
Under This Roof
The White House and the Presidency - 21 Presidents, 21 Rooms, 21 Inside Stories
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Narrated by:
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Tom Zingarelli
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By:
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Paul Brandus
About this listen
In Under This Roof, award-winning White House journalist Paul Brandus weaves together stories of the presidents, their families, the events of their time, and an oft-ignored major character, the White House itself. From George Washington to the current occupant, Barack Obama - the story of the White House is the story of America itself, Brandus writes. You'll:
- Walk with John Adams through the still-unfinished mansion and watch Thomas Jefferson plot to buy the Louisiana Territory.
- Feel the fear and panic as British invaders approach the mansion in 1814 - and Dolley Madison frantically saves a painting of Washington.
- Be in the room as one president is secretly sworn in and another gambles away the White House china in a card game.
- Stand by the presidential bed as one First Lady - covering up her husband's illness from the nation-secretly makes decisions on his behalf.
- Learn how telephones, movies, radio, and TV changed the presidency - and the nation itself.
Through triumph and tragedy, boom and bust, secrets and scandals, Brandus brings history to life in this riveting, highly entertaining inside look at the presidency and White House.
©2015 Paul Brandus (P)2015 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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Terrible narration
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
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Royalty, American style
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
As one of the strategists behind the famous 2012 RNC “autopsy,” Miller conducts his own forensic study on the pungent carcass of the party he used to love, cutting into all the hubris, ambition, idiocy, desperation, and self-deception for everyone to see. In a bracingly honest reflection on both his own past work for the Republican Party and the contortions of his former peers in the GOP establishment, Miller draws a straight line between the actions of the 2000s GOP to the Republican political class's Trumpian takeover, including the horrors of January 6th.
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No, Tim!
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Showtime
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Best-selling sportswriter Jeff Pearlman draws from almost 300 interviews to take the first full measure of the Lakers’ epic Showtime era. A dazzling account of one of America’s greatest sports sagas, Showtime is packed with indelible characters, vicious rivalries, and jaw-dropping, behind-the-scenes stories of the players’ decadent Hollywood lifestyles. From the Showtime era’s remarkable rise to its tragic end - marked by Magic Johnson’s 1991 announcement that he had contracted HIV - Showtime is a gripping narrative of sports, celebrity, and 1980s-style excess.
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Offended at the style used to voice black characters.
- By NP on 01-15-22
By: Jeff Pearlman
Critic reviews
What listeners say about Under This Roof
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- SASmith
- 01-31-24
Interesting insights
I learned some things I didn't know and got to hear expansions of things I did. It was a very interesting book highlighting the goings-on in the White House - and sometimes out of it. It did irritate me a bit when things were repeated or when the author/narrator told a side story that was about a different president than the chapter was about, but overall, it was great.
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- Charlene DeYong
- 08-11-17
Enjoyable Read
I liked this very much. I am not too political, but this book give much info about each president and their families plus very interesting information about the development of the White House, additions, decorations etc. Very enjoyable but informative book
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Overall
- Richard
- 08-08-17
Great
From the narrator to the subject matter, this book keeps you listening. If you love history the descriptions are so vivid you can almost smell the White House as it slowly crumbled over the years. The dedication of the First Families to repair and endure there are a testament to what it means to be a true civil servant. If those walls could talk it would make a great movie. The book moved along quickly and as always I learned something new about a few of our presidents. I recommend as an educational tool or just an easy listen to a sad and funny and all of the other emotions we humans have rolled into one book about Our White House.
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- James R ONeil
- 09-16-15
Bad editing error towards the very end.
I hope they catch it and fix it. Otherwise, this is my kind of geeky history. The White House's history is so incredibly interesting. It so perfectly embodies the strength, resiliance, and many imperfections of the country itself. But it has also gotten better over time.
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- Syd Young
- 07-03-20
Interesting but Glaring Omission
Learned some great things but extremely disappointed to not have Lyndon Johnson. If you think his administration had nothing to do with White House preservation and restoration you need to recheck your facts and start over.
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4 people found this helpful
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- ARFedewa
- 02-25-16
Love this!
I love this book! So much history is in this book. I learned about presidents whose names I didn't know before. I'm even more enchanted with the White House! The narrator did a wonderful job and was easy to understand and follow along with.
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1 person found this helpful
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- G Dowdy
- 04-18-24
1600 Pennsylvania Ave
What an incredible story about the White House and its residents. Each leaving their mark in history like the President.
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- brian
- 09-02-15
More history on the White House.
Would you consider the audio edition of Under This Roof to be better than the print version?
I would.
What did you like best about this story?
The information that I had never heard about before.
Which character – as performed by Tom Zingarelli – was your favorite?
Most of them, though he can't do any accents.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
Afraid I can't think of one.
Any additional comments?
None.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Matt Arnold
- 01-26-17
Interesting but a bit tedious at times
The book was full of interesting facts about the White House and the presidents who call it home/. But you may be off put by the dozens of Presidents you've never heard of and goings on nobody cares about. The author doesn't do a good job of putting his selections into context and telling the reader why he selected the people he did. That said if you're the kind of person who likes history for it's own sake you can't go wrong with this. Performance is top notch
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- Lumandi
- 01-16-24
Brief history of our Presidents
I confess to not knowing much about past Presidents. This book allowed me a glimpse of most of them and a starting point to get to know those that inspire or interest me more. It was well presented and the narrator was perfect for the story. I undoubtedly will listen again and again.
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