Laura Welch Bush: First Lady (Gateway Biographies)

Looks at the life of the wife of the forty-third president of the United States.

Reviewed with Barbara Silberdick Feinberg's Joseph Lieberman.

Gr. 4-6. Two players from the last election, Joseph Lieberman and Laura Bush are profiled in these slim volumes. The Leiberman biography is the weaker of the two. The writing is clunky in places, and there is no analysis. Feinberg notes that Leiberman ran the first negative TV ad in Connecticut, but fails to deal with how that squares with his highly ethical reputation; better is her discussion of the way Leiberman integrated his Judaism with politics. As Lieberman is the first Jewish candidate to run for national office, his story needs to be told, and this supplies some highlights. Stone's book on Bush covers the high points of the First Lady's life, her childhood in Texas, her career as a teacher and a librarian, and her unexpected role as wife of a politician. One insert about "First Pets" seems oddly placed, but the book is easy to read, and there's enough material for reports. Both books feature nice selections of color and black-and-white photos. Time lines and bibliographies are appended. Ilene Cooper
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