With so many titles about this President and the current state of affairs at the White House and in the nation being rushed to market, Shields brings a unique perspective to the ongoing dialog. By interspersing pop-culture references, interviews with the Trump family, political think pieces, quotes from a diverse group of authors, and personal anecdotes from his own life, Shields takes the reader on a quick-paced, kitchen sink approach to understanding these current times. Shields’ approach allows the reader to pivot rapidly between trying to understand the President's self-deception and his persistent need for acceptance from the media and everyone he meets—while also looking at the bigger picture of how we as a nation are tied to his mental state and the implications for the future. Whether a reader is looking for an in-depth dive into the mental state of the current President, an examination of how words can be manipulated to influence power, an abridged collection of the sayings and thoughts of Donald Trump, or most importantly as a dire warning about how America has gotten to this point—Shields’ short book delivers the goods.
If other books about Trump take the freeway tour of Trump's life, Shields' book takes the back roads, stopping in at the fast food joints, strip clubs, and abandoned factories along the way ... Shields is not a Trump fan, but the book isn't about bashing Trump. In fact, Shields laughs at how powerless the Democrats and the #Resistance have been trying to fight back ... But by the end of the book, there's still one question left: does Trump do everything on purpose, or is he just getting lucky?
... Shields makes no rigorous psychological argument and his book tells us little new about [the charater Trump plays] or [the 'real'] Trump ... The least original element of Nobody Hates is the assemblage of quotations. They come from a very wide range of reading by Shields or by the dozen or so research assistants he credits at the end ... I can imagine Nobody Hates Donald Trump More Than Donald Trump appealing to readers who haven’t played hide and seek with [Shields] before and to readers who know little about Trump’s background.
By the end of this impassioned book, readers may question whether it has proven the thesis of its title, but there’s no question that the author meets fire with fire, leaving scorched earth on both sides of the critical divide ... If Trump is no more real than the reality TV that created the monster, then Shields clearly believes that the era of polite discourse is over and that the brutal truth is the only truth there is. A compelling book offering something to offend nearly anyone.
Shields brings a cynical outlook and collage style to psychoanalyzing President Donald Trump and American culture in this idiosyncratic cultural critique ... Shields makes the clichéd implication that liberal elitism...and 'political correctness'...are to blame for Trump’s win ... Fans of Shields will appreciate the way he reflects the Trump era’s cringeworthy absurdity; readers seeking a more sincere, compassionate, or analytical take will want to look elsewhere.
