Spoken from the Heart by
Laura Bush
My rating:
5 of 5 stars
This is Laura Bush’s story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s a wonderful look into an obviously historical span of time. Let it be known this is not a book about President Bush; this is about Mrs. Bush and her view on first
her and then
their life.
The book starts off with the early part of her life in Midland, Texas and it was somewhat of an average tale of growing up but with the sadness of her mother’s many, many miscarriages, explaining why Mrs. Bush was an only child. She also speaks of the horrific time when she was in a car crash that killed a friend.
I was fascinated mostly by her experience with President Bush’s first run and defeat as a congressman in Texas and then his run and win as Texas Governor. Of course from there we know he ran and won the presidency for eight years and that’s when I was hooked to the core of my being.
I can't help but think people who didn't know anything about Laura Bush though that she was some kind of submissive wife who "stood by her man". I think people will be pleasantly surprised at how much she accomplished in her time as first lady. She wasn't out there to boast any type of political agenda. Mrs. Bush is a proactive woman with a compassionate heart for helping those in need.
There were parts of the book that brought me to tears; 9-11, sending our troops to war, the loss of our solders, genocide in Africa, Hurricane Katrina, fighting for women’s rights in Afghanistan and the list goes on. Mrs. Bush has a quick wit and humor that had me laughing out loud even as I read her book in public. She also very briefly stated her distaste for the hatred and mockery that was directed at her husband by both the press and politicians in D.C. I thought she handled it gracefully and never got down to their level.
The funniest part of the book in my opinion was when she spoke of the Russian’s assumption that the president has control in that the media says about him. In fact, one Russian reporter asked President Bush if he really has no power in the media being negative about him, then how did he fire Dan Rather? It’s funny, but it also shows you that the Russian-controlled media lead their people to believe that our President has such a power.
I appreciated her insight on how they handled such negatively as our county was fighting two wars. Their daughter Barbara Bush, who was attending Yale, was told by a teacher’s assistant that he would only give her an A in the class if she asked her father not to go to war. Or when Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid talked to the media saying President Bush was “dangerous”, a “liar” and a “loser”. I understand that everyone is entitled to their opinion, but for people in such high political positions to speak so ferociously speaks little of them. They are as classless as they think their President was.
On that subject I wouldn’t condone any politician of any party to denigrate our Commander in Chief in such a manner. Not only does it look small and petty, it speaks volumes to our allies. If we can’t attempt to get along in our own country how can we be expected to create peace in countries that so desperately need it? I think it’s disgusting whether it be against our former President or our current President.
Grow up D.C.!
After reading Mrs. Bush’s first account experience of her time in the White House I am more than eager to get my hands on all former president and first lady’s memoirs. I think it’s ignorant for anyone to assume what they hear from the media is actually how it happened for any president or first lady. Mrs. Bush outlined many incidents where the media was quick to judge or edit out important parts of a storyline. Doggone media!
Five stars because I'll likely read it again and pass it along to others who may be interested in reading it.
View all my reviews
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