TOUGH CROWD

DeSantis’ ‘Dull’ Book Fails to Prove His National Appeal, NYT Review Says

The Florida governor continues his culture war, pro-Trump and anti-media tirade in the book—but he's unable to further endear himself, critic Jennifer Szalai writes.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ new book struggles to humanize the polarizing leader, New York Times critic Jennifer Szalai opines in a scathing review ahead of the book’s Thursday release. “The Courage to be Free” suffers from a “dull coldness” that “all the culture war Mad Libs can't distract from,” Szalai writes. DeSantis’ book drops Thursday and will kick off a media tour that he’s expected to parlay into an attempt to be the Republican nominee in 2024. According to early reviews, the book stays very much within DeSantis’ wheelhouse—a hatred for newspapers, praise for Donald Trump and continued culture war discourse. But strategists hoping the book will endear him to a national audience will be “sorely disappointed,” Szalai writes. “The bullying sense of superiority is unmistakable, even when he tries to gussy it up in a mantle of freedom,” she added. “DeSantis is not taking any chances: He may have been able to ‘withstand’ the ‘indoctrination’ of being exposed to ideas he didn't like, but he doesn't seem to believe the same could be said for anyone else.”