Raven’s Range
Blather around a virtual range

Wednesday, 20 February 2008 16:13

Saving Graces by Elizabeth Edwards

Filed in Blog, Reviews

Saving Graces is the autobiography of Elizabeth Edwards, wife of former senator and presidential candidate John Edwards.

It was one of those books that I half enjoyed, half did not. Her story is an interesting and sad one, laced with hope and encouragement. The experiences this woman has had would have brought a lesser person to their knees for good: first her son Wade was killed, then her country wasn’t ready to accept her husband (who could, I think, have been a great president)–and finally she got breast cancer.

But still she has the courage to go on, using what she has learned to help others. Mrs. Edwards sounds like a lovely, warm lady, the kind of person I’d enjoy inviting over for tea. This warmth comes across in the stories she tells and is not remotely contrived.

That’s the good bit. Unfortunately, the story sprawls, is full of long lists of names and “mentions,” and at times I found it rather boring.

Most interesting for me was the description of the political campaigning process. Now, I freely admit that politics leaves me cold. I’ve tried countless times to be interested in it, but I’m not. The fact that the author, as a newbie to the “senator’s wife” game, didn’t think much of the machinations and “rules” rather endeared her to me.

The book also gave me a little bit more of an idea of what goes on behind the scenes when I hear, on the news, that such and such candidate is campaigning in such and such a place. I guess I also understand why the whole campaigning thing drags on; the different areas vote at different times to allow the candidates enough time to schmooze, shake hands and kiss hapless babies.

With more editing, this book would have been a whole lot better. I reckon maybe a quarter of it could have been cut out to focus more sharply on the message: be a good person, be genuine, deal with life in as gracious a manner as you can. (I was particularly struck by her habit of finding out the name of the boy who bags her groceries, the servers at Wendy’s, etc. and using those names: a simple courtesy that is rare and shouldn’t be.)

By editing I mean this: The raw emotion of her son’s death had me sniffing as I read the book late at night. I finally “got” a sense of what this must feel like, and I do not think that anyone should ever have to endure such a pain. But the endless discussion of the grief websites and forums, while important, did not need to fill an entire chapter. I can understand the urge to give everyone a mention, but for writers it’s an urge that just needs to be suppressed.

Would I recommend the book? Yes, I think so. I enjoyed the voice of Elizabeth Edwards. She has a warm heart and genuinely seems to care, which is not something I have come to expect of politicians: perhaps I should read more biographies and autobiographies to give them a more human face. Even if it does mean thinking of bus loads of people singing old-time songs. ;)