num_pages: 541
description: A fascinating behind-the-scenes look at life on Pennsylvania Avenue with Americas first families by the man who spent nearly three decades in their midst J. B. West chief usher of the White House directed the operations and maintenance of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenueand coordinated its daily lifeat the request of the president and his family. He directed state functions; planned parties weddings and funerals gardens and playgrounds and extensive renovations; and with a large staff supervised every activity in the presidential home. For twenty-eight years first as assistant to the chief usher then as chief usher he witnessed national crises and triumphs and interacted daily with six consecutive presidents and first ladies their parents children and grandchildren and houseguestsincluding friends relatives and heads of state.In Upstairs at the White House West offers an absorbing and novel glimpse at Americas first families from the Roosevelts to the Kennedys andthe Nixons. Alive with anecdotes ranging from the quotidian (Lyndon B. Johnsons showerheads) to the tragic (the aftermath of John F. Kennedys assassination) Wests book is an enlightening and rich account of the American history that took place just behind the Palladian doors of the North Portico.
language: English
title: Upstairs at the White House: My Life with the First Ladies
publisher: Open Road Media