The Residence
Inside the Private World of the White House
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4.3 • 172 Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
#1 New York Times Bestseller
The inspiration for the Netflix series premiering March 20!
“A revealing look at life inside the White House. . . it’s Downton Abbey for the White House staff.”— The Today Show
A remarkable history with elements of both In the President’s Secret Service and The Butler, The Residence offers an intimate account of the service staff of the White House, from the Kennedys to the Obamas.
America’s First Families are unknowable in many ways. No one has insight into their true character like the people who serve their meals and make their beds every day. Full of stories and details by turns dramatic, humorous, and heartwarming, The Residence reveals daily life in the White House as it is really lived through the voices of the maids, butlers, cooks, florists, doormen, engineers, and others who tend to the needs of the President and First Family.
These dedicated professionals maintain the six-floor mansion’s 132 rooms, 35 bathrooms, 28 fireplaces, three elevators, and eight staircases, and prepare everything from hors d’oeuvres for intimate gatherings to meals served at elaborate state dinners. Over the course of the day, they gather in the lower level’s basement kitchen to share stories, trade secrets, forge lifelong friendships, and sometimes even fall in love.
Combining incredible first-person anecdotes from extensive interviews with scores of White House staff members—many speaking for the first time—with archival research, Kate Andersen Brower tells their story. She reveals the intimacy between the First Family and the people who serve them, as well as tension that has shaken the staff over the decades. From the housekeeper and engineer who fell in love while serving President Reagan to Jackie Kennedy’s private moment of grief with a beloved staffer after her husband’s assassination to the tumultuous days surrounding President Nixon’s resignation and President Clinton’s impeachment battle, The Residence is full of surprising and moving details that illuminate day-to-day life at the White House.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This chatty behind-the-scenes look at life at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue offers an uneven survey of its history and inner workings. Former White House correspondent Brower, who has written about this subject for adults, pays particular attention to the approximately 100 permanent nonpartisan employees, including the butlers, florists, plumbers, and chefs who keep the 132-room mansion running. The narrative offers architectural details, such as Taft's adding the Oval Office; shines light into the experience of first children and pets; recounts ghost stories; and serves up choice details about U.S. presidents, including their favorite meals and quirks. Though much of the read is enjoyable, a story about Dolley Madison is repeated, and Jackie Kennedy receives more coverage than other first ladies. While a chapter on race "Understanding the Past: Race and the White House" grapples with the history of a house built by enslaved people, it also treats racism as a historical issue rather than a systemic and ongoing one. Includes a timeline, questions, list of presidents and first ladies, and recommended reading. Ages 8 12.
Customer Reviews
Great Read!
Great Book. Gives us a good look into "the house"
We are all dying to know what actually goes on inside and this book gives a small look at what most people never will see.
Wonderful book
This is a fascinating peek into the lives and careers of the people who actually are the ones that keep the White Hose going; the hundreds of staff, which include butlers, chefs, housekeepers, among many others. The book contains interviews with former and current employees, although some of the recollections by the current staff was given anonymously in order not to jeopardize their jobs. The workers walked that fine line of giving interesting tidbits into the personal lives of the residents of the White House without releasing details that would compromise security or embarrass any of the First Families. The author writes the book In an easy-to-read manner, and makes the reader actually picture the people and their actions.
Particularly fascinating was the revealing of the transformation of the White House from one Presidential to the next, both in happy times after a new President is inaugurated, and in sad times, following John F. Kennedy's assination, and the resignation of President Nixon.
This book truly shows the dedication and love the staff has for their jobs at the White House, and makes one very much appreciate how hard they work, while managing to be discrete and in the background.
I highly recommend this book. If I have any negative thing to say, it would be that there were not more stories about all the residents. The stories that are included in the book really show the humanity of the Presidents and their families, even the ones that I vehemently opposed for their politics.
Good Read
This book gives one an insiders look into the daily lives of the president and first families. Its filled with surprising and some not so surprising accounts of those who have had the opportunity to reside within this hallowed halls. The only con I see with the book is that at times it seems a bit like reading an excerpt out of a gossip column more then a historical account. Overall a good and interesting read, would recommend it to any friend.