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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Curtis Sittenfeld really likes writing first-lady-fanfic huh? What’s she gonna do with Melania?!
I read this shortly after reading Rodham and enjoyed it much more. I thought I’d have to hold my nose for the whole 636 pages to get through so much George Bush content, but….This is a great drama, I’m surprised at how hooked I was. Oh and I LOVED the capricious, progressive, lesbian granny.
But yeah, it’s generally quite… apologist.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Since we all know how I go about picking book, I think you can guess that I picked this one because there’s a pretty dress and a giant diamond on the cover.
Obviously.
Once again, I did not read the back, and I think that changed how I saw this book very much! So! Right now, I’m going to tell you what I thought of the book. Then, I will warn you that I’m about to discuss further details as you scroll down. Not spoilers, but background info that I did not have, that probably would have changed the book for me. Got it?
Here’s the part that safe for all to read:
The book starts with the story of Alice Lindgren. She tells you that she is the wife of the President of the United states, but he story starts with her childhood, and all the events that lead to her becoming the First Lady of the United States.
Her childhood is very interesting, and a story in itself. Which is probably why this book was 550 pages.
Alice is a humble woman and it’s interesting to read the book through the eyes of someone who was never destined for fame. Nor did she desire it in any way.
She points out small things that I never would have considered about changes in the life of a famous person. She also declares a lines between somewhat famous and really famous, which I thought was funny.
The book highlights how life changes, friends change, relationships change. And I love when she says that she appreciates her daughter so much for always humbling them. For being the only person on earth who’d put the President of the United states on hold. Or tell the First Lady she did something stupid.
She makes a bit of a confession in the end of the book. One that I suspected, and did not surprise me at all. But one that many people talk about.
Here’s the background information I was unaware of, which would have changed the book for me:
This book is based loosely off the life of Laura Bush, the wife of George W. Bush.
I started figuring this out pretty far into the book, and did some googling after it started seeming that way to confirm. Once I finished the book, I saw that there are 4 books that Curtis Sittenfeld read about Laura Bush and Hilary Rodham Clinton where she got her information. And I found myself wanting to read them. And let’s be serious, it never once crossed my mind before. Not once. Haha.
I have to say, that if I knew, I might not have picked up the book. ”Dubyah” was never a favorite of mine. I am eternally grateful that I never knew this fact.
You will probably find me reading some non-fiction First Lady books soon as a result. It was truly intriguing.
Obviously.
Once again, I did not read the back, and I think that changed how I saw this book very much! So! Right now, I’m going to tell you what I thought of the book. Then, I will warn you that I’m about to discuss further details as you scroll down. Not spoilers, but background info that I did not have, that probably would have changed the book for me. Got it?
Here’s the part that safe for all to read:
The book starts with the story of Alice Lindgren. She tells you that she is the wife of the President of the United states, but he story starts with her childhood, and all the events that lead to her becoming the First Lady of the United States.
Her childhood is very interesting, and a story in itself. Which is probably why this book was 550 pages.
Alice is a humble woman and it’s interesting to read the book through the eyes of someone who was never destined for fame. Nor did she desire it in any way.
She points out small things that I never would have considered about changes in the life of a famous person. She also declares a lines between somewhat famous and really famous, which I thought was funny.
The book highlights how life changes, friends change, relationships change. And I love when she says that she appreciates her daughter so much for always humbling them. For being the only person on earth who’d put the President of the United states on hold. Or tell the First Lady she did something stupid.
She makes a bit of a confession in the end of the book. One that I suspected, and did not surprise me at all. But one that many people talk about.
Here’s the background information I was unaware of, which would have changed the book for me:
This book is based loosely off the life of Laura Bush, the wife of George W. Bush.
I started figuring this out pretty far into the book, and did some googling after it started seeming that way to confirm. Once I finished the book, I saw that there are 4 books that Curtis Sittenfeld read about Laura Bush and Hilary Rodham Clinton where she got her information. And I found myself wanting to read them. And let’s be serious, it never once crossed my mind before. Not once. Haha.
I have to say, that if I knew, I might not have picked up the book. ”Dubyah” was never a favorite of mine. I am eternally grateful that I never knew this fact.
You will probably find me reading some non-fiction First Lady books soon as a result. It was truly intriguing.
I liked this more than I expected to. It was a good read. Plus it was a bit of fun trying to guess which details map onto Laura Bush's real life and which are imagined. Ultimately, it is a story about what happens to an ordinary woman and an ordinary marriage in extraordinary circumstances. As such, it is interesting. But don't look to it for any real insight into the Bushes or the politics.... It is a work of fiction, after all.
I enjoyed this book, but I would have preferred it to be a little less obvious that it was loosely based on Laura Bush. The line between the character and the real person became a little too blurred for me. I would like to follow up this book by reading a biography of Laura Bush.
It especially bothered me that the main character goes from rationalizing her abortion to declaiming the hundreds or thousands of casualties of the war in the Middle East all in the space of a few pages. It's incredibly hypocritical, but typical of the left wing viewpoint.
Warning: a few graphic sex scenes and a lot of foul language.
It especially bothered me that the main character goes from rationalizing her abortion to declaiming the hundreds or thousands of casualties of the war in the Middle East all in the space of a few pages. It's incredibly hypocritical, but typical of the left wing viewpoint.
Warning: a few graphic sex scenes and a lot of foul language.
Since it's a fictionalized version of Laura Bush's life, I was a little uncomfortable with the amount and nature of some of the sex in the book. Which normally I would be fine with, but picturing Laura Bush really threw me off.
I like Sittenfeld's writing. But, I think she struggled a little to add narrative and drama to an "existing" life story. And the book petered out for me once they got to the White House. That transition was too abrupt as well. One page he was working in baseball and a couple pages later in the White House, just skipping over the time as Governor.
I like Sittenfeld's writing. But, I think she struggled a little to add narrative and drama to an "existing" life story. And the book petered out for me once they got to the White House. That transition was too abrupt as well. One page he was working in baseball and a couple pages later in the White House, just skipping over the time as Governor.
There was something about the writing style that I just loved. I've recommended this several times.
I will admit that I purchased this book to get some "dirt" on the Bush family and presidency, but along the way I developed much more sympathy for Laura Bush than I would have thought possible. I actually started to feel sorry for her, wondering how I'd feel if someone wrote an extremely thinly veiled fictional version of my life, including lots of details (sexual or otherwise) that couldn't possibly be known by anyone but me. So I'm ambivalent about the book, now. But after reading it, I still react differently to photos of Mrs. Bush when I see them as a result, so there's that. And I wonder if the book might have been stronger if it had ended on Election Night.
I can't read any more, I tried but I found the lead character insufferable
If one read this in a vacuum, it'd be a pretty good book. Reading it with the Bushes in mind, as I couldn't help but do, made it a totally different experience. With the Bushes in mind, I hate GWB more and like Laura a whole lot more. But, this story is MADE UP FICTION (with some real details to confuse you) so my new feelings for Laura are false.
Then my brain starts to hurt.
Fiction or not, Alice Blackwell or Laura Bush, why did she marry that dunderhead in the first place?
It ain't literature but it ain't Jackie Collins: a good read.
Then my brain starts to hurt.
Fiction or not, Alice Blackwell or Laura Bush, why did she marry that dunderhead in the first place?
It ain't literature but it ain't Jackie Collins: a good read.