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In Search of Bill Clinton: A Psychological Biography
In Search of Bill Clinton A Psychological Biography
Author: John Gartner
What makes Bill Clinton tick?William Jefferson Clinton, the 42nd President of the United States is undoubtedly the greatest American enigma of our age -- a dark horse that captured the White House, fell from grace and was resurrected as an elder statesman whose popularity rises and falls based on the day?s sound bytes.  John Gartner's ...  more » unravels the mystery at the heart of Clinton?s complex nature and why so many people fall under his spell.  He tells the story we all thought we knew, from the fresh viewpoint of a psychologist, as he questions the well-crafted Clinton life story.  Gartner, a therapist with an expertise in treating individuals with hypomanic temperaments, saw in Clinton the energy, creativity and charisma that leads a hypomanic individual to success as well as the problems with impulse control and judgment, which frequently result in disastrous decision-making.  He knew, though, that if he wanted to find the real Bill Clinton he couldn?t rely on armchair psychology to provide the answer.  He knew he had to travel to Arkansas and around the world to talk with those who knew Clinton and his family intimately. With his boots on the ground, Gartner uncovers long-held secrets about Clinton's mother, the ambitious and seductive Virginia Kelley, her wild life in Hot Springs and the ghostly specter of his biological father, Bill Blythe, to uncover the truth surrounding Clinton?s rumor-filled birth.  He considers the abusive influence of Clinton's alcoholic stepfather, Roger Clinton, to understand the repeated public abuse he invited both by challenging a hostile Republican Congress and engaging in the clandestine affair with Monica Lewinsky that led to his downfall.  Of course, there is no marriage more dissected than that of the Clintons, both in the White House and on the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign trail.  Instead of going down familiar paths, Gartner looks at that relationship with a new focus and clearly sees, in Hillary?s molding of Clinton into a more disciplined politician, the figure of Bill Clinton?s stern grandmother, Edith Cassidy, the woman who set limits on him at an early age.   Gartner brings Clinton?s story up to date as he travels to Ireland, the scene of one of Clinton?s greatest diplomatic triumphs, and to Africa, where his work with AIDS victims is unmatched, to understand Clinton?s current humanitarian persona and to find out why he is beloved in so much of the world while still scorned by many at home.   John Gartner?s exhaustive trip around the globe provides the richest portrait of Clinton yet, a man who is one of our national obsessions.  In Search of Bill Clinton is a surprising and compelling book about a man we all thought we knew.
ISBN-13: 9780312369767
ISBN-10: 031236976X
Publication Date: 9/30/2008
Pages: 480
Rating:
  • Currently 3.2/5 Stars.
 5

3.2 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback
Members Wishing: 0
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sfc95 avatar reviewed In Search of Bill Clinton: A Psychological Biography on + 686 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
This was a somewhat unbiased book on the person of Bill Clinton and the psychological makeup that results in his behaviors. To me, the aurthor, a psychologist, did not have fluid writing and therefore it was somewhat repetitive and slow moving. This book took me 7 days to read, which a huge amount of time for me, when I normally finish a book of this size ina day or two. But it took a long time to read because you really needed to concentrate on every word if you wanted to get anything out of the book, this being said, I would read it again, it was very enlightening and I feel that I learned alot. I suggest picking it up at the library as I sat on the wish list here for some time, finally deciding to get on the library wish list, which was much shorter!
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marlies avatar reviewed In Search of Bill Clinton: A Psychological Biography on + 3 more book reviews
This is an excellent book. Great insight into Bill Clinton personality which helps understand how he made decisions. Recommend reading this to anyone no matter what political party.


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