Dee Dee Myers

I decided to read this book after seeing Ms. Myers speak here at the University a few weeks ago. Her talk was interesting, but rather vague, as many book tour talks seem to be. Much like her talk, I found the book to be a rather unorganized grouping of observations with the occasional *extremely brief* reference to research.I think the book really tries to accomplish too much, and as a result, feels directionless. The author tries to blend her own experiences as Press Secretary for President show more Clinton, and experiences of other powerful women, with extremely brief summaries (more like references, really) of research that supports the claims she makes--that women's strengths are underappreciated in today's workplace, basically. I think the structure of the book would have worked better if it had been more segregated, allowing her to fully develop each part, or alternatively she could have written two (or three) different books. It was frustrating to have the author continually pique your interest in her experience, only to switch over to one-paragraph summaries of other womens' experiences, punctuated by the occasional one-line reference to a researcher whose work supports what the women are saying. It would have been much more interesting to read all about Myers' experiences, or read all about other womens' experiences ,with substantially more depth, followed by a review of research. The references to research are ridiculous (to the point of being insulting to our intelligence) in their brevity. It would be like saying "Deborah Tannen says women and men communicate differently." Well, no kidding. These fly-by references weren't specific or detailed enough to substantially support any of Myers' points. And I felt like many of them were dumbed down to the point of uselessness. Still, I enjoyed what brief details she shared about her White House experience. Perhaps she is saving the real depth for another book? And I really enjoyed reading about other powerful women. I wanted to read more about them than one simple paragraph. show less

Why Woman Should Rule the World isn’t just another cliché: rather, in her well-researched social memoir of women, Dee Dee Myers shares what she’s learned about being a woman, both from her experiences as the press secretary to the U.S. President and from a life time of being a woman. While only 10-15% of her book is memoir, the social history Myers shares and the interviews she conducts with other successful women (in politics and otherwise) support Myers’s argument for why women show more ruling the world could change the world.

I thought, at first, that it would be hard to engage in a social and historical review of women in leadership, but I was pleasantly surprised. Why Woman Should Rule the World was a quick read and an enlightening book that illustrated how women are different than men - and why those differences should be celebrated, not ignored.

More detailed review on my blog show less

I love this book. I have been reading portions aloud to my 14-year-old son and he agrees that this book is NOT about bashing males, but about getting people to understand that women have a lot to offer the world, in a way that is different from the current male model.

From January 1993 through December 1994, Dee Dee Myers served as the press secretary for President Bill Clinton. She was the first woman, and the youngest person, ever to hold the job. Throughout her career, Myers has had the opportunity to meet and work with many powerful and interesting women. In this book, she uses her many contacts to help build her case.

Myers also uses the results of many research studies that have shown how, and why, women should be included at all levels of business show more and government. Why Women Should Rule the World is very well-written and well-researched (20 pages of end notes and a 4 page bibliography). That said, this book does not seem to make any ground-breaking statements. It’s basically everything we’ve heard, but put together in an appealing, attractive manner.

I did enjoy reading this book. I do believe, however, it will have a limited shelf life. Myers often refers to very recent events, including those that occurred last year or this year. History will determine if readers of the future even know what she is referring to.

I had received a free, signed copy of this book a few months ago when I attended a breakfast at which Myers spoke. Her talk included many of the anecdotes in this book, so that made much of the book redundant for me. That, of course, should not be an issue for most people. show less