The Squad, Ryan Grim
The Squad, Ryan Grim
List: $28.99 | Sale: $20.29
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The Squad
AOC and the Hope of a Political Revolution

Author: Ryan Grim

Narrator: Ryan Grim

Unabridged: 13 hr 15 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 12/05/2023


Synopsis

A riveting insider account of the progressive movement in Congress centering A.O.C., Rashida Tlaib, Jamaal Bowman, Cori Bush, Ayanna Pressley, and Ilhan Omar—their rise, their efforts to set an ambitious agenda for the country, and their struggle to find their footing within the Democratic party.

The Squad is the definitive, must-read book about the most exciting figures defining our new era. The story is urgent, and the stakes are high—for the country and the world—and Grim, an experienced political reporter who covered the Squad before they were the Squad, is uniquely qualified to tell it.

When Bernie Sanders, an obscure Vermont senator, launched his quixotic 2016 presidential campaign, few could have seen just how radically the Democratic Party would transform in just a few short years—or that such a transformation could be led by a Bronx bartender volunteering for Bernie in her spare time. The world as it was when that campaign began is almost unrecognizable today, and the Squad has both shaped and been shaped by the seismic social, cultural, and political changes underway.

Referred to informally as the Squad, led by the preternaturally politically savvy Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the group laid down a marker for an aggressive left-wing agenda. Grim takes you behind the scenes as that new energy makes impact with Washington, and the Squad spends as much time fending off assaults from Donald Trump—who regularly singled them out and led chants of “send them back” at rallies—as they did battling their own party’s sclerotic leadership. As they’ve grown in office, they’ve had to contend with the eternal question that confronts outsiders who power their way into the inside: Are they still radical organizers willing and able to lead a political revolution?

A Macmillan Audio production from Henry Holt & Company.

About Ryan Grim

Ryan Grim is the co-founder of Drop Site News and the co-host of Counter Points. He was previously D.C. Bureau Chief for The Intercept (2017-2024) and HuffPost (2008-2017), where he led a team that won a Pulitzer Prize. He has been a staff reporter for Politico and Washington City Paper and is a former contributor to MSNBC and The Young Turks. He’s the author of the book We’ve Got People: From Jesse Jackson to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the End of Big Money and the Rise of a Movement and This is Your Country on Drugs: The Secret History of Getting High in America.


Reviews

Goodreads review by emma on January 20, 2024

i read approximately 1 actual work of real, heavy nonfiction annually. i'm happy about my choice this year! in truth, this book had so many commas—as in an unsettling, horror film-esque, simply unbelievable number of purely decorative commas—and it was significantly more about aoc than the actual squ......more

Goodreads review by Laurie on October 17, 2023

Described as a "riveting insider account"... It is not. It was, instead, a play-by-play of every political event from 2016 to the present. Based on the title, I thought this book would give more background information about the members of the "Squad" - what shaped them, how they won their campaigns,......more

Goodreads review by Maryanne on December 13, 2023

I never write reviews of books, but I had to after I saw the reviews on this book plummet. Clearly, a lot of people are not reading this, they are just attacking it. I understand if you do not like the format of the book in the way that it is written as a play-by-play of the progressive movement ove......more

Goodreads review by Lisa on January 03, 2024

So, I cheated a little, because I was reading an ARC from NetGalley and then I finished by listening to the library audiobook. The material was kind of dense because there were so many details. Honestly, I was kind of horrified at some of the techniques used by people working against each other. Yes......more

Goodreads review by Sawyer on January 04, 2024

Fantastic book. If you want an insider's look at how politics works in Washington I highly recommend this book. It will really show you how money runs Washington but also give you hope as to how the average Joe can fight back.......more


Quotes

“[Ryan Grim] needs to do his own show. He’s really good . . . objective . . .no bullshit rhetoric.”
Joe Rogan

“If you've been reading Ryan Grim's consistently groundbreaking reporting over the past decade, the recent monumental shift in our politics came as little surprise. For anybody who wants to understand where we've been and where we're going, The Squad is an essential read.”
Naomi Klein, New York Times bestselling author

“[Grim] has become one of the most authoritative voices in Washington on a wide range of topics, but his specialty has always been giving voice to the voiceless and taking on powerful institutions trying to screw over the most vulnerable among us.”
Lydia Polgreen, New York Times columnist

"Political reporter Grim, D.C. bureau chief for the Intercept, examines the rise, challenges, and influence of six aggressive left-wing politicians: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley, and Ilhan Omar, branded by the media as The Squad, and the two representatives who joined them in 2021, Jamaal Bowman and Cori Bush...Drawing on his own on-the-ground reporting, Grim creates a detailed account of seven tumultuous years. An insider’s often dismaying picture of national politics."
Kirkus Reviews