Curtis Sittenfeld's American Wife Provides Fictionalized Portrait Of Laura Bush

Curtis Sittenfeld, the bestselling author of Prep and The Man of my Dreams, has penned a fictionalized account of Laura Bush's life to be released in time for the Republican National Convention.

The book, American Wife, will be published by Random House, and centers around a main character named Alice Blackwell, a librarian who unwittingly falls in love with a blue-blooded man (Charlie Blackwell) who would become President of the United States.

The book, as Radar reports, mixes fiction with facts of Laura Bush's life:

It is, in short, a fictional examination of the life of the First Lady that mingles real facts and incidents with the author's imaginative, fanciful, sometimes sexually charged musings. The result is a masterful highbrow-lowbrow mash-up that satisfies as ass-kicking literary fiction and juicy gossip simultaneously.

From discovering that her grandmother is a lesbian, killing her high school crush with her car at age 16 (this incident at least is based in fact--Laura Bush was involved in a fatal car accident at that age), having sex with his brother, getting an abortion, and descriptions of sex with the president, Alice's antics are sure to have tongues chattering from coast to coast.

In the below excerpt, courtesy of Radar, Alice has an abortion. For more excerpts, visit Radar here.

"Alice" gets an abortion

"'We'll go to Chicago, and we'll have it taken care of. Next week, likely. I need to make a few calls. You can do as you see fit, but I'd advise against saying anything to your parents. I just can't imagine what purpose it would serve.'

"I felt an impulse then to express incomprehension, except that I did comprehend. At night, when I listened to 'Lonesome Town,' I knew. She was right.

"'Isn't it--" I hesitated. "'Isn't it illegal?'

"'Certainly, and it happens all the time. You can't legislate human nature.'

"[...]My grandmother was not permitted in the operating room--when Dr. Wycomb appeared in the white coat. She squeezed my hand, and the warmth of her grip made me realize how cold I was. I wore a blue hospital gown, and when I lay on the operating table, the nurse had me set my feet in metal stirrups. 'The doctor wants to talk to you before we put you under,' the nurse said, and ten or twelve minutes had passed."

Read more excerpts here.

Comments

[Budokan]

LOL! You can already hear the right-wing lift its collective snout from the feeding trough and squeal with pain.

I love it. Serves them right. What goes around comes around. Karma, baby. Time to pay back, Repugs, and that balloon note is gonna be a hard one to swallow.

But that's your problem. I'll be over here laughing at the destruction of your Party.

[MizLiz]

I read the excerpts..­.good grief, it isn't even very good writing. let's put it on the same shelf as Lynn Cheney's lesbian bodice-rippers and whoever wrote "Mandingo" which certainly has to be the most awful book ever written.

[Vantunow]

Another appropriate title for this drivel would be: How to Pull Defeat from the Jaws of Victory.

If this gets any airtime, BO and company have to come down HARD on the author and this junk.

That needs to be done the first time it comes out. You can't appear WEAK in attacking this book.

[RedDogBear]

I agree. This is just more crapy writing dressed up to make a few $$. If you want to do a bio then do a bio, if you want to write fiction then do that but this is a cheap shot against probably the most harmless individual (OK second most after the dog) in the White House. I thought it was lame when people did it to the Clintons (Primary Colors) and think its lame here as well.

[JiminNC]

What has this got to do with BO?

[doctorwang]

Vantunow has a point. In some inane way the Repugnants will make this novel into a left wing smear of Laura Bush. Whether it be by connecting the publisher with liberal leaning authors or stating that Curtis Sittenfeld is an Obama supporter or whatever. Even though it makes no sense to you or me, they will connect this book to Obama, and Fox will gleefully report it. The first time Obama gets questioned concerning this novel, he should clearly and concisely criticize it.

[Mygirl]

I saw the cover and thought it was a book about a Princess.

[AfricanLived]

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[nellie]

Are you kidding? I'm running out to buy this as soon as it hits the shelve. Sounds like a fun, guilty-pleasure read.

[mollysgran]

I'll wait 6 months and buy it used for $.01 on Amazon.

[David423]

Oooooooooo­ooooohhhhh­hhhhhhh,

This will go down well with the values voters.

[olivia]

They'll be the first to buy it.

[dutchess2]

This is sick....La­ura Bush and her daughters are the only people in the whole fam damily
that did not have a part of the shuckin and jivin that got GWB in the white house... Why make them
the fall guys?

Barb and Pappy have much to atone for.


Laura Bush and her daughters do not.

[barkingcat]

dutchess2 -- very much agreed!

Well put.

[JiminNC]

Jenna is involved in his Parguay hidey hole ... I'll give you Laura but the kids are Bushes.

[rucognizant]

No I don't think Jenna is!

[meanguy]

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