• "All the Presidents' Children: Triumph and Tragedy in the Lives of America's First Families," by Doug Wead (paperback, Simon, $16), provides lively anecdotes, photos and short biographical sketches about the first families from Adams to Clinton.
• "First Kids: The True Stories of All the Presidents' Children," by Noah McCullough (Scholastic, $16.99), highlights 43 presidents' offspring from childhood to young adulthood. With many photos and crisp biographies, this recent book will be interesting for all ages.
• "White House Q&A," by Denise Rinaldo and the Smithsonian Institution (Collins, $16.99), lists pithy details that make fun reading, such as Caroline Kennedy's pony ride on the South Lawn.
There are many stories about the antics of children in the White House. "Mr. Lincoln's Boys," by Staton Rabin and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline (Viking, $16.99), is subtitled "Being the Mostly True Adventures of Abraham Lincoln's Troublemaking Sons Tad and Willie." This is one of many books in celebration of Lincoln's 200th birthday.
• "What to Do About Alice?" by Barbara Kerley and Edwin Fotheringham (Scholastic, $16.99), quotes Theodore Roosevelt as saying: "I can be president of the United States or I can control Alice. I cannot possibly do both." The press called her "Princess Alice," and she was certainly the active one at age 17 when she moved in the White House with her father, stepmother and five half-siblings.
• Most timely are the fictional novels about Meg Powers, a tenacious teenager whose politically minded mother decides to run for presi-
dent. The first three in the series were written in the 1980s, and author Ellen Emerson White recently updated the details and references to meet the nuances of the 21st century. She then wrote a fourth in the series about the activities of President Powers and her family.
In the first of the series, "The President's Daughter" (paperback, Feiwel & Friends $9.99), Meg learns political protocol as her mother is nominated and ultimately elected. In "White House Autumn" ($9.99), President Powers is shot by a would-be assassin. The White House turmoil is outlined as well as the tenuous time for the family and the government. The series continues with "Long Live the Queen" ($9.99). Meg is kidnapped by terrorists but escapes with physical injuries that alter her mental resistance.
In "Long May She Reign" ($15.95) Meg goes away to college where her strength and fortitude is tested repeatedly.
The series never lacks interest and page-turning adventure. The settings are realistic and contemporary. One disclosure needs to be made, however. The overabundance of edgy language (inner-voice profanity and expletives) may be offensive to some.
If a reader can overlook those traits in an otherwise smart teenager who admires a strong mother (who repeatedly disallows that kind of talk), these novels are timely choices for this election year.
E-MAIL: marilou.sorensen@att.net