American Wife

A Novel

By: Curtis Sittenfeld

Narrated by: Kimberly Farr

Length: 23 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best seller. A gorgeously written novel that weaves class, wealth, race, and fate into a brilliant portrait of a first lady - from the author of Rodham and Eligible.

Named one of the 10 best books of the year: Time - People - Entertainment Weekly.

A kind, bookish only child born in the 1940s, Alice Lindgren has no idea that she will one day end up in the White House, married to the president. In her small Wisconsin hometown she learns the virtues of politeness, but a tragic accident when she is 17 shatters her identity and changes the trajectory of her life. More than a decade later, when the charismatic son of a powerful Republican family sweeps her off her feet, she is surprised to find herself admitted into a world of privilege.

And when her husband unexpectedly becomes governor and then president, she discovers that she is married to a man she both loves and fundamentally disagrees with - and that her private beliefs increasingly run against her public persona. As her husband’s presidency enters its second term, Alice must confront contradictions years in the making and face questions nearly impossible to answer.

Named one of the best books of the year: The New York Times Book Review - Chicago Tribune - NPR - Rocky Mountain News - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - The Washington Post Book World.

©2008 Curtis Sittenfeld (P)2008 Books on Tape

Critic reviews

“Terrific...an intelligent, bighearted novel about a controversial political dynasty.” (Entertainment Weekly)

Excellent!

This was very interesting storytelling no matter how closely it adhered to facts regarding Laura and George. The parallels were nevertheless evident. I enjoyed this book very much.

A pleasant surprise

Held my attention the entire way through. Drops off a bit toward the end but i can overlook that. Who cares if it's based on Laura Bush? It's a good story. STORY. As in fiction. I enjoyed it.

FUN! Light and easy listening!!

Never a fan of George W's, nor any of the Bushes for that matter, I really enjoyed this book! The narrator is excellent, and in my opinion, was able to capture the very essence of each character! You can "see" Barbara, as she reigns supreme over her unruly clan. Laura is a truly remarkable woman, who should be nominated for sainthood, and, like him or not, no one can deny George W's incredible tenacity.
It really doesn't matter how much of this story is fact or fiction...although from the many books I've read about this dynasty, there's a lot of truth here.

Amazing book

I have read (or listened to) this book three times, and it never fails to capture me whole. Undoubtedly Curtis’ best novel.

Good Start

I would agree with other reviews on this book, that it's enjoyable 2/3 of the way through. The last part of the book just wasn't up to par with the others. I still enjoyed the book overall but it trailed off so much in the end that I had to find the time just to finish the last 2 hours. I wouldn't let this keep you from buying the book though. Maybe just the abridged version instead?

Mesmerizing and Enchanting!

Wow...what a book. The author weaves an intricate tapestry of characters, plots and history. Not politically offensive.....get the unabridged version...it's about 21 hours, but I found it hard to stop listening. Terrific writing. Worth the money/credit. I'm a new fan for sure!

Very long but says very little

There are so many times I almost stopped reading this book - it was tedious and written in excruciating and unnecessary detail- but I pushed through, hoping for some twist or climax further along. Unfortunately the most engrossing and climactic part of the book occurs in the beginning when the protagonist, Alice Blackwell nee Lindgren, is still a young girl full of independence, promise, and ambition. That girl is lost to a dull, passive, weak-willed, and ultimately jaded wife and then First Lady as the story progresses. Her character was not likeable nor were the others really. I initially enjoyed Charlie’s character despite its simplicity but he also became much less likeable as the book went on. This book would have been much better had it quit while it was ahead.

It was interesting to read and consider the complex intersections of personal beliefs and public persona and of commitment to your marriage v. commitment to your morals and/or country as well as the morality of speaking out against something with which you inherently disagree v. the complicity of idly standing by. This is even more relevant in today’s political climate than it was in 2008, and I consider Alice’s to be a cautionary tale.

Curtis Sittenfeld really blurs the line between fact and fiction with this one and not always in a good way. Not knowing much about Laura Bush, I can’t help but conflate her with the protagonist because of how parallel their stories are, although Sittenfeld claims to have based only 15% of the book on real-life details. Despite my continual reminders otherwise as I was reading, Alice Blackwell was basically Laura Bush to me. This blurring is at best confusing and at worst misleading to the reader.

I also disagree wholeheartedly with the reviews describing this book as ‘feminist.’ Alice personified some of the worst stereotypes ascribed to women - that we are passive, weak, meek, and should be subservient to and exist in a supporting role to the men in our lives. Being privy to Alice’s inner monologue gives the reader a glimpse into her intellectual independence though this almost makes it worse and she does show signs of asserting herself at the end of the book but this is not enough. The character is more anti-feminist than feminist.

Excellent read, kept my attention

This was my first audio book, I had thought that I might have a problem concentrating on listening. This book was so good I didn't want to remove the earplugs. Entertaining, timely and a wonderful insight into what a first lady's life might be like. It really prompts one to think about privacy issues.

wonderful book, captivating

what an exceptional story of a woman's life and the choices she has made throughout it.

Interesting but Insulting

I have read Sittenfeld's other books, Prep and The Man of My Dreams, and enjoyed both. I think she is a talented writer, so gave this book a chance.

I think her storyline is fascinating but only because it is modeled after Laura Bush. I wish she used her imagination to write a fresh work of fiction... or she could just stick to the facts and write a true biography about someone.

The last section of the book (the White House years) is incredibly disappointing, and I felt as though the author was just force-feeding me her anti-war, pro-choice views. I actually jumped ahead of a long rant about the War at one point.

The best parts of the book were those that focused on the characters, their day-to-day lives, and their personal stories. "Alice's" long musings about her life's decisions and Andrew (the character she kills in a car accident) get very old by the end of the book.

Charlie is a weak character who's faith and intelligence is mocked by Alice (and the author--another attempt to take a swipe at GWB and his Presidency.)

So, would I recommend this book? Yes - only if you have an interest in politics and lot of driving ahead of you. If it were a complete work of the author's imagination, it would be fascinating...but I found myself disgusted with the authors attempt to push her anti-Bush views on her audience via the main character--Alice Blackwell.