The Contender: Andrew Cuomo, a Biography, by Michael Shnayerson

 

Andrew Cuomo's recent starring role during the COVID-19 pandemic piqued my curiosity about him, leading me to this warts-and-all unauthorized biography by Michael Shnayerson. This book tells his story from his childhood through his inauguration for his second term and his father's death. It's a well written and very detailed look at Cuomo's life and career, although it leans much more heavily on the political than on the personal, which makes sense given that it was both unauthorized and competing with Cuomo's own autobiography, which came out at roughly the same time. This is a fascinating look at the cut-throat nature of New York politics, and it provides the background and context for many of the stories that I've read in the news since moving to Albany nearly eight years ago.

Red at the Bone, by Jacqueline Woodson

 

I really enjoyed this short (196 page) novel by Jacqueline Woodson. It tells the story of multiple generations of one family. The context is Melody's 16th birthday party, and family members use the occasion to reminisce about their own lives and how they got to this point. Melody and her parents and grandparents all take turns narrating their lives in short, spare paragraphs and chapters, and the result is a rich tapestry of love, sadness, yearnings, aspirations, and family.

Wingnuts: Extremism in the Age of Obama, by John Avlon

 

I was a little late in the game with this book, originally published in 2010, and updated in 2014. It's an in-depth look at the many extremist groups and movements that have arisen in the last 20 or so years, but which seemed to explode with the election of Barack Obama. I'm a fan of John Avlon's reporting; he was the editor of The Daily Beast until recently, and he's a regular on CNN; I particularly like his "Reality Check" segments. Wingnuts is a very readable, yet heavily research look at extremism in America. Avlon provides a brief history of extremism, then tackles the rise of the Tea Party, white-minority politics, partisan media, Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, birthers and truthers, and much more. I was fascinated by this history, made all the more poignant by how much worse everything has gotten since 2014.

Uniform Justice, by Donna Leon

 

I really enjoyed this detective story set in Venice, Italy, starring Commissario Guido Brunetti. Uniform Justice is the 12th in the series, although only the first one that I've read. The story begins with the apparent suicide of a teenage boy in a military high school. Brunetti's suspicions grow when he learns that the boy's mother was attacked the previous year, and the father stepped down early from an elected position after writing a report that questioned some military procurement practices. Could all of this be related? The plot moves along quickly, the writing is very good, and the mystery reveals itself slowly as it approaches a heartbreaking revelation.

Too Much and Never Enough, by Mary L. Trump

I couldn't resist reading this memoir by Mary Trump, the daughter of Trump's older brother Fred. It's a slight book, at only 225 pages, and a very quick read. Including 14 chapters, it's organized into four sections which clearly tells you where Mary Trump stands on her uncle's fitness for office or worth as a person: The Cruelty is the Point, The Wrong Side of the Tracks, Smoke and Mirrors, The Worst Investment ever Made. While I had heard and read some of this before, the book goes into much more detail about family dynamics and history, revealing how nasty and mean Trump's parents were, along with the greed and venality of most of the rest of the family. It shows a family so greedy they will do just about anything to hold onto the wealth earned primarily by Trump's father, all while actively fleecing the government and discriminating against minorities. In spite of the wealth, none of them seem happy with their lot in life. What an unpleasant bunch of people!