October 1, 2020
Donald is in his final year as a cadet at the New Jersey Military Academy in 1963 when a prank gone wrong leads to the accidental death of his best friend and roommate, Teddy. Stanley Wong saw Donald on the ledge outside the colonel's office, but Stanley's father, who is the leader of a Hong Kong crime family, taught him never to snitch, even if Stanley hates the racist nickname Donald gave him. The Newark police deem Teddy's death a suicide, but pressure from Teddy's parents, and some evidence from the school librarian, Rosemary Duncannon, lead Colonel Overstreet to open his own investigation. Donald, sensing trouble, bribes and cajoles his way through, while his father works a business advantage. Though Donald's last name is never mentioned in the novel, everything from his bullying and self-aggrandizement to the cover design to debut novelist Bennett's introductory note indicate that he is a fictionalized version of Donald J. Trump, and this early tale of everybody hating him but letting him get away with something horrific will make readers laugh so they don't cry.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)