State of Denial is not a book about the Iraq war. It is a book about the Bush administration’s handling of the Iraq war. Woodward uses his legendary though diminished access to the presidency to paint a picture of the Whitehouse that was disorganized, divided, and ultimately dysfunctional. Rather than pursue a general thesis condemning the administration, Woodward takes a chronological narrative style focusing on characters and interactions which serves to provide an interesting angle.
This focus allows for true gems to come out, like the trepidations of W’s family or Whitehouse humor such as this example this conversation between Bush and Jay Garner:
On the way out, Bush slapped Garner on the back.
“Hey wanna do Iran”
“Sir, the boys and I talked wand we want to hold out for Cuba. We think the rum and cigars are a little better, and the women are a little prettier”
Bush laughed “You got it, you got Cuba” Pg. 224
Woodward also tries to let the story tell itself as much as possible. The few examples of author commentary usually come refuting statements made by Rumsfield, and only in the form of different interviewees that disagreed. This refrain is a refreshing step back from authors with blatant agendas.
The style can be frustrating at times as this book does not attempt provide a complete picture of the Iraq war. Woodward only talks about key figures such as Nuri al Maliki only through the lenses of those like Condollezza Rice, and key events such as Abu-Gharib or Samarra receive no more than a paragraph of coverage. In the end, the quality of the work on the administration more than outweighs the books shortcomings, and should be on the must read list of anybody looking to further understand the administration or the war in Iraq.