The Hidden History of the White House

The Hidden History of the White House: Power Struggles, Scandals, and Defining Moments by Corey Mead is a great read that I truly enjoyed.

This is quite the collection of stories telling some of the many fascinating people, events, and scenes that took place in and surrounding our nation’s most famous residence. I loved how each narrative placed the reader right into the mix so one could feel as if they were there and part of the action.

There are three sections of the book where the stories are grouped into common themes:
Part 1: Laying the Foundation
Part 2: The People’s House
Part 3: Halls of Power

I won’t spoil anything for the readers, as they should be able to truly enjoy the book as I did. If you love American history, then this is for you.

The story of the White House is in many ways the story of America, and Cory Mead attempts to capture that parallelism in The Hidden History of the White House. He has some success, but the book is short on a central theme.

=== The Good Stuff ===
* I am an avid reader of American history, and the book did have some information that was new to me. I especially enjoyed the insights on Churchill’s visit to the FDR White House and some of the details of Alexander Butterfield’s infamous recording system during the Nixon years.
* Mead writes in an easy-to-read style, and without the use of complicated syntax or obscure vocabulary.
* It is tough on a draft copy to check references, but the bibliography seems comprehensive and credible.

=== The Not-So-Good Stuff ===
* While there are a few chapters that deal with the physical construction and reconstruction of the White House, more of the book becomes an anthology of interesting glimpses into American History, related mostly by their beginning in the White House.
* Architecture is one of my interests, and many buildings, especially seats of government are carefully crafted to send a message to friends, enemies and citizens. I was really hoping for more of a discussion of these qualities in the US White House, and even better, a comparison with other seats of government world wide. Sadly, this was not a major component of the text.

=== Summary ===
I liked the book as an overview of some high and low points of American history, and it was well written and the research seemed credible. Based on the title, I had hoped for a slightly different emphasis, but still found the book enjoyable and would recommend it to my fellow American history buffs.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher William Morrow for an advance copy of this history on the building, and some of the momentous events that have happened in this edifice that even with all the events of the last couple of years, still inspires and reminds people of all the possibilities that America is capable of achieving, if only we tried harder.

If walls could talk the White House would be a bard of stories. From its creation, to the short stay of Adams, to Joe Biden today, this building has seen a lot of history, and even more history has been created inside from the final blasts of a canal, to historic dinners, the planning of civil rights legislature, even the filling in of pools. The Hidden History of the White House: Power Struggles, Scandals, and Defining Moments, by Corey Mead takes a look at a place that seems to get overlooked in presidential histories, the building where the First Family resides, a place that has many names but only a select few have been able to call home.

The book was inspired by a podcast American History Tellers, and is broken into essays that range in time and even places, but under a particular theme. There are three sections, Laying the Foundation, which is about the building of the White House, the design and influence that First President George Washington had and the slaves that helped build the building. There is of course the buring and rebuilding following the War of 1812, and the re-re-building following years of neglect forcing Truman and his family to move else where, which lead to its own adventure. Plus a story about Ford and his pool. The People's House deals with events inside, the inauguration of Andrew Jackson and the controlled riot that was his party. The dinner between Booker T. Washington and Theodore Roosevelt, which sent southern papers into storm of condemnation about a black man eating with a white family. And Halls of Power discussing the Nixon tapes, the meeting of Churchill and Roosevelt during the Second World War.

This book was not at all what I expected and I loved almost every page. There is so much history in here, so many facts. Cory Mead is a very good writer not only able to talk about the history, but he brings the characters so much to life. The presidents of course Lincoln and Johnson really come across well here, but the other characters. Kate Warne who was the first Pinkerton detective, who rose to supervisor of female detectives. Ely S. Parker a great friend to Ulysses Grant, who was a Seneca native, and tried his best to become a part of the American dream, only to be told as he was a Native American, he was not American. Mead has a real way of mixing in stories and reminding us that yes these people might have helped change history, but they were just people. The human factor is ignored quite a bit in history. Mead also goes into the building of the White House by slaves, explaining it clearly and succinctly that yes this did happen.

There is a sense of what America has lost in this book. The same racism, the same stupid arguments, the same hate and ignorance keeps appearing and reappearing. To go from Lincoln, Roosevelt, either one, Johnson for civil rights, not Vietnam, to what we have had is just remarkably sad. However there is always hope. This is a great book to inspire people to live up to some of these ideals.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The History of the White House.

You know the saying...'if these walls could talk...'

If any building has juicy stories to tell, it'd be the White House, the grand symbol and epitome of American democracy.

I'm a fan of American history so I was excited my request was approved.

The book is divided into three sections and reveals behind-the-scene stories of some of the most dramatic events in American history like the Bay of Pigs, the building of the Panama Canal, Teddy Roosevelt's dinner with Booker T. Washington, and the decline of President Woodrow Wilson's health. That was a very sad story.

The writing flows and its obvious the author did his research.

I wonder what stories the author had to leave out because he ran out of room!

I appreciate the photos because visuals add to a story; it never hurts to put a face to the name.

This was a fascinating, intriguing read I think fans of American history and/or politics would enjoy.

I love reading stories about the hidden histories and lore of real places, and this kept my curiosity piqued through the whole book. The Hidden History of the White House is an in depth look at what makes the White House cog keep turning, from the lives and scandals of the presidents and their families to the people that worked and built the house itself.