Customer Reviews

Now It's My Turn: A Daughter's Chronicle of Political Life

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(57)

 

 

I don't know what this book is trying to accomplish, it's neither history or a good political analysis nor a good biography. It seems like a bunch of poorly written passages hurried together to make money before her father's tenure. Her silence before the book makes it suspect.

This book is, to borrow a phrase from the 1960s, dullsville. Mary doesn't address such issues as working for the political party (the Republicans) who spewed the most antigay, hate-filled rhetoric, including mail and car flyers, that were perhaps the most morally repulsive since the days of George Wallace and Lester Maddox's hate-filled mail and car flyers about African Americans. She doesn't address why she and her partner were kept off the stage at tens of Republican rallies. Why she hasn't marched for civil rights for GLBTs, though she is happy to accept those rights and take advantage of them, limited as they are. The book is poorly written, poorly edited, a mishmash of excuses and moral equivocations that make Mary, at the end, a figure to be pitied. How said to be part of a family that hides you away.

This is a staggeringly shallow and badly written book on both a conceptual and stylistic level. Cheney has little understanding of the complexity of the relationship between sexual identity, personal freedom, and contemporary politics; mostly she's turned this into a juvenile rant about the occasional tensions in her relatively cushy life - she seems to be impressed that she's caught in a limbo-state between her parents' politics and her sexuality, but she doesn't really grasp in any meaningful way what her situation really demands, nor does she have any ability to offer a thoughtful political perspective that manages to convey the combination of conservative philosophy with personal freedom.

This is a failed book, a vanity piece, and an embarrassing display of the decadence of privilege. She's an intellectual thug - ham-handed in her phrasing, blinkered and plodding in her political perspective, and utterly devoid of anything but fawning praise or insipid attacks, with no sophisticated balance between. Too bad, too, because her situation could have brought about a really thoughtful analytical perspective on how to develop a new understanding of the balance between traditional conservatism and new notions of individual liberty, but she's brought the whole debate back several steps.

I wanted to read about how a campaign works from behind the scenes, and I was extremely disappointed with this book. It's not only badly written but it goes on and on and on. It's almost as if she repeats the same lines over and over again. Yeah, there were a few entries about growing up that were nice but it falls short of being worth the read, or the money for that matter. Skip this one and buy something else.

Having just read this book, I can say without any reservations -who cares? It doesn't say much other then to get back at Kerry and that's history. Other then that - she doesn't say much - [...].

I expected more from this book, but only found the following:

1. "Getting even" at Kerry/Edwards for opposing her father politically
2. Re-iteration of well-worn political talking points

I was hoping for better writing, insight to the political process, insight to the internal conflicts that must be present in her situation (skipping the state-of-the-union address notwithstanding), or even any sort of behind-the-scenes look at political power today.

This book lacks analysis, either of herself, her father, her politics, or politics in general. Sweet little Father's Day Ode, but little more, no matter where you lie on the political spectrum. And at either extreme, something to disgust you.

Mary is definitely in a unique situation being the only openly gay child of a Vice President. She definitely deserves credit for being honest and open for many years with her family and fellow politicos, no matter how backwards their political views. Her experiences and feelings belong only to her, and she does a nice job of letting the reader walk in her shoes (so to speak) in this book. There is no doubt the Cheney's love and care for one another very deeply.

However, to really grasp the meaning of this book, the reader must first submit to the ideology that all things wrong in the world are the fault of the liberal media, liberal Hollywood, liberal lawyers, liberal Democrats, liberal hetero's and homo's, and anyone who doesn't embrace the entire R.N.C. platform as gospel....all liberals! It seems to me that Republican's make plenty of mistakes yet they never seem to own them. It's always easier to lay the blame at the feet of any liberal outlet or person as opposed to taking responsibility and moving on. Mary has definitely mastered the fine art of displacing her anger and blame onto those who don't necessarily deserve it, how else can she justify working within the R.N.C? Better to project anger onto Edwards & Kerry rather than taking a step back and asking why people are mad in the first place.

While I credit her in some aspects, overall the book is just a political memoir that seems to have endless dates, locations, and speeches. The intent of the book is to give Mary a chance to "have her turn", yet she just ends up looking bitchy more than anything else.

I had expected this to be a personal autobiography from a private individual who was thrust into the news when her father became VP.

But I found it to be mostly boring, seems like obvious political propoganda. Not much of a personal story at all.
The more I read, the less interesting I found it.

Really, parts of it just seem like it was written by her fathers PR staff, or some hack from the Republican Campaign Committee.

There are plenty of political ranting books available; that was not what I expected from this.
Don't waste your money.

[...] I thought this book was self indulgent and petty. Factually, news accounts themselves repudiate some of her claims. As for her biting words for John Kerry, her remarks make it clear that she still carries the torch for the campaign days. News flash, the campaign is over. Tired prose, dubious examples, and no attempt to disguise a carny style book hawking expose'--sorry, this just wasn't that interesting a read. I've seen soap operas with more pizzazz and much more class.

Thank God I work at Borders Books. I read the book for free. I just don't believe a word of it. I think it is all a bunch of crap. Save your money. If you must read it borrow it from the library. [...]