We’ve all seen blurbs on books and book advertising. Prior to publication, a publisher shares copies of the work with recognizable names and influencers who are respected by the book’s target audience. Those folks then read the book (in theory) and supply the published with a pithy endorsement of the work that can be used to market the book.
Mike Pompeo, former- Congressman, CIA Director, and Secretary of Swagger State, has a book coming out later in January. So one would assume that by this point, Broadside Books (his publisher and a division of Harper Collins, would have solicited a number of influencer blurbs for Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love. However, a recent print advertisement for the book suggests that effort might now be going well.
Here’s a picture of the advertisement in full:
It’s great to know that this book “reads like a thriller with stories from my heart” according to the author of the same book. In fairness, it’s possible that this advertisement had to be in before the publisher got any testimonials back. Still, it’s odd to see an author blurbing their own book.
That’s not the only thing that’s unique about this ad. At the bottom of it, you’ll see that this wasn’t placed by Broadside or Harper Collins. Instead, this ad was paid for by Champion American Values a political action committee. You might think that could be a reason that they didn’t have access to book testimonials (or a particularly good print layout designer either). However, if you look up the PAC, you’ll discover that its chairperson is, in fact, Mike Pompeo, author of this thrilling (according to this blurb) new book.
So we’ve got this straight: Mike Pompeo’s PAC wants you to know that Mike Pompeo’s book is a “thriller with stories from the heart” of Mike Pompeo.
All joking aside, Pompeo’s lack of book endorsement is an example of the challenges that former high-profile Trump Administration members with future political ambitions (this book could also be titled “Yes, I am planning to run for President!”). Not only does there appear to be little love lost between many of them, but many of them are also considering running against the former President. And the former President is well known for his high expectations around transactional loyalty. So there’s a good chance that people in Trump’s extended political circles, including right-wing media figures, may not want to offer praise for the work of someone who might be challenging the former President in the coming months.
In the meantime, I’ll keep an eye out to see who eventually endorses Mike Pompeo’s book… I mean beyond Mike Pompeo.
