This extended monologue puts us inside the head of a fictionalized Laura Bush. Perhaps overly long, but an interesting study of a woman's gradual realization and acceptance of her fatal flaws. ( )

Well, I read it. I finished it. And I'm not as entirely entranced by it as the many reviewers quoted on the book's cover. The cover is part of the problem. It reveals that our heroine, a bookish only child born into a completely ordinary family, becomes in due course, America's First Lady. Laura Bush in fact, though this account is in no way an attempt at a bigraphy. I really wish I hadn't known, as it hugely spoilt my enjoyment of the first sections of this 4 part book. Each section deals with a different decade or so of Alice's life. A horrible accident defines her later teenage years; a successful professional career, though a less successful personal life her late twenties, and so on. She goes on to describe her unlikely marriage to a man that it's quite astonishing to realise eventually becomes the president of the US.

The characters are believable, the depiction of day -to-day family and working life too. 500 pages in, I'm getting slightly bored at the unremitting detail (who cares about pizza toppings?)but at the same time, it fills out our understanding of Alice and her world. We can sympathise in the end with her compromises, her moral dilemmas..... and above all be glad that finally, after 630 pages, the book finally comes to an end. ( )

Fictional biography of Laura Bush. Well written, keeps your interest.

I absolutely loved this. It was so interesting and readable that I barely put it down once I started it. Admittedly, I've always been curious about Laura Bush, so this book was as satisfying as a major dish session with a friend who's gone through a lot that you missed. I know it's fiction, but it felt so true (so confessional!) even while I knew it's probably miles and miles from reality. My hat is off to Curtis Sittenfeld. Girl can write. Now I must go read Prep. ( )

Pretty surprised I even picked this up, but I have to say that I loved it. Great writing. I did lose interest when they ended up in the White House, but before that, I couldn't put it down. ( )