Monday, May 25, 2009

Get Ready to be Bushwhacked

Just about every player in the (W) Bush administration are about to hit the bookshelves with their memories of the Bush years.

I wondered why Dick Cheney suddenly was everywhere on TV, ranting, defending, and giving interviews. I assumed he was trying to position himself as the head honcho of the Republican party and a possible future candidate for the presidency. And he may be, but The New York Times reports that:
Mr. Cheney is actively shopping a memoir about his life in politics and service in four presidential administrations, a work that would add to what is already an unusually dense collection of post-Bush-presidency memoirs that will offer a collective rebuttal to the many harshly critical works released while the writers were in office and beyond.
The NY Times said he may not get his asking price, considering the economy.
A person familiar with discussions Mr. Cheney has had with publishers said he was seeking more than $2 million for his advance.
Plus, he’s not the only one from those years penning a book.
Already working hard to meet publishers’ deadlines is an informal writers’ workshop of historic proportions: President George W. Bush; Laura Bush, the former first lady; former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; former Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr.; former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld; and Karl Rove, the former presidential political mastermind.
Although Mr. Cheney is late in jumping on the publishing wagon, his fellow Bush administration members are helping him:
Members of the Bush group are in regular contact as they seek to jog their memories, compare notes and trade stylistic tips in their new lives as authors, according to friends and current and former aides.
Are you ready with your checkbook for the onslaught of the Bush year memories?

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20 comments:

  1. Don't think I'll be buying these. Don't think they'd sell that well, certainly not as well as Obama's books.

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  2. No thank you. I have never been a big fan of politics, and I think that reading about these bozos lives would just irk me completely.

    Jenny
    http://jenniferhudock.com

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  3. I didn't support them with my votes so I'm certainly not going to support them with my book-buying money!

    Besides which, why read all that revisionist history?

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  4. I'm not much on reading political tomes of any party, so I agree with you Jenny. And you're right, writtenwyrdd, it will be revisionist history - and not just because it's Bush people doing the writing. Very few people want to write a first person memoir that shows all their flaws and mistakes.

    Benjamin, it would be difficult to beat Obama's sales (and, no, I didn't buy that one either).

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  5. I hate to let my political leanings hang out in public, but there are some books I really do hope never earn back their advances...
    ~jon

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  6. I wouldn't pay a nickle to any of those thugs in suits. Sorry, I'm no fan of anyone from EITHER of the Bush administrations. I'd rather eat spiders than add any dough to their coffers.

    The Old Silly with the Groovy Old Hippie Blog

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  7. I'm a Republican and I don't want to read them either! Of course, I don't read any political books.

    L. Diane Wolfe
    www.circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com
    www.spunkonastick.net
    www.thecircleoffriends.net

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  8. I have more than enough memories (not the good kind) of the past 8 years. None of these books will be on my to buy list.

    Jane Kennedy Sutton
    http://janekennedysutton.blogspot.com/

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  9. I'm not particularly interested in reading any of these so I won't plunk down my hard earned dollars. Of course I don't have a political bone in my body.

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  10. I'd read a book from either side if I thought it would enlighten me, but I have to admit, I absolutely hate to argue politics.

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  11. I interviewed Dick Cheney for my first book of interviews, Wyoming in Profile. Once was enough!

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  12. I love reading books on political history, political theory, world events,and economics, but I rarely read books by political personalities, no matter what their background or ideology. I believe each one has an agenda, and truth is not necessarily helpful in furthering a political career. Yes, I'm an equal opportunity cynic.

    Patricia Stoltey's blog

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  13. Wow, Jean, what was that like - interviewing Cheney? I'm actually surprised that Cheney may not get his $2 mill asking price, since I thought Laura Bush was getting, like four times that amount. Or did I read her advance wrong?

    The only way I think these books might make money is if they are shelved for a couple more administrations, then released. We usually need a little time (or a worse president) before we are willing to look at a bad president in a softer light. Bush the Elder might have a chance now, in the warm glow of nostalgia. The Shrub's got a long way to go...

    Gayle
    http://gaylecarline.blogspot.com

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  14. I'm not big on memoirs, truthfully, and this one sounds like a "it wasn't my fault" grandstand. My checkbook will stay unmolested on this one. But more power to anyone who can sell their life story for a mint. Mine may be a bit of an oddity, but I don't see myself getting rich off it! ;)

    --Lisa
    http://authorlisalogan.blogspot.com

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  15. Jean, I'm quite impressed that you interviewed Cheney!

    Patricia, I love this: "I'm an equal opportunity cynic." That describes me, as well.

    You're so right about the span of time, Gayle. I might even read Bush senior's tome, especially if it focused on his life after the presidency.

    Give it time, Lisa. You're off to a good start!

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  16. I don't read political books either. We get enough of it without reading about it also.
    I can't feel sorry for him if he doesn't get 2 million. Maybe he'll have to settle for one instead. More than I'll probably ever get as an advance. (ok someone, please prove me wrong on this one)

    Morgan Mandel
    http://morganmandel.blogspot.com

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  17. I hope a publisher takes up your challenge, Morgan! (If you're out there, Morgan is a very good writer.)

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  18. Sorry, I'm not political either. I did get a chuckle the other day to see the merchandising in some store or other - the Obama bio alone on a shelf with...Twilight.

    Nancy, from Just a Thought…

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  19. Just another example of how the publishing biz is writing its own obit -- shelling out millions for memoirs that can't possibly add anything to the reams of newspaper and magazine stories in today's 24/7 world.

    As a certified news junkie I already know more than I want to about most famous people, political or otherwise.

    But that idiocy on the part of the "majors" does sustain the need for small, regional and niche publishers,and even self-publishers.

    A fiction writer who's determined to get into print can always find or make a way.

    Pat Browning

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  20. That's funny, Nancy.

    Ah, Pat, I love your optimism. That makes me happy and ready to face the day.

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