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The Remarkable Rise of Eliza Jumel: A Story of Marriage and Money in the Early Republic
by Margaret OppenheimerThe notorious life and times of one of the wealthiest women in 19th-century America Born into grinding poverty, Eliza Jumel was raised in a brothel, indentured as a servant, and confined to a workhouse when her mother was in jail. Yet by the end of her life, "Madame Jumel" was one of the richest women in New York, with servants of her own and mansions in Manhattan and Saratoga Springs. During her remarkable life, she acquired a fortune from her first husband, a French merchant, and almost lost it to her second, the notorious vice president Aaron Burr. Divorcing Burr amid lurid charges of adultery, Jumel lived on triumphantly to the age of 90, astutely managing her property and public persona. After her death, while family members extolled her virtues, claimants to her estate painted a different picture: of a prostitute, the mother of George Washington's illegitimate son, and a wife who ruthlessly defrauded her husband and perhaps even plotted his death. With this book, author Margaret A. Oppenheimer draws from archival documents and court filings, many untouched since the 1800s, to tell the true and full story of Eliza Jumel.
The Remarkable Ronald Reagan: Cowboy and Commander in Chief
by Susan Allen Leslie HarringtonRonald Reagan was a natural leader, well-remembered not just for his political leadership, but also for his warmth, kindness, dignity, and optimism. There’s a lot kids can learn from Reagan, about our country and about being good leaders and good people. The Remarkable Ronald Reagan: Cowboy and Commander in Chief is a fun, colorful look at his life, from his humble beginnings as the son of a shoe salesman, to his years as a Hollywood actor, his service in WWII, his life as a rancher, and finally the culmination of his political career in the Oval Office. There’s plenty that even adults can learn as they read along with their kids, including Reagan's efforts to stand up against racial discrimination, and his powerful faith in God. The Remarkable Ronald Reagan is a treat for the entire family.
The Remarkable Story of Fred Spiksley: The First Working-Class Football Hero
by Mark MetcalfGainsborough’s Fred Spiksley was one of the first working class youngsters in 1887 to live ‘the dream’ of becoming a professional footballer, before later finding a role as a globe-trotting coach. He thus dodged the inevitability of industrial, poorly paid, dangerous labour. Lightning fast, Spiksley created and scored hundreds of goals including, to the great joy of the future Queen Mary who chased him down the touchline, three against Scotland in 1893. The outside left scored both Sheffield Wednesday’s goals in the 2-1 defeat of Wolves in the 1896 FA Cup Final at the Crystal palace. Forced by injury to stop playing at aged 36, Spiksley adventured out into the world. He acted with Charlie Chaplin, escaped from a German prison at the start of the First World War and later made the first ‘talking’ football training film for youngsters. As a coach/manager he won titles in Sweden, Mexico, the USA and Germany, becoming the last Englishman to coach a German title-winning team with 1FC Nuremburg in 1927. He coached in Barcelona in 1932 and it was only after his involvement had exceeded 50 years, during which time, as this book explains, the game changed dramatically, did Spiksley’s football career end. As an addicted gambler and womaniser, Spiksley had his problems away from football. However, he was beloved by his football fans, including Herbert Chapman, the greatest manager of that era in English football who, towards the end of his life, picked him in his finest XI.
The Rembrandt Heist: The Story of Criminal Genius, a Stolen Masterpiece, and an Enigmatic Friendship
by Anthony M. AmoreA true crime tale of unbelievable friendship, loyalty, criminal genius, and a staggeringly audacious plot to steal one of the world&’s most valuable paintings—and return it.On April 14, 1975, Myles Connor, already a known art thief, entered the Boston Museum of Fine Arts in disguise along with a cohort. The pair went directly the Dutch Gallery and proceeded to remove Portrait of Elsbeth van Rijn from its place on the wall. After a brief scuffle with the guards—with Myles deterring his partner from shooting a bystander—the pair was gone, leaving behind no traceable evidence amidst the mayhem. Who was Myles Connor and what were his motivations? Most thieves are in it for the money, but Myles was far from most thieves. His motive was freedom. The summer before the heist, he was arrested by the FBI when he attempted to sell three highly valuable paintings by Andrew and N.C. Wyeth to an undercover agent. Incredibly, Myles did this while out on bail for possession of yet morestolen art. When he was arrested and placed in the back seat of a state police vehicle, the FBI agent said to him, &“We&’ve got you now. Let&’s see you get out of this one.&” Without batting an eye, Connor calmly replied, &“Just you watch me.&” Again released on bail, Connor met with an old friend of his father&’s, Massachusetts State Police Major John Regan. Regan worked for the District Attorney at the time, future Congressman William Delahunt. Connor asked Regan if there was any way out of the fix he was in, and the straightlaced cop told him bluntly, &“It&’s going to take a Rembrandt to get you out of this one.&” With that, a master plan was hatched. But there was a flip side to this story. One involving Connor&’s best friend—Al Dotoli—who lived a life in the music industry, far from the world of art heists. Dotoli&’s own masterpiece of a plan hinged on the Rembradt&’s return. Filled with unforgettable personalities and non-stop action and intrigue, The Rembrandt Heist will lay out the anatomy of this notorious art theft while describing not just the criminal genius that is Myles Connor, but also the complexity of personal relationships between lifelong friends. All along, the reader will learn about a breathtaking painting by the world&’s most famous artist and the incredible true story about how Portrait of Elsbeth van Rijn ended up on the wall at the MFA in the first place.
The Remembered Gate: Memoirs by Alabama Writers
by Jay Lamar Jeanie ThompsonA collection of essays from 19 nationally known writers from Alabama, reflecting on artistic self-discovery and regional awareness.
The Removers: A Memoir
by Andrew Meredith“A darkly funny memoir about family reckonings” (O, The Oprah Magazine)—the story of a young man who, by handling the dead, makes peace with the living.Andrew Meredith’s father, a literature professor at La Salle University, was fired after unspecified allegations of sexual misconduct. It’s a transgression that resulted in such long-lasting familial despair that Andrew cannot forgive him. In the wake of the scandal, he frantically treads water, stuck in a kind of suspended adolescence—falling in and out of school, moving blindly from one half-hearted relationship to the next. When Andrew is forced to move back home to his childhood neighborhood in Northeast Philadelphia and take a job alongside his father as a “remover,” the name for those unseen, unsung men whose charge it is to take away the dead from their last rooms, he begins to see his father not through the lens of a wronged and resentful child, but through that of a sympathetic, imperfect man. Called “artful” and “compelling” by Thomas Lynch in The Wall Street Journal, Meredith’s poetic voice is as unforgettable as his story, and “he tucks his bittersweet childhood memories between tales of removals as carefully as the death certificates he slips between the bodies he picks up and the stretcher-like contraption that transports each body to the waiting vehicle” (Minneapolis Star-Tribune). “Potent” (Publishers Weekly), and “ultimately rewarding” (The Boston Globe), The Removers is a searing, coming-of-age memoir with “lyrical language and strong sense of place” (The Philadelphia Inquirer).
The Renaissance Popes: Culture, Power, and the Making of the Borgia Myth
by Gerard NoelBetween the years of 1447 (Nicholas V) and 1572 (Pius V) Rome was transformed from a ruined Medieval city. The Vatican became the official home of the church and the worlds largest bureaucracy, a spectacular new Basilica of St Peters took 100 years to build and Michelangelo changed the course of art history with his Sistine Chapel. So vast and expensive was this cultural explosion that a new fundraising initiative was launched: the sale of indulgences. The Renaissance Popes were statesmen, warriors, patrons of the arts as well as churchmen. These were earthly times and the reputations of popes like Alexander VI, the infamous Borgia patriarch, and Julius 'Il Terrible' II for murder, poison, sodomy and simony vary only in degree. Meanwhile, the sin of heresy, which threatens the very core of the Catholic soul, was tirelessly targeted by two other lasting innovations of the period: the Inquisition and witch-hunts. Alexander VI, father of the ruthless Cesare and jezebel Lucrezia, is seen to this day as the embodiment of this iniquity. But Gerard Noel shows this is unjust, and based on false confessions and historical myth. What's more, Alexander created the blueprint for reform -- the first of its kind -- that would eventually lead to the Counter-Reformation. In his survey of the colourful reigns of the seventeen Renaissance Popes and his examination of the great Borgia myth Noel brings to light the true legacy -- political, artistic, religious -- of an extraordinary time.
The Renaissance Popes: Culture, Power, and the Making of the Borgia Myth
by Gerard NoelBetween the years of 1447 (Nicholas V) and 1572 (Pius V) Rome was transformed from a ruined Medieval city. The Vatican became the official home of the church and the worlds largest bureaucracy, a spectacular new Basilica of St Peters took 100 years to build and Michelangelo changed the course of art history with his Sistine Chapel. So vast and expensive was this cultural explosion that a new fundraising initiative was launched: the sale of indulgences. The Renaissance Popes were statesmen, warriors, patrons of the arts as well as churchmen. These were earthly times and the reputations of popes like Alexander VI, the infamous Borgia patriarch, and Julius 'Il Terrible' II for murder, poison, sodomy and simony vary only in degree. Meanwhile, the sin of heresy, which threatens the very core of the Catholic soul, was tirelessly targeted by two other lasting innovations of the period: the Inquisition and witch-hunts. Alexander VI, father of the ruthless Cesare and jezebel Lucrezia, is seen to this day as the embodiment of this iniquity. But Gerard Noel shows this is unjust, and based on false confessions and historical myth. What's more, Alexander created the blueprint for reform -- the first of its kind -- that would eventually lead to the Counter-Reformation. In his survey of the colourful reigns of the seventeen Renaissance Popes and his examination of the great Borgia myth Noel brings to light the true legacy -- political, artistic, religious -- of an extraordinary time.
The Renaissance: Studies in Art and Poetry (Dover Fine Art, History Of Art Series)
by Walter PaterPublished to equal parts scandal and acclaim in 1873, The Renaissance inspired a generation of Oxford undergraduates, who adapted its credo of "arts for art's sake" for their Aesthetic Movement. Combining the skepticism of empirical philosophy, the materialism of 19th-century science, and the determinism of evolutionary theory, this book defies categorization and endures as an innovative example of cultural criticism.An Oxford don who led a quiet scholarly life, Walter Pater was shocked at the reactions his writings provoked. ("I wish they would not call me a hedonist," he remarked, "it gives such a wrong impression to those who do not know Greek.") His essays on the individuals he viewed as embodiments of the Renaissance spirit encompass artists whose careers span the Middle Ages through the 18th century. Pater's elegant, fluid prose examines the works of Pico della Mirandola, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Botticelli, and others. He crowns his compendium of reflections with his notorious Conclusion, in which he asserts that "to burn always with this hard, gemlike flame, to maintain this ecstasy, is success in life."One of Victorian England's most talked about books, The Renaissance exerted a crucial influence on the art criticism of the past century, and it remains a work of unusual importance to those interested in art history and English literature.
The Rent Collector
by Camron WrightSurvival for Ki Lim and Sang Ly is a daily battle at Stung Meanchey, the largest municipal waste dump in all of Cambodia. They make their living scavenging recyclables from the trash. Life would be hard enough without the worry for their chronically ill child, Nisay, and the added expense of medicines that are not working. Just when things seem worst, Sang Ly learns a secret about the ill-tempered rent collector who comes demanding money--a secret that sets in motion a tide that will change the life of everyone it sweeps past. The Rent Collector is a story of hope, of one womans journey to save her son and another womans chance at redemption. It demonstrates that even in a dump in Cambodia--perhaps especially in a dump in Cambodia--everyone deserves a second chance.
The Rent Collector: Adapted for Young Readers from the Best-Selling Novel
by Camron WrightBased on true events. Sang Ly lives at Cambodia's city dump and is grateful she can help earn a living for her family by sifting through the trash for recyclables and things which can be repaired and sold. On a good day, she can earn enough to buy food for her family. She needs enough good days so she can pay the rent collector, Sopeap--a grumpy old woman who shows no mercy and who is willing to evict any tenant who can't pay their rent on time. When Sang Ly is unable to pay her rent for the month, she fears her family will have to leave the dump and their shanty home--a place where her only possessions can be carried in two hands. Little does she know that a discarded children's book found among the mounds of trash would save her. When Sopeap sees the book lying on Sang Ly's cardboard bed, her mood changes. Sang Ly offers her the book if she is allowed to keep her family at the dump. An unlikely friendship develops between the two women, and Sang Ly learns that Sopeap knows how to read--something Sang Ly has always wanted to learn. Being able to read could transform Sang Ly's world beyond the predictable confines of the dump and lead to a future with possibilities and hope. But the rent collector has a secret and tragic past, one that will not be easy for Sang Ly to navigate. With the help of her supportive husband, Ki Lim, and a helpful and humorous boy, Lucky Fat, Sang Ly embarks on a life-changing journey to give her young son, Nisay, a better life and future. The Rent Collector is about the power of literacy, the influence of the past, and finding hope, resiliency, and empowerment in the face of seemingly endless hardship.
The Rent Collectors: Exploitation, Murder, and Redemption in Immigrant LA
by Jesse Katz"A searing account of gang violence and its consequences...Macedo's grim story, expertly documented by Katz, cries for a documentary series to follow his fortunes as, after years in prison, he strives for redemption. A masterful work of true crime—and, to be sure, true punishment."—Kirkus Reviews (Starred review)Baby-faced teen Giovanni Macedo is desperate to find belonging in one of LA&’s most predatory gangs, the Columbia Lil Cycos—so desperate that he agrees to kill an undocumented Mexican street vendor. The vendor, Francisco Clemente, had been refusing to give in to the gang&’s shakedown demands. But Giovanni botches the hit, accidentally killing a newborn instead. The overlords who rule the Lil Cycos from a Supermax prison 1,000 miles away must be placated and Giovanni is lured across the border where, in turn, the gang botches his killing. And so, incredibly, Giovanni rises from the dead, determined to both seek redemption for his unforgivable crime and take down the gang who drove him to do it.With The Rent Collectors, Jesse Katz has built a teeth clenching and breathless narrative that explicates the difficult and proud lives of undocumented black market workers who are being extorted by the gangs and fined by the city of LA—in other words, exploited by two sets of rent collectors.
The Repentant Abelard
by Juanita Feros RuysThe Repentant Abelard is both an innovative study and English translation of the late poetic works of controversial medieval philosopher and logician Peter Abelard, written for his beloved wife Heloise and son Astralabe. This study brings to life long overlooked works of this great thinker with analyses and comprehensive notes.
The Republic of Imagination
by Azar NafisiA passionate hymn to the power of fiction to change people's lives, by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Reading Lolita in Tehran Ten years ago, Azar Nafisi electrified readers with her million-copy bestseller, Reading Lolita in Tehran, which told the story of how, against the backdrop of morality squads and executions, she taught The Great Gatsby and other classics to her eager students in Iran. In this exhilarating followup, Nafisi has written the book her fans have been waiting for: an impassioned, beguiling, and utterly original tribute to the vital importance of fiction in a democratic society. What Reading Lolita in Tehran was for Iran, The Republic of Imagination is for America. Taking her cue from a challenge thrown to her in Seattle, where a skeptical reader told her that Americans don't care about books the way they did back in Iran, she energetically responds to those who say fiction has nothing to teach us. Blending memoir and polemic with close readings of her favorite American novels--The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Babbitt, and The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, among others--she invites us to join her as citizens of her "Republic of Imagination," a country where the villains are conformity and orthodoxy and the only passport to entry is a free mind and a willingness to dream.
The Republic of Imagination
by Azar NafisiThe author of the beloved #1 New York Times bestseller Reading Lolita in Tehran returns with the next chapter of her life in books--a passionate and deeply moving hymn to America Ten years ago, Azar Nafisi electrified readers with her multimillion-copy bestseller Reading Lolita in Tehran, which told the story of how, against the backdrop of morality squads and executions, she taught The Great Gatsby and other classics of English and American literature to her eager students in Iran. In this electrifying follow-up, she argues that fiction is just as threatened--and just as invaluable--in America today.Blending memoir and polemic with close readings of her favorite novels, she describes the unexpected journey that led her to become an American citizen after first dreaming of America as a young girl in Tehran and coming to know the country through its fiction. She urges us to rediscover the America of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and challenges us to be truer to the words and spirit of the Founding Fathers, who understood that their democratic experiment would never thrive or survive unless they could foster a democratic imagination. Nafisi invites committed readers everywhere to join her as citizens of what she calls the Republic of Imagination, a country with no borders and few restrictions, where the only passport to entry is a free mind and a willingness to dream.From the Trade Paperback edition.
The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down
by Colin WoodardWelcome to the Pirate Republic-the early-eighteenth-century home to some of the great pirate captains, including Blackbeard, "Black Sam" Bellamy, and Charles Vane. Along with their fellow pirates-former sailors, indentured servants, and runaway slaves-this "Flying Gang" established a crude but distinctive democracy in the Bahamas, carving out their own zone of freedom in which servants were free, blacks could be equal citizens, and leaders were chosen or deposed by a vote.For a brief, glorious period the Pirate Republic was enormously successful. It cut off trade routes, sacked slave ships, and severed Europe from its New World empires. Imperial authorities and wealthy shipowners denounced its residents as the enemies of mankind, but common people saw them as heroes. Colin Woodard tells the dramatic untold story of the Pirate Republic that shook the very foundations of the British and Spanish Empires and fanned the democratic sentiments that would one day drive the American Revolution.
The Republic of Violence: The Tormented Rise of Abolition in Andrew Jackson's America
by J.D. DickeyA New York Times bestselling author reveals the story of a nearly forgotten moment in American history, when mass violence was not an aberration, but a regular activity—and nearly extinguished the Abolition movement.The 1830s were the most violent time in American history outside of war. Men battled each other in the streets in ethnic and religious conflicts, gangs of party henchmen rioted at the ballot box, and assault and murder were common enough as to seem unremarkable. The president who presided over the era, Andrew Jackson, was himself a duelist and carried lead in his body from previous gunfights. It all made for such a volatile atmosphere that a young Abraham Lincoln said &“outrages committed by mobs form the every-day news of the times.&” The principal targets of mob violence were abolitionists and black citizens, who had begun to question the foundation of the U.S. economy — chattel slavery — and demand an end to it. Led by figures like William Lloyd Garrison and James Forten, the anti-slavery movement grew from a small band of committed activists to a growing social force that attracted new followers in the hundreds, and enemies in the thousands. Even in the North, abolitionists faced almost unimaginable hatred, with newspaper publishers, businessmen with a stake in the slave trade, and politicians of all stripes demanding they be suppressed, silenced or even executed. Carrying bricks and torches, guns and knives, mobs created pandemonium, and forced the abolition movement to answer key questions as it began to grow: Could nonviolence work in the face of arson and attempted murder? Could its leaders stick together long enough to build a movement with staying power, or would they turn on each other first? And could it survive to last through the decade, and inspire a new generation of activists to fight for the cause? J.D. Dickey reveals the stories of these Black and white men and women persevered against such threats to demand that all citizens be given the chance for freedom and liberty embodied in the Declaration of Independence. Their sacrifices and strategies would set a precedent for the social movements to follow, and lead the nation toward war and emancipation, in the most turbulent era of our republic of violence.
The Rescue at Dead Dog Beach: One Man's Dangerous Quest to Save the Forgotten Dogs of Puerto Rico
by Stephen McGarvaThe “heartbreaking . . . deeply-moving” story of the heroic crusade to save Puerto Rico’s stray dogs, and an impassioned appeal to help all animals in need (Daily Mail).Looking for inspiration and adventure in their lives, Steve McGarva and his wife Pam moved to Puerto Rico. While kite surfing at Playa Lucia, Steve made a shocking discovery—a sick and abandoned dog—that would transform his life. With its shimmering white sand, palm trees, and dazzling azure water, the beach looked postcard perfect. But its beauty hid a dark side: To the locals, this slice of paradise was known as Dead Dog Beach—a notorious dumping ground for the island’s unwanted canines.Considered a threat to the area’s lucrative tourism industry, these defenseless animals were in constant danger of brutality and death. Enraged, and refusing to accept such cruelty, McGarva began protecting these helpless animals—actions that would jeopardize his marriage, challenge his sanity, and make him a target of locals determined to stop him.The Rescue at Dead Dog Beach is the story of Steve’s fearless dedication to hundreds of dogs, and his efforts to expose their systemic abuse. Exposing the true costs of the tourist industry, it is also a call to arms for animal lovers, offering insights and practical information to help strays anywhere in the world.“Stephen McGarva moved to Puerto Rico in search of sun and fun. What he found was a new purpose: saving the island’s abandoned dogs.” —People“This is an amazing story.” —Ellen DeGeneres
The Rescue of Miss Yaskell and Other Pipe Dreams
by Russell BakerHumorous essays by the Pulitzer Prize–winning “supreme satirist” (The Washington Post Book World). This collection of more than a hundred anecdotes and essays from the legendary journalist, New York Times columnist, and author of the bestselling memoir Growing Up offers wise and sharply witty reflections on an extraordinary array of topics, ranging from youth, wealth, the media, and the joy of anger to the difference between “dinner” and “supper.” “Russell Baker is the Alka-Seltzer of the American experience. . . . The most effective comic relief available for the agonizing absurdities we encounter every day.” —Houston Chronicle “When it comes to satire of a controlled but effervescent ferocity, nobody can touch Baker.” —The Washington Post Book World
The Rescue: The True Story of the SAS Mission to Save Hostages from the Taliban
by Andy McNabThe thrilling retelling of a real-life hostage rescue mission, by SAS hero and million-selling author, Andy McNab.It is 2012 and in Northern Afghanistan, an international crisis has erupted.A group of aid workers have been kidnapped by local insurgents and are now hidden in a winding mountain region. After attempts to negotiate a deal with the bandits fail, and with the lives of the hostages hanging in the balance, there is only option...SAS and Navy SEALs are sent in to find and free them.The Rescue is the action-packed story of the special forces' attempts to save the hostages from almost certain death. Drawing on classified sources and using his own personal insight into the inner-workings of these units, Andy McNab gives a page-turning account of this incredible mission.A heart-pounding true story of covert scouting missions, dangerous parachute jumps and fighting to survive in the face of impossible odds, this is the SAS like you've never read before.
The Rescue: The True Story of the SAS Mission to Save Hostages from the Taliban
by Andy McNabThe thrilling retelling of a real-life hostage rescue mission, by SAS hero and million-selling author, Andy McNab.It is 2012 and in Northern Afghanistan, an international crisis has erupted.A group of aid workers have been kidnapped by local insurgents and are now hidden in a winding mountain region. After attempts to negotiate a deal with the bandits fail, and with the lives of the hostages hanging in the balance, there is only option...SAS and Navy SEALs are sent in to find and free them.The Rescue is the action-packed story of the special forces' attempts to save the hostages from almost certain death. Drawing on classified sources and using his own personal insight into the inner-workings of these units, Andy McNab gives a page-turning account of this incredible mission.A heart-pounding true story of covert scouting missions, dangerous parachute jumps and fighting to survive in the face of impossible odds, this is the SAS like you've never read before.
The Rescuer: One Firefighter’s Story of Courage, Darkness, and the Relentless Love That Saved Him
by Jason SautelHe helped save people every day—but he had no idea how to save himself. Jason Sautel had it all. Confident in his abilities and trusted by his fellow firefighters, he was making a name for himself on the streets of Oakland, California. His adrenaline-fueled job even helped him forget the pain of his childhood—until the day he looked into the eyes of a jumper on the Bay Bridge and came face to face with a darkness he knew would take him down as well.In the following months, a series of traumatic emergency calls—some successful, others impossible-to-forget failures—drove Jason deeper into depression. Even as he continued his lifesaving work, he realized he could never rescue everyone, and he had no idea how to save himself.In the end, Jason was forced to confront the truth: only the relentless power of love could pull him back from his own deadly fall. Action-packed, spiritually honest, and surprisingly romantic, The Rescuer transports readers inside the pulse-pounding world of firefighting and into the heart of a man who needed to be broken before he could finally be made whole.
The Rescuers: Ten True Tales
by Allan ZulloIn these stories of bravery and unselfishness from the "Ten True Tales" series, middle and high school kids show that they have the insight and determination to do the right thing to save lives.
The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House
by Kate Andersen BrowerA remarkable history with elements of both In the President's Secret Service and The Butler, The Residence offers an intimate account of the service staff of the White House, from the Kennedys to the Obamas. America's First Families are unknowable in many ways. No one has insight into their true character like the people who serve their meals and make their beds every day. Full of stories and details by turns dramatic, humorous, and heartwarming, The Residence reveals daily life in the White House as it is really lived through the voices of the maids, butlers, cooks, florists, doormen, engineers, and others who tend to the needs of the President and First Family. These dedicated professionals maintain the six-floor mansion's 132 rooms, 35 bathrooms, 28 fireplaces, three elevators, and eight staircases, and prepare everything from hors d'oeuvres for intimate gatherings to meals served at elaborate state dinners. Over the course of the day, they gather in the lower level's basement kitchen to share stories, trade secrets, forge lifelong friendships, and sometimes even fall in love. Combining incredible first-person anecdotes from extensive interviews with scores of White House staff members--many speaking for the first time--with archival research, Kate Andersen Brower tells their story. She reveals the intimacy between the First Family and the people who serve them, as well as tension that has shaken the staff over the decades. From the housekeeper and engineer who fell in love while serving President Reagan to Jackie Kennedy's private moment of grief with a beloved staffer after her husband's assassination to the tumultuous days surrounding President Nixon's resignation and President Clinton's impeachment battle, The Residence is full of surprising and moving details that illuminate day-to-day life at the White House.
The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House
by Kate Andersen BrowerA remarkable history with elements of both In the President’s Secret Service and The Butler, The Residence offers an intimate account of the service staff of the White House, from the Kennedys to the Obamas.<P><P> America’s First Families are unknowable in many ways. No one has insight into their true character like the people who serve their meals and make their beds every day. Full of stories and details by turns dramatic, humorous, and heartwarming, The Residence reveals daily life in the White House as it is really lived through the voices of the maids, butlers, cooks, florists, doormen, engineers, and others who tend to the needs of the President and First Family.<P> These dedicated professionals maintain the six-floor mansion’s 132 rooms, 35 bathrooms, 28 fireplaces, three elevators, and eight staircases, and prepare everything from hors d’oeuvres for intimate gatherings to meals served at elaborate state dinners. Over the course of the day, they gather in the lower level’s basement kitchen to share stories, trade secrets, forge lifelong friendships, and sometimes even fall in love.<P> Combining incredible first-person anecdotes from extensive interviews with scores of White House staff members—many speaking for the first time—with archival research, Kate Andersen Brower tells their story. She reveals the intimacy between the First Family and the people who serve them, as well as tension that has shaken the staff over the decades. From the housekeeper and engineer who fell in love while serving President Reagan to Jackie Kennedy’s private moment of grief with a beloved staffer after her husband’s assassination to the tumultuous days surrounding President Nixon’s resignation and President Clinton’s impeachment battle, The Residence is full of surprising and moving details that illuminate day-to-day life at the White House.