To quote the description "In The MAGA Diaries, she tells not only her story of loving and leaving the conservative movement but the history of the right wing, painting a shocking picture of how they recruit, train, and indoctrinate generations of young people and shape them into the influential leaders and the supporting cast of tomorrow’s Republican party. They are ruthless in building robust networks of power, even if it means demolishing entire civic institutions, from women’s rights to fair elections—and staging a coup when it doesn’t work out." Replace the words Republican Party with Democratic Party and retitle the book ANTIFA and you have basically the same issues. Both books would be horribly biased, narrowminded and of little value.

Compelling, thought provoking, concisely written, readable… just an overall amazing book. Will definitely be recommending it to others

The MAGA Diaries by Tina Nguyen is a compelling and thought-provoking exploration of the political and cultural landscape shaped by the MAGA movement. Nguyen's work delves into the personal stories and perspectives of individuals deeply ingrained in this political ideology.

Nguyen, with her sharp journalistic eye, presents a balanced narrative that neither vilifies nor glorifies her subjects. Instead, she offers a nuanced portrayal that encourages readers to understand the complexities and motivations behind the movement. The book's strength lies in its ability to humanize a group often depicted in monolithic terms, providing a platform for diverse voices within the MAGA community.

The writing is engaging and accessible, making it suitable for a broad audience. However, some readers might find the lack of critical analysis on certain issues a drawback, as the book leans more towards storytelling rather than in-depth political critique.

Overall, The MAGA Diaries is an insightful read for anyone looking to gain a deeper understanding of modern American politics through the lens of those who fervently support a controversial and influential movement.

Nguyen started her journalism career working for right-wing/conservative media. After a few years, she moved on to work for other publications. Nguyen's memories of her time in conservative media does lay a ground work for the culture in the years proceeding the MAGA movement and helps us to understand how much stronger the conservatives are at building a media organization that works together. However, since Nguyen had stopped working for right-right networks prior to the introduction of the MAGA movement, I feel like the title could have explained the focus of the book a bit better. Regardless, Nguyen's experiences were interesting and having a peek at the connections between those working at a variety of sources was enlightening.

What you do get is a well-rounded read that summarizes how we got to our current political climate, but with some boring bits that read like a history textbook.

This book was...weird.

It was kinda interesting to read about Nguyen's experiences working for various media outlets covering politics (everything from Tucker Carlson to Vanity Fair). She constantly says how "shunned" she felt as a hardcore, lifelong conservative working at "mainstream" places like Vanity Fair, Politico, etc., BUT she never examines WHY that might be. Why is it that a lot of "mainstream" people find those views repugnant? Maybe there's something there you should look deeper at, and question why you chose to believe those things? Nope, no introspection there, just a "feel sorry for me as the outcast" surface-level look.

She also never really explains much about what drew her to the conservative movement as a very young person, aside from "people I know liked it" and that she followed her boyfriend to some right-wing "college." Great reasoning there.

But the real clincher here (and, honestly, in most books by Never Trump Republicans) is that she keeps saying how surprised and stunned she is when these people she's grown up idolizing and surrounding herself with turn out to be horrible, racist, MAGA trash. This makes me want to scream. Why did so many of us see it coming from miles away, years ago, but the people right in the thick of it are now acting so "shocked"? Selective ignorance or guilty covering-of-the-tracks behavior is my guess.

This book is readable in a "rubbernecking at an accident" sort of way, but if you're expecting deep-thinking answers or a real, honest look at someone's life path through this cesspool, you won't find it here.

This had some really shocking information, that I would not have thought about. It also really showed the insidious system of the conservative pipeline and how it gets more people to join.

First and foremost, thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a pretty interesting and unique memoir. I had no idea what to expect going into this one. I actually listened to the audiobook, narrated by the author, which enhanced the experience.

I found the author’s deep knowledge of the far right interesting, but not knowing as much about it, I was often confused by the people/news outlets/newspapers mentioned.

Overall, an interesting memoir

Unique perspective of someone who spent time ingrained in a political ideological system to which they no longer belong. Interesting as well to follow the development of Tina’s career and the relationships involved. Even though it was generally chronological, for some reason it felt hard to follow at times. Also there were a few too many speculations and not enough conclusions to be overly compelling to me.

This book follows this author's early career and what she witnessed as she moved through the media world. I found a lot of her experience to be particularly insightful, especially going into the next election and into the future of our country. It was somewhat surprising the level of planning that goes into the indoctrination of the ALT right and how long their long game is. I feel that there are definitely clear agendas and mouthpieces that are organized and set up to spread whatever message they want through their side of the media. It really made sense how people would believe this information as it was spoon fed to them from many different right sided sources. They are told repeatedly that they cannot trust the media when they are the ones controlling it. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

the Maga diaries was very revealing about all the Republican party is doing to shift the country. I appreciated the author's approach and sometime humor about it all. It was very interesting and scary at the same time!

Appropriately, I started this on the day of the 2024 New Hampshire presidential primary. The MAGA Diaries is a memoir about a Millennial journalist with a front row seat of the present day US Republican party and conservative news outlets. It's a tell all of sorts and gives so much color to the well oiled and well funded machine of conservative politics.

I found some things pretty eye-opening, but it makes so much sense. Republicans are playing the long game and investing in young people, while Democrats generally seem much more disorganized and young leftists so impatient.

I am solidly on the left, but somehow, I didn't find the memoir enraging like watching the news now is. Nguyen has such a fresh and unique perspective. She seems to see beyond both major political parties and the facade of both. The tone is funny and lighthearted while imparting some hard-hitting truths about the Republican party and news media.

I listened to the audiobook which is wonderfully narrated by the author. She has such a fun, pitch-perfect Millennial delivery.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

This memoir, written by journalist Tina Nguyen, who spent much of her career working within conservative media, was fascinating. Through her experiences and viewpoint, she is able to paint a clearer picture of how the Conservative Party has morphed and gained the power we see today. As someone who truly found herself in the center of some pretty major events and running in circles with key players within the party, her account was incredibly eye-opening.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the advance copy.

The title immediately attracted me. I am Canadian so I don't actually have a horse in the race of US politics, but I am endlessly interested in the politics in the US. The problem with this book is that it digresses in so many places. The author starts talking about a specific situation and ends up being all over the place. This was a huge turn off for me.

An honest and compelling memoir written by Tina Nguyen. She draws on her experiences at university in the world of right-wing student activism, leaving that movement around the same time she was building her career in journalism to tell the story of how the movement, now the MAGA movement, operates. She pulls back the curtain in a way that only someone with her life experiences could write about and exposes truths that everyone needs to pay attention to.

I found this to be a well-written and informative book. I felt like it was one of those things where you have to be familiar with the people mentioned in order to follow what was going on, which I struggled with at times. Overall, I found this to be an interesting read.

This was an interesting read because of its perspective. Nguyen tells the story of her journey through school into the working world and her contacts with influential right-wing characters. In the beginning, she was almost a true believer, and she was able to fit in with the MAGA crowd.
However, as she experienced more and more within that crowd, Nguyen realized that her values did not always align, and there was no room for people like her who disagreed about anything. Even though she obviously realizes what she is dealing with, Nguyen stays surprisingly patient with her MAGA contacts, such as when she is talking with a flummoxed Tucker Carlson who doesn't realize that people were listening during the hundreds of times he raved about replacement theory, a conspiracy theory that unites MAGA against minorities.
Honestly, I wanted more, and I wanted more judgment. But this is an important story because it tells the story of someone who worked inside MAGA groups and can speak honestly about it.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

I sped through this - Nguyen's prose captivates from the beginning, and holds attention through the final chapters. The blend of observations with memoir helped to both understand Nguyen's own journey, as well as the forces that have shaped the far/alt/online right ecosystem. The chapter on the Convention of States was chilling and quite informative, and the epilogue with her conversation with Tucker Carlson helped shed perhaps the most light readers will get on the media personality that has defined the last few years of punditry.

'The MAGA Diaries' by Tina Nguyen offered me insight into the U.S. political landscape, a subject I've been eager to understand better.

Nguyen's narrative, reflecting a perspective from my generation, dives into the rise and intricate dynamics of the MAGA movement.

Her transformation from a politics-obsessed student into a critical observer of right-wing activism is both enlightening and sobering.

The book details her experiences with key conservative figures and her exploration of extreme facets of right-wing ideology.

Though some parts were slightly dry for me, as I'm not fully familiar with all the U.S. political players, the personal anecdotes and in-depth analysis kept me engaged.

Nguyen's account of how young Republicans are recruited and molded into influential figures is a crucial narrative for anyone trying to grasp the currents of American politics.

I was fortunate to receive an advanced reader copy of this thought-provoking book, which will be released on January 16, 2024.

I was excited when I read the blurb for this. I was curious to read insight from someone who saw the rise of the far right from the inside. Unfortunately I found this memoir too wordy for my liking. The author spends pages talking about superfluous information when we want to get to the good stuff.