The President is Missing – James Patterson & Bill Clinton

by Bill Clinton & James Patterson, pub. 2018, pp. 513

 

What I learned from this book

I learned that there are still some horrifying events that can and may occur in our country at any moment in time.  We tend to consume ourselves with ourselves (selfies, smartphones, reality television, etc.).  What we may not do enough of is pay attention to some of the things that threaten to take all of the fun away from us – permanently. One example of this type of catastrophe (spoiler alert #1) is the one examined in the book – the purposeful contamination of a virus meant to cause a complete and total shutdown of all of the things we take for granted but need each day: clean running water supply, electricity from the grid, internet access – as well as too many other conveniences to mention.

In other words, we may find value in gluing ourselves to every personal experience, but none of it will mean anything without continued access to the things we actually need in order to exist each day. This novel could be looked at as a wake-up call for many of us in America.

Most of us think we’re wide awake, but, in fact, we are mostly “asleep at the wheel” when it comes to the prospects of a true, wide-scale crisis.  I suppose it remains to be seen how serious we can ever get about this or any other type of wake-up call.

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The Invisibles

 

By Jesse J. Holland (published, 2016)

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This book focused on a topic that most of us have never come across in our many years of American History book reading and study.  It delves into the contributions made by African slaves living and serving their masters in the U.S. White House.  At first, it may seem to many of us that this couldn’t have been possible (mostly because it was omitted from our education lessons), but given the era in which it took place and the financial constraints the U.S.A. was under in its infancy, it is obvious that this was one of the ways which our founders used to build up a nation “on a financial shoestring.”

What I found most amazing about this book

I learned that 12 of our first 18 U.S. presidents had slaves actively serving them and their families in the White House.  It is a stunning statistic, but also a sobering exposé on a topic that needs to be discussed much more often than it has been in our time.  We must remember that these slaves were in no better or privileged position than slaves serving in any other area of the country.  They simply served their masters in what is considered the single most treasured landmark in America – the White House.

What I did NOT like about this book

In my opinion, there was nothing to dislike about this book.

Whom do I recommend should read this book?

This is a great book for almost all ages.  I would have liked to have known many of the facts and seen the gallery of photos exhibited in the pages of this book when I was a young man.  As painful as some of the events could be to some readers, it is still very important to be aware of and acknowledge.  The author, Jesse Holland, does a wonderful job in taking us methodically (to the extent possible) through the era.

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