Less a traditional memoir than a closely observed, gripping chronicle of politics and journalism during a decade of turmoil.

Because Baron had published no previous books and hardly any articles, I had no idea of what kind of writer he would be. Editing and writing are related but separate skills, like directing and acting. Baron turns out to be good at both.

Media junkies will find both books indispensable. But like Robert Caro’s biographies, they should appeal to anyone interested in power: how it operates, and how it is lost.

Baron dishes his media stories, most of which involve Trump, largely chronologically. Those of us so inclined will be re-enraged, but not in any new way, about Trump’s threat and how journalism responded. It doesn’t help Baron that much of the ground he covers has already been thoroughly dissected.

It’s a promising setup, but Baron offers very few juicy or even semi-juicy tidbits about his experience with Bezos.

Baron...clearly has researched extensively and thought deeply about how to cover the unprecedented presidency of Donald Trump.

Making an engrossing debut, Baron recounts in candid detail his more than eight-year tenure as executive editor of the Washington Post.