Media

Melania Trump Is a New York Times No. 1 Bestselling Author

COMING OUT ON TOP

With her eponymous memoir, she beat out Lisa Marie Presley, Riley Keough, and Ina Garten.

Copies of Melania Trump's new book sit on a shelf at Barnes & Noble bookstore
Kent J. Edwards/REUTERS

Just when you think nothing that a Trump does can surprise you anymore, The New York Times drops its best-seller list, with Melania Trump’s name in the No. 1 slot.

The former first lady’s eponymous memoir, Melania, is apparently the highest-selling hardcover nonfiction book of the week. Clinching the top spot, she beat out fellow memoirists Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough, as well as Ina Garten, whose Be Ready When the Luck Happens has been described as “fireside chatty and conversational in tone.”

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The same cannot be said for Melania, whose style the Times called “bland” and “obfuscating.” In its just over 180 pages, substantially bolstered by photo inserts, Melania reportedly reveals very little, beyond her enduring disbelief in the results of the 2020 election and her qualified support for abortion rights. She does share a bit about her Slovenian family (inventors of the Raka onion, apparently), hatred of raw fish, and how she stole her husband, Donald Trump, off an anonymous blonde.

Not the most riveting stuff, many critics agreed, though Amazon reviewers hailed Melania as “an easy read,” “a highly intelligent book,” and “refreshing and insightful.” Ahead of its publication, the memoir hit number one on Amazon’s bestseller list as well, maybe because of this purportedly compulsive readability.

Then again, it’s potentially worth remembering that when Trump’s son, Don Jr., published his book (Triggered) in 2019, it was his father’s supporters and GOP allies who allegedly bought the first-time author his bestseller status. But who knows if anything similar might be going on here. Maybe all those cryptic promotional videos really paid off.

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