A review by laurennmiller
American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld

4.5

I thought this was fascinating. This book takes a concept I couldn’t quite understand at the outset (ie a first lady with conflicting political opinions than her husband, who may not have even voted for him) - but gives it a certain kind of sense when viewed through the lens of each individual decision that got her there. Many of the biographical facts are based on Laura Bush, who is not someone I knew much about, and the public record on her is rather dull and one-sided (something explicitly referenced in the book). I really appreciated the writing style, especially on the introspective parts, and those actually made much more sense when I got to the author’s biographical info at the end and learned Curtis Sittenfeld is a woman. I will definitely be seeking out more books by this author.