Room Where It Happened, The: A White House Memoir (HB)

John Bolton served as National Security Advisor to President Donald Trump for 519 days. A seasoned public servant who had previously worked for Presidents Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush, Bolton brought to the administration thirty years of experience in international issues, a reputation for tough, blunt talk, and a long habit of writing down conversations. In his memoir, he offers a substantive and factual account of his time in the room where it happened. The result is the most comprehensive and substantial account of the Trump Administration from a senior advisor who had served three previous presidents over 30 years, with stunning revelations about what happened inside the most powerful room in the nation. Bolton’s account starts with his long march to the West Wing as Trump and others woo him for the National Security job. The minute he lands, he has to deal with Syria’s chemical attack on the city of Douma, and the crises after that never stop. As he says in the opening pages, “If you don’t like turmoil, uncertainty, and risk; all the while being constantly overwhelmed with information, decisions to be made, and the sheer amount of work; and enlivened by international and domestic personality and ego conflicts beyond description, try something else.” The conflicts, ego and otherwise, are all there—from the upheaval in Venezuela, to the moves of North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. But so too is the story of a chaotic White House and of a President with his own set of rules. “The differences between this presidency and previous ones I had served were stunning,” writes Bolton. His account makes that clear.