Unbelievable

Books | Political Science / Political Process / Campaigns & Elections

3.8

(74)

Katy Tur

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER“Compelling… this book couldn’t be more timely.” – Jill Abramson, New York Times Book Review From the Recipient of the 2017 Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in JournalismCalled "disgraceful," "third-rate," and "not nice" by Donald Trump, NBC News correspondent Katy Tur reported on—and took flak from—the most captivating and volatile presidential candidate in American history. Katy Tur lived out of a suitcase for a year and a half, following Trump around the country, powered by packets of peanut butter and kept clean with dry shampoo. She visited forty states with the candidate, made more than 3,800 live television reports, and tried to endure a gazillion loops of Elton John’s "Tiny Dancer"—a Trump rally playlist staple. From day 1 to day 500, Tur documented Trump’s inconsistencies, fact-checked his falsities, and called him out on his lies. In return, Trump repeatedly singled Tur out. He tried to charm her, intimidate her, and shame her. At one point, he got a crowd so riled up against Tur, Secret Service agents had to walk her to her car. None of it worked. Facts are stubborn. So was Tur. She was part of the first women-led politics team in the history of network news. The Boys on the Bus became the Girls on the Plane. But the circus remained. Through all the long nights, wild scoops, naked chauvinism, dodgy staffers, and fevered debates, no one had a better view than Tur. Unbelievable is her darkly comic, fascinatingly bizarre, and often scary story of how America sent a former reality show host to the White House. It’s also the story of what it was like for Tur to be there as it happened, inside a no-rules world where reporters were spat on, demeaned, and discredited. Tur was a foreign correspondent who came home to her most foreign story of all. Unbelievable is a must-read for anyone who still wakes up and wonders, Is this real life?

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Author

Katy Tur

Pages

304

Publisher

HarperCollins

Published Date

2017-09-12

ISBN

0062684949 9780062684943

Community ReviewsSee all

"This is an interesting read chronicling the 2015-16 Trump campaign. I think it's valuable in the commentary on the disconnect between what the political pundits were thinking (even Republicans!) compared with the voters in Trump's "base", along with the idea that seemingly normal people felt free to "let loose" in the environment that he had created. My main complaint is that the story is chronicled out of order, which seems to be a trend now for some reason and is particularly confusing in ebook format. Also, some of the more personal anecdotes are kind of shallow and irritating. Overall, this book probably won't surprise anyone who followed the campaign but an insider's view is interesting."

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"This is a book I was honestly hesitant to read, though my library pushed the ebook to me after I waited On Hold. Who wants to relive the stress and chaos of the 2016 election? Pass. Also, who the hell wants history to repeat itself when we fail to learn from this festering boil on the face of the American presidency? Katy Tur's account of the Trump campaign was objective, fact-based and clearly the work of a serious journalist. She didn't relate any political views or agenda. The election-related opinions she relayed in her account were, "The Trump campaign, Trump himself and the events in this election are nothing we've ever seen before, something journalists *must document* and everything about this candidate flies in the face of all we know about presidential campaigns." I was in awe of Tur's fortitude in the face of Trump himself, the insane lifestyle of a TV reporter in the 24/7 news cycle and her world turned upside down by her assignment on the Trump campaign trail. Her short chapter-long detour away from the campaign trail to her parents' journalistic background was fascinating. As a 90's teenager, I immediately had a spark of recognition for their work. They recorded the footage of the truck driver during the LA riots, the OJ Simpson slow-speed police "chase" and other famous and significant pieces of aerial news footage from California. Oddly enough, she resisted journalism as her profession at first and her parents were ultimately blacklisted so she couldn't ride on their coattails whatsoever. Overall I found Katy Tur's narrative compelling, fascinating and objective (I know I keep using that word but it applies time over.) She's an honest-to-goodness journalist, which becomes increasingly refreshing in this era of escalating clickbait, propaganda and unsourced fake news. My one and only criticism is the inconsistent length of the chapters. It's almost like the chapters take either a minute or an hour to finish with no in-between. It might be a personal preference, but I use chapters as starting and stopping points, so I prefer the majority of chapters about the same length. 🤷🏻‍♀️"

L W

Lisa Wright

"Its an incredible binge-read and left me perplexed in the best way! Thank you, Katy, for being such an amazing reporter. "