5 Books about Life in the White House by People Who Have Worked There

Recently, there has been an influx of White House memoirs by people who worked for Obama. And with the turnover in the Trump administration, those memoirs are set to start coming out this summer with books by Sean Spicer, Anthony Scaramucci, and probably more people we just don’t know about yet. Ideology aside, these memoirs from people who got first-hand experience working at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue are fascinating reads. The ins and outs of politics are fascinating to read about, especially in the modern age when they can be so crazy, no matter if you agree with the executive decisions being made or not. If you’re interesting in learning about life in the White House by the people who worked there, check out these five memoirs on sale now and keep your eyes peeled for more coming in the near future.

From the Corner of the Oval by Beck Dorey-Stein

 In 2012, Beck Dorey-Stein is working five part-time jobs and just scraping by when a posting on Craigslist lands her, improbably, in the Oval Office as one of Barack Obama’s stenographers. The ultimate D.C. outsider, she joins the elite team who accompany the president wherever he goes, recorder and mic in hand. On whirlwind trips across time zones, Beck forges friendships with a dynamic group of fellow travelers—young men and women who, like her, leave their real lives behind to hop aboard Air Force One in service of the president.As she learns to navigate White House protocols and more than once runs afoul of the hierarchy, Beck becomes romantically entangled with a consummate D.C. insider, and suddenly the political becomes all too personal.Against the backdrop of glamour, drama, and intrigue, this is the story of a young woman making unlikely friendships, getting her heart broken, learning what truly matters, and, in the process, discovering her voice.

The Briefing by Sean Spicer

 For more than two decades, Sean Spicer had been a respected political insider, working as a campaign and communications strategist. But in December 2016, he got the call of a lifetime. President-elect Donald J. Trump had chosen him to be the White House press secretary. And life hasn’t been the same since. When he accepted the job, Spicer was far from a household name. But then he walked into the bright lights of the briefing room, and the cameras started rolling. His every word was scrutinized. Every movement was parodied. Every detail became a meme. And that’s just the public side. Behind the scenes, things were almost as difficult in an administration plagued by leaks that frustrated and angered both Spicer and the president. Not to mention the extraordinary pressures on Spicer’s family and his faith. Now, in his provocative and enlightening political memoir, The Briefing, Spicer reveals the truth behind some of the biggest news stories of our time, and he offers a glimpse into what it’s like to stand at the press secretary’s podium—and how he got there. 

 What I Saw at the Revolution by Peggy Noonan

A special assistant to the president during the height of the Reagan era, Peggy Noonan worked with him, and with then vice-president Bush, on some of their most famous and memorable speeches. Now, in her thoroughly engaging and unanimously acclaimed memoir, Noonan shows us the world behind the words. Her sharp and vivid portraits of Ronald and Nancy Reagan, George Bush, Donald Regan, and a host of Washington’s movers and shakers are rendered in her inimitable, witty prose. And her priceless account of what it was like to be a speechwriter among bureaucrats, and a woman in the last bastion of male power, makes this a Washington memoir that breaks the mold–as spirited, sensitive and thoughtful as Peggy Noonan herself.

 The White House Chandeliers by Stewart Calvin Stevens

 Stewart “Calvin” Stevens Senior’s The White House Chandeliers is an incredibly interesting biographical, inspirational, and entertaining book which chronicles the life of a young man from extremely humble beginnings as a youth in the Washington DC metropolitan area, to eventually landing a job as a custodial specialist, at the most esteemed address in the world; The White House. Many unsuspecting twists of fate encompass the pages of this riveting work. Mr. Stevens takes the reader into the White House, relaying his experiences and encounters with some of the world’s most renowned historical figures, as he was a hidden figure of his time, spanning more than three decades. 

The Right Man: An Inside Account of the Bush White House by David Frum

 The Right Man is the first inside account of a historic year in the Bush White House, by the presidential speechwriter credited with the phrase axis of evil. David Frum helped make international headlines when President George W. Bush’s 2002 State of the Union address linked international terrorists to Iran, Iraq, and North Korea. But that was only one moment during a crucial time in American history, when a president, an administration, and a country were transformed.