This book is a readable and basic biography about Rachel Maddow. The better parts of the book focus on Rachel Maddow's career.

Because the book is mostly based on published interviews of Rachel Maddow ,the book reads a lot like a long interview of Rachel Maddow where she is being somewhat but totally open about her life. I call this a "basic" biography because there is not much analysis of either Rachel Maddow's personal life or work in the book.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

First book of 2020!!

This was a fairly short read (just about 200 pages), on a person I greatly admire. I watched her show for years, but now listen to it while commuting to and from work each day. I didn't really know much about her as a person so I jumped at the chance to read this to get to know her better. I was surprised many times at how much she isn't that typical liberal. In listening to her show, I feel that she is very fair in getting at the truth (no matter at whose expense it is (liberal/conservative)) and criticizing corrupt behavior and those people who work against the common interests of everyone in our country. However, she is much more down the middle than I realized and that only makes me respect her more. Her whole goal in life is to provide information to her fellow citizens about things that aren't getting the headlines so as to inform. Her preparation for everything she does is borderline obsessive and unhealthy, but that is the only way she can do it. It must come at a great personal toll on her health mentally and physically (and I now will try to stifle my feelings of annoyance when she takes the day off), but she has taught me something almost every time I listen to her and for that I am thankful.

I think the biggest takeaway I'd like to mention is that if you write her off as the lead talking head of an ultra liberal network then you are sorely mistaken. If anything, this book further illustrates to me that we all are too quick to judge each other and put people in boxes based on certain characteristics. Rachel had great relationships with people you would be surprised at (i.e. Tucker Carlson and Pat Buchanan) despite her steadfast disagreement with their policy positions. I even scratch my head at some of her reasonings, but that is the point, isn't it?

My one slight criticism is that I wish there would have been a chapter that was more current. It sounds like this kind of ended in mid 2018, but a lot has changed (particularly with people Rachel had close relationships with of conservative views) and I'm very curious how those relationships have evolved with those changes. Are those people unrecognizable to her? Or does she still find a way to bridge the political divide?

Thank you to Netgalley, Thomas Dunne Books and Lisa Rogak for the opportunity to read this book and provide an honest review.

Review Date: 01/01/2020
Publication Date: 01/07/2020

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a free ebook in exchange for a fair review.

I like Rachel Maddow. I'm impressed with her quick intellect. I'm fascinated with the conspiracy theories she sometimes weaves on her show. There's an interesting juxtaposition of brilliance and craziness in them.

I was happy therefore to learn more about Rachel Maddow. This book provided me with a thorough biography of Rachel Maddow. Her life was exactly as I thought it would be. This book is an extremely positive portrayal and the Rachel in this book is exactly the Rachel I imagined.

This book is written like an extended Wikipedia article. There are no deep insights or revelations. It seems to have been culled from magazine and newspaper articles and interviews. I eventually grew a little bored. That's suprising because Rachel Maddow is anything but boring.

Even though it’s been awhile since I have seen Rachel Maddow’s show I feel like I knew most of the information that was in this book already. As a casual fan I don’t feel like this offered a lot of insight into the subject. I think the book suffers from lack of direct access to Maddow herself, having to rely entirely on easily accessible public information.

I watch the fantastic Rachel Maddow every night.This book was a terrific look at the real Rachel what makes her tick.Highly recommend a terrific read,#netgalley#st.martinspress

Rachel Maddow has been my favorite on-air news reporter/personality for many years. This well-written and well-researched book further solidified my interest in Maddow's work. She not only tells it like it is but she has the less than ideal background to have true empathy for others. This book is a must read for anyone who wants to know more about Maddow's life and career.

Finished Rachel Maddow: A Biography by Lisa Rogak. Full Disclosure: I was asked to review this book by the publisher. I’m not sure I would have read this book if I wasn’t offered the opportunity to review, but I’m glad I did. I knew of Rachel Maddow in passing from CNN and recently read her book
Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on Earth, but this biography gave me a much greater understanding of the person. I never questioned her intelligence, she is after all a Rhodes scholar. What I found so disarming is her inherent decency and her ability to connect with so many people regardless of their political persuasion. I was particularly taken by her enduring friendship with Pat Buchanan, a not easy to like right wing pundit.I really liked this quote from Maddow in the book: "I don’t believe that people who disagree in American politics are all that different from one another as humans." I miss the days one could politely disagree in political matters but still respect the other person. Knowing what I know now I would definitely have sought out this book on my own.

Rachel Maddow is a fantastic book and a must buy for the holidays. It is well written and well researched. A must read.

Rachel Maddow is one of our favorite people. She tells it the way she sees it. 


Coming from California in one of the only tiny Red sections of the state, she quickly outgrew the conservative beliefs of her hometown and has always considered herself an outsider. 


This is a good look at some of her family and personal life, as well as the story of how she became the top anchor at MSNBC and the only one that our current president never calls out! Why? Because this woman researches everything. She loves shining the light on the things politicians don't want us to see or talk about.


She is respectful of all of her guests, no matter the political affiliation. I think this is one of the many things we admire her for. She isn't putting on a show or being flashy, she's showing you and explaining the facts. Just the facts. And for that, we watch her every time she is on the air.


Rachel does not just spout opinions, she walks us through the tangled web of politics today and helps us understand the FACTS. 






NetGalley/ January 7th, 2020 by Thomas Dunne Books

Biographies are not the genre of books I generally read especially about media celebrities. I find celebrity obsession toxic and a gross invasion into their personal lives. However, since I have purchased and read books by the subject, RM, I decided to read her biography. To be honest, the first section of the books held my interest but then I got bored, really bored. It was merely a chronology of RM life. Clearly absent from reading the book is the wit and charm of RM that is portrayed on television especially the last few minutes of the her show when she chats with LO.

I believe individuals who follow her show on MSNBC will find this book interesting especially the early years.

I obtained a free copy of this book from NetGalley for an honest review.

As a huge fan of Rachel’s work, I was very excited to read this book. And it’s nice to get to know more about her. But most of the information here is something Rachel has already talked about before or has been reported by others in profiles, so it didn’t feel like I got to know much new stuff. It’s possible that’s only because I’ve listened to a lot her interviews. But I would have liked if there were more personal anecdotes from Rachel herself than those around her.

Overall this is a good biography but it’s probably better targeted towards readers who don’t know much about Rachel but are interested.

Yes! Everything about this is a Yes! Big yes! I loved it so much. She's such an inspiration and to read her story is everything. 5/5 stars

it is always so amazing to be able to take a peek into the life of someone you admire. This book does that in spades. When you are so used to watching someone, it is sometimes hard to remember the humanity and that they had to start somewhere. This book does a wonderful job of clearly going over everything while still making it seem engaging and real.

I don't watch the news or have cable TV, but I do read a lot ... well, more than a lot so I wanted to find more about this news celebrity Rachel Maddow. This book will tell you more than you ever wanted to know about her, and in a very gushing way. I would say it is not very even handed. Yes, she is brilliant and an overachiever, and she wants everyone to know she is gay by announcing it publicly. Two things I noticed, 1) her father is Jewish and apparently converted to Catholicism but still named his daughter a very Jewish name, and 2) she thought her parents were angry when she announced her sexual preference publicly first. I don't think so on either account and parents know if their kids are cisgender or not long before they get to college.

How delighted I was to find out a biography of Rachel Maddow was being published. Even more thrilled when Netgalley and the publishers approved my request to read it. While reading it, however, I felt there were several gaps. For example, as a teenager, Maddow "borrowed" her family's Vanagon. It ran out of gas. What happened next?
I was enjoying the book, then bam! It was over. The last quarter of the book is simply a bibliography of notes from where Rogak got her sources. Were any real interviews done by Rogak? I don't think Rogak mentioned Maddow's newest book Blowout although she mentioned other books Maddow has authored. I plan to search these out.

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Review I am a huge Rachel fan. Her ability to tell a story in an enlightening and factual way is incredible. I was happy to learn about her educational background as well as her passions. Great book.

I enjoyed this book and learned quite a bit about Rachel. It's an easy read and well worth the time. I look forward to Rogak's next work.

Rachel Maddow's TV show is consistently engaging and informative, but this real life visit into her life was fantastic. Its always interesting to get to know your favorite TV host a bit better and to hear what makes Rachel Maddow tick was just that.

When I first saw this book, I thought the cover was not very attractive. But, once I read the book, I think it's perfect for Rachel. This biography really helped me to know her as a person, rather than a television personality. I now know where she's coming from and can better enunciate why I like her work so much. Though she has a show on a network that's labeled by some as "liberal," I see that Rachel resists labels and it's not her intent to change people's minds, but rather to explain things in a way that helps them think critically about a topic and form their own opinions. We need more Rachel Maddows in this country!
That said, I think a bit too much emphasis was placed on the business side of talk radio and TV news networks in the last half of the book. I was disappointed not to hear more about Rachel's experiences with her shows, the people she's met/debated/interviewed and the issues she's covered. I was surprised to reach the end of the book and thought "that's all?"

When a biographer relies only on previously published or television interviews of their subject, the subsequent book is weak. A good biography needs to include interviews of family, friends, and coworkers of the subject. Unfortunately, Rogak uses only the former. As a result, the book is a dry telling of Rachel Maddow's life.

I have been a long time fan of Maddow, and I didn't learn anything new about what makes her the person I see on television every night. Also, I find the cover picture to be unflattering.

#NetGalley