Ladies: A Conjecture of Personalities [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

Recommendation: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Lynn Young is the Managing Editor of The MWLA review, a Reviewer and Editor

Throughout these well-researched and colorful short stories, you learn interesting facts such as: John Tyler's wife, Julia, was also famous for hosting elaborate White House parties just like Dolley Madison. She was also responsible for Congress establishing pensions for the widows of former U.S Presidents. Although this informative reading is for both men and women, the male reader who pays particular attention may learn something about how women actually think. The male reader will note Hillary Clintons' comment about John Tyler, "It seems no matter what talents or accomplishments a First Lady has, people always seem to make the biggest fuss about her clothes". This easy writing style transcends itself into creative commentaries throughout the book, and if you listen hard enough you can actually hear the voices of the First Ladies tell their story.

What a delightful breathe of fresh air on the arrival of this new historical writer with all her whimsical and humorous reflections. Yet all of this is done with just the right sense of flair and historical balance. This book is a delicious recipe for anyone's reading. Her book captures the spirit and flavor of times gone by, just like the backyard "Yarn" of Margaret Taylor.

Mrs. Foster's book resurrects little remembered or even known facts such as: Jeff Davis was Margaret Taylor's son-in-law, Abigail Fillmore helped educate her own husband and started the first White House Library. Let's not forget Mrs. Wilson's campaign to rid the Capital of squalid slums and Lou Hoover's responsibility for the purchase of what is today Camp David.

Please do yourself a favor and run out and by this book before they all disappear from the bookshelves.

The book begins with this country's very first First Lady, Martha Washington, wife of George Washington, and ends with Mamie Eisenhower, who was married to Dwight Eisenhower, our thirty-fourth President. Each First Lady is given her own chapter to write about herself and her experiences while in the White House, with comments from other First Ladies colloquialized throughout.

These First Ladies were as diverse physically as they were in regards to personality, and the vast majority were intelligent, articulate women possessing great insight. It is interesting to note the steady idealistic progression of women throughout our history, as seen through the eyes of these First Ladies. Their differing views regarding slavery, suffrage, temperance, fidelity, and a woman's role in the workforce are fascinating to read.

Most of the First Ladies were very much in love with their husbands, although there were some who were not so enamored. Even though many of these women enjoyed their days in the White House, there were those who abhorred it. Some wished to stand apart and be remembered, while others desired only to return to what they considered their real home life. The conversations among the ladies are interesting and fun to read, especially the snippets between Abigail Adams and her daughter-in-law Louisa Adams, and Mary Lincoln and Julia Grant.

The only constant between this steady flow of women is that they were married to Presidents of the United States. It appears that more than a few were from the state of Ohio and that most of these First Ladies outlived their husbands. The majority never dreamed they would one day inhabit the White House, while there were some who strove to occupy that space.

An engaging, delightful read filled with historical facts and fun conversational tidbits among the First Ladies, such that at times, I felt as if I were in a room, listening to these women speak. This is a grand concept by this author and a book I highly recommend to all readers, whether history buff or not.