Secret Lives of the First Ladies by Cormac O'Brien

Secret Lives of the First Ladies by Cormac O

Not surprisingly, the chapters on the more recent first ladies are longer, what with more information to be found on them. At the end of each chapter, O'Brien has included a few details about each woman that are of particular interest. He includes a good amount of detail about their lives as the wives of politicians and their impact as first ladies, the impression they made on those around them at the time, and their impact on their husbands. O'Brien devotes a few paragraphs to each woman's early years and background, including how their courtship with their future husbands. Of Letitia Tyler's (wife of our 7th president, John Tyler), insistence that her female slaves not work in the field but instead in the home, O'Brien says: 'We can only assume that such splendid generosity downgraded their roiling hatred to simmering resentment.'Įach of the chapters includes a 'data' box - date of birth and death, marriage date, husband, children, years she was first lady, religion, a sound bite, and, curiously, astrological sign. O'Brien, to my way of thinking, shows very little political bias. In fact, it would make a great guest room night stand choice for that same reason. It made an excellent nightstand book - none of the first lady's stories is more than a few pages long, perfect for reading a few minutes before you end your day. And then you may have noticed that it sat on my nightstand for months and months. Laura Bush is the last first lady included updated versions have since been released. I have had this book on my shelves for a long time. You'll also learn why Hillary Clinton went to work for Wal-Mart (long before she started campaigning for a higher minimum wage).Ĭomplete with biographies of every first lady, Secret Lives of the First Ladies tackles rough questions that other history books are afraid to ask: How many of these women owned slaves? Which ones were cheating on their husbands? And why did Eleanor Roosevelt serve hot dogs to the Kings and Queens of England? American history was never this much fun! Mary Todd Lincoln was committed to an asylum, and Mamie Eisenhower never missed an episode of As the World Turns. You'll discover that Dolley Madison loved to chew tobacco. Secrets Lives of the First Ladies features outrageous and uncensored profiles of all the presidents' wives. Secret Lives of the First Ladies: What Your Teachers Never Told You About The Women Of The White House by Cormac O'Brien

Secret Lives of the First Ladies by Cormac O'Brien