Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on Earth
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- Create Date：2021-02-06 04:18:32
- Update Date：2025-09-13
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- Author：Rachel Maddow
- ISBN：9780525575481
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Editor Reviews
At its heart， this book is a tale of two countries， the United States and Russia， and how， as Maddow sees it—individually and together—they have been warped by a rapacious fossil fuel industry。 。 。 。 Fulminating comes easy to Rachel Maddow。 What sets her apart from other serial fulminators is that she does it with facts—and sardonic wit。”—Washington Post
“[Maddow] may be a popular， progressive news-and-commentary anchor on MSNBC， but it's not to be forgotten that she holds a doctorate in politics from Oxford and seems to devour whole libraries of data before breakfast each day。 。 。 。 Expect a tweetstorm as Maddow’s indictment of a corrupt industry finds readers—and it deserves many。”—Kirkus Reviews （starred review）
“Known for her intense inquiries into complex subjects， Maddow brings her laser-like intuitiveness and keen and wily perception to Big Oil， that stalwart of global economics， and the shadowy nexus of commerce and politics。 Maddow likes murky， the murkier the better， and her examination of the intricacies of off-shore drilling， transnational pipelines， and hydraulic fracking is as deep as the coveted wells themselves。 。 。 。 Like trailblazing journalists before her， Maddow exposes both the slapdash and sinister practices underlying geopolitics and energy policies and revels in peeling back the layers of malfeasance to stoke righteous outrage。”—Booklist （starred review）
“All fans of Maddow， and even her detractors， will learn something new from this highly readable yet impressively detailed book。 Anyone interested in the covert deals that change the nature of the global environmental and political landscape will devour。 A must-have for all collections。”—Library Journal （starred review）
“Radiates zing， intelligence， and black humor。 Much like its author。”—InStyle
Reviews
Kerdberg
，
Amazing to see how the oil industry basically has its own foreign policy that has the pleasure of undermining the foreign policy and national security of the U。S。
Robyn
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Well-written， and meticulously researched。。。 Madden offers some understanding of why Russia might be interested in the going ons in US elections with regard to the oil and gas industry。 Quite interesting。。。 informative 。。。 really long。。。。4 starsHappy Reading！
Jason
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Entertaining， but not always the easiest book to follow - is this book about oil or about Russia？ I think most people will learn new stuff from this。
Paige
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There’s something to say when you have to sell your book so cheap to get it sold。 This should be listed under the fictional section as it’s biased and opinionated towards everything non American。 There’s no way this book has genuine 4。5 stars。 Highly un-American。 These talking heads are part of the reason our REPUBLIC is heading into a very dark era one that I hope and pray we can overcome。
Adam
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"Oil doesn't easily coexist with other industries in which you might build a reasonably stable national economy。"The line is primarily a reference to developing nations and oligarchies/kleptocracies， but it's a major foundation for the themes of the book， which tie together the corruption and capture between oil and gas multinationals， Russia， and the US。 Good stuff。 If you like the way Maddow builds her long-form theses in general， you'll enjoy this one。 It's not all depressing oil spills and d "Oil doesn't easily coexist with other industries in which you might build a reasonably stable national economy。"The line is primarily a reference to developing nations and oligarchies/kleptocracies， but it's a major foundation for the themes of the book， which tie together the corruption and capture between oil and gas multinationals， Russia， and the US。 Good stuff。 If you like the way Maddow builds her long-form theses in general， you'll enjoy this one。 It's not all depressing oil spills and dictatorships。 In exploring the grip that extractive industries have on democracies， what becomes clear is the prescription to shed that grip。 。。。more
Krisanne Lane
，
I listened to the audiobook， which I think was a great way to read this。 Rachel Maddow is a fantastic storyteller， and her narration was very engaging。 Because I often lose focus listening to audiobooks because I multitask， I definitely will need to reread this at some point。 It was very involved， and Maddow does a fantastic job of weaving the different storylines of the past few years together into a cohesive narrative。 The audiobook production included music， and even Rachel Maddow singing the I listened to the audiobook， which I think was a great way to read this。 Rachel Maddow is a fantastic storyteller， and her narration was very engaging。 Because I often lose focus listening to audiobooks because I multitask， I definitely will need to reread this at some point。 It was very involved， and Maddow does a fantastic job of weaving the different storylines of the past few years together into a cohesive narrative。 The audiobook production included music， and even Rachel Maddow singing the tune to the Beverly Hillbillies at one point。 Little details like that make it so worthwhile to me to hear the book read。 Maddow read the book as she does her nightly show。 You couldn't tell the difference。 She's funny and enthusiastic。 Just a great book。 。。。more
Maggie
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It took me rather a while to get going on this - but once it clicked， it was fascinating。 In true Rachel fashion， it's shaggy and erudite - pulling many disparate threads into one compelling take down of Putin， Russia & the oil/gas industry。 Rex Tillerson's anointment as Secretary of State is even more chillingly nefarious than I'd previously thought。 One of the later chapters （#27 out of 29） is called "*All They Have Is This*" - and it's the money chapter: Russia has been assiduously engineered It took me rather a while to get going on this - but once it clicked， it was fascinating。 In true Rachel fashion， it's shaggy and erudite - pulling many disparate threads into one compelling take down of Putin， Russia & the oil/gas industry。 Rex Tillerson's anointment as Secretary of State is even more chillingly nefarious than I'd previously thought。 One of the later chapters （#27 out of 29） is called "*All They Have Is This*" - and it's the money chapter: Russia has been assiduously engineered into a sclerotic dictatorship; its economy wholly dependent on its one indispensable industry， which is by design almost solely monopolized by its big， lousy， noncompetitive state-controlled oil and gas companies， which are all run by spies or thugs or judo guys， and almost exclusively for the benefit of Vladimir Putin and his global aims。 Eerily， opposite activist Alexei Navalny turns up on the LAST page （for the first and only time）。 Given his current （Jan 2021） newsworthiness， it feels oddly prescient to come across him then and there。 。。。more
Shelley
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I really enjoy Maddow’s sense of storytelling。 I’ve found both her books （and her reporting segments， tbh） quite similar in feel to Malcolm Gladwell’s writing — researched in-depth， tying together various odd threads， and narratively compelling。 This book spans the breadth of Soviet geopolitics， American capitalism， to whether Oklahoma will finally get its first sports team。 Even Taranaki and Lucy Lawless made a surprise appearance。 One thing I found quite interesting， and what made me pause， is I really enjoy Maddow’s sense of storytelling。 I’ve found both her books （and her reporting segments， tbh） quite similar in feel to Malcolm Gladwell’s writing — researched in-depth， tying together various odd threads， and narratively compelling。 This book spans the breadth of Soviet geopolitics， American capitalism， to whether Oklahoma will finally get its first sports team。 Even Taranaki and Lucy Lawless made a surprise appearance。 One thing I found quite interesting， and what made me pause， is really how American Maddow sounds。 There’s a monologue near the end of the last chapter that wouldn’t seem out of place at all in a political speech。 American patriotism is such a strange and distinct thing。 Even when they’re yelling at each other， at any moment I think any American is able to — completely earnestly— rattle off a speech on American exceptionalism。 Anyway。 I wonder what sort of world order we get in the next few decades。 。。。more
Katie
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This book drew back the curtains on some of the things that are going on behind the scenes in the oil and gas industry。 It was very eye opening to see how much of an impact this area has on all of us。
Raquel Tavares
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4。5Blowout， meaning uncontrolled releases， is an account of the oil and natural gas industry in the US， followed by its state partners like Russia and Equatorial Guinea。 Rachel Maddow has the ability to bring quite dense information and procedures very clearly as well as light humour to the discussion。Some mentioned topics:- Rockefeller was the first honourable exploiter of oil and gas in the US。 The Government came to a consensus that his wealth was absurd and his company an outrageous market m 4。5Blowout， meaning uncontrolled releases， is an account of the oil and natural gas industry in the US， followed by its state partners like Russia and Equatorial Guinea。 Rachel Maddow has the ability to bring quite dense information and procedures very clearly as well as light humour to the discussion。Some mentioned topics:- Rockefeller was the first honourable exploiter of oil and gas in the US。 The Government came to a consensus that his wealth was absurd and his company an outrageous market monopoly， so he had to break his fortune into hundreds of companies （some of which we still know to this day and are key market players like Chevron， BP and Exxon）。- Oklahoma。 The founder of Chesapeake， a natural gas company， is from this American state， which inevitably tried to develop the state by investing in public infrastructure and cultural attractions， however， the terrorist attacks brought the plans to ruins which slowly were coming back up until the 2009 crisis。 Several dangerous links were being formed between private companies and the Oklahoma state men， corrupting America's democracy。 However， that would come back and bite them in the ass because drilling and hydraulic fracturing for the extraction of oil and gas contributed to the drastic increase in seismicity activity in Oklahoma。 The number of earthquakes was out of control， tripling in 2014 when compared to the previous year。 Nevertheless， the oil and gas companies were doing everything they could so that those harsh and blunt news did not come to the media as straight forward as there was this whole circle of institutions related to seismic activity research that were in some way funded by the oil and gas companies themselves。- The CEO of Exxon comments on the fact that Exxon Mobil prefers to implement oil projects in non democratic countries like Africa or East Asia， as he considers that investment projects in the oil industry take a long time to be completed and if governments start shifting regulations， laws and tax structures， he considers unfeasible to do business in such an environment （preferring to resort to bribery and exploiting the corruption of certain states to ensure he gets the rules he wants）。- Equatorial Guinea。 After the independence from the Spanish， President Macias virtually destroyed all the political， economic and social institutions。 Lieutenant Obiang （President Macia’s niece） ran a bloody coup against Macias and took over。 “Whatever the challenges were that President Obiang found so insurmountable when it came to providing potable water or education or roads or basic democracy to his citizens， he found all the authority and organization he needed to make it easy for oil producers to do business in his country”。 Meanwhile， until the end of 2010， President Obiang’s son， Teodorin had been participating in countless auctions for Michael Jackson’s goods。 He settled a bid of around $1。4 million in the first auction only… This bill would have covered for the living expenses of around 33 hundred of people from his country for a whole year。 This money that the family spent came from the ruthless oil contracts that the country secured， which were established around the rule: the one company that offered the most money to the President would win the contract。 - Russia。 The outrageous $50 billion Russia spent on the2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi was a “festival of corruption”。 Putin’s builders had pocketed around $27 billion in embezzlements。 More than 90% of the money spent on the Games came right out of Russian Federation’s government accounts， this money could have paid for 3，000 high-quality roads or housing for 800，000 people。 。。。more
Lynn S。
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didn't finish， but it did seem interesting didn't finish， but it did seem interesting 。。。more
Amanda Valentina
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Enjoyable， but it covers such a wide range of topics （all oil and gas-related， of course） that it jumps around quite a bit。 Overall， highly insightful and a great read even for those unfamiliar with the energy industry。
I。 David
，
Rehash of the Sordid History of the Oil and Gas IndustryPlease visit I。 David’s blog at https://www。goodreads。com/author/show。。。After reading Blowout: Corrupted Democracy， Rogue State Russia， and the Richest， Most Destructive Industry on Earth by Rachel Maddow I now know that， even though I might like an author， I will not necessarily like all of their books。 In Blowout Maddow describes， in lurid detail， the convergence of the sordid history of the oil and gas industry and Vladimir Putin’s subju Rehash of the Sordid History of the Oil and Gas IndustryPlease visit I。 David’s blog at https://www。goodreads。com/author/show。。。After reading Blowout: Corrupted Democracy， Rogue State Russia， and the Richest， Most Destructive Industry on Earth by Rachel Maddow I now know that， even though I might like an author， I will not necessarily like all of their books。 In Blowout Maddow describes， in lurid detail， the convergence of the sordid history of the oil and gas industry and Vladimir Putin’s subjugation of the Russian economy。 With respect to the oil and gas industry Maddow starts with a review of John D。 Rockefeller’s creation of Standard Oil in the early 20th century。 She explains how Rockefeller’s practice of minimizing costs to maximize profits translated into a general industry practice of spending as little as possible to protect the environment and public safety。 Maddow then moves on to several notorious events of the last few years including BP’s Deepwater Horizon blowout in the Gulf of Mexico， payments by industry members to autocrats for the right to drill for oil in developing countries and the numerous local earthquakes caused by hydraulic fracturing。 With respect to Putin Maddow describes how he coordinated efforts with organized crime and former KGB agents to gain power in Russia and to then forcibly coerce the Russian oligarchs to transfer their ownership interest in critical industries back to state controlled companies。 As a result， one of those state controlled companies， Rosneft Oil， currently controls most of the Russian oil deposits。 Because post-Communist Russia has been unable to develop many profitable business ventures， its economy is heavily dependent upon the revenues derived from sales by Rosneft to other European countries。 However， Rosneft’s continuing success is at risk because it lacks the technical expertise to fully develop all of its oil reserves， especially those located north of the Arctic Circle。 Maddow explains how Rosneft entered into a partnership with Exxon Mobile under which Exxon Mobile provides the needed expertise to develop the reserves in exchange for the rights to a share of the extracted oil。 She makes clear that Exxon Mobile was committed to its participation in the Rosneft partnership， even after Russia， at the direction of Vladimir Putin， began weaponizing misinformation to undermine Western institutions， annexed the Crimea and supported an invasion of Ukraine。 Exxon Mobile ended its work with Rosneft only after the United States， in response to the invasion of Ukraine， prohibited United States companies from providing services to Russia。 Blowout does not contain any really new information。 Instead， Maddow relies heavily upon the work of other reporters。 Not every book has to be “deeply researched。” But any book that relies on information provided by others should at least present that information in a way that introduces a novel perspective。 Blowout is not such a book。 The only perspective provided by Maddow is that oil company executives ignore public safety， the environment and even national interests in their desire to extract as much oil and gas as possible and to become as rich as possible。 That perspective is anything but novel。 I give this book a 2 star rating because it is a rehash of well-known information that fails to provide any new insights。 。。。more
Cookie E。
，
Blowout is an interesting book on the oil and gas industry and its many tentacles。 I cannot opine on the dots that Maddow has connected， but she certainly crafted a compelling argument for what a behemoth the industry is and the dangers of its unchecked power。 Weaving in contemporary politics only enhanced the discussion。 I feel more well-informed after having the read the book， and would recommend it to others。
Dee Turner
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In her inimitably breezy style， and armed with her equally famous comprehensive research， Maddow here excoriates the oil and gas industry that creates governmental kleptocracies* around the world and is destroying the entire planet**--for profit。In offering her thanks to the people who helped her present this work， she promises never to do it again。 Hopefully this is one promise she can renege on， as it's imperative to keep readers informed of hidden factors ruining life for humanity， as well as In her inimitably breezy style， and armed with her equally famous comprehensive research， Maddow here excoriates the oil and gas industry that creates governmental kleptocracies* around the world and is destroying the entire planet**--for profit。In offering her thanks to the people who helped her present this work， she promises never to do it again。 Hopefully this is one promise she can renege on， as it's imperative to keep readers informed of hidden factors ruining life for humanity， as well as all other life forms。*For example: Nigeria is the sixth wealthiest country in the world。 But Big Oil's contracts are with a few well-placed strongmen。 Of the 180 million citizens of Nigeria， 100 million live in dire poverty on $1 a day。**The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico spewed almost 5 million barrels （each 43 gallons） into the Gulf of Mexico--yet another， much slower leak that was undetected there for years is overtaking it。 Massive disasters are common in the oil and gas industry， yet they've never bothered to develop any adequate cleanup methods beyond containment booms and diaper filling。 。。。more
Meggan V。 Crowley
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Book about oil conglomerate good book narrated by Rachel。
Kayla Samnath
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This was a great read。 I am not one for these types of nonfiction books- But I'll admit I'm glad I read this one。 This was like a train wreck that I just couldn't stop looking at。 We got deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole， and I loved just diving right in。 I feel like I have a lot more to say but I don't want to go on a rant。 Rachel Maddow did a great job researching this book。 I can always appreciate someone who includes their citations。 I enjoyed her commentary as well。 I thought overall t This was a great read。 I am not one for these types of nonfiction books- But I'll admit I'm glad I read this one。 This was like a train wreck that I just couldn't stop looking at。 We got deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole， and I loved just diving right in。 I feel like I have a lot more to say but I don't want to go on a rant。 Rachel Maddow did a great job researching this book。 I can always appreciate someone who includes their citations。 I enjoyed her commentary as well。 I thought overall the writing was easy to understand， and the overall timeline she provides is done well。 So- This was a roller coaster of a read。 At first it was very slow moving， talking about Russia and their future looking bright for Oil。 Then ever so slightly things just start going downhill。 It's a slow downhill at first， then about halfway through when you learn of Exxon's deal with Putin， and Tillerson。 Next thing you know we are talking about big bucks。 It's insane to me how much wealth these people have stashed and put away。 Maddow points it out several times how these billionaires could have not only exterminated national debt， but could have successfully clothed， fed， and provided energy to billions of people。 How sad is it that we live in a world where this is okay。 All the nations money belongs so a circle of few。 One part that struck me was about Teodorin Obiang。 All that government money wasted。。。 People are dying on the street， and this guy goes ahead and BUYS ONE MICHEAL JACKSON GLOVE。 ONE！！ I get it， it was Michael's thing， but are you kidding me？？ That type of behavior from the top 1% of the world is sickening。 All that dirty underhanded tactics taken to cover up the scientific data about fracking fluids and earthquakes also make me sick to my stomach。 Austin Holland was someone I admired in this book。 He really wanted to go by the science and data to leave no room for error。 Hah， now let's get on to Putin。 He's a gangster piece of shit。 Russians are living without， while the criminals get off。 They get to live cushy doing illegal things。 Screw Exxon， Shell， BP， Chesapeake， everyone。 What is wrong with people that they just don't care？ It's almost as if the American people just lack basic empathy。 I think I'm just in general disgusted。 I'm disgusted with Oil and gas businesses， American politics and foreign policy。 Seeing the lives of the "rich and famous" is often disheartening。 To think that people actually live like that not caring about anyone or anything else in the world。 8/10- highly recommend 。。。more
J。R。 Murdock
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If you love Maddow on TV， you'll love her even more in writing。I knew a bit of what I was getting into when I bought this book。 I love watching Maddow's in-depth examination of politics and world events。 She doesn't just skim the surface and move along。 Oh no！ Maddow digs in and reveals all the details that have sitting there waiting to be revealed。This book isn't an easy read。 It is packed with facts， evidence， and more politics than you'd expect from one industry。 If you love geopolitical read If you love Maddow on TV， you'll love her even more in writing。I knew a bit of what I was getting into when I bought this book。 I love watching Maddow's in-depth examination of politics and world events。 She doesn't just skim the surface and move along。 Oh no！ Maddow digs in and reveals all the details that have sitting there waiting to be revealed。This book isn't an easy read。 It is packed with facts， evidence， and more politics than you'd expect from one industry。 If you love geopolitical reads， this is a book for you。 。。。more
Stephanie
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If you like Rachel Maddow's iconic storytelling style on TV， you will also like this book。 Maddow introduces various seemingly unrelated scenarios across different chapters， initially leaving the reader to ask what the partying habits of the Equatoguinean ruler's son Teodorin Obiang might have to do with earthquake swarms in Oklahoma， political upheaval in Ukraine， and Russian interference in the 2016 U。S。 election。 In the end， Maddow weaves all these separate threads together and her conclusion If you like Rachel Maddow's iconic storytelling style on TV， you will also like this book。 Maddow introduces various seemingly unrelated scenarios across different chapters， initially leaving the reader to ask what the partying habits of the Equatoguinean ruler's son Teodorin Obiang might have to do with earthquake swarms in Oklahoma， political upheaval in Ukraine， and Russian interference in the 2016 U。S。 election。 In the end， Maddow weaves all these separate threads together and her conclusions about the global oil and gas industry are quite alarming and eye-opening。 。。。more
Liz
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"When government is no match for the power of the industry， it instead becomes an enabler， an apologist， and often a corrupt participant in the industry running roughshod。"She is in every way a whistleblower， an investigative journalist who goes deep into the story to grab as many as possible connections and events as possible。 Her curiosity， humor， education， humanity and smarts make her one of the people who I trust most to explain the whole picture。Besides， her story telling style is mesmeriz "When government is no match for the power of the industry， it instead becomes an enabler， an apologist， and often a corrupt participant in the industry running roughshod。"She is in every way a whistleblower， an investigative journalist who goes deep into the story to grab as many as possible connections and events as possible。 Her curiosity， humor， education， humanity and smarts make her one of the people who I trust most to explain the whole picture。Besides， her story telling style is mesmerizing and engaging。！。。 Highly recommend if you have never read one of her books。 。。。more
Stephen Rynkiewicz
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Rachel Maddow reports on the business and politics of oil with the essay technique she demonstrates in her MSNBC broadcasts: overlooked or half-forgotten stories that foretell current events。 In the Arctic， Africa and Oklahoma， big bets on oil lead to poor governance， corruption， health or environmental ills， even warfare。 Vladamir Putin and Rex Tillerson have recurring roles in Maddow's drama， and in the last 50 pages Donald Trump enters stage right， so the reveal should be no surprise。 There's Rachel Maddow reports on the business and politics of oil with the essay technique she demonstrates in her MSNBC broadcasts: overlooked or half-forgotten stories that foretell current events。 In the Arctic， Africa and Oklahoma， big bets on oil lead to poor governance， corruption， health or environmental ills， even warfare。 Vladamir Putin and Rex Tillerson have recurring roles in Maddow's drama， and in the last 50 pages Donald Trump enters stage right， so the reveal should be no surprise。 There's a reason economists call it the resource curse。 。。。more
Maria Beatriz
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"For my friends everything， for my enemies， the law。"Uma exposição interessante de um tópico sobre o qual sabia muito pouco "For my friends everything， for my enemies， the law。"Uma exposição interessante de um tópico sobre o qual sabia muito pouco 。。。more
Janet
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Left wing journalist Rachel Maddow examines the oil and gas industry。 With billions of dollars at stake globally， it is no wonder that corruption exists at every level:-From states like Oklahoma， where big energy companies worth billions of dollars paid very little in taxes， yet teachers’ salaries are one of the lowest in the nation。 As fracking increased， so did groundwater contamination and earthquake swarms。-Developing countries such as Equatorial Guinea， where the ruling family has vast amou Left wing journalist Rachel Maddow examines the oil and gas industry。 With billions of dollars at stake globally， it is no wonder that corruption exists at every level:-From states like Oklahoma， where big energy companies worth billions of dollars paid very little in taxes， yet teachers’ salaries are one of the lowest in the nation。 As fracking increased， so did groundwater contamination and earthquake swarms。-Developing countries such as Equatorial Guinea， where the ruling family has vast amount of riches， provided by US based gas and oil companies， yet the average person has neither enough to eat， medical care or education。 And then there’s Russia and Vladimir Putin。 If you’ve been a bit confused as to what is going on with the Crimea， Ukraine and Russia， and how Rex Tillerson of ExxonOil became Trump’s Secretary of State and pushed for the removal of sanctions against Russia’s takeover of the Crimea， this book will be enlightening。It was painful for me to read; I took three months doing so。 Because of the current US， political upheaval， I often had my stomach churning。 And yet I feel it was time well spent。 I actually copied out *pages* of quotes to remember and perhaps use with this review。For instance， this quote on how Putin is seen as a moral savior of his country will sound familiar to many here in the US:“Vladimir Putin， …was the hero of the day。 （The First International Russian Conservative Forum） literature bannered excerpts from one of his recent speeches。 ‘We can see how many of the Euro-Atlantic countries are actually rejecting their roots， including the Christian values that constitute the basis of Western civilization。 They are denying moral principles and all traditional identities: national， cultural， religious and even sexual。 They are implementing policies that equate large families with same-sex partnerships， belief in God with the belief in Satan … People in many European countries are embarrassed or afraid to talk about their religious affiliations。 Holidays are abolished or even called something different; their essence is hidden away， as in their moral foundation。 And people are aggressively trying to export this model all over the world。 I am convinced that this opens a direct path to degradation， resulting in a profound demographic and moral crisis。 “ Here was a true moral leader; this was the consensus of the first ever International Russian Conservative Forum。 ‘The salvation of my generation is the great Russian people， because Vladimir Putin understand that the rights of the majority should be put before the whims and perversions of the minority ‘ …。” P 319But there is also hope:“But then something happened in Oklahoma。 What Happened was democracy。 ‘In politics， money most always trumps merit，” says Mike Cantrell， the independent Oklahoma oilman who finally got fed up with the lousy funding in education and bucked Big Oil in his state。 ‘But constituency tops everything”。 After years of killing cuts， the constituency finally started to kick up enough of a fuss that pols started to worry about damage to their elective selves if they stuck to the status quo。 “ p 344This is written with Maddow’s brand of a bit of humor and snark， that makes a tough subject eminently readable。 。。。more
Paige Kirby
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Maddow does it again！ Great audiobook version。
Evan Ross
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Rachel is an excellent writer。。。loved the humour/sarcasm she finished off many paragraphs with。
Sarah Wheeler
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Oil is behind everything。
Susan
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Dense but very interesting。 This is the second book I’ve read recently about Russia/Putin and the oil and gas industry and the connections between the two。 Lots of corruption and some pretty bad and crazy people。 Learned lots of fascinating facts and the book was well paced and written in an engaging way。 Solid listen。
Robbie Samuels
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Whoa。 Rachel does not disappoint。 She starts with the history of oil being discovered and weaves a startling interconnected global story of corruption and malfeasance。 I can't look away or unsee what I've learned。 Whoa。 Rachel does not disappoint。 She starts with the history of oil being discovered and weaves a startling interconnected global story of corruption and malfeasance。 I can't look away or unsee what I've learned。 。。。more
Debbie
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Fascinating and quite the page turner in the beam of recent history。 Rachel Maddow scores again with her unrelenting search for truth。
Scott Thompson
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I really liked her war book but this didn’t do much for me。 Not sure if her condescending attitude or dry sarcasm turned me off but it is an important topic that I hope more people look into。
Darice Murray
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