Never Elected... but still somehow it all worked out

Write It When I’m Gone: Remarkable Off-the-Record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford by Thomas M. DeFrank

I’ll admit it: I always thought Gerald Ford was rather dull. And I’ll admit it: I was dead wrong. Thomas DeFrank’s book made the difference. When Ford was Vice-President, he let slip to journalist DeFrank that he knew Nixon would resign and he would become President. He instructed DeFrank not to publish this admission and asked him to “write it when I’m gone.” After Ford’s defeat in the 1976 election, he and DeFrank continued to talk, and eventually they agreed that DeFrank could record their conversations and take notes for a book to be published after Ford’s death. The Gerald Ford we meet here is a candid, gregarious, and remarkably active person; a Republican party man to the core; and a master politician. And I’m charmed that he occasionally enjoyed hearing – and sharing – bits of gossip. I listened to the audiobook and was spellbound; spending time with President Ford is quite lovely. I had been saddened by his death in 2006, and now I miss him all the more. For more information about President Ford, check out his presidential library and museum.

Book Club as Salvation

Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvik

From the subgenre that features a group of female friends, each representing a certain female archetype… (I love such books!) Pick out who you are: the outsider (Faith), the rebel (Audrey), the spritely tomboy (Slip), the quiet one with the terrible secret (Merit), or the mother figure (Kari). These ladies reside in a cozy neighborhood in the Twin Cities area, and they all gather together each month for their book club. But between book club meetings, life happens (with a vengeance, in some cases). And they’re there for one another as their lives take turns they would never have expected. I listened to this book on audio, and I was sad – actually sad – when the last word was spoken. These gals are good company.

I Read an Adventure Novel

Call to Arms by W.E.B. Griffin

I have prescribed some adventure books for myself. I read Call to Arms (book 2 of The Corps series) so I’d be starting near the beginning of the series, at the point where Griffin hits his stride with the series. So I started in, and here’s what I found: quite a good story, especially for those who read for plot. As a person who reads for character, I confess to feeling a bit underwhelmed, particularly by the female characters, who struck me as rather predictable and pliant. But I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of detail Griffin provided about the various main male characters’ lives. Griffin is also masterful in moving smoothly among the various storylines, in a way that kept me hooked. I’d expected lots of war scenes, but much of the story here revolved around training and the political wrangling involved in setting up the short-lived Marine Raiders force during WWII. I was aware of the Raiders’ existence, but had no idea about their background or the concerns their presence caused within the larger Corps. (If the Raiders were successful, would it mean the end of the Marine Corps as they knew it?) If I had fewer other unread books on my bookshelf, I’d probably read book 3 in the series.

Heroes of the Space Race

The Right Stuff: A Novel by Tom Wolfe

Is it fact? Is it fiction? Look out, folks – it’s… a nonfiction novel. I kept wondering how much was made up, but then I got over it and just read, realizing that “New Journalism” works for me. What a whopping good book. The grand old men of the space race feature here… back when they were quite young men, and ready to take on the moon and stars. This is where I first fell for John Glenn. The other original Mercury astronauts are here, plus Chuck Yeager; all are young, frightfully fearless, and could land any aircraft anywhere with their eyes shut. Wolfe’s writing about the lives (and deaths) of test pilots will stay will stay with me always, as will his description of the scene where Annie Glenn had a stand-off with Lyndon B. Johnson. (Truth: stranger – and more wondrous – than fiction!) Wolfe evokes the intense patriotism and hero worship that Americans felt about these men. There’s a neat edition of the book called The Right Stuff: Illustrated, which, as one might expect, contains oodles of photos. It’s terrific, except that I found it difficult to read because of the format of the pages. So my recommendation is to read the un-illustrated version, then check out the illustrated edition from the library just for the photos.

A Parent's Love

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

There are certain books that are best listened to, and for me, this is one of them. I started reading the novel twice, convinced I would love the book (it was set in Iowa and had a Civil War connection) – but I could not get past the first few pages. Finally, in desperation, I checked out the audiobook. Bingo. Narrator Tim Jerome made the story come to life. The story is told by John Ames, an elderly Iowa minister in the 1950s, who is writing to his young son, to tell him the family stories he would have told him if he were to live to see his son grow to adulthood. He tells the story of his abolitionist grandfather, his own courtship of his much younger wife, his efforts to preach sermons that convey truth, and his struggle to control his jealousy of a younger man who appears to be stealing the affections of his wife and son. This book is filled with longing and pain and hope – and with tremendous love.

How Could I Resist a Book with This Title?

The Ghost, the White House, and Me by Judith St. George

KayKay is an 11-year-old whose mother has recently been inaugurated as President. As the family adjusts to their move to the White House, KayKay and her younger sister Annie begin to hear stories of the White House ghosts. Annie describes a mysterious Lincoln-esque figure who helped the movers, and KayKay becomes entranced by the idea of sleeping in the Lincoln Bedroom in order to see a ghost. When her mother finally allows the girls to stay overnight in this famous room, the experience is not what they expected. (Instead, it’s much more interesting.) A fine children’s book for the mid-elementary grades, which admirably refuses to sugarcoat the experience of having a Presidential parent.