When West came in under FDR, Eleanor Roosevelt walked around D.C. Congress awarded an expense account for feeding the staff after Truman came into office and didn’t have the personal fortune to fund it himself.Īnd, of course, life in the White House changed over the years. When Jackie Kennedy spent the redecoration budget (each term, there is about $50,000 given to spend on White House decor) in the first two weeks, she had to figure out other ways to fund her grand ambitions for the White House. JFK was always concerned that they didn’t look as if they were spending way more money than other presidents. There’s a lot about how the budgeting and financing of the White House life works too, which was fascinating to me. Also, the time a ham disappeared from the kitchen and a staff member was accused of stealing it until they found the rotting bone behind the cabinets, where it’d been dragged away by rats off the kitchen counter, made me want to be a little ill. And the behind the scenes of how food, alcohol, guest lists, and entertainment were handled was fascinating. Some presidents and their wives liked big formal events (the Eisenhowers!) and others liked smaller, more intimate gatherings (the Kennedys). The big events at the White House changed, too, with the changes of presidents. It was so sweet to read about how much time and attention Jackie Kennedy spent with her children and keeping them out of the spotlight. I loved that Mamie Eisenhower stayed in bed until noon every day and had all her meetings with the staff from her bed (although she did get up and do her hair and makeup before returning to her bed). There are so many interesting details, from the differing personalities of the first ladies to how the staff can be hard to manage because they are White House employees, not employees of the President, and they’ll be there long after the President and his family depart. He helps arrange their schedules, host events, decorate the White House, and help manage the transitions between presidents. He is the Chief Usher and responsible for basically everything that goes on with the families, working mainly with the First Ladies. West works with the presidents through Richard Nixon, although he’s only there for a few weeks with Nixon before his retirement date arrives. Presidents and their lives, times, and families. Like most people, I’m totally interested in the U.S. It helped that it was a completely fascinating book. I am notoriously bad at reading things that other people have recommended, so I’m ridiculously proud of myself for actually reading this one.

Back in November, a reader (hi, Sarah!) sent me a message via Goodreads and suggested I might enjoy Upstairs at the White House.

Upstairs at the white house by jb west