Unbelievable: My Front-Row Seat to the Craziest Campaign in American History by Katy TurMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I had no intention of spending much time looking back at the 2016 campaign. It was bad enough the first time through. But I was listening to NPR's Wait Wait Don't Tell Me when they interviewed Katy Tur about Unbelievable, and it sounded a lot more interesting than I expected.
Largely this is because Tur writes as much about herself as about the campaign. Personal sacrifices made to further her career, childhood days in a news helicopter, the difficulties of being constantly on the road...there's a lot of personal reflection in the book. I'd have liked even a little more, as I thought the end of the book felt a bit rushed in personal terms. But then, life often works that way - there's not always a tidy ending.
There's quite a bit about the rigors of covering a political campaign and the internal workings of a major media organization. Tur is very honest about her own insecurities about her career, too. I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised at how much this sounds like any other corporate world. When you see these folks on television, it always seems like they have it together and get along great. But behind the scenes, they're human too, and it's fascinating to see behind the curtain.
If you do want to relive many of the insane moments from the 2016 campaign, Unbelievable has that covered. And despite what I said above, I think this is a good thing. Tur describes feeling threatened at Trump rallies, being literally spat upon, and requiring a security detail just to do her job. She recounts innumerable "Lock Her Up" chants and shouted assassination suggestions. She talked with supporters who simply refused to think about Trump's disparaging comments toward women and minorities and foreigners. We need to remember that these things happened. Hopefully to prevent them from happening again.
Don't dismiss Unbelievable because it takes place during a campaign that you'd rather forget. I really enjoyed reading the personal perspective that Tur shares. And though the reminders of the worst moments from the 2016 campaign aren't pleasant, I think it's important that we remember.
