US secretaries of state and presidential hopefuls are just like us. When they want to read—but not buy—books, they borrow them.
Hillary Clinton’s leaked emails from her term as secretary of state reveal, among many things, a politician constantly bombarded with suggestions on what to read. Occasionally, the emails leaked earlier this year by WikiLeaks also show that when Clinton wanted to get some reading done, she asked her staff to ping the library.
A typical email from Clinton to her assistant reads:
It’s not clear which library Clinton used, but it’s likely the Ralph J. Bunche Library, a private library for department of state research. OK, so not exactly like the rest of us.
Below is a list of the books Clinton requested her staff borrow from “the library” for her to browse. The list includes a book of poetry and a memoir, as well as books on the CIA, climate change, and US history.
- The Wind Blows Through the Doors of My Heart, by Deborah Digges (2010)
- The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy—What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny, by William Strauss and Neil Howe (1997)
- Who Stole The American Dream? by Hedrick Smith (2012)
- The Art of Intelligence: Lessons from a Life in the CIA’s Clandestine Service (2012), by Henry A. Crumpton
- Coming Climate Crisis? Consider the Past, Beware the Big Fix, by Claire L. Parkinson (2010)
- Tearing Down Walls: A Woman’s Triumph, by Mary Gardiner Jones (2007)