Crazy Town
The Rob Ford Story
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
Rob Ford's drug and alcohol-fuelled antics made world headlines and engulfed a city in unprecedented controversy. Reporter Robyn Doolittle was one of three journalists to view the video of Ford appearing to smoke crack cocaine. Her dogged pursuit of the story uncovered disturbing details about the mayor’s past and shone a light on the history of substance abuse and criminal behaviour that has beset the Fords, one of the most ambitious families in Canada.
After Doolittle helped break news of a second crack video, Ford entered rehab. Stripped of his mayoral powers, he nevertheless ran for mayor in the October 2014 election.
Updated with new material, Crazy Town is a page-turning and insightful portrait of a troubled man, a formidable family, and a city caught in a jaw-dropping scandal.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Those expecting more salacious details about Rob Ford, Toronto's train-wreck of a mayor, will be disappointed with this book from Toronto Star reporter Doolittle. It's no shock to learn that in his early days as mayor, his hapless wife, Renata, seeks help for Ford, who "still thinks he's going to party." Even what passes for skullduggery in City Hall politics is tame. But the book delivers in decidedly crucial matters. It answers the question that has flummoxed many: How did an enfant terrible like Ford become mayor in the first place? It addresses the lack of transparency in Canada that has made it "extraordinarily difficult" for journalists to dig up even the most basic facts about public figures. And Doolittle dares to venture on the shudder-inducing prospect of "Ford more years." With only three months to whip up a book, Doolittle has, however, regrettably cut corners. We learn that despite all their dysfunctions and addictions, "by all accounts, the Ford kids had a happy childhood," with no one to support or dispute that. She also relies on other journalists' reportage to illuminate her analysis, including reiterating the largely held but highly contestable assumption that immigrants (a.k.a. "the strivers") are propping up Ford Nation.
