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  • Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents

  • What Your Teachers Never Told you About the Men of The White House
  • By: Cormac O'Brien
  • Narrated by: Robin Bloodworth
  • Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (26 ratings)
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Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents cover art

Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents

By: Cormac O'Brien
Narrated by: Robin Bloodworth
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Editor reviews

Looking for a grand historical drama in which great men undergo great trials in pursuit of great deeds? Well, this is not that book. The great men in Cormac O’Brien’s survey of America’s presidential pantheon are at their laziest, their craziest, and their strangest. Some of the revelations here are old news - Jefferson’s sexual dalliances with his slaves, for example, or Lincoln’s free hand with pardons for soldiers facing executions. Others are truly startling. (Next time some talk-radio pundit accuses a president of gambling away the country’s money, consider that Warren G. Harding actually bet with the presidential china in poker games!) Not Pulitzer material, but Robin Bloodworth’s sure narration makes this a great choice for a long drive.

Summary

Your high school history teachers never gave you a book like this one! Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents features outrageous and uncensored profiles of the men in the White House - complete with hundreds of little-known, politically incorrect, and downright wacko facts. You’ll discover that:

  • George Washington spent a whopping 7% of his salary on booze
  • John Quincy Adams loved to skinny-dip in the Potomac River
  • Gerald Ford once worked as a Cosmopolitan magazine cover model
  • Warren G. Harding gambled with White House china when he ran low on cash
  • Jimmy Carter reported a UFO sighting in Georgia
  • And Richard Nixon . . . sheesh, don’t get us started on Nixon!

With chapters on everyone from George Washington to Barack Obama, Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents tackles all the tough questions that other history books are afraid to ask: How many of these guys were cheating on their wives? Are there really secret tunnels underneath the White House? And what was Nancy Reagan thinking when she appeared on Diff’rent Strokes? American history was never this much fun in school!

©2009 Cormac O'Brien (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about Secret Lives of the U.S. Presidents

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  • 01-12-13

Fascinating facts

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes definitely it was very interesting and shed light on an important subject of which I knew less than I had believed!
It's quite fascinating to hear about the early days of America, and to reflect on how much has changed. Hearing about Calvin Coolidge and how he slept for 2-4 hours every afternoon was probably the funniest topic.
The story about President Taft's horse also made me laugh out loud.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Teddy Roosevelt

Which character – as performed by Robin Bloodworth – was your favourite?

Eleanor Roosevelt

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Betcha didn't know that!

Any additional comments?

Well worth a listen, and actually I might buy the book too as there's interesting factual information I'd be interested to retread.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Concise lives, entertainingly told

A great introduction to US presidents, ideal for a non-American like me, this book presents history in an entertaining way, made personal with quotes, anecdotes and gentle humour. Have listened to it several times - really nicely read too!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely my favourite book on audible

I loved this book so much that I've listened to it quite a few times over the last year. It's interesting, informative and if like me you have an interest in the history of the American presidency, this will only make you're curiosity worse. The narrator has a lovely melodic voice that keeps you engaged and brings the writing to life. I literally cannot rate this highly enough to do it justice. Love it!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent

Beautifully narrated interesting history of the United states.quite an eye opener and often amusing i will listen again

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not all that revealing

What your teacher didn't tell you is that half of the US presidents cheated on their partners multiple times. Other than that there really isn't much else to the book.

There are better books on the american presidents out there. I would recommend Don't Know Much About American Presidents before reading this. The structure is exactly the same in that it starts with George and ends with Barack. More details in that book but less about the sex.

This is a good book, just the title's a bit misleading,

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