NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • What if you lived out the drama of your twenties on Air Force One? “[This] breezy page turner is essentially Bridget Jones goes to the White House.”—The New York Times RECOMMENDED READING theSkimm • Today • Entertainment Weekly • Refinery29 • Bustle • PopSugar • Vanity Fair • The New York Times Editors’ Choice • PasteIn 2012, Beck Dorey-Stein is working five part-time … Editors’ Choice • Paste
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 a backdrop of glamour, drama, and intrigue, this is the story of a young woman learning what truly matters, and, in the process, discovering her voice.
Praise for From the Corner of the Oval
“Who knew the West Wing could be so sexy? Beck Dorey-Stein’s unparalleled access is obvious on every page, along with her knife-sharp humor. I tore through the entire book on a four-hour flight and loved reading all about the brilliant yet hard-partying people who once surrounded the leader of the free world. Lots of books claim to give real insider glimpses, but this one actually delivers.”—Lauren Weisberger, author of The Devil Wears Prada
“Dorey-Stein . . . writes with wit and self-deprecating humor.”—The Wall Street Journal
“Addictively readable . . . Dorey-Stein’s spunk and her sparkling, crackling prose had me cheering for her through each adventure. . . . She never loses her starry-eyed optimism, her pinch-me wonderment, her Working Girl pluck.”—Paul Begala, The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)
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Who knew the West Wing could be so sexy? Beck Dorey-Stein’s unparalleled access is obvious on every page, along with her knife-sharp humor. I tore through the entire book on a four-hour flight and loved reading all about the brilliant yet hard-partying people who once surrounded the leader of the free world. Lots of books claim to give real insider glimpses, but this one actually delivers.
Insightful, Fun Read!
Technically competent writing that’s witty as it is descriptive. It is cleverly written so that as if the reader is in the room with Beck Stein during her 5-year journey as the White House Stenographer. There is a lot of backdrop of modern history to her drama to which there is no shortage. However, a caution to the political bias reader. Beck Stein does not hide her idolization for President Obama which is sometimes to her detriment of blatantly ignoring or forgetting recent history as well as her disdain for the current POTUS. Secondly, for someone who was not born of the same generation, the millennial self-loathing, constant need of praise, alcohol, men and self-inflicted decisions she makes goest beyond a point of exhaustion that encapsulates 80 percent of the book. The tremendous talent and potential of Beck Stein, I can only hope to see additional publishing that displays her wit and emotional growth
This was a well-written book about how a strange piece of luck landed an engaging character working in a unique role in the Obama Administration and traveling the world as part of the White House staff. A great experience this excellent new author provides so you are right there with her.
I was not 100% sure what to expect when I started this book. The title was promising and sounded like the book should be both fun and interesting to read and I’m happy to say that I was not disappointed. The author neatly chapters her story into consecutive time segments so that you are not floundering trying to figure out when things happened.
Although her years were during the Obama administration and she clearly admires him, I don’t look at this book as being “political” and to be avoided by anyone who is not one of his fans. I found some of her personal observations of him insightful, but this story is more about her life and work experiences during those years than it is about the President.
The story is well written, and I love how the author takes us aboard Air Force One when she travels to exotic locations and brings us back down to earth with discussion on her personal relationships. While living what to many seems a glamorous lifestyle, she finds that real and honest friendships are what really matter.
I agree with her friends who tell her that she is a natural writer. I hope that this one is just the first of many books we will see from her.
I received an ARC through a giveaway at LibraryThing.com. A review was not required or promised and the opinion given here is my own.
I am big West Wing tv show fan and was intrigued to see how the White House of President O’Bama would stand up! This book was highly entertaining and well written. I especially loved the glimpses of President O’Bama interacting with all of the staff.
If you’re like me and you pour yourself a cocktail and look at pictures of Obama and cry, you will adore From the Corner of the Oval. If you’re a normal person who ever wanted to be a fly on the wall in a singularly historic place in time, you will find this book fascinating. Beck Dorey-Stein’s warmth, humor, and keen view made me wistful, happy, hopeful, and only sad when the book ended.
Love and heartbreak, ambition and jealousy, whirlwind travel to exotic locales, and more page-turning drama than your favorite addictive novel. Consider yourself warned: This is not your father’s White House memoir.
If you’ve ever felt like you were out of your element, in over your head, or working without a net, you will love this book. Beck Dorey-Stein reveals an endlessly fascinating perspective on power and history in the making. This memoir is funny, fast-paced, and so emotionally true that it hurts.