An enthralling narrative about distressing events of January 6th, 2021.

'Siege: An American Tragedy' by Anita Batholomew sums up publicly available information sources to present a coherent story of the Capitol siege.

For those who don't want to wait for the official release of the January 6th report from the Capitol Select Committee, the book will be a brief helpful guide into the core of the siege. Events are organized in chronological order, sometimes minute-by-minute, illuminating both sides of the conflict, cops and insurrectionists. The book shows what variety of characters supported Trump, from wild conspiracy theories followers to retired army veterans. The horror of the siege lies in the fact that both sides believed they defended the country and democracy. That's one baby step away from the civil war. The author argues that the threat of the civil war hasn't disappeared because Trump still cherishes the thought of becoming a president for the second term.

Everyday language makes the reading of the book very easy. The author exploits the dramatic effect to underscore the focal points or to jump from one participant to another. As summary, the book is ideal for readers who know little about the siege. However, with time, 'Siege' will disappear in the sea of books with the analytical approach.

I received an advance review copy through Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Siege An American Tragey by Anita Bartholomew

9780983992226

228 Pages
Publisher: Bartholomew & Co. Inc, Independent Book Publisher Association
Release Date: June 30, 2022

Nonfiction, History, Politics, Civil Unrest

This is a book that everyone in America should read. At times, it is difficult because it brings us bad to that terrible day. It tells how January 6, 2021, happens and the events that led up to it. We all saw the events as it was unfolding in real time on television, but we did not know how well thought out and planned the coup attempt it was. The book is well researched, and it is written in an easy-to-understand style. I have read it twice already because I could not truly believe the back story to the insurrection. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

Thank you to Bartholomew & Co., Inc and Netgalley for the ARC.

This isn't a bad book. In fact, I think it's a well researched description of events that took place before and leading up to the January 6th insurrection. I think a person with little or no knowledge of what happened that day would be well informed after reading this book. The reason I'm only giving it a 3 star review is that I'm not sure it's necessary. Much of the research seems be publicly available information from either news reports or interviews given on television or print. As far as I can tell, there's no original research by Ms. Bartholomew. Instead, she's taken that information and consolidated into a narrative form to tell the story of what happened that day. That doesn't make this a bad product. It's just not one I found very useful. I certainly learned some things I didn't know about (or don't remember learning before), but not much of this is new to me. To her credit, she did do a handful of exclusive interviews with various people. So I don't want to misrepresent her work, here. I'm just not sure it was enough for me to make this a worthwhile read.

Again, I think any reader who hasn't been keeping up with the details of what happened could do worse. This book is informative and well written. If you're one of those readers, then I recommend it.

If you've been following the news and the hearings, I think you'll find this book is mostly covering information you're already aware of.

January 6th was a horrible day. And I believe Trump needs to be held accountable. Reading this I was disgusted anew by the sycophants who allowed this to happen and those who continue to dismiss the event and "peaceful protest"
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance read.

Was not aware of this title or this author, but I am very interested in what happened on January 6, 2021 and the impact on our country and democracy. In short, this is a well-written and detailed analysis of the events on the afternoon of 1/06/2021 when the Capitol of the United States was breached by a mob of Trump loyalists and others with the goal of disrupting or overtaking the government. I found the writing to be very objective and balanced given the topic. I learned a lot that I didn't know about some of the participants, the officers and Capitol police who were attacked, beaten and nearly killed, and the aftermath--which is still pending given the House investigation of the incident.

It is truly a shocking, disappointing and sad to experience what happened on January 6. I am still disgusted by what happened, and like many I hold Donald Trump responsible. This comes from a conservative Republican who respects the Constitution and the Rule of Law in the United States.

I'm still amazed that there are many Americans who viewed what happened on January 6 as an event blown out of proportion by the liberal news media or let the Trump Administration off with no accountability. If you read Siege your viewpoint may change. Hopefully Trump will never hold another office in his lifetime.

I want to thank NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book as well as the author and publisher.

Anita Bartholomew delivers a brilliant account of the January 6th siege of the US Capitol. She looks at the build up and foreshadowing to the event, showing that something like this was in danger of happening for a while. She also gives a play by play of events on 6th January and the aftermath of the event. The book is very well researched and the author shows how the siege could have been prevented, or at least less serious in nature. She brings humanity to the story, by giving profiles of the some of the insurrectionists and also police who were there. This was interesting, particularly regarding the insurrectionists. We can see their background and how they became involved in the events of 6th January - how the message of Trump became so deeply ingrained in their psyches to the point where they were willing to storm the Capitol. The accounts of the police are particularly moving and we can see the depth of the aftermath. We can see the affects on those involved on all sides, including the system that was being fought over and it is an important lesson for the future. This book is an important read.

This is a fantastic narrative overview covering the 2021 United States Capitol attack/insurrection on 6th January 2021. Comprehensive in nature yet succinct enough to be a quick read, this is a perfect guide to someone who doesn’t completely understand the nuances of American politics and the political system under which the Presidential election takes place. This book covers the before, the during, and the aftermath of this colossal event staining US contemporary history, and offers poignant warnings on how to prevent something so catastrophe and vile from happening again.

With interviews from law enforcement, congress members, and even details explaining the speculative motive of certain insurrectionists, including the “QAnon Shaman” this is a truly spectacular read. The psychology of Trump is fascinating to all regardless of political affiliation, this is a historic and important read/lesson for ALL - even those who have/still unfortunately support wild conspiracy theories and fringe groups.

A thoroughly interesting and engrossing non-fiction book, the writing was superb and it is evident a huge amount of research has gone into this book.

A stunning amount of research must have been done for this book. It's a minute by minute accounting of what went on in DC on January 6, 2021. The January 6th Congressional committee should subpoena this book. It is cinematic in style. I could easily see what was happening in my mind's eye. I highly recommend.

Considering the hearings that are going on about the riot on the Capitol, "Siege" gives background and understand, not found any where else

"Siege" by Anita Bartholomew takes a direct look at the insurrection that occurred on January 6, 2021. Much of this story has been told before, be it on news programs, one or two-hour specials, documentaries, or personal accounts. The newest and most in-depth account will undoubtedly be from the January 6 committee, but "Siege" immediately gets to the heart of the matter and outlines the various planning that went into the insurrection from both the Trump Whitehouse and the various right-wing groups (Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, Three Percenters, etc.) who participated in the 'siege.' If you were one of those watching these events unfold on television, you would be right to think that this was a protest that 'got out of hand' and a 'few bad apples' led to many doing something they otherwise would not have. The truth of the matter is that this was planned. It was just another weapon in Trump's arsenal to use as he pleases in order to invalidate a fair and legal election. After more than 60 court cases that challenged the election results were thrown out, this was another attempt to retain power.

This is a quick read and a rather raw one at that as the accounts from some of the congressmen and women and police officers on the ground are at times difficult to read keeping in mind that they had no clue how their day would end.

Siege by Anita Bartholomew carries the sub-title An American Tragedy. To anyone who loves the USA and believes in democracy, the events in Washington DC on 6 January 2021 were a very real tragedy and this extensively researched, superbly written and powerful book exposes just how close the rampaging mob of Trump supporters, encouraged by the outgoing president and a motley collection of lawyers, right-wing media pundits and conspiracy theorists, came to overthrowing the legitimate result of the 2020 presidential election. Like millions in the USA and around the world, I watched the live television images from the Capitol building on that awful day initially with incomprehension and then with mounting horror but the television cameras could not capture everything that was going on inside the building. This book helps paint the full, shocking picture. One particular image from the book resonated massively with me. A battered and exhausted Capitol Police officer, who had battled the invading mob for hours, was able to rest after the building was finally cleared. He sat on a bench in the Rotunda, reflected on the horrors he had seen and experienced that day, and cried out in anguish “Is this America?”

There is no doubt which side of the “insurrectionists or patriots?” argument Anita Bartholomew is on but the way she marshals and presents impeccably resourced facts add weight and credibility to her account. The impression I got from this book is that it is written with a tightly controlled fury (which only very occasionally spills over into explicit outrage) and this makes the story it tells even more compelling. The book also warns of the challenges to American democracy which may still be to come - a very sobering thought.

An important and highly recommended book.

An eye-opening, disturbing read. Even though I watched the storming of the U.S. Capitol, reading all the details from start to finish, learning of all the miscues and delays in response and preparation, it is still jarring and at times unbelievable that it even happened. Bartholomew captures the horror of the day quite eloquently, so much so that it's hard to not read even as you get filled with shock at what happened. An excellent, emotionally gripping book.

Overpopulation, under educated employees and no one and I mean no one following the rules or the reason for the downfall of many presents. I think someone in the book said it best to new building isn’t going to fix the problems because the same more people will be running it. I found this book to have a lot of great research and interesting stories I especially love the one about Angela Davis and her cohorts in the meeting through the window. There’s a lot to be said if you want to fix the problems talk to the people these problems affect. I thoroughly enjoyed this book in a few love social history then you should start by reading this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it. I gave it five stars and it deserves every one of them. I was given this book by Nick Galli and I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any grammar or punctuation errors as I am blind and dictate my review but all opinions are definitely my own.

Wow. Informative and infuriating. I've purposely avoided most news since 2016 and didn't know the substance of what the conspiracy theories claim, nor have I watched much about Jan 6. Now I'm in utter shock. I was riveted and finished this in a few hours. It takes us into the Capitol, onto the front lines with the officers, and introduces us to several of the terrorists. Finally, it lays out the issues surrounding the fate of democracy, such as it is, in the US. Very well researched; both thought-provoking and enraging.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.