Book #39: LibraryLove September 2, 2010

Eighteen Acres by Nicolle Wallace – Publication date October 19th, 2010

Book description~

Eighteen Acres, a description used by political insiders when referring to the White House complex, follows the first female President of the United States, Charlotte Kramer, and her staff as they take on dangerous threats from abroad and within her very own cabinet.

Charlotte Kramer, the 45th US President, Melanie Kingston, the White House chief of staff, and Dale Smith, a White House correspondent for one of the networks are all working tirelessly on Charlotte’s campaign for re-election. At the very moment when they should have been securing success, though, Kramer’s White House implodes under rumors of her husband’s infidelity and grave errors of judgment on the part of her closest national security advisor. In an upheaval that threatens not only the presidency, but the safety of the American people, Charlotte must fight to regain her footing and protect the country she has given her life to serving.

Eighteen Acres combines political and family drama into one un-put-downable novel. It is a smart, juicy and fast-paced read that we’re sure fans of commercial women’s fiction will fall in total love with.

Special thanks to Judith Curr over at Atria Books/Washington Square Press for sending me this advanced review copy (ARC) to read. As you probably noticed, I’ve not been able to read much at all lately. The only book I read in the month of August was for book club!  I’ve not had time to sleep much either. Working 15 hour days for weeks now, albeit from home, has definitely put a crimp in my reading progress AND my sleep. It’s been an insane month with no end in sight until at least June 2011 when a huge project I’m spearheading comes to completion. Thankfully I’m still on track with this challenge…challenge, indeed!

Like many if not all little girls around the country, I too at one young point in my life aspired to be the first female president. As the facts of life set in and the naiveté wore off, I realized that would be the last thing I’d ever want for me or my family. Being under the microscope as a public figure is something I never want for myself. However, my curiosity never waned. Who wouldn’t want to know what it’d be like to be the first female president?

Author and political commentator, Nicolle Wallace, uses her experiences as political analyst for CBS evening news and campaign advisor for many big name politicos, to explore every girl’s childhood curiosities. Nicole takes us to the epicenter of the Lion’s Den and into the world of Charlotte Kramer, the first female president of the United States and the two ladies closest to her. Nicolle creates a well-rounded story using third-person narrative of three characters that rotate throughout the novel. Eighteen Acres is narrated by Melanie (White House Chief of Staff), Dale (White House Correspondent), and Charlotte, the 45th President of the United States. President Kramer is trying to get re-elected but her world is about to crumble as the plot of this novel unravels. The most interesting parts of this novel, for me, were seeing just how difficult it is to be the ‘first spouse’, husband OR wife. President Kramer’s husband Peter is navigating new waters and trying to figure out his place. Peter has his own career, interests and spends the majority of his time away from his wife, even with separate sleeping quarters. Kramer’s picture-perfect image starts to fray as she tries to juggle the public, her husband, her children, her team and everyone in her world. Kramer’s public approval ratings start to decline. Kramer starts to question her husbands’ ‘extra-curricular’ activities and things take a turn from a picture-perfect presidency when crisis hits the White House.

This book is conversational, fun, dynamic and suspenseful. Dale’s spunky edge and sinister ways throw a fun monkey wrench into the buttoned-up starched-shirt politico crowd.

I hope you will add Eighteen Acres to your TBR list and read this novel when it comes out in October!

3/5 stars

39 down, 13 to go!

In progress- The Thirteenth Tale by Diana Setterfield

xo♥xo,

LibraryLove

Bookwormz Day Out:: Library of Congress:: March 6, 2010

142 million items. 650 miles of bookshelves. Over 32 million books. Materials in 470 languages.

Fellow blogger, BFF, and bookworm (alliteration!) Fa-Book-ulous,  took me out on a fantastic surprise birthday date today. Part of the day included a surprise trip to  THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS!!! It’s only fitting, my name isn’t LibraryLove for nothin’, that I finally get the chance to see the biggest most awe-inspiring, architecturally amazing (alliteration!) library! Conceptually and socially, I appreciate everything about the library. This was a rare opportunity to see where it all began. This year we are challenging ourselves to rise beyond cultural norms. We’re reclaiming the library and shouting from the rooftops that reading (for free) is cool!!!!!!!!!!!

“The Library receives some 22,000 items each working day and adds approximately 10,000 items to the collections daily. The majority of the collections are received through the Copyright registration process, as the Library is home to the U.S. Copyright Office. Materials are also acquired through gift, purchase, other government agencies (state, local and federal), Cataloging in Publication (a pre-publication arrangement with publishers) and exchange with libraries in the United States and abroad. Items not selected for the collections or other internal purposes are used in the Library’s national and international exchange programs. Through these exchanges the Library acquires material that would not be available otherwise. The remaining items are made available to other federal agencies and are then available for donation to educational institutions, public bodies and nonprofit tax-exempt organizations in the United States”~ LOC

Fa-Book-ulous planned a guided tour with a vibrant and knowledgeable docent who shared rare tidbits as she showed us around the LOC. We kept glancing at each other with raised eyebrows amazed at how much we didn’t know about a place only 30 minutes east of our hometowns and so integral to our country’s history. So often we take for granted the (free) opportunities around us. The LOC is part of our nation’s history and I hope this will inspire you to check it out!

The Library of Congress is the oldest federal cultural institution serving as both the research arm of Congress and the largest library in the world with millions of books, recordings, photographs, maps, and rare artifacts. It’s been on my list of sightseeing adventures, and now I can cross it off!

Seeing Thomas Jefferson’s library (pictured below) and the beautiful architectural  artistry together with Fa-book-ulous was a wonderful experience. We will forever share our ‘book bond’ and this was the icing on the cake! We didn’t have time to check out the other two buildings that also make up the FOC but hope to get back there one day! Who knew that if you need to go to their library to research, you access all the materials online, or, call ahead! A team of librarians are at the ready to be your concierge! They will literally pull reference materials on your selected topic and have them waiting upon arrival. Now THAT’S service w/ a smile!

“I cannot live without books” ~Thomas Jefferson, June 10, 1815

Xoxo,

LibraryLove