I read and listened to the WHOLE thing! It took me about 4 days, I think – maybe a little more.  For the most part it’s riveting.  I only sampled the footnotes which are mostly from transcripts but there are links if you want to see for yourself.  

The January 6th Report
by the January 6 Committee 
2022, 1,285 pages 
Read by a cast – 23h 37m}
Rating: 10 / current events /true crime? 
(both read and listened)

I know I’ve read a lot of the material about Trump from his glory-ride down the golden escalator to the court cases which seem endless. I’m fascinated from some kind of historical angle. I wouldn’t bother with Prince Harry’s new memoir if you paid me, but with the Trump administration from start to finish (which it isn’t yet) the tale is one of narcissism, greed, sexism, racism, fascism, lying, coercion, strange characters and stupidity.  

So when I keep reading these books and articles, it’s because there are more and more details as well as varied perspectives and points of view. There are many good books and this is one of the best because of the details, because of the points of view (not opinions but where were they when this or that was happening?)

And that’s the strongest point of this book, imo. There is so much detail in it. Yes, there are times it gets repetitious, but that’s the way the televised Committee hearings were, too.  It feels like the different sections were, perhaps, written by different people but that’s okay – it’s not one long transcript. The mission of the Committee, however, was to establish some modicum of truth, so repetition is necessary, in large part, to verify what others say.    

There are no real chapters in the Kindle book. But there is a Preface written and read by David Remnick and an Epilogue written and read by Jamie Raskin. Then there are 1,200+ pages between Remnick and Raskin, not “including”).unnumbered pages of Endnotes with excellent material for researchers. There are sections of Endnotes placed between Book 1 and Book 2 and again before Book 3 and then between the different appendices.

The reading is performed by dozen or so very competent narrators. I also read along via the Kindle version but that’s not really necessary if you aren’t picky about the Endnotes.   

I’ve followed the news stories from the golden escalator event through the campaign followed by the hearings while other stories developed and up until toda.  But there is so much more in this volume. Some witnesses didn’t show up and this is included the findings of the Committee’s investigations and evidence.   

I came to very much admire some Republicans, but be sick and saddened by others.