Book Review: WAR by Bob Woodward

WAR by Bob Woodward (Simon & Schuster, October 15, 2024) 448 pages, hardcover.  

Synopsis on the Goodreads website . . . . .

Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Bob Woodward tells the revelatory, behind-the-scenes story of three wars—Ukraine, the Middle East and the struggle for the American Presidency. 

War is an intimate and sweeping account of one of the most tumultuous periods in presidential politics and American history.

We see President Joe Biden and his top advisers in tense conversations with Russian president Vladimir Putin, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky. We also see Donald Trump, conducting a shadow presidency and seeking to regain political power.

With unrivaled, inside-the-room reporting, Woodward shows President Biden’s approach to managing the war in Ukraine, the most significant land war in Europe since World War II, and his tortured path to contain the bloody Middle East conflict between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas.

Woodward reveals the extraordinary complexity and consequence of wartime back-channel diplomacy and decision-making to deter the use of nuclear weapons and a rapid slide into World War III.

The raw cage-fight of politics accelerates as Americans prepare to vote in 2024, starting between President Biden and Trump, and ending with the unexpected elevation of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee for president.

War provides an unvarnished examination of the vice president as she tries to embrace the Biden legacy and policies while beginning to chart a path of her own as a presidential candidate.

Woodward’s reporting once again sets the standard for journalism at its most authoritative and illuminating.

My Four-Star Review on the Goodreads website . . . . .

     I’ve never been disappointed by a Bob Woodward book, and WAR is a captivating read that anyone who wants to understand our political climate and U.S. relations with other countries should read. 

Even though I follow the news closely, I always learn something from reading Woodward, who has a knack for getting his contacts to give him the behind-the-scenes details. 

It chronicles what it's like to have the right people in charge at the White House, responsible and intelligent individuals who will make the right decisions to protect the American public. During the next four years it will serve as a reminder of what good government can do. As I think about Trump and his cabinet I can't see them analyzing these kind of situations from all angles and making careful, considerate decisions. 

Trump shoots from the hip, and that (among many other things) makes him extremely dangerous. Biden had knowledgable, experienced advisors to guide his judgment. Trump has a bunch of yea-sayers and sycophants. 

Biden and his team helped dissuade Putin from using nuclear weapons in Ukraine. They also helped contain the madness of Netanyahu enough to prevent an even bigger bloodbath and recklessness in entering Gaza, and are responsible for finally getting compliance to allow for humanitarian aid. Biden's not perfect but he has integrity. His biggest error was not pulling out of the presidential race earlier, and keeping to his promise to be a one-term president. Power truly does corrupt, and it's hard to let go.

History should be kinder to him than his polling near the end of his presidential term. Students of current history should appreciate the information provided in WAR.