George Bush: An Intimate Portrait

This full-dimensioned account shows the life of George Bush, from his childhood in Maine and schooling at Yale to his inauguration as president of the United States. 16 illustrations.

This is a rambling, embarrassing piece of hagiography written by a sometime adman, former U.S.I.A. employee, and lifelong acquaintance of the Bushes. The chapter headings set the tone, e.g., "Fighter for America" and "Yale Star." The book reads like a campaign biography that is two years late. Ironically, while intending to praise Bush, this work damns him. Bush emerges as an other-directed organization man who wants to be well-liked but who has few principles and little vision. One observer Green quotes, says, "Bush is like water; he takes the shape of his container." Green himself is mystified by Bush's selection of Quayle as Vice President. He also concludes that Bush's father, Senator Prescott Bush, "left no substantive footsteps" and "offered no particular vision, except that of a life of rectitude. . . . " Like father, like son? Recommended only because it will be requested.
- Jeffrey R. Herold, Bucyrus P.L., Ohio
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.