Synopses & Reviews
The extraordinary personal journey of a man who, against all odds, rose to become one of Americas most surprising and promising new political figures
Scott Brown's greatest win did not occur on a cold January election night in 2010 when he came from behind to capture the U.S. Senate seat held by Ted Kennedy for nearly fifty years. It began when he survived a savage beating at the drunken, dirty-fingernail hands of a stepfather when he was barely six years old, while trying to protect his mother.
In this gripping memoir of resilience and redemption, Brown tells the story of his difficult, often nomadic childhood, shunted from house to apartment, and town to town, seventeen times over his first eighteen years. He somehow thrived despite a largely absent father, who married four separate times. So did his mother, in relationships frequently stained with alcohol, anger, and even violence. For nearly two decades' growing up, Brown endured innumerable hardships and challenges, even stealing food to eat. He was periodically sent off to live with relatives, his possessions wrapped in a few old blankets. Saved by basketball, he was the boy who shoveled snow from the public courts to shoot hoops alone in the frozen cold.
With clear-eyed conviction and unflinching can-dor, Brown tells the story of his own bad-boy days, of the coaches who mentored him, and of how he found a way out of familial chaos through the swish of a ball in the net, winning a starting slot on the Tufts varsity basketball team as a freshman player and becoming the tenth-highest scorer to graduate in the school's history. His rise from there was even more improbable: a first-year law student and member of the Massachusetts National Guard, he was picked as Cosmopolitan magazine's "America's Sexiest Man" and was vaulted into the glamorous world of New York modeling at the height of the 1980s. But the man who was once ushered into the backrooms of Studio 54 returned to Massachusetts to continue with his military and legal training, settle down, raise a family, and soon found an unlikely path that would lead him to national political stardom. Here, too, are the secrets from the unprecedented Senate race that captured the country's imagination and how Scott Brown won his remarkable victory.
Poignant, heartfelt, humorous, and profound, this is the story of one man's dream and his determination to fight for a better future.
Review
“A[n] engaging autobiography. . . . A rags-to-riches narrative that sometimes recalls Horatio Alger. . . . Lyricism and occasional symbolic richness emerge in these pages.” < i=""> < b=""> The New York Review of Books <> <>
Review
“A fresh, compelling memoir of a childhood that could have led to a miserable life, but didnt. . . .Browns straightforward narrative makes for a good read.” < i=""> < b=""> Louisville Courier Journal <> <>
Review
“Powerful stuff. . . .This isnt your typical memoir. It is brutally honest, difficult to read, and important.” < i=""> < b=""> The Tucson Citizen <> <>
Review
“Dramatic. . . . Poignant. . . . Scott Browns life could have veered horribly wrong so many times, as he amply demonstrates in his disquieting memoir. . . . A reader will get an everythings-finally-right-with-the-world thrill from his success in life. < i=""> < b=""> The Washington Post <> <>
Review
and#160;andquot;When your career includes delivering twenty straight State of the City addresses in Boston, youandrsquo;ve got a lot to teach the world about leadership and andldquo;getting stuff done.andrdquo;
Mayor for a New America is a fascinating look at how he did it. I worked with Tom Menino for eight years on the challenges facing our cities. I know how much he did for the people of Boston.andquot;
andmdash;President Bill Clinton
and#160;
andldquo;Mayor Tomand#160;Menino led the resurgence of Bostonand#39;s neighborhoods, expanded parks and livable spaces, and fought for an economy at the frontiers of innovation.and#160; He also knitted together a divided city and led the way for a new American revolution, ordering insurance coverage for domestic partners in 1996, performing marriages for same-sex couples in 2004, and sponsoring an annual gay prom at City Hall for Bostonandrsquo;s teenagers. and#160;A Mayor for a New Americaand#160;tells his story, from meeting his wife Angela toand#160;leading Boston after the Marathon bombings. and#160;Meninoand#39;s Boston truly is a city on a hill, a model for the country and for the world.andrdquo;
andmdash;Senator Elizabeth Warren, author of A Fighting Chance
Synopsis
Against All Odds is the extraordinary personal story of the man who rose up to meet the challenge of terrific opposition and become one of America's most promising new political figures—Senator Scott Brown. Brown is famous for succeeding popular Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy after Kennedys death in 2010—but, as he reveals in a compelling memoir reminiscent of Sarah Palins Going Rogue and Clarence Thomass My Grandfathers Son, his experiences with struggle and achievement go back a lifetime.
Synopsis
A revealing memoir by Bostonand#8217;s beloved five-term mayor, explaining the power behind Bostonand#8217;s success and lessons for the Washington power brokers
Synopsis
A revealing memoir by Bostonand#8217;s beloved five-term mayor, explaining the power behind Bostonand#8217;s success and lessons for Washington power brokers After twenty years of service, Mayor Thomas Menino is stepping down from his office as one of the longest-serving major-city mayors in United States historyand#8212;and one of the most popular politicians in modern memory. His political career has stretched from the busing crisis of the 1970s to the cityand#8217;s extraordinary response to the Boston Marathon bombings in 2013.and#160;
Menino tells exclusive behind-the-scenes stories of urban politics and provides inspiration for Washington with his proven, people-focused method: and#8220;Do the small stuff so you can win the credibility to do the big stuff.and#8221; Heand#8217;s not known as a fancy talker, but he gets things done. Under his wing, the city has enjoyed unprecedented economic growth while fostering a new attitude of acceptance. Menino shows how a very old city shook off its Puritan roots and racial tensions to become a truly twenty-first-century city.
Synopsis
Bostonandrsquo;s late, revered mayor explains the power behind the cityandrsquo;s dramatic success andmdash; and its lessons for Washington power brokers.
When Thomas Menino stepped down from office as one of the longest-serving major-city mayors in the nationandrsquo;s history, he was among the most popular politicians in modern memory. Inand#160;Mayor for a New America,and#160;Menino gives a play-by-play look at how he managed to wield political influence while staying fiercely loyal to the interests of the people he was elected to serve.
The unassuming guy from Bostonandrsquo;s Hyde Park neighborhood was an unlikely politician. Heandrsquo;d been a backstage campaign workhorse whose career nearly ended the second he stepped into the spotlight, tongue-tied. Although not a fancy talker, Mayor Menino took to the details of running the city he loved. By taking care of the small stuff andmdash; fixing potholes, cleaning up parks, plowing the streets quickly after snowstorms andmdash; he won the publicandrsquo;s trust to deliver on the big issues. He had a progressive agenda and was forward thinking in his support of an innovation economy and a champion of gay rights. He also held fast to the values of his childhood andmdash; good schools, a growing middle class, and close-knit, welcoming communities.
In this candid look back at a career that spanned the busing crisis of the 1970s, the remarkable resurgence of the neighborhoods, and the cityandrsquo;s extraordinary response to the Boston Marathon bombing, Menino tells behind-the-scenes stories and gives a master class in urban politics. And his proven, people-focused track record provides inspiration for a dysfunctional Washington to actually get things done andmdash; just like he did in Boston.
About the Author
Elected five times as Mayor of Boston and five times as a City Councilor, Thomas M. Meninoandnbsp;(1942-2014) spent a lifetime building a better city for residents and businesses. Menino was known as a mayor of the people and was widely recognized for meeting more than half of Bostonandrsquo;s residents. Following his final term, which drew to a close in January 2014, Mayor Menino joined Boston University, where he served as codirector for the newly founded Initiative on Cities. He is survived by his wife of forty-eight years, Angela, their two children, and their six grandchildren.
Jack Beatty is a news analyst for NPRandrsquo;s On Point and the author of The Rascal King,andnbsp;a biography of Boston mayor James Michael Curly.
Table of Contents
Introduction1
From Hyde Park to City Hall
Up from Busing
19
The Struggle for the Schools
and#8220;Iand#8217;m not a fancy talkerand#8221;
71
Police and Fire
A City for All
117
Getting Stuff Done
and#8220;Heyhowaya?and#8221;
173
and#8220;To Think I Did All That . . .and#8221;
221
Index
233