Laura Bush - (Modern First Ladies) by Jill Abraham Hummer (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

A complete, nuanced study of Laura Bush's work as first lady, which blended the traditional feminine expectations of the role with the political agenda and global advocacy of the modern office. Jill Abraham Hummer, a leading expert on first ladies, adds to the highly acclaimed Modern First Ladies series.

Born in Midland, Texas, Laura Lane Welch was reared in the mold of the traditional Southern woman, with its expectations of decorum and propriety. Raised with a love of books, she graduated from Southern Methodist University with a degree in education. Her life veered from the traditional path when, as a young woman, she taught elementary school in Texas during the process of desegregation, earned a master's degree in library science from the University of Texas, and worked as a community and school librarian. In 1977, at age thirty-one, she married George W. Bush and entered his family's world of politics. As a political wife, Laura brought her values and her concern for literacy and learning to the Texas Governor's Mansion and the White House--and to the world stage.

In the latest contribution to the Modern First Ladies series, Jill Abraham Hummer provides a complete and balanced assessment of Laura Bush's work as first lady. Laura Bush's legacy has been the source of debate. Some have portrayed her as a staid, complacent, perfect wife, lacking a will and agenda of her own. Others argue she was a brave and fierce advocate, using her platform in unprecedented ways to champion her own priorities. In this book, Hummer explores how Laura Bush artfully fused the modern and traditional elements of the position, broadening her appeal and upending expectations of what first ladies can do.

By chronicling Bush's activities as first lady in real time, Hummer shows how Bush grew from a reticent political wife with a limited portfolio into a global advocate in her own right. Laura Bush's time as first lady was not one-dimensional or static, and her growth was not necessarily linear. Hummer further argues that Laura Bush can best be understood as an emissary for George W. Bush's compassionate conservative policy agenda and efforts to spread freedom and democracy around the globe. Laura Bush's work was not inconsistent with her husband's efforts, but she also emerged as an independent advocate on several issues. In this regard, she modeled the modern interpretation of the first lady's role.

Hummer also chronicles Laura Bush's style and innovations in social entertaining, restoring and redecorating the White House, and promoting American arts and culture. In these respects, Laura Bush simultaneously advanced the first lady's traditional responsibilities and sought to bring dignity to the White House.

Review Quotes

"The University Press of Kansas's series of biographies on US First Ladies of the modern era are an invaluable resource for examining how these women impacted the US presidency while serving in this unique and constantly evolving role in American politics. Jill Hummer's well researched book on Laura Bush reveals her personal evolution over the course of her public life from reticent political spouse to active and popular First Lady who drew on her professional and personal interests and balanced the traditional and modern expectations of the role. Laura Bush was First Lady during one of the most tumultuous and consequential periods in American history. Hummer's book helps readers understand the authenticity Bush brought to her role, and more fully appreciate the breadth of her impact and why she is remembered for serving our country with dignity and grace at home and abroad."--Anita McBride, coauthor of Remember the First Ladies: The Legacies of America's History-Making Women

"This study provides a fresh and exciting assessment of Laura Bush's years as first lady. Engaging, balanced, insightful and well-researched, it effectively underlines her significance domestically and internationally, highlighting especially Bush's evolution in the post. Presenting a fully dimensional and dynamic perspective on a first lady and former librarian whose passion for education, civil rights, and women's rights stretched from Austin to Afghanistan, Hummer's study will remain a go-to source for years to come."--Katherine A. S. Sibley, author of Southern First Ladies: Culture and Place in White House History

"Hummer offers a balanced, scholarly analysis of Laura Bush's role as US first lady, situating her husband's presidency of 'compassionate conservatism' during historically challenging times. Marrying into the Bush family business of politics, Laura became George W.'s political partner; at first modestly with a limited portfolio, later as his full-fledged emissary with a global reach. Hummer documents her insights with original primary material gathered from personal interviews--a key strength of her book both for scholars and general readers."--Molly Meijer Wertheimer, editor of Inventing a Voice: The Rhetoric of American First Ladies of the Twentieth Century

"Laura Bush does not fit into neat categories and other biographers attempted to pigeonhole her into a category of traditional or activist. Hummer shows that a first lady can possess traits of both and in Laura Bush's case, it was far more of the latter. In a meticulously researched biography, Hummer shows that nearly everything Bush did in eight years and as Texas first lady was intended to complement her husband's policy agenda while also striking on her own drawing from her background in education and her sincere interest in the needs of average citizens in the U.S. and globally."--Diana B. Carlin, co-author of Remember the First Ladies: The Legacies of America's History-Making Women