I’m enjoying Spoken from the Heart by Laura Bush because of the insight it gives me into world events. I better understand the history of the nation of Afghanistan and why Laura has chosen to support the women there. She refers to “the damage wrought by the vicious gender apartheid of the Taliban.” I had realized the Taliban takeover oppressed the women of the country, but I had not realized they had previously won the right to vote and that the government had previously abolished the requirement that they be covered from head-to-toe.
I also like the behind-the-scenes look at the grueling schedule required of a First Lady-- and the heavy responsibility she carries to represent her country well, especially in trying times such as the days following 9-11 and other major catastrophes. The author has a descriptive way of writing. Of a helicopter she describes “its rotors thumping against the evening sky.” I like that. On a visit to a dining hall on the base in Afghanistan she sits between two women: “These were the two worlds, burka-clad women and women in combat fatigues, now inhabiting the same dusty Afghan ground.”
Sometimes there’s just too much information. She names White House staff and sometimes goes into great detail about trips and events. I would not need those details; however, perhaps the book would not be as engaging without them. So I read on. Another hour or two and I should be finished.
