# The Showman

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2024 biography of Volodymyr Zelenskyy by Simon Shuster

For the 1930 film, see [The Showman (1930 film)](/source/The_Showman_(1930_film)). For the 2009 film, see [Raaj – The Showman](/source/Raaj_%E2%80%93_The_Showman). For the song, see [The Showman (Little More Better)](/source/The_Showman_(Little_More_Better)).

The Showman: Inside the Invasion That Shook the World and Made a Leader of Volodymyr Zelensky Author Simon Shuster Language English Genre Nonfiction Publisher William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publication date 2024-01-23 Publication place United States Media type Hardback Pages 384 pages ISBN 0-0633-0742-1

***The Showman: Inside the Invasion That Shook the World and Made a Leader of Volodymyr Zelensky*** is a non-fiction book written by [*Time* magazine](/source/Time_(magazine)) journalist Simon Shuster, released on January 23, 2024 by [William Morrow](/source/William_Morrow_and_Company).[1][2] The book examines Ukrainian President [Volodymyr Zelenskyy](/source/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy)'s transformation into a wartime leader during [Russia's invasion of Ukraine](/source/Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine) in 2022.[3][4]

## Reception

After its release, *The Showman* became a bestseller.[5] *[The Wall Street Journal](/source/The_Wall_Street_Journal)* lauded the book as "the standard by which all other works on Mr. Zelenskyy and Ukraine's wartime politics will be judged,"[6] while *[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian)* called it "a definitive, thoroughly researched, and deeply insightful biography."[3]

Kate Tsurkan from *[The Kyiv Independent](/source/The_Kyiv_Independent)* critiqued aspects of the book, suggesting that some passages—and Shuster’s earlier articles for *Time* on Russia’s war against Ukraine—tended towards sensationalism.[7]

The book was banned in Russia as part of [government](/source/Government_of_Russia) censorship regarding Russia's invasion of Ukraine.[8]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:6_1-0)** ["The Showman: Inside the Invasion That Shook the World and Made a Leader of Volodymyr Zelensky"](https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-showman-simon-shuster?variant=41083800682530). *Harper Collins Publishing*. Retrieved 2024-08-28.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:4_2-0)** Davies, Dave. ["How war changed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy"](https://www.npr.org/2024/01/23/1226278535/the-showman-ukraine-russia-zelenskyy-simon-shuster). [National Public Radio](/source/National_Public_Radio). Retrieved 2024-08-28.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_3-1) Simpson, John (2024-01-18). ["The Showman by Simon Shuster review – Zelenskiy's performance of a lifetime"](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/jan/18/the-showman-by-simon-shuster-review-zelenskiys-performance-of-a-lifetime). *[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian)*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0261-3077](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0261-3077). Retrieved 2024-08-28.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:3_4-0)** ["Review | How war has transformed Ukraine, and Zelensky"](https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2024/02/02/zelensky-showman-enemies-vanish-review/). *Washington Post*. 2024-02-01. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0190-8286](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0190-8286). Retrieved 2024-08-28.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Hardcover Nonfiction Books - Best Sellers - Books - Feb. 11, 2024 - The New York Times"](https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2024/02/11/hardcover-nonfiction/). *The New York Times*. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0362-4331](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0362-4331). Retrieved 2024-08-29.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Pancevski, Bojan. ["'The Showman' Review: Zelensky's Wartime Transformation"](https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/books/the-showman-review-zelenskys-wartime-transformation-68ed83d5). [Wall Street Journal](/source/Wall_Street_Journal). Retrieved 2024-08-28.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Shuster's 'Showman' was supposed to be the definitive Zelensky biography. But it's not"](https://kyivindependent.com/shusters-showman-was-supposed-to-be-the-definitive-zelensky-biography-but-its-not/). *The Kyiv Independent*. 2024-02-06. Retrieved 2024-08-28.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Times, The Moscow (2024-08-07). ["Russian Customs Authorities Seize 'Banned' Zelensky Biography"](https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/08/07/russian-customs-authorities-seize-banned-zelensky-biography-a85959). *The Moscow Times*. Retrieved 2024-08-28.

## External links

- [*The Showman*](https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-showman-simon-shuster?variant=41083800682530) at HarperCollins

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [The Showman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Showman) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Showman?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.