The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir
by John Bolton
read by  – Robert Petkoff
Rating – A-  / current events-

John Bolton hasn’t changed and because I’m a relatively moderate-to-liberal Democrat who is appalled by Donald Trump’s personality and his policies.  Bolton is definitely a conservative nationalist Republican with hawkish tendencies, a Reagan appointee, and he hasn’t changed.  He’s really got a beef with Trump is all this book really is. 

He still very opposed to Obama and those types of fpolitical views and what Obama did during his years in office.  So Bolton sounds a bit like a jilted applicant for something big.  No wonder neither the Republicans nor Democrats appreciate him at the moment.  He’s self-serving for sure –  (as far as I see to this point) – and brash and opinionated and all the things folks have said about him including intelligent with a bit of good humor.  

The tale is generally told in chronological order, only digressing when necessary for background. As befitting a former National Seecurity Advisor it deals primarily with foreign policy; North and South Korea,  Russia and NATO,   the tragic story of Syria, a bit on election meddling, Nicaragua, and the Space Force.

Personnel matters come up whenever appropriate. We get the cast of the foreign affairs staff plus John Kelly, Jim Mattis, Steven Mnuchin and others.  

The book is well written and Robert Petkoff narrates it nicely. I think it was a good book for me to read.