Downstairs at the White House

The Story of a Teenager, an Oval Office, and a Ringside Seat to Watergate

De: Donald M. Stinson

Narrado por: Donald M. Stinson

At the age of 17, Don Stinson accidentally landed a job in the White House during Watergate, the largest political scandal in American history.

A truly insignificant member of the Nixon White House staff, he frequently loitered outside of the Oval Office to watch it unfold. What he saw throughout the White House ran the gamut from the deeply profound to the wildly hilarious.

He was also a kid who did the same kind of harebrained things most teenagers do. Only steps away from the Oval Office, he fought with a foreign head of state for space in a restroom. He devised a shortcut that tripped countless alarms and summoned an agitated band of Secret Service agents. He spilled ice water on Frank Sinatra's sock.

And that was just the small stuff.

A funny, fast-paced memoir, Downstairs at the White House is richly decorated with presidents, first ladies, celebrities...and events that shook America.

©2017 Eastern Harbor Press LLC (P)2018 Eastern Harbor Press LLC

Laughing and learning at the same time!

Don Stinson's memoir about working in the White House during Watergate is a delightful "Forrest Gump"-esque tale full of humor and fascinating bits of history. The listening experience is made so much better by having Don tell his own story as the narrator. Great performance!

A great listen...great story and great narration

I listened to this during two recent airline flights...made the time fly !!!!. The author tells an interesting, funny and entertaining story about his time working in the White House. His voice is filled with humor and the story is well told. Highly recommend.

Funny history

Must read for additional understanding of Nixon Ford years. Interesting to me as I was in college the same years.

Enjoyable Light Read

I took a break from reading/listening to more substantive books on 1970’s political history, and decided to give this a try. The author recounts his real life experiences as a college student who somehow stumbled into a series of part-time and rather low-level White House jobs. He intersperses his own experiences with just the right amount of explanations of the political events he was living through. (I especially liked his stories about the Watergate days.) He treats most of the historic figures kindly…move on if you’re looking for insider scandal tidbits..and gives the reader a glimpse into the humanity of the nation’s top leaders and their families during a very interesting time in our nation’s history. And it’s all seen through the eyes of a teenage boy who never took himself too seriously.

Overall, I enjoyed this upbeat book and recommend it.

Great Story

Entertaining story line, packed with funny historical anecdotes. I am always a big fan of author narration, and think it is done exceptionally well in this case. Hearing the Author's voice makes the story come to life. Highly recommend to all history buffs - interesting perspective on a national event!