Customer Reviews

Center of The Storm

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

This book is mainly about leadership, and the leaders that Ms. Harris admires. She is obviously well read and highly principled, but her writing on leadership is not very original. As a fellow native Floridian about the same age, I was much more interested in her biography and her views of the 2000 election, but there is precious little of that information. Most disappointing, there is almost nothing of her political views. As she is now a Member of Congress on the national scene, I would like to know her views on national issues such as defense, taxation, abortion, the role of government, etc., but, except for a little on election reform, it's not in this book.

This book is exactly what I thought it would be, a harrowing account of a courageous official who stood up for her principles and upheld the law under tremendous pressure from powerful forces to do otherwise. The book is divided into 12 principles that Ms. Harris holds dear and how those principles helped her stand her ground when partisan Democrats tried to force her to ignore the law. She explains how she developed these principles and where she comes from.

What I liked best about this book was the anecdotal and factual evidence of media distortions and gross inaccuracies that were spread about her. She explains how hyper liberal publications like the New York Times spread direct lies about her in a pathetic attempt to concoct a story. A story based on nothing but groundless conspiracy theory. Ms. Harris debunks some myths that the media has propped up and still never apologized for. She injects facts where there is conjecture and sheds light on some important topics. I don't find this any more self serving than anyone who is trying to defend their good name and ward off malicious partisan attacks from people with an ideological axe to grind.

To the reviewer who states that Harris was the chair of the entire Bush campaign, this is a half-truth. She was co-chair of the Florida Bush campaign and at no time did ANYONE tell her to "cook the books". That term doesn't even apply to this arena and it makes me wonder if someone who would use it in this context even knows what it means.

Bottom line: She upheld the law and withstood a barrage of left-wing attacks from people who wanted to ignore the law and change the rules after the game was played simply because their candidate didn't win. For that alone she will stand out in history as a person of integrity and honor, qualities we don't see enough of anymore.

First off, although I did not like this book, it is in no way because I do not like Ms. Harris. I believe that she turned into the villan in the eyes of Dems during the post-election days because she was the co-chairwoman of the FL Bush Campaign. However, Dems forget that the state Attorney General was the Chair of the Gore campaign in the state so it was not just Bush that had his foot in the door.

With that understanding, I do have to say that it was hard to stay interested in this book. Touted by the publisher when it came out as the true inside story, really only a small portion of the book is dedicated to Election 2000. Instead Ms. Harris gives us a list and discription of her favorite historical leaders and writers.

So if it is an old history lesson you want, then buy the book but if you want election 2000, go some place else.

Katherine Harris became the center of the storm for the 36 days of "Election Night 2000". Now she has told her side of the story adding a little bit about herself and her beliefs. I'm impressed - she's educated, well-versed, and principled. I predict her story will stand the test of time.

kathrine harris `s book "center of the storm" should be read by anyone looking for some new and wise leadership principles to help them in there job and in there private lifes.this wonderful book out lines some tried ,true, and tested rules that will help you make the best choices whean faced with hard times or the need to know were to go or what to do whean faced with a storm in your life.
after reading this book I really can see that kathrine harris is a very wise person with a strong faith.
a mother who has alot to do or a person who works hard at there office or someone who has alot on there mind and might be looking for alittle extra encouragment and wisdom this is the book for you

This book makes an excelent presentation of the Florida recount and makes the truth obvious even to the most liberal reader. Ms Harris' platforms for riding out the storm will help leaders to focus on what really matters; to do the right thing!

Rather than pen a two hundred plus page defense of her behavior and actions as Florida's last elected Secretary of State (it is now an appointed position) Katherine Harris instead shares the inspirational stories of those individuals that have inspired her. From George Washington to Ronald Reagan, from C.S. Lewis to Gloria Estefan, Harris uses their life stories and lessons to illustrate how they taught her to better handle the chaos that constantly troubles both ones life and career. Her only statement about the recount debacle is "I followed the law." That may or may not be true, I do not know enough about the recount controversy to comment, but how she handled the enormous pressure, both personal and political, is inspirational in its humble way. I finished this book with a greater respect for Katherine Harris than I had when I first cracked it open. Readers wanting explanations will be disappointed, but those willing to hear a literate chat about the inspirational stories that helped Katherine Harris stay focused and sane during what was probably her most public crisis might enjoy it.

This is an interestingly written combination of the 2000 Presidential Election and thoughts and examples of being a leader with principles by the former Secretary of State of Florida.
Ms. Harris writes a good story when reflecting upon the notorious election of 2000 and becomes a reflective historian when dealing with examples and solutions regarding leadership and leading an ethical life.
The author also clears up the various questions regarding the legalities surrounding choices made regarding the outcome of the election, what her official role entailed, and how the state constitution backed up her decisions.
Whether or not varying members of the public accept her point of view, this is still a fascinatingly written book about how Federal and State laws interact.

I ate this book up in a matter of days. As a political junkie who has followed Mrs. Harris' career, and her recent election to the house, this book was not only entertaining but very thought provoking. I attend a public high school in Maryland and have had virtually no history. We don't learn about classical figures, we spent about three days studying Rome. Thus, Harris' historical figures were very interesting. I found myself grabbing for my highlighter and underlining sections before class began.

And Katherine also explains some of the election myths, such as the "voter purging" one, an explanation involving county failure that I had never heard before, but given Florida's love of local control makes perfect sense. One wonders how far the media will go to supress and mangle the truth. But it's not really that much about the election. She presents 12 basic principles for leadership. I want to go into politics, and what she said was very true, good advice for doing well in the long run and not losing sight of what you hope to accomplish.

The writing can be choppy. It's hard to slough through at times, but the message usually gets through. You can tell that Katherine sat down at her word processor for 5 hours a night and thought over it and banged it out. But if you read the story of how the book was born, (search the longboatobserver for a story) it turned out pretty well, considering.

The book is like a sort of scrapbook. It has song lyrics that her brother in law wrote, stories about her growing up, and descriptions of working at the Department of State. It is very well organized. I regret that I loaned it to my grandmother so soon, because I want to read it again.

I wish I could vote -0- stars.
I thought that perhaps Ms. Harris would have some honest yet misguided notions about her responsibility in the 2000 elections. Instead, I might as well have read a book by Colter. Nothing but nonsense. No real factual information to explain her decisions, no excuse for refusing to recuse herself and no explanation as to why she wouldnt allow a thorough recount to ensure that democracy won out. I wonder how much she was paid to sell out the american people and the democracy all these republicans claim to love.