Kristin D. (kdurham2813) reviewed Spoken from the Heart (Audio CD) (Abridged) on + 753 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Such a great read. How interesting to hear the real behind the scenes of life in the White House. Of course, I am even more interested because I live so close to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, but to get the story from a woman who is known to be private was even more interesting.
I loved to hear about her interactions with Bush Sr and the few times they visited Washington, D.C. while he was in office. I couldn't believe that she had spent very little time with her in-laws until after they had been married for quite some time.
What a schedule those first ladies keep? I had no idea that they traveled as much as they do. I know they had schedules to keep, but I assumed most of their events were local, if not in the United States. Mrs. Bush was traveling all over the world and made friends with a lot of "first ladies." It was so cool to hear who she connected with and what helped her create relationships with all of these foreign dignitaries' wives.
Although I enjoyed this read, one of things I would have edited out were the little quips that felt as though they were included only to make George Bush look better. At the end of a long paragraph on some subject, she would state that she was glad Bush had religion to lean on in times of trouble. There were many more, I didn't think they added to the story and it even took away some of the credibility of the story.
The other thing that sent me spinning every so often was the in and out of timelines. The book had a sort of flow through time, but every so often there was a flashback or an insert of a future time. I felt as though those future moments could have been held for when they would naturally occur in the story.
Whether a Bush fan or not, I think this is a great read to find out what not only happens behind the White House walls. BUT what happenedwhen 9-11 and terrorism hit close to home. I relived that day in history when I was reading her account of what she was doing and how her life completely changed that morning.
I loved to hear about her interactions with Bush Sr and the few times they visited Washington, D.C. while he was in office. I couldn't believe that she had spent very little time with her in-laws until after they had been married for quite some time.
What a schedule those first ladies keep? I had no idea that they traveled as much as they do. I know they had schedules to keep, but I assumed most of their events were local, if not in the United States. Mrs. Bush was traveling all over the world and made friends with a lot of "first ladies." It was so cool to hear who she connected with and what helped her create relationships with all of these foreign dignitaries' wives.
Although I enjoyed this read, one of things I would have edited out were the little quips that felt as though they were included only to make George Bush look better. At the end of a long paragraph on some subject, she would state that she was glad Bush had religion to lean on in times of trouble. There were many more, I didn't think they added to the story and it even took away some of the credibility of the story.
The other thing that sent me spinning every so often was the in and out of timelines. The book had a sort of flow through time, but every so often there was a flashback or an insert of a future time. I felt as though those future moments could have been held for when they would naturally occur in the story.
Whether a Bush fan or not, I think this is a great read to find out what not only happens behind the White House walls. BUT what happenedwhen 9-11 and terrorism hit close to home. I relived that day in history when I was reading her account of what she was doing and how her life completely changed that morning.
