Bill Harris (1) (1933–2018)

A slim volume of roughly 120 pages, this book hovers in an odd limbo between "vacation keepsake" and "coffee table book . . . almost too substantial for the former, and definitely too slight for the latter. The photographs by Mooney and Kelly are attractive and evocative of the place. Keeping with the mission of the book, they have the professional polish and characteristic "look" of high-quality travel-magazine photography, without reflecting -- like the work of long-time island show more photographers Alison Shaw, Peter Simon, or Alfred Eisenstaedt -- a personal artistic vision. The text related to Martha's Vineyard (the island I'm more familiar with) is a farrago of misunderstandings, unsubstantiated claims, and gross factual errors that reads like it was cobbled-together snippets gleaned from tour-bus-drivers' spiels. show less

I think the most remarkable thing about this book is how non-partisan it is. The author manages to take the side of every First Lady, always portraying them (and their husbands) in the most positive light. It's honestly rather refreshing. It's usually a well written book, although there are a few minor mistakes. Still, it's very well done.

This book was published in 1987.

This book is in the style of what we used to call "coffee table books" in that it is oversized and has many color photos (and some black and white ones as well). It's focus is the home(s) that each president was born, grew up in, or lived in and there is some text that goes along with each one that explains this. There's also a block at the end of most entries that explains where the main site for each president is and in most cases other points of interest show more that are nearby. Things may have changed since the publication of this book, so I'd suggest looking up the information prior to visiting to make sure you have the most up-to-date information.

I learned a lot about various presidents in this book.

In the edition I read, the section on the 28th president Woodrow Wilson has some typographical errors near the end of his entry. One "paragraph" seems to begin with the end of a sentence with the words "State Senate" and the final paragraph ends with an incomplete sentence "His new bride, the former" so I guess if you want to find out who his new wife was, you'll have to consult other sources. In our modern times, I'd say someone cut out part of the entry (either deliberately or on purpose) and didn't proofread--but I can't honestly say whether word processors were in use in publishing in the late 1980s--so it may have been an editing or typesetting error. show less

Really enjoyed this book as it brought back memories of one of my vacations. The pictures and history would definitely spark one's interest to visit the islands.