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A Very Stable Genius  By  cover art

A Very Stable Genius

By: Philip Rucker,Carol Leonnig
Narrated by: Hillary Huber,Carol Leonnig,Philip Rucker
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Publisher's summary

The instant number-one best seller.

“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, DC, Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker reveal the 45th 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.

©2020 Philip Rucker, Carol Leonnig (P)2020 Penguin Audio
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic reviews

"[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)

What listeners say about A Very Stable Genius

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Fascinating story, but poor narration

I got this book after reading segments in another setting. Brilliantly written, but the narration is not very compelling. The woman reading it--Hillary Huber--sounds like a robot, giving virtually no inflection. It's almost as if Audible is using a simple text-to-speech application. Unfortunate. I'm still in the early stages on the book and hope I'm able to continue. Odd because Ms. Huber does a good job narrating other books.

Be aware--the sample of this book does NOT include the voice of the actual narrator of the book. The book opens with an Authors' Note, read by Carol Leonnig, and a Prologue, read by Philip Rucker, so customers are not able to hear how the reading of the book actually sounds.

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266 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Well researched and well presented

A chronology of incidents you may wish you could forget - and that were actually worse than you thought, plus some new revelations. It begins with a brief introduction by Carol Leoning about the methods used in collecting the material, followed by a more lengthy discussion by Philip Rucker which amounts to a summary of the first three years of Trump's presidency.

The book is a journalistic telling of events, not an assessment of the Trump administration, but the events are such that they are in effect an assessment. Leoning and Rucker did hundreds of interviews in order to give intimate accounts of meetings, conversations, and often familiar incidents.

I wish the authors had read the whole book, not just the introductions, but Hillary Huber does a good job of reading it, in my opinion. Although I see some reviewers were critical of the narration, it didn't really impress me one way or the other. It certainly would not keep me from listening to the book. Her voice and intonation are clear and her reading is smooth. I looked her up and see that she has narrated many other books and that her ratings are quite positive for those. In a Very Stable Genius her delivery is straightforward, which to me seems appropriate. I definitely did not find it robotic. I am baffled by so much negativity.

I recommend this book to anyone who wants to be well informed about the reality of the Trump presidency and can stand to hear even more chilling details than were previously available in news sources.

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140 people found this helpful

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This is a well researched book, very shocking

But even more shocking was how terrible the narration. It literally sounded like AI robo-reading the book. Absolutely horrible.

Which is a shame, because this is a book to read if you are on the fence about Trump, and honestly I cant understand how anyone could be on the fence.

But this books documents the psychosis, the lues, the denials and delusions. Read it, dont listen.

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125 people found this helpful

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Great unbiased account of events

A great telling of the facts regarding this presidency. It changed my mind about some key events and gave me a better understanding of the people involved. I think it's hard to tell a political story in this polarized day and age without our own opinions coloring the lens through which we see the events, but these incredible journalists are able to do it.

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79 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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ENOUGH WITH THE TERRIBLE NARRATORS

I have tolerated a lot of bad narrators over the last year. I can not get past your terrible narration. Will you not hold narration to a high standard Audible. I am no newbie to Audible- almost a full 7 years in. MONTHLY. Does it seem you think audiobooks are just like regular books and any lame-ass can perform? Sorry, No-I am very disappointed that most of the last books I have had to listen to are the authors or part authors? An occasional writer makes a good narrator-and this is not an example-its bad. Only some of you should have that privilege. This is a bad product. Stick to what you do well-most of you are not great auditors/performers and should stick to writing. I have two subscriptions to audible (Canadian and American) and I am shutting them both down. I have listened to two readers here and this writer et al.. come speaker seems to be the new way to make money or save on cost. In this case 2 minutes in you both sound terrible-I could read better!!!! Disappointed because I was so looking forward to this book.

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53 people found this helpful

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Thorough

This was a great book. It was non-partisan, fair and thorough. I recommend this book to those who insist on blindly following this president. This book sheds light on what potential disasters await this country if he is re-elected.

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36 people found this helpful

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Gobsmacking

A lot of this has already been reported and most of us who have kept up won't be surprised by much of it.

It's still absolutely gobsmacking to hear it all laid out like this again, especially as his impeachment trial begins.

Whether you love or loathe him, I recommend this book to every American. You deserve to know what is going on in OUR House. If you can listen to it all and still defend this disaster of an administration and the traitor leading it, I truly don't know what to tell you.

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35 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars

An eye opener!

A chronological, factual telling of Trumps chaotic actions, paranoid ideologies and spastic blunders. Bravo to the writers.

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31 people found this helpful

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A Must Read

In order to stay informed I like to read nonfiction. Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig are two of the finest journalists who need all of our support. Even from those who might disagree. But journalism needs to live on in a world where truth and fiction have become questioned.

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25 people found this helpful

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A Deceptive Title

A deceptive title. This is not about the genius of Donal Trump. It is a continuation of the narative attemping to destroy the sitting President.

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23 people found this helpful