Double Down

Game Change 2012

By: Mark Halperin, John Heilemann

Narrated by: Robert Fass

Length: 19 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

In their runaway best seller Game Change, Mark Halperin and John Heilemann captured the full drama of Barack Obama’s improbable, dazzling victory over the Clintons, John McCain, and Sarah Palin. With the same masterly reporting, unparalleled access, and narrative skill, Double Down picks up the story in the Oval Office, where the president is beset by crises both inherited and unforeseen - facing defiance from his political foes, disenchantment from the voters, disdain from the nation’s powerful money machers, and dysfunction within the West Wing.

As 2012 looms, leaders of the Republican Party, salivating over Obama’s political fragility, see a chance to wrest back control of the White House - and the country. So how did the Republicans screw it up? How did Obama survive the onslaught of super PACs and defy the predictions of a one-term presidency?

Double Down follows the gaudy carnival of GOP contenders - ambitious and flawed, famous and infamous, charismatic and cartoonish - as Mitt Romney, the straitlaced, can-do, gaffe-prone multimillionaire from Massachusetts, scraped and scratched his way to the nomination.

Double Down exposes blunders, scuffles, and machinations far beyond the klieg lights of the campaign trail: Obama storming out of a White House meeting with his high command after accusing them of betrayal. Romney’s mind-set as he made his controversial “47 percent” comments. The real reasons New Jersey governor Chris Christie was never going to be Mitt’s running mate. The intervention held by the president’s staff to rescue their boss from political self-destruction. The way the tense détente between Obama and Bill Clinton morphed into political gold. And the answer to one of the campaign’s great mysteries - how did Clint Eastwood end up performing Dada dinner theater at the Republican convention?

In Double Down, Mark Halperin and John Heilemann take the listener into back rooms and closed-door meetings, laying bare the secret history of the 2012 campaign for a panoramic account of an election that was as hard fought as it was lastingly consequential.

©2013 Mark Halperin and John Heilemann (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Those hungry for political news will read Double Down for the scooplets and insidery glimpses it serves up about the two campaigns, and the clues it offers about the positioning already going on among Republicans and Democrats for 2016...The book testifies to its authors’ energetic legwork and insider access...[C]reating a novelistic narrative that provides a you-are-there immediacy...They succeed in taking readers interested in the backstabbing and backstage maneuvering of the 2012 campaign behind the curtains, providing a tactile...[S]ense of what it looked like from the inside. (Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times)

"Chock-full of anecdotes, secret meetings, indiscreet remarks.... No one can compete [with Halperin and Heilemann]. That’s what it means to own the franchise. It’s a small club: these two guys and Bob Woodward. And with this book, they’ve earned their admission." (Michael Kinsley, The New York Times Book Review)

"Sharp insights buttressed by startling indiscretions fill Double Down, a new account of Barack Obama’s win over his 2012 Republican rival, Mitt Romney. This gripping book - a sequel to Game Change, a best seller about Mr. Obama’s 2008 path to the White House - cements the status of the authors as unrivalled chroniclers of campaign politics." (The Economist)

Worthwhile, but not as good as Game Change

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

If you are a political junkie like me, you will enjoy this gossipy, insider's view of the 2012 election. The book manages to both dramatize and humanize the major (and some minor) players in the election. However, the structure of the book made the packing seem slow and often repetitive, especially the middle section where he describes the aspirations and then the decisions not to run by various Republican politicians. The timeline starts over with each politician, so sometimes you are not exactly sure what month/year you are being described. Also, there are a lot of nicknames and colloquialisms used (moreso than in Game change) and this undermines the serious journalism tone of the rest of the writing.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Spoiler alert: Obama won the 2012 election.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Robert Fass?

Dennis Boutiskaris did Game Change and he was great. Robert Fass committed an incredible number of obvious word pronunciations that distracted from the actual text of the book. The director/producer of this audio book should have caught them as these were fairly common words such as irreparable and imprimatur among several others. I started keeping a tally of the mispronunciations because I was so irritated by them and it numbers in the thirties.

Was Double Down worth the listening time?

Yes, with reservations for the reasons I listed above. That narrator should never read another book though.

About HALF as good as Game Change

One good thing about this book--the author's did a decent job of making it non-partisan.

I'm not sure what caused this book to be so disappointing to me--was it the narrator who was so flat and dry, or the actual way the material was put together? It seems like the plan was just to comprise a chronological list of events, and then just read down the line and check off each one.

There wasn't any real excitement or anticipation - which was definitely there throughout Game Change. For political junkies who almost memorized every speech, gaff or event of the last election, I think this book will be a let down. If you weren't glued to the political news programs, and didn't know about all the "inside shenanigans," you will probably enjoy it more. I have heard that people who read the actual book (vs listening) found it to be a lot more engaging.

Even though I found it half as good as Game Change, I couldn't give it 2.5, so had to round up. There are only a few reviews of this book on Audible so far, and I will really be interested to see what other's thought.

Devoured!

Any additional comments?

Firstly, pitch perfect narration by Robert Fass.

As for the book itself, perhaps not as exciting as "Game Change", but only because the 2012 election was in itself less exciting. Rather than an explosive new candidate in a no-incumbent election (2008), this book is about the re-election of a struggling president vs. the election of a previously failed presidential candidate we were all pretty familiar with.

That said, the writing is thoroughly engaging and I devoured it!

It probably helps that I followed both elections fairly closely. Getting the inside perspective on moments that from the outside seemed unbelievable, had me rolling around in hysterics - think Clint Eastwood and the chair - hilarious!

One gripe was the cheesy overuse of the title (and tagline) Double Down, but just being picky.

Very enjoyable.

Very enjoyable 'back story' to the 2012 election

I recently read a review of this book which criticized it as deriving from 'The Great Men' theory of history as opposed to a more social historical analysis of the longer term trends that drove the results of this election. Baloney!

This is a reporter's book of what happened behind the scenes of the presidential campaign that many political junkies and others who follow politics closely love knowing about. It is NOT an historical analysis of the election results and in no way attempts to be one.

I enjoyed it tremendously and the narrator was great.

I also read GAME CHANGE and loved that - perhaps even more because there was more suspense to that election.

This is highly recommended for those looking to understand what went into some of the decisions made by the campaigns rather than a social explanation of the outcome. The only reason I rated it four stars instead of five is that I enjoyed GAME CHANGE even more.

Not as good as the first, but good.

One of the best audiobook narrators I have heard as well. Interesting story. awaiting Part3

Compelling View on the 2012 Election

An amazing look behind the curtain of the 2012 Election. I especially enjoyed the breakdown of the Republican Primary!

A political junkie's cup of tea

Would you listen to Double Down again? Why?

Much as I enjoyed the inside info on both campaigns, I would not re-listen.

What other book might you compare Double Down to and why?

Reminds me of Doris Kearns Goodwin's meticulously researched works.

What does Robert Fass bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He slips "into character", using modified accents of candidates such as Rick Perry.

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

What a big-bucks business politics was and is in the US.

Any additional comments?

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Highly recommended.

Great sequel to Game Change, but I miss the narrator

I enjoyed both Game Change and Double Down immensely, but much prefer the narrator for Game Change. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase this title again if it were re-read by that narrator.

Good reminder of the 2012 election.

Would you listen to Double Down again? Why?

Maybe, but it's not a top priority. Some good bits but not as good as the first book when they had Palin to skewer.

What did you like best about this story?

This is a gossipy book. Most of these things I already knew because I am a bit of a political junkie. The things I didn't know were fun and interesting.

Which character – as performed by Robert Fass – was your favorite?

No characters this is a book of non-fiction, I liked the info in the second section the best, It was about the GOP wannabes and was quite enjoyable. I had no idea of all the feuds going on there.
My favorite people in this book were Mrs. Obama and former Pres. Clinton. Clint Eastwood was an honorable mention.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Parts were very funny but for the most part it was sad that people could make such foolish mistakes.

Any additional comments?

I thought the nicknames used for the various people were kind of goofy and wasn't clear if the authors called them this or if these were ways politicians distinguished them. POTUS and FLOTUS are bad enough but Pufferfish for Christie and Fishsconsin for Ryan? Uncle Joe for Biden?

A bit much.

Great read if you like modern politics

I've always been a wonk for all the nitty-gritty details in political stories and Halperin and Heilemann deliver that in stride. I felt as though the book was fair to both campaigns and tried to stay as neutral as possible which is good. You really get a good mindset for all the dealings, reactions, overreactions, highs and lows that come with running for office. If you like knowing all the behind-the-scenes details, this is a good book for you.

The foresight into the 2016 race with Clinton and Trump was also something I was paying attention to and I was impressed with how possible the authors implied this to be.

I didn't have any complaints with the narrator which is the highest praise I can think of. He was clear, concise and inflective at the appropriate times. I'd definitely listen to another book read by this narrator.