Too Much and Never Enough Audiobook By Mary L. Trump Ph.D. Ph.D. cover art

Too Much and Never Enough

How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man

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In this revelatory, authoritative portrait of Donald J. Trump and the toxic family that made him, Mary L. Trump, a trained clinical psychologist and Donald’s only niece, shines a bright light on the dark history of their family in order to explain how her uncle became the man who now threatens the world’s health, economic security, and social fabric.

Mary Trump spent much of her childhood in her grandparents’ large, imposing house in the heart of Queens, New York, where Donald and his four siblings grew up. She describes a nightmare of traumas, destructive relationships, and a tragic combination of neglect and abuse. She explains how specific events and general family patterns created the damaged man who occupied the Oval Office, including the strange and harmful relationship between Fred Trump and his two oldest sons, Fred Jr. and Donald.

A firsthand witness to countless holiday meals and interactions, Mary brings an incisive wit and unexpected humor to sometimes grim, often confounding family events. She recounts in unsparing detail everything from her uncle Donald’s place in the family spotlight and Ivana’s penchant for regifting to her grandmother’s frequent injuries and illnesses and the appalling way Donald, Fred Trump’s favorite son, dismissed and derided him when he began to succumb to Alzheimer’s.

Numerous pundits, armchair psychologists, and journalists have sought to parse Donald J. Trump’s lethal flaws. Mary L. Trump has the education, insight, and intimate familiarity needed to reveal what makes Donald, and the rest of her clan, tick. She alone can recount this fascinating, unnerving saga, not just because of her insider’s perspective but also because she is the only Trump willing to tell the truth about one of the world’s most powerful and dysfunctional families. Biographies & Memoirs Presidents & Heads of State Politics & Activism Politicians Thought-Provoking Emotionally Gripping Witty Scary Inspiring Funny

Critic reviews

"Psychologist Mary Trump said her biggest regret is that she did not tell Americans to vote against her uncle, Donald Trump, when he ran for the presidency. She tells her own story in this audiobook, speaking quite eloquently. . . . She talks about the president's childhood, when he learned to be selfish, manipulative, and greedy at the hands of his father, Fred (Mary's grandfather). She speaks about family holiday meals—characterized by jealousy, bitterness, favoritism, and mean-spiritedness outweighing the little love in the room. This is a short audiobook, and much of it is about other family members, including Mary's father, Freddy, who was ostracized after growing up in Donald's shadow. It shows that despite the family's great wealth, lack of love makes the Trumps poorer than most of us."
Psychological Insights • Compelling Family History • Authentic Narration • Unique Insider Perspective • Pleasant Voice

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Mary Trump's book was waiting for me in my audio que first thing this morning. As I proceeded with my 'stay at home' routine, I carried my laptop and listened. I finished an hour ago. It is well written and flows really well. It was good to hear the story in Mary's voice.
I did not learn anything that I did not already know or suspect, however, it was a reaformation of as Rick Wilson wrote: "Everything Trump Touches Dies".-- but with an insider's view and direct knowledge.
In the early 1980's when The Donald and Ivana were making the talk show rounds my husband said in disgust "Trump is a proclaimed self made man who thinks because he has experienced a bit of success thinks he is an expert on very thing". Little did we know then. I think Trump's first book should have been titled "The Art of the Lie".
I thank the author for telling her story and hopefully the country will benefit.

A Reaformation

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Initially, I didn’t believe the author would share things I hadn’t already gleaned... I was wrong! This memoir also confirmed information that I assumed... I wasn’t wrong! Finally, it was heart wrenching that the author affirmatively laid before the reader that “...the love of money is the root of all evil...” and that “...pride cometh before a fall...”. God have mercy on our nation!!!

Eye opening... confirming... and heart wrenching

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What a sad but dangerous man. Thank you for the insight. This is a must read to understand what is going on in our country and why.

A MUST read or listen.

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I️ get how people think she is complaining, BUT SHE ISN'T!!!!! All she's doing is proving a point. And she is doing it as a DOCTOR!!!! Everyone is entitled to their point of view, however, when I️ read some peoples' remarks, all I️ can see is how you don't care about the facts. She is spelling out why he is how he is. She even pities him!!! She breaks it all down for us in the most basic way. She chooses key points to show her proof. I️ liked it. Finished it in one sit. My only complaint is the reading speed so nothing too serious. I️ read it on 1.5x. Recommended.

THE TRUTH WE ALL NEEDED TO HEAR

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I promised myself I would not purchase any reporter’s book cash grabs, or “tell alls” of former staffers, or any of the gossip for sale on the bookshelves. I won’t fund the reality show that is the collapse of the American Republic.

Mary Trump’s story is different. I read about it in Politico (as I’m sure many did) and heard about the author’s bias and background and traits. It seemed to me this story would be unlike the stories that came before; a story that had nuance, nonpartisan analysis, and a regard for the truth that other books did not have. I was not disappointed.

I can’t say it wasn’t biased. At times, Mary Trump’s political leanings are clear: She says that Hillary Clinton was “arguably the most qualified candidate in US history”. She is part of the segment of America that is highly educated, and relatively very well off. Her epilogue is an exhortation to dump Trump. She alleges several slights that would anger anyone. And yet, this story rounds out a confusing character with ample clarity. I have often wondered what the hell was going on in Trump’s mind, and this narrative seems to explain so much of what was previously beyond all explanation.

The explanatory story of the book will not lead to any investigations or indictments. Donald will continue to get away with the worst without consequences. Mary Trump had to sacrifice court-worthy evidence for the sake of the comprehensiveness of the narrative. Her story must, of course, be qualified by the perspective she occupies, coupled with the fact that we are unlikely to get to know the honest perspective of any of the other people who might be able to have one.

I recommend this book to everyone because it does not come from a Trump peddling cheap wares. This is a story whose telling required a massive reserve of bravery: to defy the Trump family code, to expose her family’s bitter conflicts, and to denounce perhaps the most powerful man on earth—her uncle. This is not a small act, nor has she given any indication of attempting to profit off of Trump’s presidency as former staffers have. Instead, she is casting off her family’s toxic precedent of enabling Donald Trump with their silence and tacit endorsement.

But more importantly, this book shows a thoughtful look into the complicated relationships in a deeply dysfunctional and disturbed family. Unlike other works about the president, a new emotion is elicited: pity. The story shows a constant struggle of the Trump siblings to win their father’s approval, and how that illusory goal continued to thwart their chances of self-redemption and personal fulfillment. It is an incredibly unhappy story to which there is no apparent end. I wish the author well as she tries to forge a new path for herself despite the familial ruts of self-destruction. And seeing as she has accomplished so much already, it is of little surprise to me that she has a PhD in Clinical Psychology.

In the end, it appears that the maligned characters of this book are in a hell they have built for themselves. Unfortunately we cannot say if that hell will ever be commensurate with the hell they deserve.

Brave telling of a disturbed history

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