The Clinton Enigma

Rating:
Summary: A one-man smear-campaign!
Review: As a foreigner who has seen the US from abroad throughout the last decade, I must say I was very disapointed by this book. How is it possible to create so much garbage and put it indise a cover, and then get it sold?!!! For a long time I followed the US-debate over the Clintons. And for a long time I thought Hillary Clinton's acusations about a conspiracy was a bit over the top. But after reading this I am in no doubt: The Clintons have recieved a lot more negativety than they deserve! And thruth be told, Bill Clinton was a leader we in the rest of the world had confidence in. He was though on behalf of his nation, but he was a leader in wich we felt trust.

Rating:
Summary: Biographer parses the "apology" with verve, grace, depth.
Review: Can we ever take foolishness seriously? Yes, when the actor--Bill Clinton, for example--not only has power, but some noble qualities too. Maraniss, author of the acclaimed biography _First in His Class_, knows Clinton well, writes well, and doesn't play "parlor psychoanalysis." With respectful curiosity Marannis discusses Clinton's background, self-presentation (a pattern of evasion and lying) and womanizing. I was fascinated by sidelights on Betsey Wright, Dick Morris, Hillary and less-known informants. If you want to know what Clinton's best biographer thinks of the Lewinsky mess, here it is. Short, well-told, informative, tying many loose ends together (forgive me!) this book is no mere "quickie." Maraniss predicts what happened November 3: "It is one of the many ironies of the Clinton tragedy that he was always his worst enemy while his enemies, by overreacting, were often, unwittingly, his strongest allies."

Rating:
Summary: OK quickie, but read _First in His Class_
Review: David Maraniss is a real pro and I recommend his books and articles, but I wish he would not have written this little book. It is an interesting idea -- to extrapolate a man's life from a four minute speech -- but I found it to be somewhat self-serving.

For example, Mr. Maraniss makes something of a to-do about the fact that the president of the United States would not make time for him. Mr. Maraniss had been critical of Clinton in some ways, and that might have dampened the president's enthusiasm for meeting with him; but Maraniss is only an author. Bill Clinton was president of the United States.

One other little example: Mr. Maraniss makes something of a deal out of the fact that Clinton once said to him, "Nice tie," and then later someone else told him (D.M.) that that remark should be interpreted as a "F- you." Hm, a pretty far-out interpretation.
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Rating:
Summary: Read the full-length biography
Review: For readers with only a passing interesting in Bill Clinton, this is a short, succint book that you can complete in a day. But for readers looking for bigger game, read "First in His Class" by the same author. That book is the best Clinton biography on the market, covering his life from childhood to his 1992 presidential run. This book was published just before Clinton's impeachment by the House. The author gives some new insights, going through the president's August 17 confession line-by-line, and interprets its meaning. You sense Mr. Maraniss's frustration and obvious disappointment with his subject. But at the same time, he maintains a hue of fairness and objectivity that is badly needed when compared to other Clinton books. Mr. Maraniss will help you understand Bill Clinton, but the truth is that no person can fully understand this true "enigma."

Rating:
Summary: Read the full-length biography
Review: For readers with only a passing interesting in Bill Clinton, this is a short, succint book that you can complete in a day. But for readers looking for bigger game, read "First in His Class" by the same author. That book is the best Clinton biography on the market, covering his life from childhood to his 1992 presidential run. This book was published just before Clinton's impeachment by the House. The author gives some new insights, going through the president's August 17 confession line-by-line, and interprets its meaning. You sense Mr. Maraniss's frustration and obvious disappointment with his subject. But at the same time, he maintains a hue of fairness and objectivity that is badly needed when compared to other Clinton books. Mr. Maraniss will help you understand Bill Clinton, but the truth is that no person can fully understand this true "enigma."

Rating:
Summary: An Unsupported Criticism From President's Enemies
Review: I have listened to this book on the tape. It's a good thing I got my copy at the library, because buying it even for 1 cent would be a waste of money. I have already wasted my time on listening to the author's non-sense about Clinton's biography. David Maraniss, the author and narrator of the book became upset with the President for the unwillingness of the later one to meet with the biography writer. Frankly, after listening to this material I would NOT let this author write my biography either. This book is all NEGATIVE since the first paragraph. It is based on the comments of the Clinton's enemy's and unfairly judges the president based on his personal life and not on what he has done for the country.

Don't waste your money on this book.

Sorry Dave, but you have to change the style and give people credits. Leading a country is a huge responsibility enough. So what if Clinton had some fun in his personal life. No one is perfect. I still bet he has done for the country more than most other presidents or people, including yourself!

Rating:
Summary: 6 stars! 7 stars! An excellent book.
Review: I've not read any books about Clinton until now. The stories I read in here were new to me. I found the author fair and balanced. No honest look at Clinton's personal life can be flattering, but the author seeks to explain Clinton, not condemn him. The book is thoughtful and very well written. I enjoyed it immensely. ( Let's face it, Clinton's personal life became public business when he fooled around in the Oval Office and involved his secretary in the coverup.)

Rating:
Summary: Concise, informative, fair, illuminating
Review: It is made obvious from the outset that David Maraniss knows his subject matter through and though via the intimate study and experience expected of a biographer worth his salt. To a certain extent this book serves as a concise commercial for FIRST IN HIS CLASS, his biography of Clinton. What is not immediately obvious however, are things like what the writer's political leanings are, what his overall feeling about his subject matter is despite some events that could have led to hurt feelings if not bad blood... basically the majority of the things that would have served to make this book, with its unsual and profoundly illuminative approach, had they been obvious, completely uninteresting.

This book is a very artistic and efective approach to understanding the myth of the complex character of our times as exemplified by the struggles, triumphs, failings, crises and exploits of our current president, William Jefferson Clinton. I thanked God that he mentioned things like the sex lives of JFK and LBJ (though I was kind of sorry he left out Horace Harding, who I think had more nookie than all of them combined), went into concise but important detail on the psychological ramifications of being both the stepson of an alcoholic and living life not knowing who your true father is, and many others.

The point is, with all of this being mentioned and written about by half the world since the outbreak of Monicagate- when America pretended it hadn't heard of oral sex, thought of it as a crime and convinced itself perjury AND "conspiracy" weren't ones simultanouesly- it takes a style, approach, and even handed (not to mention even minded) authority to make such a book worth reading. I have yet to read HILLARY'S CHOICE by Gail Sheehy or FIRST IN HIS CLASS, by the writer, but now I am actually interested in doing so. Which means, this book will allow you to become interested in the study of human character and our history, not just propaganda, tabloid journalism and the endless mudslinging of politics.

This book is successful in what it sets out to do: in much less than two hundred pages you will see and hear the soul of Clinton when you hear his voice resound as you read his speech, and this book. I reccommend it highly.

Rating:
Summary: A "full biography" for those with short attention span
Review: Maraniss did such a good job in his full-scope Clinton biography ("First In His Class") that if you've read it you'd (almost) be able to come up with a summary of your own to explain his 4-minute speech, which is nominally the subject of the Clinton Enigma. There's very little new in this book to be missed if you have not read it. What is new is in the first 13 pages (Chapters 1-4 of the first part of the book), where Maraniss mentions his own experiences with Clinton (or rather: the lack of them) when trying to arrange an interview with him, immediately prior and also after his biography was published. The manners and maneuvers Clinton and his aides applied and Maraniss' reaction provide a valuable supplement to understanding Clinton, but also Maraniss.

The weakness of this book for those who have read the biography is also an advantage for those who haven't and if you are not as interested in Clinton to devote yourself to reading 500 pages of the biography you will appreciate its summarized version in the Clinton Enigma.

Rating:
Summary: Somewhat interesting -- but, really -- Clinton, an enigma?
Review: Most of this stuff everybody already knows -- even if we haven't researched or read about it. After all, Clinton is a disgusting "open book." Observing Clinton in office for seven years tells it all -- the man has always been a self-centered, psychotic egotist who knows he is really weak -- that's why he married Hillary. However, the author does a good job of writing what he observes. Note: The guy who wrote the second review must have tried to rewrite the book; he obviously doesn't know what a book review is -- and his poor English, spelling, and sentence structure show us he is not qualified to review any author's work. His review reminds me of book reports by some of the boys in grade school -- they just wrote a shortened version of the book.