Dianne Feinstein: Never Let Them See You Cry - Hardcover

Roberts, Jerry

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062585088 ISBN 13: 9780062585080

Publisher: Harpercollins, 1994

Synopsis

An unauthorized biography of Dianne Feinstein portrays a childhood of pain and privilege, her rise to power as mayor of San Francisco, the tragic Milk and Moscone slayings, and her successful campaign for the Senate in 1992

About this title

Reviews

Twice defeated in mayoral races, Feinstein became acting mayor of San Francisco in 1978 when George Moscone was assassinated, and was later sworn in as the city's first elected female mayor. Feinstein, "a thrice-married Jewish woman from the kook capital of America," came close to being picked as Walter Mondale's running mate in the 1984 presidential election. In 1990, she became the first woman to win the gubernatorial nomination of a major party in California. Roberts's penetrating biography reveals Feinstein as a pragmatic, aggressive politician full of intriguing contradictions: a trailblazer for women but often at odds with feminists; ambitious but lacking in confidence at crucial moments in her career; cheerful and upbeat but lacking in humor and a sense of irony. Roberts, political editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, has covered Feinstein for nearly 20 years. Here he recounts her difficult childhood and her evolution from an aloof, calculating local appointee to the warmly engaging, highly visible leader on the national scene. Photos. $50,000 ad/promo; author tour.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

This competent biography of California senator Feinstein, who in November will be up for reelection, hews to the new archetype in political drama: It's the tale of the child who triumphs over the dysfunctions of family life and grows up to become an influential public figure. Roberts, editorial page editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, offers a tepid round-up of Feinstein's life and career. He sketches Feinstein's parents, a successful doctor and an abusive mother, and suggests that in childhood Feinstein learned to transform emotional pain into ambition. After Stanford, Dianne Goldman returned home to San Francisco in 1956, began learning politics, and eloped with lawyer Jack Berman. Divorced within three years, she raised a daughter, developed her political profile as a member of the state parole board for women, and found lasting love with neurosurgeon Bert Feinstein. In 1969, she won election to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, casting her crusade--as throughout her career, the author notes aptly--``in terms that threatened neither men nor the status quo.'' Insecure and imperious, Democrat Feinstein gained a reputation as a ``paradoxical liberal'' (most notably by abandoning her opposition to the death penalty). In 1978 her husband died, San Francisco was rocked by the Jonestown tragedy, and Supervisor Dan White assassinated Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. Feinstein became acting mayor, and her stewardship lasted nine years, earning her a national reputation. She lost the 1990 race for governor to Pete Wilson but rebounded in 1992, when she was elected to fill out Wilson's uncompleted Senate term. She won on the strength of her campaign style, big spending, and the postAnita Hill ``Year of the Woman'' campaign of the Democratic National Committee. Though Feinstein once aspired to be president, she now says the Senate's high enough. Indeed, this book, though mainly respectful, should not garner her new acolytes. (8 pages b&w photos, not seen) ($50,000 ad/promo; author tour) -- Copyright ©1994, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

As one of the most prominent high-ranking female politicians of her day, Dianne Feinstein has always generated interest. But biographies of politicians rarely afford a glimpse behind the public persona, and this one is no exception. Although Roberts chronicles Feinstein's career and life events ably, he begs the question of what makes Dianne tick. To his credit, though, the San Francisco Chronicle's political editor, who has covered Feinstein for 20 years, provides insightful political analysis and timely observations on the nature of women in power as well as a well-crafted profile, instead of a rounded portrait, of a particular political career. Its failings notwithstanding, the book will find an audience as long as its subject can. Mary Ellen Sullivan

In this generally favorable biography, Feinstein is portrayed as a complex, sometimes contradictory person, but the author fails to explore adequately the complexity or explain the reasons for the contradictions. Roberts, the political editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, quotes extensively from interviews with Feinstein's friends and family members, but he lacks the first-person interview material and access to her personal papers that might add insight to the controversial decisions Feinstein made as San Francisco's first female mayor. Roberts's reporting of Feinstein's career as a San Francisco supervisor and her two unsuccessful campaigns for mayor is sometimes tiresome. The writing improves when he describes the dramatic events that resulted in her becoming mayor-the assassinations of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk by former Supervisor Dan White. Feinstein's failed campaign for governor and her successful campaign for U.S. senator are described only briefly. Given the superficial nature of the coverage and the lack of supporting documentation such as references and notes, this book cannot be recommended.
Jill Ortner, Sch. of Information & Lib. Studies, SUNY at Buffalo
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Harpercollins
• Publication date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0062585088
• ISBN 13: 9780062585080
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304