Review of The Fifth Risk

Michael Lewis

Looking for the book?
We have the summary! Get the key insights in just 10 minutes.

Rating

The rating – what does it mean?

At getAbstract, we summarize books* that help people understand the world and make it better. Whatever we select for our library has to excel in one or the other of these two core criteria:

Enlightening – You’ll learn things that will inform and improve your decisions.

Helpful – You’ll take-away practical advice that will help you get better at what you do.

We rate each piece of content on a scale of 1–10 with regard to these two core criteria. Our rating helps you sort the titles on your reading list from adequate (5) to brilliant (10). Books we rate below 5 won’t be summarized. Here's what the ratings mean:

5 –Solid. A helpful and/or enlightening book, inspite of its obvious shortcomings. For instance, it may be offer decent advice in some areas but be repetitive or unremarkable in others. 6 – Notable. A helpful and/or enlightening book that stands out by at least one aspect, e.g. is particularly well structured. 7 – Good. A helpful and/or enlightening book that combines two or more noteworthy strengths, e.g. contains uncommonly novel ideas and presents them in an engaging manner. 8 – Very good. A helpful and/or enlightening book that has a substantial number of outstanding qualities without excelling across the board, e.g. presents the latest findings in a topical field and is written by a renowned expert but lacks a bit in style. 9 – Superb. A helpful and/or enlightening book that is extremely well rounded, has many strengths and no shortcomings worth mentioning. 10 – Brilliant. A helpful and/or enlightening book that, in addition to meeting the highest standards in all pertinent aspects, stands out even among the best. Often an instant classic and must-read for everyone. While the rating tells you how good a book is according to our two core criteria, it says nothing about its particular defining features. Therefore, we use a set of 20 qualities to characterize each book by its strengths:

Applicable – You’ll get advice that can be directly applied in the workplace or in everyday situations.
Analytical – You’ll understand the inner workings of the subject matter.
Background – You’ll get contextual knowledge as a frame for informed action or analysis.
Bold – You’ll find arguments that may break with predominant views.
Comprehensive – You’ll find every aspect of the subject matter covered.
Concrete Examples – You’ll get practical advice illustrated with examples of real-world applications or anecdotes.
Eloquent – You’ll enjoy a masterfully written or presented text.
Engaging – You’ll read or watch this all the way through the end.
Eye opening – You’ll be offered highly surprising insights.
For beginners – You’ll find this to be a good primer if you’re a learner with little or no prior experience/knowledge.
For experts – You’ll get the higher-level knowledge/instructions you need as an expert.
Hot Topic – You’ll find yourself in the middle of a highly debated issue.
Innovative – You can expect some truly fresh ideas and insights on brand-new products or trends.
Insider’s take – You’ll have the privilege of learning from someone who knows her or his topic inside-out.
Inspiring – You’ll want to put into practice what you’ve read immediately.
Overview – You’ll get a broad treatment of the subject matter, mentioning all its major aspects.
Scientific – You’ll get facts and figures grounded in scientific research.
Visionary – You’ll get a glimpse of the future and what it might mean for you.
Well structured – You’ll find this to be particularly well organized to support its reception or application.

*getAbstract is summarizing much more than books. We look at every kind of content that may matter to our audience: books, but also articles, reports, videos and podcasts. What we say here about books applies to all formats we cover.

Qualities

Controversial
Eye Opening
Hot Topic

Review

Anecdotes about entitled, wasteful and irrelevant government bureaucracy may abound in modern America, but, according to best-selling non-fiction author Michael Lewis, the belief that government is only out to serve itself could not be further from the truth. During the 2016 election, Donald Trump presented himself as the ultimate outsider – a position which resonated with many in the heartland who felt left out of the American Dream. Those voters cheered Trump’s promises to cut governmental bloat. To the people who ran Washington’s various departments – including the Departments of Energy, Agriculture and Commerce – Trump’s election was ominous, however. How would “draining the swamp” affect their important work?

Lewis takes readers through the bizarre transition of government that followed the election of Donald Trump in 2016. One by one, senior officials who have devoted their lives to keeping Americans safe and healthy tell of the ignorance and indifference with which the new president’s people approached the task of governance. Though often poorly named, the US government’s various departments perform essential work – not easily duplicated – that makes Americans safer and more prosperous, Lewis argues. Indeed, in an organization that employs two million people, 70 percent work in the field of risk management. Lewis’s book underscores why every American should worry about the risks that the Trump administration poses to their country.

About the Author

Michael Lewis is a financial journalist and the best-selling non-fiction author of Liar’s Poker, Moneyball, The Blind Side, The Big Short, and The Undoing Project.

US presidential transitions have always been problematic because of gaps in institutional knowledge.

Presidential transitions have always been a problematic part of the American political system. Many of the high-level positions in the federal government are political appointees who come into their jobs with little institutional (and sometimes subject area) knowledge. This lack of understanding can have far-reaching effects, Lewis writes. A badly handled transition not only decreases the efficacy of the incoming administration, it also puts the American people’s safety and well-being at risk.

Recently, Congress passed a series of new laws to improve presidential transitions.

New presidential transition-related laws, passed between 2010 and 2012, provided office space for presidential transition teams prior to inauguration, eased hiring by reducing the number of jobs that required Senate confirmation, and required outgoing presidents to prepare materials and briefings for incoming appointees. The 2016 transition was the litmus test for these new laws; but, Lewis notes, perhaps, no legislation could have helped ease the changing of the guard that year. Though Donald Trump’s advisers, including former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, attempted to follow the law and established a transition team, Trump resisted their efforts. The senior career bureaucrats in the various government departments who had assiduously prepared detailed briefing materials waited after election day for Trump’s people to show up, but in most cases, no one did.

Read on