"Remembering the Ladies" by Ann Covell

"Remembering the Ladies: A Century of U.S. First Ladies, 1789-1889" by Ann Covell is surprisingly good. One would not think that a biographical book about American First Ladies from a British writer would be incessantly boring. However, Covell has such a commanding voice in her writing that readers feel compelled to keep turning the pages. The book is divided into three parts, essentially which are time periods. Each has a handful of First Ladies. In this fashion, no one story about the women is ever too long. Childhood histories, eclectic anecdotes, and facetious circumstances are brought into light in this book. Covell takes seemingly "behind-the-scenes" women of American history and brings them into the spotlight that only a skilled writer can accomplish.