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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
I rarely read memoirs. They're not my thing. But a year and a half post election living in a disintegrating country, I finally picked this up. Let me say that I first started reading it from the library as an ebook and wanted to highlight so many sections that I bought the hardcover book instead. Not a page went by that I wasn't like, "SHE IS THE MOST QUALIFIED PERSON TO LEAD OUR COUNTRY! WHY?!!? HOW?!?! WHY?!?" Living in the midst of our current 2018-Trump-era-mess, I'm even more upset to realize what could have been instead. I'll include some of my favorite excerpts.
"Then there's emotional labor. Now, that's a good one. It describes all the unpaid, uncounted, often unseen work that people--overwhelmingly women--perform to keep their families and workplaces humming along. Organizing office birthday parties. Arranging the kids' summer camp. Coordinating visits with in-laws. Helping the new employee feel welcome and included. The list is endless: all the little details without which life would devolve into chaos and misery. Not all women take on these tasks, and that's fine, and some men do, and I salute them--but it's largely women's work. Finally, someone thought to name it." p.132
"There's just something about daughters. From the very beginning, I felt a rush of wisdom that I wanted to impart to her about womanhood: how to be brave, how to build real confidence and fake it the you have to, how to respect yourself without taking yourself too seriously, how to love yourself or at least try to and never stop trying, how to love others generously and courageously, how to be strong but gentle, how to decide whose opinion to value and whose to disregard quietly, how to believe in yourself even when others don't." p.149
"Friendships between women provide solace and understanding in a world that can be really hard on us. The pressure to be a perfect wife, mother, and daughter can be unbearable. What a relief it is to find people you can share it all with and be reassured that you're doing just fine." p.169
"'Some people say that we're racist because we say "Black lives matter." We know that all lives matter, but we need people to understand that black lives matter also.'" p.176
"His speech, like his entire candidacy, was about stoking and manipulating people's ugliest emotions. He wanted Americans to fear one another and the future." p.249
"'People need to worry about one another,' he told me. 'We are our brother's keeper, and we need to worry about other people. Me, personally, I have faith; I know God is going to get us through it. But we need to be worrying about our brother.'" p.286
"'The Russians employed thousands of paid internet trolls and botnets to push out disinformation and fake news at a high volume, focusing this material onto your Twitter and Facebook feeds and flooding our social media with misinformation,' he said. 'This fake news and disinformation was then hyped by the American media echo chamber and our own social media networks to reach and potentially influence millions of Americans.'" p.359
"If you feel it's gotten tougher to separate our fringe voices from credible journalists, especially online, or you find yourself arguing more and more with people over what should be knowable facts, you're not going crazy. There has been a concentrated effort to discredit mainstream sources of information, create an echo chamber to amplify fringe conspiracy theories, and undermine Americans' grasp of objective truth." p.365
"'It's not just that both Putin and Trump lie, it is that they lie in the same way and for the same purpose: blatantly, to assert power over truth itself.'" p.369
"Bill was watching Trump's speech on television. He couldn't believe it. Neither could I. Eventually everyone left, and it was just us. I hadn't cried yet, wasn't sure if I would. But I felt deeply and thoroughly exhausted, like I hadn't slept in ten years. We lay down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. Bill took my hand, and we just lay there." p.387
"But too many of Trump's core supporters do hold views that I find--there's no other word for it--deplorable. And while I'm sure a lot of Trump supporters had fair and legitimate reasons for their choice, it is an uncomfortable and unavoidable fact that everyone who voted for Donald Trump--all 62,984,825 of them--made the decision to elect a man who bragged about sexual assault, attacked a federal judge for being Mexican and grieving Gold Star parents who were Muslim, and has a long and well-documented history of racial discrimination in his businesses. That doesn't mean every Trump voter approved of those things, but at a minimum they accepted or overlooked them. And they did it without demanding the basics that Americans used to expect from all presidential candidates, from releasing tax returns to offering substantive policy proposals to upholding common standards of decency." p.413
"'A dozen people gathered to pray. They're in their most intimate of communities, and a stranger who doesn't look or dress like them joins in. They don't question. They don't reject. They just welcome. If he's there, he must need something: prayer, love, community, something. During their last hour, nine people of faith welcomed a stranger in prayer and fellowship.'" p.441
"'We all need each other, none of us is an island, an autonomous and independent "I," separated from the other, and we can only build the future by standing together, including everyone.' [Pope Francis] said that tenderness "means to use our eyes to see the other, our ears to hear the other, to listen to the children, the poor, those who are afraid of the future."'" p.443
"'...never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance in the world to pursue your dreams. ... You are rare and unique. Let yourself be flawed. Go proudly and confidently into the world with your blinding hues to show everyone who's boss and break every glass ceiling that still remains.'" p.464
"Then there's emotional labor. Now, that's a good one. It describes all the unpaid, uncounted, often unseen work that people--overwhelmingly women--perform to keep their families and workplaces humming along. Organizing office birthday parties. Arranging the kids' summer camp. Coordinating visits with in-laws. Helping the new employee feel welcome and included. The list is endless: all the little details without which life would devolve into chaos and misery. Not all women take on these tasks, and that's fine, and some men do, and I salute them--but it's largely women's work. Finally, someone thought to name it." p.132
"There's just something about daughters. From the very beginning, I felt a rush of wisdom that I wanted to impart to her about womanhood: how to be brave, how to build real confidence and fake it the you have to, how to respect yourself without taking yourself too seriously, how to love yourself or at least try to and never stop trying, how to love others generously and courageously, how to be strong but gentle, how to decide whose opinion to value and whose to disregard quietly, how to believe in yourself even when others don't." p.149
"Friendships between women provide solace and understanding in a world that can be really hard on us. The pressure to be a perfect wife, mother, and daughter can be unbearable. What a relief it is to find people you can share it all with and be reassured that you're doing just fine." p.169
"'Some people say that we're racist because we say "Black lives matter." We know that all lives matter, but we need people to understand that black lives matter also.'" p.176
"His speech, like his entire candidacy, was about stoking and manipulating people's ugliest emotions. He wanted Americans to fear one another and the future." p.249
"'People need to worry about one another,' he told me. 'We are our brother's keeper, and we need to worry about other people. Me, personally, I have faith; I know God is going to get us through it. But we need to be worrying about our brother.'" p.286
"'The Russians employed thousands of paid internet trolls and botnets to push out disinformation and fake news at a high volume, focusing this material onto your Twitter and Facebook feeds and flooding our social media with misinformation,' he said. 'This fake news and disinformation was then hyped by the American media echo chamber and our own social media networks to reach and potentially influence millions of Americans.'" p.359
"If you feel it's gotten tougher to separate our fringe voices from credible journalists, especially online, or you find yourself arguing more and more with people over what should be knowable facts, you're not going crazy. There has been a concentrated effort to discredit mainstream sources of information, create an echo chamber to amplify fringe conspiracy theories, and undermine Americans' grasp of objective truth." p.365
"'It's not just that both Putin and Trump lie, it is that they lie in the same way and for the same purpose: blatantly, to assert power over truth itself.'" p.369
"Bill was watching Trump's speech on television. He couldn't believe it. Neither could I. Eventually everyone left, and it was just us. I hadn't cried yet, wasn't sure if I would. But I felt deeply and thoroughly exhausted, like I hadn't slept in ten years. We lay down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. Bill took my hand, and we just lay there." p.387
"But too many of Trump's core supporters do hold views that I find--there's no other word for it--deplorable. And while I'm sure a lot of Trump supporters had fair and legitimate reasons for their choice, it is an uncomfortable and unavoidable fact that everyone who voted for Donald Trump--all 62,984,825 of them--made the decision to elect a man who bragged about sexual assault, attacked a federal judge for being Mexican and grieving Gold Star parents who were Muslim, and has a long and well-documented history of racial discrimination in his businesses. That doesn't mean every Trump voter approved of those things, but at a minimum they accepted or overlooked them. And they did it without demanding the basics that Americans used to expect from all presidential candidates, from releasing tax returns to offering substantive policy proposals to upholding common standards of decency." p.413
"'A dozen people gathered to pray. They're in their most intimate of communities, and a stranger who doesn't look or dress like them joins in. They don't question. They don't reject. They just welcome. If he's there, he must need something: prayer, love, community, something. During their last hour, nine people of faith welcomed a stranger in prayer and fellowship.'" p.441
"'We all need each other, none of us is an island, an autonomous and independent "I," separated from the other, and we can only build the future by standing together, including everyone.' [Pope Francis] said that tenderness "means to use our eyes to see the other, our ears to hear the other, to listen to the children, the poor, those who are afraid of the future."'" p.443
"'...never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance in the world to pursue your dreams. ... You are rare and unique. Let yourself be flawed. Go proudly and confidently into the world with your blinding hues to show everyone who's boss and break every glass ceiling that still remains.'" p.464
Oh my heart, how it weeps for what could have been. But, after reading this book, I am encouraged and hopeful and reminded that there is much work to do. Onward together!
Reading this was way more emotional for me than I thought it would be. I'm not usually a person to tear up while reading, but I did--multiple times. It's cheesy but reading Hillary's book was cathartic in a lot of ways--giving words to the tumult of emotions I've felt in the past year since the election, the anger and frustration and hopelessness and apathy. It made me like her a lot more as well (sorry Hillary). Would definitely recommend to anyone who is still struggling to come to terms with the current political situation--if nothing else, it will help you feel like you're not alone.
I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. This is about much more than just the 2016 election, but I think all the context and details Clinton goes into are necessary to paint the picture of 2016/our current political landscape. It was interesting to read this going into the 2024 election.
Not a whole lot of new information was gleaned, but I come away with it with a new empathy and respect for the HRC and the perilous line she walked: between recognizing the historical gain of being a woman running for president while not trying to be known as the stereotypical woman in politics
reading this 7 years after publishing, and 8 years after the 2016 election is interesting. there's a lot in this book that i knew, and many many people have known for years. trump is an actual raving lunatic and the circumstances of the 2016 election were strange, vitriolic, and unfair. but it was ultimately, the decision america (or the electoral college really) made. there were parts in this memoir where i wanted to shake hillary; why are you belittling bernie? why are you defensive to your readers? why are you showing me your extortionate wealth and then talking about the working class? perhaps this is one of the key reasons why she felt like she had to write this book. to explain herself. in all honesty, the book shines best when she is not talking about interference, policy, or trump. it shines when she talks about the women she met on the campaign trail. it shines when she talks about the conversations she had with everyday people of america. the finger pointing felt contrived only because it's true. yes, the reason she lost was because a mix of everything and she can point to every which one and give a reason why. but the end point is that she didn't win. and she needed to defend herself. even though i didnt love this book, i still enjoyed myself and am glad i read it.
Glad I read it
Let me start by saying that I probably would not have read this book had it not been a book club read even though I am mostly liberal. I think I had just had enough of this election and the bullshit since. It did take me about 20% in before I really started enjoying it and then I became engrossed in it until about the last 10%. I found it very interesting to see things from Hillary’s perspective. I did not vote for her in the primaries and not because I didn’t think she was qualified, I do think she is qualified for the job and I think that she would’ve made an excellent president but I could see the writing on the wall and knew that if she was the democratic nominee that any republican running against her would win. I did vote for her in the general election though. If you are a Hillary fan I think you would enjoy this book but if you are not a fan I still think you should read it and expand your mind a little. She is human and the crap she’s been put through over the last several years is enough to make even the strongest person fall (as I write this review there are again new allegations and charges being sought against her and the Clinton Foundation). I will definitely read other books on the 2016 election from democrats and republicans so that I can educate myself more. Worth reading in my opinion just so many will realize that she’s human just like the rest of us.
Let me start by saying that I probably would not have read this book had it not been a book club read even though I am mostly liberal. I think I had just had enough of this election and the bullshit since. It did take me about 20% in before I really started enjoying it and then I became engrossed in it until about the last 10%. I found it very interesting to see things from Hillary’s perspective. I did not vote for her in the primaries and not because I didn’t think she was qualified, I do think she is qualified for the job and I think that she would’ve made an excellent president but I could see the writing on the wall and knew that if she was the democratic nominee that any republican running against her would win. I did vote for her in the general election though. If you are a Hillary fan I think you would enjoy this book but if you are not a fan I still think you should read it and expand your mind a little. She is human and the crap she’s been put through over the last several years is enough to make even the strongest person fall (as I write this review there are again new allegations and charges being sought against her and the Clinton Foundation). I will definitely read other books on the 2016 election from democrats and republicans so that I can educate myself more. Worth reading in my opinion just so many will realize that she’s human just like the rest of us.
i love her.
started reading immediately after it came out.
but still so angry, couldn't finish.
bernie sanders is trash.
started reading immediately after it came out.
but still so angry, couldn't finish.
bernie sanders is trash.
Honestly, it was a hard book to get through because all of these memories are still so fresh in my mind. But that being said, Hillary is an amazing writer, an amazing woman and someone to be admired for persevering through this election. Great book!