Additional Information
The cornerstone for every White House library, The White House: An Historic Guide & Life in the White House Book Set has opened the doors to White House history for generations of readers. The award-winning Historic Guide provides an illustrated room by room, floor by floor, tour of the house through public areas, State Rooms, private quarters, and the East and West wings, highlighting furnishings and history along the way. Readers can tour the house from the outside as well, with an architectural history and the a walk through the North and South Grounds, Rose Garden, East Garden, and Vegetable Garden. This 26th edition features Biden-era photography including President Joe Biden's Oval Office.
While The Historic Guide provides a history of the iconic spaces, Life in the White House offers an introduction in the human history of the house. Chapters on how the presidents have used the house as both a home and an office is followed by the history of State Dinners and such beloved holiday traditions as the presidential turkey pardoning, official Christmas trees, and the annual Easter Egg Roll. The book continues with a look at the “First Family at Home” that sheds light on how the first ladies have used the national stage and made the house into a family home. A history joy of White House weddings and the tragedy of White House funerals further reveal that the story is a human one. A chapter on “The President’s Park,” tells the story of the Rose Garden; the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden; the greenhouses; the Children’s and Kitchen Gardens; and the Commemorative Trees; as well as the garden as a setting for presidents pursuing their favorite sports. A final section on “A House for the Ages” focuses on the household staff and how they make the house function. Chapters on improving the White House through the introduction of plumbing, electricity, and computers as well as the large-scale renovations of the Truman era give us a sense of how the house is maintained and preserved.