Laura Bush: Spoken From The Heart

Posted on May 10, 2010

Former First Lady Laura Bush recently released her memoir, Spoken From the Heart. Laura Bush was First Lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009. She is a known book lover and founded both the National Book Festival and the Texas Book Festival.

One of the most noteworthy passages from Spoken From the Heart is about her 1963 accident, which resulted in the death of her classmate. Laura Bush writes that she was wracked with guilt for not attending the boy's funeral. She also says when the accident happened she was praying the boy was alive. She wrote, "I was praying that the person in the other car was alive. In my mind I was calling, 'Please God, please God,' over and over again."

Laura Bush also wrote that she lost her faith from the accident. She wrote, "I lost my faith that November. Lost it for many, many years. It was the first time that I prayed to God for something ... and it was as if no one heard."

Other topics Laura Bush covers in the book include growing up in Midland, Texas, her marriage to George Bush, her husband's decision to give up drinking and what life is like inside the White House. The New York Times writes that there are crumbs in the book for political junkies, but also says most of the "the White House portions of this book feel carefully prepared and vetted."