Oh Hillary. What a life you’ve led. I admire you and your accomplishments, I really do. Being one of 27 women admitted to Yale Law School in 1969 was great. Your squeaky clean upbringing in the suburbs of Chicago, Hillary: it’s swell. Just swell. But for the love of God, woman, is there any chance of getting to know the real you?!
The 100-plus pages Living History devoted to Whitewater did not help me understand it (or Hillary) any more than before and it only confirmed what everyone already knows: Kenneth Starr is a dick. The most candid moment in the book (and one of the only) occurred when Hillary described attending Mandela’s inauguration and running around trying to dodge meeting Castro, who wanted to meet her. Another interesting (and prophetic) event in Hillary’s life was her involvement in Watergate. She was a staff member who worked on Nixon’s impeachment inquires. Who knew?
I’ve heard some accounts that claim the majority of Living History focuses on Monica Lewinsky, a claim I must refute in true political fashion. Only one chapter is devoted to her feelings on Bill’s infidelity with Monica, and outside of a few references to sleeping in separate rooms while in the Hamptons, she largely glosses over the emotional impact this event had on her. A part of me lauds her decision to keep private matters private, but for a woman of her intelligence and talent, she has also chosen the path of least resistance: denial, and it reflects in the book.
The entire memoir is devoid of any emotion or personality, and despite my best efforts to locate the “ghost writer’s” name, I couldn’t. Then a fellow Mercury staffer recommended I look in the “Acknowledgements” section. Lo and Behold, the true author emerged: her aide, Lissa Muscatine, who is credited as being responsible for “many of the words in my speeches as First Lady and in the book.” Ah-ha!
It’s too bad. Hillary is known for being a rather tempestuous woman, and I longed for that personality trait to burst through the pages. Instead, we readers are left with a bland, impersonal account of an interesting life tragically overshadowed by a husband’s lewd actions. NICOLE WARREN