But, on balance, it is impossible not to be impressed by Woodward's reporting, which provides a vivid week-by-week chronology, from the post-9/11 attack on Afghanistan to the Iraq surge, of how the president's war policy unspooled and of its consequences.
"Every barrel released today," he said, "is one less barrel available to protect us against threats to our security, threats that are becoming more vivid with the week's turmoil and violence in the Middle East".
Only 25% of 115 had persistent episodes of vivid dreams until week 12. Insomnia and sleepwalking were reported at rates of 36.3% (n= 45) and 8.1% (n= 10) respectively.
The box stays leak-free, and the wine vivid even after weeks in the refrigerator.
I spend the entire afternoon in bed, having slept little at night due to the pain and the pills, which warp my dreams into vivid nightmares for weeks after the operation.
The crucial role the "super PAC" now plays in modern presidential politics has been on vivid display in the week before the Super Tuesday primaries, as these outside groups have all outspent the campaigns and become their de facto advertising arms.
But while the Bush administration insists that it is making progress in stabilizing Iraq, each week provides vivid illustrations that remnants of the Saddam Hussein government and criminal gangs are on the loose, suggesting that the Pentagon's troop reduction plan may need to be rethought.
My vivid memories of Holy Week on the Ionian island of Lefkada are a collage of colors and fragrances.
The Romney campaign's shortcomings have been on vivid display in recent weeks, from verbal stumbles to a failure to stir the passions of the Republican base.
The Hebweb in Hebden Bridge, which is chronicling the town's second major flood in three weeks in vivid detail, reports that 25 wagon loads of muck and rubble have alreadt been removed from the town's streets.
Six months on, the memory of those early weeks remains vivid for the families and children who lived through them and the aid workers who lent a hand.
