Customer Reviews

An Invitation To The White House : At Home With History

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Mrs. Clinton and her staff have complied the most beautiful book ever regarding the social events at The White House! The pictures and copies of menus are marvelous! This is a must for anyone interested in what goes on to prepare for some of the most important events hosted by the White House and First Family! Unfortunately, it is not logistically possible for all of America to be invited to a White House event...but here we get to see exactly what it looks like! This beautifully illustrated piece has captured the grace and elegance of The White House. For a two hundred year old house...it never looked better! :-) Thanks to Mrs. Clinton and the entire White House staff for letting us see your world! What an exciting life it must be!

Hillary Clinton (with the help of many others) has assembled a beautiful and fascinating account of entertainment inside the White House. You get a birds eye view of the preparations for a state dinner and for Christmas. This book makes it almost seem like you are there. That sales benefit the trsut that supports White House preservation and development is an added bonus.

This is the ultimate book for those interested in the lifestyles of the rich and powerful, but who can't afford a personal tour of the White House. Here you get a detailed photo tour of the most important house in the world, and what it takes to host events of world-influencing magnitude. No detail is spared in this marvelous peek inside the private life of the first family.

This book exceeded my expectations, I found it to be full of photographs which are simply wonderful, composed and executed beautifully, each telling a story. A fascinating glimpse at what goes on behind the scenes, as well as the time the President and Mrs. Clinton, and sometimes their daughter, spent with guests from around the world, and also included are some candid views of everyday life in the White House. The last chapter includes a generous sampling of recipes from White House dinners. All of Mrs. Clinton's proceeds are donated to the White House Historical Association, and hopefully the great restoration work will continue for years to come.

For many of us, the White House is a fascinating topic. There are never enough books to read. Hillary Rodham Clinton has given what I love to see: a book that is genuinely democratic, that is, featuring the butlers and stolling musicians alongside the statesmen and superstars (even to giving us the names of tree-decorating volunteers shown in the photographs). Like no other book on the President's House, this one makes it clear that this is the people's house. Of course it is much more. Within my lifetime it has become a magnificent museum of American History. And take note, not just an archive: the book clearly indicates that visitors will see objects received as the legacy of previous presidents and their families. I remember my once-only walk tour of the White House. It went so fast! While many rooms are a kind of blur, I will never forget leaving by the front door and walking down the curved drive to the street! What a rush. If you can't get to Washington or don't know the president well enough to get his personal guided tour, Mrs. Clinton's book is the next best thing.

Although I'm not one of HRC's greatest fans, I found this new 324 page
super book well done, and a wonderful gift to give or receive. The
price is quite reasonable, as well. I felt that Mrs. Clinton invited
me into "our" White House, giving me a personally escorted
tour of the house, its furnishings, its festivities and its dining.
The more than 200 often breathtaking pictures succeed in giving the
reader an inside view of the public and private areas, rarely seen by
the general public. She even provides us with over 50 interesting
recipes, giving us a flavor of the variety of dinners served here.
Hillary details her interior decorations and gives insight into her
non-partisan, personal side which were often not clearly previously
visible. She has done a magnificent job in tastefully decorating the
house, and this book gives the reader a taste of the flavor that
exists. Portions of the book's proceeds are intended for charity.
This is a coffee table, library book well worth owning and displaying
in your home.

I am not a Hillary fan by any stretch of the imagination, however, I found this book to be quite interesting. As one would expect, many of the White House "events" described in the book are democratic Clinton events so if you're not a fan of the Clintons in general, or Hillary in particular, this may not be for you. But if you can look beyond the politics you'll get a fascinating glimpse into one of America's most treasured and historical residences.

Well, this was NOT what I expected when I received my copy. This is a well-written, intelligently conceived book that has the reader in a quandary as to whether one should linger over the engaging photographs, or keep flipping the pages to read more about the "House" itself (did you know that 40 layers of paint have just been stripped from the exterior of the White House?). There's also an 80-something page selection of recipes of appetizers and entrees served at State Dinners and other White House functions. What more could you ask for?

Another startling discovery was that, in the midst of Mrs. Clinton's senatorial campaign imbroglio, she was able to show herself not only as a savvy politician, but also as an interior decorator and social hostess for the "most visited residence of a chief of state in the world."

No, Rush Limbaugh and G. Gordon Liddy will most likely not trot out to purchase this book, but this would make an excellent gift for anyone with a sense of style, a purveyance of good taste, and a feel for history, political viewpoints notwithstanding. My only complaint with the book is its somewhat off-setting list price, as well as the bit of back-patting Mrs. Clinton allows herself. However, after eight years under the world's microscope, I suppose she deserves a couple of good pats now and then.

If you are like me, you have not yet been invited to a state dinner in the White House or to stay overnight. This book will make you feel like you have.

This is by far the best book ever about a First Lady's role relative to and her perspective on the White House. Mrs. Clinton was involved in providing continuity with the White House's history in selecting furnishings, art and deciding what rooms to redo; being official hostess for state events; raising funds to preserve and improve the White House; and creating a personal space for her family. The book contains many wonderful photographs of behind-the-scenes preparations that will be important historical guides for future First Ladies. The book is strengthened by over 350 photographs (mostly in color), images of invitations, and menus which are mostly well reproduced in the appropriate sizes.

All of the author's payments will go to the White House Historical Society and a portion of the publisher's profits go to the National Park Foundation.

This book will be tremendously appealing to all fans of Mrs. Clinton's. It will also appeal to those who have not yet spent a night in the Lincoln Bedroom, but would like to. If you are not in either category, this may not be the right book for you. The images and text are very focused on the Clinton years in the White House.

J. Carter Brown summarizes the book's perspective in his interesting Foreword. The book is a "perspective on history, art, and furnishings, . . . and a behind-the-scenes glimpse at how the White House works." As such it is "an unprecedented opportunity to share in the dialy life of the people's house." Mrs. Clinton is generous in her willingness to include photographs and named references to the many hundreds of people involved in the endeavors that she coordinated as First Lady. This adds to the richness of understanding you will receive about how the White House is organized and operated.

Mrs. Clinton's personal touch was to make the White House more authentically American, both from a historical and a contemporary perspective. Gone are the continental cuisine menus in favor of native American food with American ingredients. Foreign antiques were replaced with American ones. Paintings were added by Georgia O'Keeffe, the first by an American woman, and by Henry Ossawa Tanner, the first black artist presented. Time and sunlight had faded the Blue Room into the Aqua Room, and the restoration made it more wonderful than ever before in ways consistent with the original design principles.

Personally, she talks about her identification with Dolley Madison who was both interested in making the White House run better and being a terrifically stimulating hostess.

The book contains sections on state dinners, honoring American arts and culture, honoring specific Americans, historic events of the last 8 years (such as the various peace negotiations), public events (such as the Easter Egg hunt), Christmas celebrations, and a special section on the Millennium events last year.

At the end are a series of recipes featuring the kind of dishes available in the White House. I don't have the knowledge to comment on these. Some are very humble, such as for French Toast while others are more elaborate. The desserts look absolutely terrific! When combined with photographs of the completed dishes, these sections are the most interesting of the food information.

After you have finished looking at the house that we all share, I suggest that you think about how you can reach out to meet more people by making your home more open and available. The Clintons made it a policy to invite people who did not expect to be invited to the White House. Who could you invite who would be thrilled to meet you, and with whom you would have a wonderful time?

Be more authentic!

In terms of what it's meant to convey and how it conveys it, this is a great book.

Not many people get a chance to visit the White House, and even less people get time to actually appreciate what is there and what it represents. This is a very well written and beautifully illustrated book (photographs that is), it isn't an in depth analysis of the history and events that have occurred in and around the White House, but it does give an insight into the real functions of the White House at the end of the 20th century and at the beginning of the 21st Century.

I bought the book on impulse, and was not dissapointed when I received it. Life can't all be doom, gloom and deadly dull Supreme court decisions - and this book is much more than one ray of light, to brighten even the most overly dull day.

Regards,

martyn_jones@iniciativas.com