Review: The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House
The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House by Kate Andersen Brower
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is not normally the kind of book I would read, however, it was a quick and fun. This book provides a insider’s perspective of the White House based off Brower’s exposure as a White House journalist along with multiple interviews with current and former White House staff, former First Ladies and others.
Here are three interesting things (versus my normal takeaways) I learned about the White House:
1. There is a huge climate controlled facility about 11 miles outside of Washington D.C. (in Riverdale, Maryland. This contains all of the furniture that has been used in the White House. New First Families will visit and select what furniture they want to include in the house when they move in on inauguration morning
2. The First Family pays for all of their own personal expenses in the White House. For example, this includes food and drink expenses for themselves and any guests.
3. Barack Obama built a full-sized basketball court on the White House grounds. It cost $4,995 and includes the presidential seal on the court itself.
