The Showman: Inside the Invasion That Shook the World and Made a Leader of Volodymyr Zelensky

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars | 310 ratings

Price: 17.32

Last update: 12-11-2024


About this item

Acclaimed journalist Simon Shuster gives us the first inside account of the Russian invasion of Ukraine from the perspective of President Volodymyr Zelensky and his team, who granted him unprecedented access.

Time correspondent Simon Shuster chronicles the life and wartime leadership of Volodymyr Zelensky from the dressing rooms of his variety show in Ukraine to the muddy trenches of his war with Russia. Based on four years of reporting; extensive travels with President Zelensky to the front; and dozens of interviews with him, his wife, his friends and enemies, his advisers, ministers and military commanders, The Showman tells an intimate and eye-opening story of the President’s evolution from a slapstick actor to a symbol of resilience, revealing how he managed to rally the world’s democracies behind his cause.

The book’s early chapters offer the first detailed account of Zelensky’s life in a nuclear bunker in the opening weeks of the invasion and the circumstances of his wife’s escape to safety with their children. Later, as the Russians retreat from Kyiv, we see Zelensky and his team emerge from the bunker and lead Ukraine in a series of crucial victories. The result is a riveting, up-close picture of the invasion as experienced by its number one target and improbable hero.

Clear-eyed about the President’s early failures as a peacemaker and his willingness to silence political dissent, the book offers a complex picture of a man struggling to break what he sees as a historical cycle of oppression that began generations before he was born. Even as the war drags on, Zelensky lays out his vision for its future course and, through his actions, demonstrates his strategy for countering the Russians and keeping the West on his side.

The Showman, as a work of eyewitness journalism, provides an essential perspective on the war defining our age. As a study in leadership and human resolve, its appeal is timeless and universal.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.


Top reviews from the United States

Travis B. Johnson
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Book, Amazing Leader in a unique time in history
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2024
I truly found this one of the best books I have ever read. I’m normally not one for biographies, but the way that the author wrote the book, breaking up the biography of Zelensky with the history of the start of the war in Ukraine, and all of its troubles with Russia, it was both refreshing and exhilarating to read.

The author absolutely does not sugarcoat or try and paint a completely beautiful picture of a perfect leader in Zelensky. He is shown with all his flaws, with views from multiple sides of his life and his presidency. No one is without fault in their character, or and how they handle their business, especially when they become a leader, and especially when they are a political novice like. Zelensky. All of this is shown, for all the world to see, and for any, and all to judge with what they read.

Even with all, that said, Zelensky it’s truly an inspiring and impressive leader, an individual who you see change throughout the book overtime from the comedian he was into the wartime leader, that he is now. Truly have nothing but respect and admiration for the president before, and I have even more so now after this book.

Slava Ukraini ????????
Donna Rivers
5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative
Reviewed in the United States on July 31, 2024
Very informative and well written. Only weird thing is it’s from the Mahwah Library in Mahwah, New Jersey. Thought I was getting it from Amazon. Was it bought from the Mahwah library or was it stolen from the library? I shouldn’t be paying for a library book.
Robert B. Lamm
4.0 out of 5 stars Bio-History
Reviewed in the United States on August 24, 2024
The first two-thirds of The Showman comprise a fascinating bio-history - that is, a biography of Volodymyr Zelensky in the context of the Russian invasion and the war that ensued. Shuster’s story of the transformation of a comedian into a president into a warrior is fascinating. It’s particularly impressive that the story is neither a hagiography nor a screed; rather, in Shuster’s hands, Zelensky is just a man, a mix of good and bad, strong points and failings.

However, the last third of the book was something of a let-down. There’s a bit too much discussion of the military and the conduct of the war and not enough of the man. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it is a departure from the first 200 pages, and the contrast was jarring and distracting. Maybe it needed a bit of editing, but I appreciate that in the epilogue, Shuster goes back to “basics,” which redeemed the book a bit.

Still, four our of five stars isn’t bad, and the book is definitely worth reading.
Michael
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book
Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2024
Really enjoyed the book
Michael Brochstein
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent biography of Zelenskyy
Reviewed in the United States on January 29, 2024
The author had excellent access to Zelenskyy and other relevant people and is an excellent writer. The author has reported from Russia and Ukraine for a long time and speaks Russian (as does Zelenskyy) so his interaction with the people he met were not necessarily filtered through a translator.

My only complain is an unfair one, that somehow it would have been great if the book covered events right up until the publication date. This is an unfair complaint as the editing and printing process take time. Highly recommended!
T
5.0 out of 5 stars Remarkable reporting
Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2024
Shuster provides a unique behind-the-scenes perspective on the leadership of a country at war. The focus is of course on Zelenskyy, his unlikely path from entertainer lampooning the politics of his country, to wartime president at the helm of it, amid the tumultuous history of his nation. The book strikes a good balance between the respect and human sympathy due to a brave and empathetic man pushed to the limits defending his country against steep odds, and the critical eye warranted by any leader holding that level of power and responsibility, who will inevitably make missteps with echoing repercussions.

I also appreciated the vivid portraits the book paints of the figures around Zelenskyy. Shuster interviewed practically everyone who's anyone in the highest echelons of power, and makes them come alive on the page with just a few lines, from the top general picking daisies for his wife to the aging functionary donating his car to the troops, colorful individuals with their strengths and foibles thrust alongside Zelenskyy into a terrible situation and rising to the occasion. I have a feeling many of these names will come up again in the future.
Sarah Padbury
5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting
Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2024
I’m a big Ukraine fan and Zelensky intrigues me. Finally, Mr Shuster has produced this very insightful and informative book. Ukraine must prevail in this war for all of our sakes.
Slava Ukraini!!
Brian Lewis
4.0 out of 5 stars How Showmanship Became Leadership in Ukraine
Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2024
At one point in this book, its subject, responding to the author's pitch, suggested that it was too soon for a book. Both for a biography of a man just in his 40s and new to politics and too soon to know the outcome of the terrible war his country was facing. While this book has many strengths, I think that skeptical approach has some truth to it.

The Showman attempts two things, each of which could produce a full book - one, a biography of Volodymyr Zelensky and second, a journal about the war in Ukraine. It is better at the biography part.

This is generally a favorable, even heroic, portrait of Zelensky, although it certainly does not hide from his areas of weakness. His wife Elena, the mother of his two children, vents about her husband not being at home enough. And Zelensky's leadership also comes under question. He ignored numerous American warnings about the Russian buildup to the invasion and after just months in power, he was over ruling his generals on military strategy.

It is very well done, and for now, the best possible view of the leader and the war that we have. But Zelensky had a point. It is just too soon to tell. I doubt this will stand as the definitive book about Ukraine.

Best Sellers in

 
 

MrBallen Presents: Strange, Dark & Mysterious: The Graphic Stories

0 0 out of 5 stars 0
13.94
 
 

The King of Diamonds: The Search for the Elusive Texas Jewel Thief

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 362
21.88
 
 

Miracle and Wonder: Conversations with Paul Simon

4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 75
21.84
 
 

The Meaning of Mariah Carey

4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 13968
29.66
 
 

Have I Told You This Already?: Stories I Don't Want to Forget to Remember

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1333
13.78
 
 

1861: The Civil War Awakening

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 461
26.21
 
 

Charlie Wilson's War: The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1044
21.54
 
 

Rogues: True Stories of Grifters, Killers, Rebels and Crooks

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1904
19.69