Too Much and Never Enough

I really liked that the author made it clear that assigning a diagnosis to Donald Trump is both unhelpful and impossible. Unhelpful because it diverts attention from actual criticism, and impossible because Donald has never had to function independently. I found her argument that Donald is essentially institutionalized particularly compelling: though he is not in a situation where he does have the freedom to microwave a burrito at 3 a.m., for his entire life he has been surrounded by people that make all his important decisions for him, and it has resulted in a need to be surrounded by yes-men at all times. I wouldn't use the word institutionalized because of the immense violence psychiatric institutions do, but it is very clear that Donald has never made an independent decision in his life.

Before I read Too Much And Never Enough, I knew very little about the Trump family. The family dynamic that made Donald who he is today is presented in great detail, and it does not exonerate him of any wrongdoing. Mary Trump expertly psychoanalyzes her uncle Donald in a way that both explains how he came to be callously self-centered and holds him accountable for it.