I had to put it down. This man's ego is really something. I did find it interesting however to draw the line from his thoughts in this book to how is like on the campaign trail.

I started reading this book after Trump's 2020 election defeat, hoping to get a better grasp of the enigma that is Donald Trump, and his apparent appeal to so many people. I should have known that what four years of non stop media coverage can't do, a supposedly honest fake autobiography by the self proclaimed king of bluff also can't.

I can't say I did not enjoy reading this book though, be it for other reasons than I expected at first. This book can be a fun read if you take it for the piece of fiction that it is, especially when the cynicism and self aggrandising reaches Disney villain levels - which happens often. But just as often did I find myself skipping entire chapters. Especially the ones that go into detail on his real estate projects tend to get tedious.

Is this book entertaining? Sometimes. Is it hilarious? Sporadically. Is it hilariously bad? No doubt about it.

The Art of The Deal by Donald Trump is one of the best books I have read in a long time. Unlike many of the nonfiction books I’ve read, I wasn’t able to put this book down. The book recounts Donald’s life from early childhood until the book was published in 1984. Specifically, giving details of the deals he made and the ways in which he became so wealthy. “Sometimes by losing a battle you find a new way to win the war. What you need, generally is enough time and a little luck” (249). This quote embodies Donald’s mindset in life and in business. One question that connects to the book and this quote is what happens when belief systems of societies and individuals come into conflict. This quote goes against the status quo of ‘I didn’t succeed the first time so why try again’. He is telling you that, from his experience, if he didn’t succeed the first time he kept pushing to get what he wanted and it has worked for him countless times. This quote refers to the part of the book where Trump purchases two apartment buildings next to Central Park. The buildings are older and his plan is to demolish them and build new updated buildings. The tenants currently living in the apartments are paying extremely cheap rent because of the age of the buildings. So they appeal the demolishing of the buildings and the appeal lasts a few years. By this time the new fad in architecture is older historic buildings with character. Donald ends up keeping all the tenants and just restores the current buildings and made a tremendous profit. He didn’t give up when they all appealed his plan. He stuck with it and fought and eventually the situation ended in his favor. I’d recommend this book to people who want to know more about Donald Trump and his style of conducting business. This might also be a hot topic book because of Trump’s current pursuit of the presidency. Readers who don’t know him well could read this and gain a little insight. Overall, I think this is best suited for businessmen and women because it is almost like a guidebook to making successful deals.

Here is an actual, complete, real life, top 5 (as of this writing) Goodreads review of this book that I tried to have removed (to no avail):

I have not read the book.

But then hey, Trump did not write it.

DONALD TRUMP’S GHOSTWRITER TELLS ALL

27/03/2017

Well, I guess he's not such a great deal-maker after all. The first chance he had to make one in the White House, he failed miserably.

Or maybe he's just a dealer?

04/08/2017

I am interested in what kind of "deal" he's going to make with North Korea.

25/01/2019

Opposing bills to end US shutdown fail in Senate, with no clear path forward

I would like to call your attention to line 1 of this review: "I have not read the book."

When I was growing up, George W Bush was president

I saw religious dogma take Howard Stern off the radio.

I saw my favorite cartoons and Detroit rappers fighting legal battles with the freakin' FCC about what they were and weren't allowed to say.

And I watched Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert say out loud what everyone was thinking and challenge Fox News and the government to tell the truth.

All of this led me to believe that liberals were interested in freedom of speech, freedom to have different ideas, and critical thinking whereas conservatives (Fox News + the Government at the time) wanted nothing to do with it - instead holding on to ideas of the past.

My belief held through 2016. Much to my embarrassment now, I remember weeks before the 2016 election telling my dad over the phone that "Republicans will never win re-election". And I remember being afraid the night that Trump won the election, because I thought pro-censorship, anti-critical thinking, racists had taken over America.

Coming back to the Goodreads review, someone (likely) of the critical thinking pro-science school of thought reviewing a book on a book reviewing site without having read the book and adding it to the "never-ever" shelf - AND THE REVIEW HAS A TON OF LIKES!!!

I don't think many in the mainstream media have read the book either because I haven't heard anyone refer to the president as "Donny" a name he says he hates in one of the first few chapters.

I don't know how we got here, but it's made me realize that critical thinking, irrationality, and dogmatism is not unique to one political ideology.

As for the book....it's really not great. You'll learn a little about some high profile deals Trump made, but I think where it shines is hearing some of the things he said in the 1980's that don't fit the media narrative we're led to believe about him now.

If you go in with an open mind you might learn something and get to wrestle with some cognitive dissonance about very concrete opinions you hold about a man you've probably never met.

If you don't go in at all, you might be able to get some Goodreads clout if you're biting, self righteous, and sarcastic enough.

Pretty interesting history of Trump

Magnificent in imagination. Even brilliant at selling em. A master of a man at working the variables of real world.

This book takes you through the mind of an incredibly astute businessman who runs on instincts fueled by calculated confidence.

So this was actually really fun to read and I have to give it stars for being entertaining. Trump brags about being better than everyone else at everyone, humiliating inefficient governments, lying, betraying people who trust him, and loving gratuitous over the top fancy crap. And also about being generous- he is just the nicest guy! Sometimes he wants to do work for free, and people just won't accept it because they are so rotten. And the book ends on a note of that he will use his skills to make the world a better place in the future. No details, but he says he will. In each deal described, everything turns out as well as possible for Trump and very poorly for his enemies, and everything always happens just as he expected it to happen, so the whole thing reeks of rewriting history.

Ok so. I did find this in one of those free sidewalk libraries. Thought it would be better in my well-intentioned hands et cetera. I also read this while so drugged out on mucinex that I had a fever dream where Trump was dancing to Sinead O’Connor in my closet and wouldn’t leave even after I started crying hysterically. Fun! It makes me feel better than he was as present during the writing of this book as I was mentally present while consuming it.

There was a whole picture section with him ranting about buildings he would have built better. And I am pretty sure he confessed to fraud? Like, a few times. Idk, all of my knowledge is coming from the Wolf of Wall Street and my dad’s subscription to the Economist (or like my degree or whatever LMAO). I still have no idea what this man does for work but I think he’s kinda like the Kylie Jenner of the free market economy. Technically I should be giving this 2 stars bc I did finish it BUT if a tree (business-advice memoir) falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it (the reader is dying of the plague and unsure which parts of the book she hallucinated), does it make a sound?

How Trump voters saw the election:

Steak or Tofu

How third-party voters saw the election:

Raw Horse Meat or McDonald's Salad or Ice Cream

How Clinton voters saw the election:

Shit Sandwich or Tofu

He didn't write it. You can tell he didn't write it, but I don't care I'm fascinated by casinos, bargaining with government officials and the construction of mass skyscrapers. If you like business then you'll enjoy this book, if you buy this book because of his presidency you will not like this book. Its purely business and there's a lot of details that slip through the cracks but all in all it's a decent read.

Plus I absolutely adored the Wollman Rink section, absolutely fantastic.

I am using this Labor Day weekend which the Democratic Party gave me to promote a Republican’s nonfiction work.

If I wanted to read a life of a saint, I would read about St. Rose of Lima. If I wanted to read great literature, I would pull one of the Hawthorne volumes off my shelves. This time, I wanted to read something from the most important statesman in the world. Pope Francis isn’t it (certainly not!). UN Secretary General? Nah. Donald Trump? President Donald Trump? There you go.

This classic autobiography, co-written with Tony Schwartz in 1987, is as insightful now as it was then. Specifically, I have culled the following ideas which would not only help entrepreneurs now as it did in 1987, but also those of us who want to understand the philosophy of the current president. Besides business-minded persons, understanding Trump’s key ideas can inspire readers to examine their own lives.

Trump firmly believes in the “think big” principle (46). Questions we can ask ourselves: how big are our own plans in life? If we are young, are the goals we have set for ourselves big? Middle age: are they just as big? Older: are the plans for our lives still just as big?

Trump writes, “In fact, I believe in the power of negative thinking. […] If you plan for the worst—if you can live with the worst—the good will always take care of itself” (48). This quote approximates an idea circulating in my own family which particularly resonated with me. The idea is that, if one prepares for the worst to happen, then one is at least prepared; if good occurs instead, then one can be delighted. I always thought it was an Italian cultural principle. Trump is not Italian (too bad!), so the idea of preparing for the worst must be either European American or cross-cultural. Do we live by this principle?

“The point is that if you are a little different, or a little outrageous, or if you do things that are bold or controversial, the press is going to write about you” (56). How true! The question for ourselves should be: how outrageous are we in our respective fields? If we are not, then why? Why be afraid of being outrageous in academia, business, law, medicine, etc.?

“I’m very good to people who are good to me. But when people treat me badly or unfairly or try to take advantage of me, my general attitude, all my life, has been to fight back very hard” (58-9). Great principle! Turning the other cheek may be symbolic or a metaphor for Jewish and Christian kindliness, but few realize that the Jewish and Christian imperative demands that we respect ourselves. Self-defense applies not only to war situations, but also to daily life. President Trump knows this principle and applies it admirably where he must defend himself constantly against the aggressive social media oligarchs Facebook, Google, Twitter, and YouTube.

“Have fun” (63). The moment that President Trump no longer has fun doing magnificent work to help the country is the day he will quit. I don’t see any sign of quitting, nor should we quit in doing the jobs, the work, the vocations, or the avocations that we love.

“It irritates me that critics, who’ve neither designed nor built anything themselves, are given carte blanche to express their views in the pages of major publications, whereas the targets of their criticism are almost never offered space to respond” (342). Proof positive that Twitter was made for President Trump. Jack Dorsey doesn’t realize how helpful he has been to the president’s election in 2016 and will be to the president’s re-election in 2020.

“But what I admire most are people who put themselves directly on the line” (367). It’s about time that the highest elected official in the country recognizes those who do the hard work of life yet remain unacknowledged: the coal worker, struggling to put food on his family’s table; the faculty member, checking online papers late at night; or the pro-life counselor, working to help not only the mother faced with an untimely pregnancy, but also the unborn child and the father.

One can read pious platitudes from many sources on Facebook or Twitter. Why read those when one can read trenchant commentary from the world’s greatest statesman? Besides that, reading this autobiography of President Trump is much more palatable than, for example, the self-centered works by the has-been Hillary or that other has-been Obama, both of whom arguably did more to destroy the country than make it great (again).

Summary recommendation: read Trump’s work; think big; be positive; don’t just stand up, but fight for your values; and enjoy life. What more life-affirming, positive message in a nonfiction work could there be?

Trump is the same guy he always was but now compromised by the Russians and showing signs of dementia. His ghostwriter (who later shared his regrets in the New Yorker) captures Trump’s voice and spirit and hints at his limitations. I have suffered from anxiety since Trump got into national politics, culminating in the election. At this point, the more I read about him, the less anxious I feel. He’s just a guy flubbing his way through his second year as leader of our waning superpower. He gets stymied by his attempts at force, bluster and intimidation. Thanks to his (de)mentors on the altreich, he is now firmly in the populist, pandering, anti-expert fringe of talkers rather than doers. His GOP is a monstrosity of warped, unrecognizable “conservativism. ”Everything Trump Touches Dies” (Rick Wilson)

Love/Hate Relationship with the MSM
Any publicity is good publicity. His narcissism would greatly prefer good press, but he’ll settle for Twitter wars. Ignore him and he withers. He has been trained by the media for decades to whine and provoke. He didn’t need to raise money for campaign ads, after all.

Victimization
“you’ve got to take a stand or people will walk all over you.”
“I fight when I feel I’m getting screwed, even if it’s costly and difficult and highly risky.” Trade War with China? Bring it! Confrontation with DPRK, F*ck yeah!
When Trump claims, “…if your name is Donald Trump, everyone in the world seems to want to sue you,” I think he means I have to sue everyone before they get me first.

Moral Fiber
“…it’s a lot better to side with a winner than a loser.”

Future Trump Cabinet (ironically)
“…hire the best from the best.”

How to Get him to Resign
“…you have to convince the … guy it’s in his interest to make the deal.”
“…leverage came from confirming an impression they were already predisposed to believe.”

Management Pearls
“[I]t’s never as good as doing it yourself.” Being our president alone is HARD.
“…you can trust family in a way you can never trust anyone else.” In Trumpworld, nepotism will bring peace to the Middle East and just about everything else.
“In our organization, anyone with any questions could bring it directly to me and get an answer immediately.” Such discipline and diligence! Wow.
“You can get any job done through sheer force of will—and by knowing what you’re talking about.” Should be the State Department moto at this point.

Baby Steps Toward Whataboutism
“…if someone asks me what negative effects the world’s tallest building might have on the West Side, I turn the tables and talk about how New Yorker’s deserve the world’s tallest building and what a boost it will give the city to have that homor again.”

Developing a Money-laundering Business Model
“Many wealthy foreigners didn’t have the proper social references for these cooperatives, or they didn’t want to put themselves through the scrutiny of a bunch of prying strangers. Instead, they came to us.” At Trump Tower Condos.
In 1987 “…Goscomintourist …expressed an interest in pursuing a joint venture to construct and manage a hotel in Moscow.” Travelling there “was an extraordinary experience“ the kind one regrets every morning before firing off angry, projecting Tweets.

Mad Self-Assessment Skills
“I like to pride myself on rolling with the punches.” Yeah, like a punk 12-year-old.
“You don’t act on impulse—even a charitable one—unless you’ve considered the downside.” Hahaha
“Bullies may act tough, but they’re really closet cowards.” He’s been openly projecting his psychology for decades. No new tricks.