The coincidence was rich. As President Trump was bumpily rolling out his Fake News Awards on Wednesday night, many of Manhattan’s media elite were gathering to toast Michael Wolff, the author of “Fire and Fury,” the best-selling book about the administration.

Earlier in the day, Politico had declared the party, held at the Upper West Side apartment of Stephen Rubin, president and publisher of Henry Holt, a “HOT TICKET” — and Twitter’s “verified” users were abuzz.

So I hopped in a cab and headed uptown.

“Yeah, I’m here for the book party,” I said to a steely-faced doorman. I didn’t have an invite, but unlike at movie premieres, there were no clipboard-toting publicists.

After a short ride in an elevator, I arrived in Mr. Rubin’s home with its bookshelves lining floor to absurdly high ceiling. Overlooking the great room was a balcony, from which Mr. Wolff had given a rousing speech just moments before about the perks of being a White House wallflower.