Gov. Andrew Cuomo book on COVID-19 response out in October

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has gained a national following through his management of the coronavirus pandemic, is writing a book that looks back on his experiences, and includes leadership advice and a close look at his relationship with the administration of President Donald Trump.

Crown announced Tuesday that Cuomo’s “American Crisis” will be released Oct. 13, three weeks before Election Day, when Trump is expected to face presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden. The news comes the day after Cuomo addressed the Democratic National Convention and called the virus’ spread a metaphor for a country weakened by division. New York State has one of the lowest infection rates in the U.S., a welcome contrast to the spring, when it had one of the highest.

“In his own voice, Andrew Cuomo chronicles in ‘American Crisis’ the ingenuity and sacrifice required of so many to fight the pandemic,” according to Crown, “sharing his personal reflections and the decision-making that shaped his policy, and offers his frank accounting and assessment of his interactions with the federal government and the White House, as well as other state and local political and health officials.”

Over the past few months, Cuomo has been praised for his calm, but forceful demeanor while also being criticized for waiting too long to close schools and other indoor facilities and for the high number of deaths at New York nursing homes. He had said in July that he was thinking of a book, commenting during a radio interview on WAMC that he wanted to document the “entire experience, because if we don’t learn from this then it will really compound the whole crisis that we’ve gone through.”