An absorbing career memoir and an illuminating history of the Post’s news coverage during the last 50 years.
The former executive editor of the Washington Post reflects on his long, distinguished career and how the newspaper business has continued to evolve.
In 1972, the Post’s investigation of Watergate led not only to Richard Nixon’s resignation, but also to the establishment of reporters Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward as major authors and the elevation of former executive editor Ben Bradlee to legendary status. The paper’s coverage of the scandal also redefined the role of investigative reporting in the future. Though much has been written about Watergate, Downie, who oversaw much of the Watergate coverage as deputy metropolitan editor, has his own story to tell. Over his 40-plus years at the newspaper, Downie, who started as a summer intern, advanced through many prominent positions before replacing the retiring Bradlee as executive editor in 1991, a position he would hold until 2008. Under his leadership, the Post provided major, award-winning coverage (25 Pulitzers) on many international events—e.g., 9/11 and the ensuing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as investigations into political controversies such as the Clintons’ Whitewater investment connections and the Monica Lewinski scandal. “The rules had changed,” writes Downie of the scandal. “Adultery would never again be off limits in decisions about how to report on politicians—from the White House to statehouses to city halls. Veracity, trust, judgment, and all the other elements of, yes, character, would also come into play.” Throughout, the author provides a compelling up-close perspective of running a news organization and intriguing details about the coverage surrounding each event. While he doesn’t shy away from highlighting his leadership accomplishments, he eagerly acknowledges the efforts of his hardworking reporters. He also candidly admits to personality and leadership differences between he and the more gregarious Bradlee, comfortably remaining somewhat apart from the celebrated spotlight.
An absorbing career memoir and an illuminating history of the Post’s news coverage during the last 50 years.Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5417-4228-4
Page Count: 368
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
A juicy story with some truly crazy moments, yet Anderson's good heart shines through.
The iconic model tells the story of her eventful life.
According to the acknowledgments, this memoir started as "a fifty-page poem and then grew into hundreds of pages of…more poetry." Readers will be glad that Anderson eventually turned to writing prose, since the well-told anecdotes and memorable character sketches are what make it a page-turner. The poetry (more accurately described as italicized notes-to-self with line breaks) remains strewn liberally through the pages, often summarizing the takeaway or the emotional impact of the events described: "I was / and still am / an exceptionally / easy target. / And, / I'm proud of that." This way of expressing herself is part of who she is, formed partly by her passion for Anaïs Nin and other writers; she is a serious maven of literature and the arts. The narrative gets off to a good start with Anderson’s nostalgic memories of her childhood in coastal Vancouver, raised by very young, very wild, and not very competent parents. Here and throughout the book, the author displays a remarkable lack of anger. She has faced abuse and mistreatment of many kinds over the decades, but she touches on the most appalling passages lightly—though not so lightly you don't feel the torment of the media attention on the events leading up to her divorce from Tommy Lee. Her trip to the pages of Playboy, which involved an escape from a violent fiance and sneaking across the border, is one of many jaw-dropping stories. In one interesting passage, Julian Assange's mother counsels Anderson to desexualize her image in order to be taken more seriously as an activist. She decided that “it was too late to turn back now”—that sexy is an inalienable part of who she is. Throughout her account of this kooky, messed-up, enviable, and often thrilling life, her humility (her sons "are true miracles, considering the gene pool") never fails her.
A juicy story with some truly crazy moments, yet Anderson's good heart shines through.Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2023
ISBN: 9780063226562
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
SEEN & HEARD
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.
A charming bird journey with the bestselling author.
In his introduction to Tan’s “nature journal,” David Allen Sibley, the acclaimed ornithologist, nails the spirit of this book: a “collection of delightfully quirky, thoughtful, and personal observations of birds in sketches and words.” For years, Tan has looked out on her California backyard “paradise”—oaks, periwinkle vines, birch, Japanese maple, fuchsia shrubs—observing more than 60 species of birds, and she fashions her findings into delightful and approachable journal excerpts, accompanied by her gorgeous color sketches. As the entries—“a record of my life”—move along, the author becomes more adept at identifying and capturing them with words and pencils. Her first entry is September 16, 2017: Shortly after putting up hummingbird feeders, one of the tiny, delicate creatures landed on her hand and fed. “We have a relationship,” she writes. “I am in love.” By August 2018, her backyard “has become a menagerie of fledglings…all learning to fly.” Day by day, she has continued to learn more about the birds, their activities, and how she should relate to them; she also admits mistakes when they occur. In December 2018, she was excited to observe a Townsend’s Warbler—“Omigod! It’s looking at me. Displeased expression.” Battling pesky squirrels, Tan deployed Hot Pepper Suet to keep them away, and she deterred crows by hanging a fake one upside down. The author also declared war on outdoor cats when she learned they kill more than 1 billion birds per year. In May 2019, she notes that she spends $250 per month on beetle larvae. In June 2019, she confesses “spending more hours a day staring at birds than writing. How can I not?” Her last entry, on December 15, 2022, celebrates when an eating bird pauses, “looks and acknowledges I am there.”
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.Pub Date: April 23, 2024
ISBN: 9780593536131
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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