And the Good News Is...: Lessons and Advice from the Bright Side

by Dana Perino

Overview

From her years as the presidential press secretary to her debates with colleagues on Fox News' The Five, Dana Perino reveals the lessons she's learned that have guided her through life, kept her level-headed, and led to her success, even in the face of adversity.

Thoughtful, inspiring, and often surprising, And the Good News is . . . traces Dana Perino's unlikely journey through politics and television. It's a remarkable American story-made up of equal parts determination and clear-eyed optimism.

From facing professional challenges and confronting personal fears to stepping up to a podium for a President, Dana has come to expect the unexpected and has an uncanny ability to find the good news in any tough situation. And the Good News is . . . takes us from her Western childhood in Wyoming and Colorado to a chance meeting on an airplane that changes her life entirely. Then, with refreshing honesty and humor, she recounts her frustration with a string of unsatisfying jobs and living circumstances until a key career tip leads her back to Washington, D.C. to work for the Bush Administration.

Dana also shares here her best work and life lessons-tips that will help you to get your point across convincingly while allowing your own grace and personality to shine through. As someone who still believes in working together to solve the problems our nation faces, Dana offers clear, practical advice on how to restore civility to our personal and public conversations. The result is a fascinating read that can help anyone become more successful, productive, and joyously content.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781455584895
Publisher:	Grand Central Publishing
Publication date:	04/21/2015
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	140,290
File size:	5 MB

About the Author

Dana Perino is a Fox News Contributor and co-host of one of the most popular shows on cable television, The Five. Perino was the first Republican woman to serve as the White House Press Secretary and served for over seven years in the administration of George W. Bush, including at the Department of Justice after the terrorist attacks on 9/11. Perino lives in Manhattan with her husband, Peter McMahon, and their dog, Jasper.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Wide-Open Spaces 15

Chapter 2 Love at First Flight 66

Chapter 3 Stepping Up to the Podium 96

Chapter 4 The Five 133

Chapter 5 Take It from Me-Please 159

Chapter 6 Civility, Lost and Found 200

Chapter 7 Unafraid to Be Right 231

One More Thing 235

And the Good News Continues… 239

Acknowledgments 267

About the Author 271

Editorial Reviews

Outsiders might think that Dana Perino had brilliantly crafted her rise to the top: During the George H.W. Bush administration, she had, after all, served first as a Department of Justice spokesperson; then moved to a succession of high-level White House jobs, eventually become the presidential press secretary. However, according to this unpretentious, yet insightful memoir, this popular Fox News commentator has never been the master of her own agenda. Her jaunty insider political scoop explains how she got accidentally to where she is and what she has heard off camera on her improvised journey. Editor's recommendation.

"This book is a gem—modest and moving, clear and unpretentious. It gives the kind of practical and even ethical advice everyone starting out needs, but it's also funny and full of great stories. Dana is a true role model."—Peggy Noonan

"A lovely memoir, both charming and wise, studded with invaluable life lessons garnered on her fascinating journey to the highest levels of media and government. A wonderful read."—Charles Krauthammer

"Part autobiography, part memoir of a press secretary in the White House, part career and life guidance, and part appeal to civility, Dana Perino's AND THE GOOD NEWS IS... is all parts captivating."—Donna Brazile

"With this delightful blend of the political, personal, and professional, Dana Perino gives us a useful glimpse into one of the most remarkable workplaces in the world, the White House. Political junkies will revel in her insider tales but every reader will come away knowing more about the human dimension of working in the most powerful place on the planet."—Mike McCurry, former White House Press Secretary to President Bill Clinton

"Congrats to Dana Perino! It's a great read, BTW. Little House on the Prairie meets West Wing."—Chris Stirewalt, Digital Politics Editor Fox News

"This book is perfect for anyone interested in politics, media or simply advice about taking courageous chances in life, love and work. Dana has written a book that is as accessible for those who are just starting out on their career path as for those who are long-time students of current events and history."—Julie Roginsky, Fox News Contributor

"The book is a study in character, and why surrounding one's self with people of good character (from Dana's husband, parents and grandparents to Tony Snow and George W. Bush) leads to a life well lived."—Doug Brunt, author of The Means and Ghosts of Manhattan

"If you want to be inspired by a successful woman who goes from ranching in the West, to the White House, to helping in Africa, to a fine marriage and a loving dog, you will find it in this book. You will also find the kind of honest advice about life, politics and the Presidency that makes you feel good. Now there's a rarity."—Marlin Fitzwater, former White House Press Secretary to Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush

From the Publisher

★ 04/01/2016
Perino writes a buoyant, insightful memoir, describing her childhood in Denver; years in the George W. Bush administration, in which she served as press secretary from 2007 to 2009; and her success as a TV pundit. She also gives excellent advice for those aspiring to media careers. (LJ Prepub Alert, 10/20/14)

Library Journal

2015-01-28
Fox News commentator Perino, co-host of The Five, spreads sunshine in a book from which even Fox News haters could extract some useful nuggets.Before the hackles rise, let it be known that we're violating one of the no-no's she advances in this combination of memoir and update of Miss Manners for our time: Instead of saying, "I hated everything about the Bush Administration, but I like you," she counsels, we should say, "You were a good press secretary." Yes: She's that Dana Perino, still selling a Bush-Cheney agenda while lamenting the incivility and partisan divisions of Washington: "We've gone from being the confident leader of the free world to bickering about every living thing under the sun." In her favor, she does allow that Republicans are sharper-tongued and meaner to each other than Democrats are to them—but, she adds brightly, "That's okay—it makes us smarter and better at what we do." Ever political, Perino would seem to want it both ways, though, to her credit, her relentless cheerfulness will make readers wish that politicians of every bent were just a little kinder to each other. And besides, she notes, the left indulges in name-calling, too. Probably, the left would do even more, and Harry Reid would be meaner than he is, had it a machine the like of Fox News, but that's another matter for another day. For the time being, and again to her credit, the author allows that it's a fair criticism to say that she's part of the problem—"or if not me specifically," she amends, "then cable news and talk radio." "A pet peeve of mine is with people who give backhanded compliments." So: The best memoir and etiquette guide manqué we have by "the first and only Republican woman" to serve as White House press secretary. Now be nice.

Kirkus Reviews