The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times

The Light We Carry continues a long tradition of US First Ladies sharing their experiences and perspectives in personal memoirs and other literature. The first was First Lady Abigail Adams’ book Letters of Mrs. Adams, a record of her correspondence that was published in 1840. Likewise, First Lady Dolley Madison, with the help of an editor, published a memoir and letters in 1886. Helen Taft, the wife of President William Taft, released her memoir Recollections of Full Years in 1914. In the following decades, other First Ladies published memoirs as well, making the practice more commonplace. Edith Wilson wrote My Memoirs, Grace Coolidge penned several memoir-style articles for The American Magazine, and Lady Bird Johnson’s A White House Diary sold more copies than her husband President Lyndon B. Johnson’s memoir. This trend continued with the memoirs of Rosalynn Carter, Betty Ford, and Barbara Bush, whose memoirs eclipsed their husbands’ book sales. The tone and content of these books differed from author to author, some focusing on light content such as clothing and social engagements and others using their memoirs as opportunities to express their opinions, defend their husbands’ administrations, and settle political scores.