
The Cruelty Is the Point
The Past, Present, and Future of Trump's America
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Narrated by:
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Adam Serwer
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By:
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Adam Serwer
About this listen
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From an award-winning journalist at The Atlantic, these searing essays make a powerful case that “real hope lies not in a sunny nostalgia for American greatness but in seeing this history plain—in all of its brutality, unadorned by euphemism” (The New York Times).
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR • “No writer better demonstrates how American dreams are so often sabotaged by American history. Adam Serwer is essential.”—Ta-Nehisi Coates
To many, our most shocking political crises appear unprecedented—un-American, even. But they are not, writes The Atlantic’s Adam Serwer in this prescient essay collection, which dissects the most devastating moments in recent memory to reveal deeply entrenched dynamics, patterns as old as the country itself. The January 6 insurrection, anti-immigrant sentiment, and American authoritarianism all have historic roots that explain their continued power with or without President Donald Trump—a fact borne out by what has happened since his departure from the White House.
Serwer argues that Trump is not the cause, he is a symptom. Serwer’s phrase “the cruelty is the point” became among the most-used descriptions of Trump’s era, but as this book demonstrates, it resonates across centuries. The essays here combine revelatory reporting, searing analysis, and a clarity that’s bracing. In this new, expanded version of his bestselling debut, Serwer elegantly dissects white supremacy’s profound influence on our political system, looking at the persistence of the Lost Cause, the past and present of police unions, the mythology of migration, and the many faces of anti-Semitism. In so doing, he offers abundant proof that our past is present and demonstrates the devastating costs of continuing to pretend it’s not. The Cruelty Is the Point dares us, the reader, to not look away.
©2021 Adam Serwer (P)2021 Random House AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
“Serwer’s writing has been indispensable to understanding the chaotic world around us. Incisive, elegant, and deeply anchored in history, The Cruelty Is the Point is an essential guide to a perilous time in American life.” (Jelani Cobb, New Yorker contributor and author of The Substance of Hope)
“Adam Server is the most incisive political writer of our time.” (Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy)
“The essays in The Cruelty Is the Point combine an unsparing accounting of our history with an astute examination of our present.” (Wesley Lowery, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of They Can’t Kill Us All)
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Story
The story of Donald Trump’s rise to power is the story of a buried American history - buried because people in power liked it that way. It was visible without being seen, influential without being named, ubiquitous without being overt. Sarah Kendzior’s Hiding in Plain Sight pulls back the veil on a history spanning decades, a history of an American autocrat in the making. In doing so, she reveals how our continual loss of freedom, the rise of consolidated corruption, and the secrets behind a burgeoning autocratic United States have been hiding in plain sight for decades.
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Not as good as she thinks it is
- By Douglas A. Greenberg on 05-01-20
By: Sarah Kendzior
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Autocracy, Inc.
- The Dictators Who Want to Run the World
- By: Anne Applebaum
- Narrated by: Anne Applebaum
- Length: 4 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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We think we know what an autocratic state looks like: There is an all-powerful leader at the top. He controls the police. The police threaten the people with violence. There are evil collaborators, and maybe some brave dissidents. But in the 21st century, that bears little resemblance to reality. Nowadays, autocracies are underpinned not by one dictator, but by sophisticated networks composed of kleptocratic financial structures, surveillance technologies, and professional propagandists, all of which operate across multiple regimes, from China to Russia to Iran.
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A Triumphant Work -Puts It All Together With Laser Clarity
- By Sjhoffman on 09-19-24
By: Anne Applebaum
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American Fascists
- The Christian Right and the War on America
- By: Chris Hedges, Eunice Wong
- Narrated by: Chris Hedges, Eunice Wong
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Twenty-five years ago, when Pat Robertson and other televangelists first spoke of the United States being a Christian nation that would build a global Christian empire, it was hard to take such hyperbolic rhetoric seriously. Today, such language no longer sounds like hyperbole but poses, instead, a very real threat to our freedoms and our way of life.
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Please, read or listen to this book.
- By D on 06-22-07
By: Chris Hedges, and others
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On Tyranny
- Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century
- By: Timothy Snyder
- Narrated by: Timothy Snyder
- Length: 1 hr and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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The Founding Fathers tried to protect us from the threat they knew, the tyranny that overcame ancient democracy. Today, our political order faces new threats, not unlike the totalitarianism of the twentieth century. We are no wiser than the Europeans who saw democracy yield to fascism, Nazism, or communism. Our one advantage is that we might learn from their experience.
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History does not repeat, but it does instruct.
- By Darwin8u on 11-19-18
By: Timothy Snyder
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Erasing History
- By: Jason Stanley
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 4 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Combining historical research with an in-depth analysis of our modern political landscape, Erasing History issues a dire warning for America and the world: the worst fascist movements of humanity’s past began in schools; the same place so many of today’s right-wing political parties have trained their most vicious attacks. Yale professor Jason Stanley exposes the true danger of the right’s tactics and traces their inspirations and funding back to some of the most dangerous ideas of human history.
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The bias attitude of the author
- By Elizabeth ohanna on 09-30-24
By: Jason Stanley
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How Democracies Die
- By: Steven Levitsky, Daniel Ziblatt
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Democracies can die with a coup d'état - or they can die slowly. This happens most deceptively when in piecemeal fashion, with the election of an authoritarian leader, the abuse of governmental power and the complete repression of opposition. All three steps are being taken around the world - not least with the election of Donald Trump - and we must all understand how we can stop them.
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Connecting the Dots
- By Sharon F on 02-06-18
By: Steven Levitsky, and others
What listeners say about The Cruelty Is the Point
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- A. Noad
- 08-15-21
Excellent assessment of a difficult subject.
Honest criticism of a country you've always loved and defended isn't easy. Serwer succeeds admirably.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Rhonda
- 10-12-21
Excellent!
Thank you for these thoughtful, intelligent and deeply meaning essays. This book should be required reading at all of our high schools and institutions of higher learning.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Chris Altendorf
- 08-24-21
Well done!
I loved the details. Well researched. Taught me a lot. I thought the police Union chapter dragged a little. Probably because I have read a lot about the subject. Very great essays. I get the Atlantic and read some of these pieces. I am finding I get more from the Audible version!
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- AKS
- 07-05-21
New insights into an age-old problem
This book provides a new look at the wide-ranging, seemingly perpetual problem of racism. It illustrates the problem with well chosen anecdotes mostly from the African American and Jewish diaspora experience - fittingly told by a gifted author who represents the best of both traditions.
To my ears, the narration started off a bit detached, but kept getting better as the book progressed to its thought provoking conclusion.
Strongly recommended for all people concerned about “Quo Vadis, America”. Five stars for taking a critical look at America’s never ending war within its democracy during these externally threatening times.
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14 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 11-25-21
We must learn from our past.
I continue to look backwards in hope that I can see my future. History is the solution whisperer.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Ginger
- 08-13-21
excellent content, the author/narrator reading ok
The book and the information were great, and while The author speaks as well as the next person, I believe a professional narrator, Would have done a better job and would have made it come to life a little better. The reading was just a bit flat.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Hey Zeus
- 10-26-21
Very informative
The reader was boring to listen to. He needed some inflection, he sounded robotic.
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- leon s. lissek
- 09-11-22
Truth to the corp
We all have experienced this outrageous cruelty and mentally disturbing lies made by Mr. Trump and supporters throughout the past 6 years, that our sensitive author Mr. Adam Serwer “hit the nail on its head”.Thank you!
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- Michael Kedziorski
- 10-26-22
A serious look at Trumps America
Serwer writes at the time of events creating a real time history of the Trump years. His grasp of the meaning of the Trump Presidency is firm and a worth while read for any white liberal grappling with the racism that is foundational to the American experience.
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- Melissa Ann Quinn
- 01-23-23
Everyone should read this!
This collection of beautifully written articles is relevant to understanding our country today. This is the brain food that I crave, and I wish this was required reading.
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