources throughout Washington, D.C., Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker reveal the forty-fifth president up close. Here, for the first time, certain officials who felt honor-bound not to divulge what they witnessed in positions of trust tell the truth for the benefit of history.

    A peerless and gripping narrative, A Very Stable Genius not only reveals President Trump at his most unvarnished but shows how he tested the strength of America’s democracy and its common heart as a nation.

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Listen to a sample from A Very Stable Genius

    About Philip Rucker

    Philip Rucker is the senior Washington correspondent at The Washington Post and led its coverage of President Trump and his administration as… More about Philip Rucker

    About Carol Leonnig

    Carol Leonnig is a national investigative reporter at The Washington Post, where she has worked since 2000, covering Donald Trump’s… More about Carol Leonnig

    About Philip Rucker

    Philip Rucker is the senior Washington correspondent at The Washington Post and led its coverage of President Trump and his administration as… More about Philip Rucker

    About Carol Leonnig

    Carol Leonnig is a national investigative reporter at The Washington Post, where she has worked since 2000, covering Donald Trump’s… More about Carol Leonnig

    About Philip Rucker

    Philip Rucker is the senior Washington correspondent at The Washington Post and led its coverage of President Trump and his administration as… More about Philip Rucker

    About Carol Leonnig

    Carol Leonnig is a national investigative reporter at The Washington Post, where she has worked since 2000, covering Donald Trump’s… More about Carol Leonnig

    About Philip Rucker

    Philip Rucker is the senior Washington correspondent at The Washington Post and led its coverage of President Trump and his administration as… More about Philip Rucker

    About Carol Leonnig

    Carol Leonnig is a national investigative reporter at The Washington Post, where she has worked since 2000, covering Donald Trump’s… More about Carol Leonnig

    About Philip Rucker

    Philip Rucker is the senior Washington correspondent at The Washington Post and led its coverage of President Trump and his administration as… More about Philip Rucker

    About Carol Leonnig

    Carol Leonnig is a national investigative reporter at The Washington Post, where she has worked since 2000, covering Donald Trump’s… More about Carol Leonnig

    Product Details

    Category: Domestic Politics

    Paperback | $18.00
    Published by Penguin Books
    Feb 23, 2021 | 512 Pages | 5-1/2 x 8-7/16 | ISBN 9781984877512

    Category: Domestic Politics

    Large Print | $32.00
    Published by Random House Large Print
    Mar 24, 2020 | 816 Pages | 6-1/8 x 9-1/4 | ISBN 9780593294963

    Category: Domestic Politics

    Hardcover | $30.00
    Published by Penguin Press
    Jan 21, 2020 | 480 Pages | 6-1/8 x 9-1/4 | ISBN 9781984877499

    Category: Domestic Politics

    Ebook | $11.99
    Published by Penguin Books
    Jan 21, 2020 | 512 Pages | ISBN 9781984877505

    Category: Domestic Politics | Audiobooks

    Audiobook Download | $25.00
    Published by Penguin Audio
    Jan 21, 2020 | 1107 Minutes | ISBN 9780593212325

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    Praise

    “[Rucker and Leonnig] are meticulous journalists, and this taut and terrifying book is among the most closely observed accounts of Donald J. Trump’s shambolic tenure in office to date. . . . Their newspaper’s ominous, love-it-or-hate-it motto is ‘Democracy Dies in Darkness.’ A Very Stable Genius flicks the lights on from its first pages.”—Dwight Garner, New York Times

    “Richly sourced and highly readable…It is not just another Trump tell-all or third-party confessional. It is unsettling, not salacious.”—Lloyd Green, The Guardian

    “Imagine, for a moment, a high-octane courtroom prosecutor summing up for the jury a case built on the vivid testimony of multiple eye-witnesses…. You could scarcely ask for more capable advocates. Leonnig won a Pulitzer Prize for her reporting on the U.S. Secret Service in 2015, then joined Rucker and others on a team awarded the Pulitzer for stories on Russian interference in the 2016 election.  Their new, collaborative account…walks readers step by step through the first 30 months or so of a presidency like no other. They leave little doubt that they and many of their sources regard that presidency as an unmitigated and deepening disaster — a threat to American government as we have known it.  Whatever may happen to that impeachment effort in the weeks and months ahead, it creates a moment of intermission in the Trump saga and a chance to consider how the landscape has already been altered by this president. A Very Stable Genius offers a harrowing companion narrative to be read during intermission.”—Ron Elving, NPR

    “A Very Stable Genius is the most reliably detailed narrative yet of just how chaotic and paranoid this White House is.”—Air Mail

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