7 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
Mindless dribble, July 4, 2003
Reviewer: JULIE M. HOOK (see more about me) from MORRISTOWN, TN United States
As we know, this is just a work of fiction. I'm just sorry so many... felt it necessary to waste money on this garbage. I was smart enough just to borrow it. Wake up, people. This woman is as [sad] and useless as her so called "husband".
Was this review helpful to you?
3 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
Sadly lacking, July 3, 2003
Reviewer: A reader from Wonderland
It would have been nice if she could finally have told the truth, and had presented herself as it is. Apparently, that is never going to happen.
Was this review helpful to you?
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
55 used & new from $14.50
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Available for in-store pickup now from: $19.60
Price may vary based on availability
Enter your ZIP Code
Have one to sell?
Don't have one?
We'll set one up for you.
Living History
by Hillary Clinton (Author)
see larger photo
List Price: $28.00
Price: $16.80 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. See details.
You Save: $11.20 (40%)
Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours
55 used & new from $14.50
Edition: Hardcover
Other Editions: List Price: Our Price: Other Offers:
Audio Cassette $26.00 $18.20 15 used & new from $15.50
Audio CD $30.00 $21.00 26 used & new from $13.99
Digital $28.00 $28.00
See all editions...
See more product details
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Customer Reviews
Avg. Customer Review:
Number of Reviews: 502
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
Show: Newest First Oldest First Highest Rating First Lowest Rating First Most Helpful First Least Helpful First 5-Star Reviews Only 4-Star Reviews Only 3-Star Reviews Only 2-Star Reviews Only 1-Star Reviews Only
previous | 61-70 of 502 | next
26 of 50 people found the following review helpful:
Let's not try to insert our own political agendas . . ., July 2, 2003
Reviewer: A reader from Chicago, IL
into our reviews and take the book for what it is . . . an autobiography. Is it self-serving? You bet. (But who wouldn't write a self-serving autobiography?) Is it a terrible read? Not by a long stretch. It was written at a level for anyone to read, however, she did not shy away from discussing in intelligent, detailed terms, some of the more complicated subject matter (health care, whitewater), which I respected. Those who picked up the book to get the goods on Monica will end up coming away more enlightened about politics and our government in general after reading it. Good. If there's one thing the book achieved, and achieved well, it was to cast the controversy regarding her persona during the White House years in a less controversial light. She says that she is neither as good nor as bad as people think she is. I think that's probably true, as it's true of most people. You end the book thinking less that HRC is some shrewd monster who would give her right arm to be First Lady (which I never believed anyway), but rather, she, and Bill for that matter, are your typical Ivy League-educated overachievers who had the backgrounds and the abilities to get into the White House -- and that HRC was skewered for being the first First Lady to have actually achieved more in her life than perfecting how to pour tea at ladies' luncheons. Give the book a chance.
Was this review helpful to you?
4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
A Good 1st Lady Memoir - That's It; That's All!, July 2, 2003
Reviewer: ceruleana (see more about me) from New York, NY USA
Hillary Rodham Clinton states in her Author's Note, at the beginning of "Living History," that she is writing a personal memoir, not a comprehensive history. If you want to relax and dig in for a fascinating, insightful read, then it is important to accept her statement/disclaimer. Do not expect more from the book than a well written memoir. Hillary was, after all, the First Lady, and this is her unique, nontraditional take on her time in that position. I do hope that someday, when Senator Clinton retires from politics and gains more of a historical perspective, she will take on the task of authoring a comprehensive analysis of the Clinton Administration. That is a book I will really look forward to reading.
Senator Clinton, a woman of my generation, writes with intelligence, wit, sensitivity and lots of savvy, about the experiences in her life that made her the woman she was on January 20, 1993, when she moved to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. It is important to understand who she was then, the product of an amazing time in history, especially for American woman, in order to appreciate just how unique she was as she began her White House years. As a woman - wife, mother, professional and a daughter of the '60s - Hillary came to the White House with the education, potential, goals (her husband's and her own), and ambitions that were totally unlike those of any First Lady before her. We catch a glimpse of the young woman who was the first student to speak at a Wellesley graduation - and who received kudos to boot. I appreciate and admire that particular early accomplishment and how hard she must have worked, scholastically and with student government, to be invited by her peers to speak. How many young women...or men...did any of us know in 1969 who could have delivered such an address to such an exacting audience? The accuracy with which she describes the issues and conflicts of the time, i.e., Vietnam, civil rights, political activism, the Equal Rights Amendment, brings back the period with all its upheaval, innocence and idealism. Hillary was a political activist, working within the system for changes that would benefit a majority of Americans, even in high school. She entered Yale Law School, when female matriculation was still a rare occurrence. During her early career she focused on children's advocacy, reform for migrant workers, education, and healthcare. In her twenties, Hillary was already a person with strong convictions, making and living history.
I enjoyed her account of her courtship with Bill, and do give him credit that he had the sense to stick with her and not select the Miss America figure that his Mom seemed to expect. From the get go, this was a couple that did well together. They were very attracted to each other, yes...and more importantly, their minds meshed.
Her account of the Health (insurance) Task Force, which she headed is disappointing. As Chairperson, she received a major appointment in President Clinton's administration, and I did expect a meatier description of the job, her duties, pitfalls, successes and failures...and, of course, the results.
Her anecdotes of foreign travel, especially the conference in China, and her take on the heads of state who came to the White House during her time as official hostess, make for interesting reading.
Many have faulted Senator Clinton for forgiving her husband, and working to rebuild their marriage and relationship. Her reasons for sticking with Bill are very moving and make perfect sense to me.
When the former First Lady was interviewed on the Today Show, years ago, and talked about the "vast right-wing conspiracy," many called her paranoid and naive. Now, though she admits that "conspiracy" was not the most appropriate word, she sticks to her guns. She believes that there is a powerful and moneyed right-wing element in our country who wants to impose their political agenda on America. They spend their money, not by publicly debating issues of national importance, but by spreading scandal and destroying personal and professional reputations, at times using little more than rumor for their reality base. Although the "politics of personal destruction" had been employed long before the Clintons came on the scene, the radical conservative movement took these politics to a new high...or perhaps low is the better word... during the Clinton administration. The result was millions of US tax dollars spent trying to prove that the Clintons were guilty of illegal activities. None of the accusations proved true. Many years and investigations later, I believe that the country, and probably the Clintons, are still exhausted by all the needless vitriol.
I accept that both Hillary and Bill Clinton are super controversial figures. Yes, folks tend to either love them or hate them. Both are talented, intelligent, human beings, who sought public office to serve their country. In a democracy one does not have to agree with their political or personal philosophies. Just vote no...or yes, as the case may be.
Finally, I have read commentaries that state this memoir is lacking, because Senator Clinton did not add lurid details to her book or discuss events that have already been written about and discussed, ad nauseum. Baloney!! If you are interested in the White House Years during the Clinton Administration from the First Lady's point of view, a woman who redefined the position of presidential spouse, then you will enjoy "Living History." I did.
Was this review helpful to you?
1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Well-timed Account may Help with the Coming Election, July 2, 2003
Reviewer: rmac1117 (see more about me) from Cherry Valley, Ma United States
No matter how many or few co-authors she may have employed for her book, Hillary may have just picked the most opportune time to steer undecided minds toward clearer reality for the 2004 Election, and allow this society to emerge from under the shroud of Republican doldrums. In early chapters, she describes GOP follies such as the Whitewater witch-hunt, the attempted Newt coup-d'etat, the impeachment circus, and the plundering of the health-care system & environment, with a clarity they'd never let on to public knowledge. Also not to be overlooked is the overall floundering of the economy under such plutocratic policies, and how effective simple solutions such as luxury taxes can be.
...BR>(And just maybe, all their votes would actually COUNT...!)
For anyone thinking that is all that is here, later chapters cover world-wide inadequacies, such as uncivilized societies that treat their women as pariahs, with similar stark descriptions; also subjects which must first be brought to the surface so that people are aware, before there's any hope of rectification. I also recommend the 2 recent Gore Vidal commentaries, and "Best Democracy Money Can Buy" as companion volumes.
Those who read Hillary's book with few objectives other than fault-finding will yap the loudest, blind to reason before beginning. I vote at every opportunity, and I'm not considered a "liberal" or anything similar.
Was this review helpful to you?
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
I could't finish the book!, July 2, 2003
Reviewer: A reader from North Andover, MA United States
Oh my God! I could only force myself to read the first few chapters and skim a few of the others. The writing was terrible! It was written like "It was a dark and stormy night" prose. If you are going to hire 4 writers, then at least hire GOOD ones. Give me a break with writing like "I was gasping for air"..come on! And all the name-dropping too. "Me and Mandela..." and "I got a standing ovation". and "me...me..I...I.." What an ego. It was like an 8th grade novel writing contest entry. I only read about 100 pages. Could I get my money back for the other 450?
Was this review helpful to you?
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Living History? More like History of the World Part 2, July 2, 2003
Reviewer: A reader from Warner Robins, Georgia
This book was an attempt to make Hillary look like the typical "taken advantage of" housewife. The question is, will America be illiterate enough to take this work of "fiction" and believe it to be true.
I applaud Mrs. Clintons grasp for money at any cost. Only in America.
Was this review helpful to you?
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Great for lining a cat liter box, July 1, 2003
Reviewer: BRAD HELDER from CAMPBELL, CA USA
How can a person "write" a book and recall in great detail all her conversation with Bill, when that same person stated " i cann't recall" over a hundred times with under oath during the Whitewater investigation. Selective memory or a plain lier? I guess there was 8 million reason to attach her name to a book she did not even write.
Was this review helpful to you?
4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
Give me a break!, July 1, 2003
Reviewer: A reader from U.S. Army, Germany
I made an honest effort at reading this thing. I was really hoping to get some insight at what makes a person like this successful. If she really believes the things that she has said or says enough to gain the misguided trust of the left and launch herself into power. I was disappointed on all fronts.
Nothing new, more of the same, and typical ... Clinton attempt at the truth. Anyone who reads this with a knowledge of the events as they unfolded or an intuition of self-righteous writing will see that in a second. The only thing that can be gained here is more people seeing through this woman in her own words and her dishonesty. Hopefully this book will end her political career before it goes any further.
I never really considered myself on the left, but after reading this, perhaps I have been on the wrong side of politics if this person is the "up and coming star" of the Democratic party.
Save your money
Was this review helpful to you? |
