The Room Where It Happened is a nonfiction memoir published in 2020 by American diplomat John Bolton. A New York Times best-seller, the book chronicles Bolton’s 17-month tenure as national security advisor under President Donald Trump. Between April 2018 and September 2019, Bolton was party to some of the most important events in Trump’s presidency, including two summits with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, the US’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, and the 2019 Ukraine affair that led to the president’s impeachment. Even before its release, the book drew controversy across the American political spectrum. Republicans loyal to Trump characterized it as dishonest in its largely negative portrayal of the president. Democrats, meanwhile, objected to Bolton’s decision to publish his recollections of the Ukraine scandal as part of a $2 million book deal, rather than testify in House impeachment hearings on the matter.