Taking Aim at the President: The Remarkable Story of the Woman Who Shot at Gerald Ford - Hardcover

Spieler, Geri

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0230610234 ISBN 13: 9780230610231

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009

Synopsis

"I do regret that I didn't succeed, and allow the winds of change to start. I wish I had killed him. I did it to create chaos." - Sara Jane Moore

Geri Spieler met would-be assasin Sara Jane Moore while she was in prison; Taking Aim at the President is based on 30-years of interviews. Spieler follows Moore's actions from her childhood in a small West Virginia town to her release from prison in December 2007. Moore's life was never conventional, and along the way she entered and dropped out of the military, was married five times, and was both a political radical and an FBI informant. Focusing on the complex psychology and motivations of a quintessentially desperate housewife and the only woman to ever fire a bullet at an American president, Spieler delivers a nuanced portrait of an elusive person and a fascinating glimpse back at a turbulent period in American history.

About this title

Review:

A well-written, fascinating story about an inexplicable moment in American History.--Carl Stern, Professor of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, and former NBC News correspondent "Spieler offers a portrait of an erratic, unstable woman with a protean capacity to shift identities, with the 1960s and '70s as a dramatic backdrop. Fans of true crime accounts or contemporary history will savor this portrait of the first woman to make an assassination attempt on an American president." --Publishers Weekly"It is the obligation of the thoughtful journalist to tell us something meaningful that we don't already know. In Taking Aim at the President, Geri Spieler is more than up to the task. The byzantine tale of Sara Jane Moore's double, triple and quadruple lives, with so many bizarre groups - including the federal government - exploiting her vulnerabilities, is the stuff of Hollywood fiction. The fact that it's all true, and told with precision by Spieler, raises Sara Jane's story to something significantly more than a footnote to history." --Alan Weisman, author of Prince of Darkness: Richard Perle, The Kingdom, the Power & the End of Empire in America and Lone Star: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Dan Rather"Geri Spieler has done a marvelous job of unraveling the details surrounding one of the most bizarre events in American history, Sara Jane Moore's attack on Gerald Ford." --James Dalessandro, author of 1906 and Citizen Jane"A well-written, fascinating story about an inexplicable moment in American History." --Carl Stern, Professor of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, and former NBC News correspondent"Talk about truth being stranger than fiction! Captivating." --The San Francisco Chronicle Spieler offers a portrait of an erratic, unstable woman with a protean capacity to shift identities, with the 1960s and '70s as a dramatic backdrop. Fans of true crime accounts or contemporary history will savor this portrait of the first woman to make an assassination attempt on an American president. Publishers Weekly It is the obligation of the thoughtful journalist to tell us something meaningful that we don't already know. In Taking Aim at the President, Geri Spieler is more than up to the task. The byzantine tale of Sara Jane Moore's double, triple and quadruple lives, with so many bizarre groups - including the federal government - exploiting her vulnerabilities, is the stuff of Hollywood fiction. The fact that it's all true, and told with precision by Spieler, raises Sara Jane's story to something significantly more than a footnote to history. Alan Weisman, author of Prince of Darkness: Richard Perle, The Kingdom, the Power & the End of Empire in America and Lone Star: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Dan Rather Geri Spieler has done a marvelous job of unraveling the details surrounding one of the most bizarre events in American history, Sara Jane Moore's attack on Gerald Ford. James Dalessandro, author of 1906 and Citizen Jane A well-written, fascinating story about an inexplicable moment in American History. Carl Stern, Professor of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, and former NBC News correspondent Talk about truth being stranger than fiction! Captivating. The San Francisco Chronicle" Spieler offers a portrait of an erratic, unstable woman with a protean capacity to shift identities, with the 1960s and '70s as a dramatic backdrop. Fans of true crime accounts or contemporary history will savor this portrait of the first woman to make an assassination attempt on an American president. "Publishers Weekly" It is the obligation of the thoughtful journalist to tell us something meaningful that we don't already know. In "Taking Aim at the President," Geri Spieler is more than up to the task. The byzantine tale of Sara Jane Moore's double, triple and quadruple lives, with so many bizarre groups - including the federal government - exploiting her vulnerabilities, is the stuff of Hollywood fiction. The fact that it's all true, and told with precision by Spieler, raises Sara Jane's story to something significantly more than a footnote to history. "Alan Weisman, author of Prince of Darkness: Richard Perle, The Kingdom, the Power & the End of Empire in America and Lone Star: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Dan Rather" Geri Spieler has done a marvelous job of unraveling the details surrounding one of the most bizarre events in American history, Sara Jane Moore's attack on Gerald Ford."""" James Dalessandro, author of 1906 and Citizen Jane A well-written, fascinating story about an inexplicable moment in American History. Carl Stern, Professor of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, and former NBC News correspondent Talk about truth being stranger than fiction! Captivating. "The San Francisco Chronicle"" Geri Spieler has done a marvelous job of unraveling the details surrounding one of the most bizarre events in American history, Sara Jane Moore's attack on Gerald Ford.""""--James Dalessandro, author of 1906 and Citizen Jane Winner of the 2009 San Francisco Book Festival Award (Wild Card category) "Spieler offers a portrait of an erratic, unstable woman with a protean capacity to shift identities, with the 1960s and '70s as a dramatic backdrop. Fans of true crime accounts or contemporary history will savor this portrait of the first woman to make an assassination attempt on an American president." - "Publishers Weekly""It is the obligation of the thoughtful journalist to tell us something meaningful that we dona (TM)t already know. In "Taking Aim at the President", Geri Spieler is more than up to the task.The byzantine tale ofSara Jane Moore's double, triple and quadruple lives, with so many bizarre groups - including the federal government - exploiting her vulnerabilities, is the stuff of Hollywood fiction. The fact that ita (TM)s all true, and told with precision by Spieler, raises Sara Janea (TM)s story to something significantly more than a footnote to history." - Alan Weisman, author of "Prince of Darkness: Richard Perle, The Kingdom, the Power & the End of Empire in America" and "Lone Star: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Dan Rather" "A well-written, fascinating story about an inexplicable moment in American History." - Carl Stern, Professor of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, and former NBC News correspondent "Geri Spieler has done a marvelous job of unraveling the details surrounding one of the most bizarre events in American history, Sara Jane Moorea (TM)s attack on Gerald Ford." - James Dalessandro, author of "1906 "and "Citizen Jane""Talk about truth being stranger than fiction! Captivating." - "The San Francisco Chronicle" Winner of the 2009 San Francisco Book Festival Award (Wild Card category) "Spieler offers a portrait of an erratic, unstable woman with a protean capacity to shift identities, with the 1960s and '70s as a dramatic backdrop. Fans of true crime accounts or contemporary history will savor this portrait of the first woman to make an assassination attempt on an American president." -- "Publishers Weekly" "It is the obligation of the thoughtful journalist to tell us something meaningful that we don't already know. In "Taking Aim at the President", Geri Spieler is more than up to the task. The byzantine tale of Sara Jane Moore's double, triple and quadruple lives, with so many bizarre groups -- including the federal government -- exploiting her vulnerabilities, is the stuff of Hollywood fiction. The fact that it's all true, and told with precision by Spieler, raises Sara Jane's story to something significantly more than a footnote to history." --Alan Weisman, author of "Prince of Darkness: Richard Perle, The Kingdom, the Power & the End of Empire in America" and "Lone Star: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Dan Rather" "A well-written, fascinating story about an inexplicable moment in American History." -- Carl Stern, Professor of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, and former NBC News correspondent "Geri Spieler has done a marvelous job of unraveling the details surrounding one of the most bizarre events in American history, Sara Jane Moore's attack on Gerald Ford." - James Dalessandro, author of "1906 "and "Citizen Jane""Talk about truth being stranger than fiction! Captivating." --"The San Francisco Chronicle" "Spieler offers a portrait of an erratic, unstable woman with a protean capacity to shift identities, with the 1960s and '70s as a dramatic backdrop. Fans of true crime accounts or contemporary history will savor this portrait of the first woman to make an assassination attempt on an American president." -- "Publishers Weekly" "It is the obligation of the thoughtful journalist to tell us something meaningful that we don't already know. In "Taking Aim at the President," Geri Spieler is more than up to the task. The byzantine tale of Sara Jane Moore's double, triple and quadruple lives, with so many bizarre groups -- including the federal government -- exploiting her vulnerabilities, is the stuff of Hollywood fiction. The fact that it's all true, and told with precision by Spieler, raises Sara Jane's story to something significantly more than a footnote to history." --Alan Weisman, author of "Prince of Darkness: Richard Perle, The Kingdom, the Power & the End of Empire in America" and "Lone Star: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Dan Rather" "A well-written, fascinating story about an inexplicable moment in American History." -- Carl Stern, Professor of Media and Public Affairs, George Washington University, and former NBC News correspondent "Geri Spieler has done a marvelous job of unraveling the details surrounding one of the most bizarre events in American history, Sara Jane Moore's attack on Gerald Ford." - James Dalessandro, author of "1906 "and "Citizen Jane""Talk about truth being stranger than fiction! Captivating." --"The San Francisco Chronicle"

Book Description:

In the vein of Squeaky, this is the strange story of a Midwestern housewife who tried to kill President Ford

About this edition

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0230610234
• ISBN 13: 9780230610231
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256