Spoken from the Heart
| Company type | Autobiography |
|---|---|
| Industry | Publishing |
| Founded | 2010 |
| Founder | Laura Bush, Lyric Winik |
| Products | Book |
Spoken from the Heart is a 2010 autobiography authored by First Lady Laura Bush, in collaboration with journalist Lyric Winik.
Contents
Bush recounts a tragic car accident she was involved in at age 17, describing it as a burden she has carried throughout her life. She portrays her childhood in Midland, Texas as idyllic and shares the beginnings of her relationship with George W. Bush, including the local doubts surrounding their eventual marriage.
She expresses support for significant Bush administration policies such as the Invasion of Iraq, commending her husband's steadfast leadership, while also acknowledging certain policy differences. Importantly, she reveals having advised George W. Bush against emphasizing gay marriage during his 2004 re-election campaign, despite its significance within the administration’s family values agenda.
Reviews
Michiko Kakutani of The New York Times characterized the sections about the White House as "carefully prepared and vetted," presenting expected justifications for contentious decisions and offering unremarkable depictions of prominent figures like Dick Cheney, Donald H. Rumsfeld, and Karl Rove.
Melissa Benn writing for The Guardian observed that the memoir centers on both personal and political minutiae—designer gowns, official ceremonies, and interactions with leaders such as Tony Blair, Nicolas Sarkozy, and Vladimir Putin. She drew attention to Bush’s critiques of Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign alongside favorable portrayals of Cheney, Rove, and "Condi" Rice.
Tina Jordan from Entertainment Weekly described Bush as a "shadowy spectator" within her own narrative but commended the initial chapters covering her youth and marriage for their "sweetness and poignancy."
Elaine Showalter in The Daily Telegraph labeled the autobiography as "calculated and highly controlled," suggesting it was more "Written from the Head" rather than from genuine emotion.
Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post noted that the memoir opens with promise for readers interested in perspectives beyond Bush’s public image.