CityView Magazine

40 | March 2020 A Tale of Two Women BY DIANE PARFITT | PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATTHEW WONDERLY G O O D R E A D S S everal months ago, my book club decided to read "Becoming," an autobiography by Michelle Obama. en someone else suggested we also read "e Matriarch: Barbara Bush and the Making of an American Dynasty," by Susan Page. I looked forward to reading both books because I have always admired these two women. Indeed, both are admired and respected by many Americans as well as our friends worldwide. No matter your political persuasion, both women are truly great role models for young girls and women everywhere. Both books deal with the personal side of each woman's story set against the public side that we all watched unfold over the years. ese two were not just the women they became because of the men they married. ey came into their marriages with back-stories that established their personalities which, in turn, determined how they negotiated the ups and downs of marriage and public life. eir differences are interesting, but it's their similarities that set these two icons apart from other women. Barbara Pierce Bush was born in 1925 to a comfortable upper-middle-class family in New York. Although she adored her father, she had a very difficult relationship with her mother, Pauline. Pauline Pierce valued appearance, social standing and membership in the right groups. She constantly berated Barbara over her weight and appearance, which le lifelong scars on her daughter's self-esteem. In 1941, during her senior year in high school, Barbara met George H. W. Bush. She described him as "the most beautiful creature" she had ever met. ey shared a kiss, the first boy she had ever kissed. ey eventually became

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