And the Good News Is Summary
6 min read ⌚
Lessons and Advice from the Bright Side
Have you ever found yourself daydreaming about getting a job on Capitol Hill? Who hasn’t, right? But, you’re just a regular kid living in some rural area and it must all be a pipe dream, mustn’t it? And the good news is…
Well, that there’s a book called “And the Good News Is…” It’s a biography of Dana Perino and it’s exactly about these kinds of dreams. Or, in her case, reality.
Our summary covers it from cover to cover.
Who Should Read “And the Good News Is…”? And Why?
Most of our readers probably already know Dana Perino as one of TV’s few high-quality political commentators. But, we’ll hazard a guess that not many of you have ever bothered to find out something more about her life.
As is the case with every celebrity, her life is a fairly interesting one. In “And the Good News Is…”, Perino recounts it, in lively and crisp manner, from her humble beginnings to getting a job at Capitol Hill. From ranches – oh, pardon: rags! – to riches, from bushes to Bush.
It’s a type of book American-dream lovers will certainly love to read. It’s inspiring and uplifting, it’s novel-like and educational. On the topic of the latter, the book might be a good read for everyone who wants to get an advice or two about how to be more successful.
Finally, it’s a book every fan of Perino should already have it in his or her hands.
About Dana Perino
Dana Perino is an American author and beloved TV show host and presenter. Between 2007 and 2009, she served as a White House Press Secretary under President George W. Bush, thus becoming the first Republican woman to hold the position.
Perino is a co-host of Fox News’ highly-rated talk show The Five. Since October 2017, she began hosting The Daily Briefing with Dana Perino, also on Fox News.
In addition to “And the Good News Is…”, Perino has written “Let Me Tell You about Jasper. .: How My Best Friend Became America’s Dog”, a sort of a happy-go-lucky autobiographical appendix to her first book.
“And the Good News Is Summary”
It’s no wonder Dana Perino got to live the American dream: she was a descendant of the original dreamers.
And her upbringing could do nothing else but teach her to.
A granddaughter of Italian immigrants, Perino spent most of her childhood on their ranch in Wyoming. There, she learned one of life’s most valuable lessons: being tough doesn’t mean not being gentle. And life is all about combining these traits in the best possible manner.
Of course, there’s a story leading up to this tenet!
The episode which categorically taught Perino this happened when she was eight years old. She and her sister accompanied their grandfather on a trip when they noticed one of their horses had a broken leg. Her grandfather had no choice but to shoot it.
Dana was terrified and upset. Her grandfather gently placed his hand on her knee. He knew how she felt. And that made her feel better. It was then that Perino really understood that shooting the horse was an act of kindness.
What about Dana’s parents?
Let’s just say that you’ll learn a lot about Dana if you hear a little about them.
You see, her mother loved America. She worked in the Refugee Services, which helped immigrants settle in the United States. It was the time of the Cold War, so It’s only normal that most of these immigrants came from the Soviet Union.
And Dana heard from them, firsthand, that, for most of the world, the United States is, indeed, the land of the free.
However, what Dana Perino currently is, owes an even bigger deal to what her father was when she was just a child.
What do we mean?
Well, her father subscribed to almost every relevant newspaper published in the United States. And even when Dana was just a third grade, he discussed with her at least two newspaper articles daily. Perino thinks that this is where she got her analytical talents.
Go figure!
It wasn’t too long after this that Dana urged her parents to attend the earliest Sunday church service so that she could get home and watch the morning talk shows. Yes, at an age when most of us still watched “DuckTales” and “Alvin and the Chipmunks”!
Are you ready for the twist?
Too bad if you are! Because there is none. Just as you would expect from someone with such a background, Dana Perino was a grade-A student and was elected student body president.
Afterward, while in college, she got a job as a political debater on a local television channel, and this went well enough that got her an own show, Capitol Journal. After graduation, she moved on to become a Capitol Hill intern but left due to the feeling that the staff there was pro-democratic and profoundly biased against Republicans.
After a pretty boring stint as a staff assistant for Congressman Scott McInnis, Perino was hired as a press secretary by Daniel Schaefer.
And she was still 22!
However, when Schaefer announced his retirement four years later, Dana and her soon-to-be husband, British businessman Peter McMahon, moved to Great Britain. No wonder she didn’t expect to end up working for the Bush administration a few years later!
But, after a call from an old friend and a series of reassuring talks with Peter, she did! And she worked almost everything imaginable there until she was tired enough to call it quits. And, as it only happens in movies, she got her dream job at this exact moment!
It was 2005 and Dana Perino was hired as Deputy Press Secretary. Two years later, she was promoted and that first word of her title – “Deputy” – suddenly seemed a surplus. She thought life was as great as it can ever be.
And then – it got better!
In 2009, with Bush, Perino had to leave the White House too. It seemed as a low point in her career, but only until she was offered a job at Fox News. The rest of her life, as they say, is history. Or, better yet, the present.
Because you can see it unfolding live, on Fox News, on weeknights, at 10 PM GMT.
Now, tune in for some key lessons!
Key Lessons from “And the Good News Is…”
1. Good Manners Go a Long Way
2. Be Brave to Risk
3. Stay Positive
Good Manners Go a Long Way
Thomas Sowell, an American economist, once said that “politeness and consideration for others is like investing pennies and getting dollars back”. Dana Perino got, more or less, the same advice from Congresswoman Susan Molinari and she had to share it with her readers.
Politeness, to her, means sharing credit and keeping quiet to listen to other people’s opinions. It’s because of this she is both a successful person and a good friend.
And you can be too. It’s not at all difficult! As Emerson said, “Life be not so short but that there is always time for courtesy.”
Be Brave to Risk
If you want to win something, be prepared to lose something. It’s a simple, yet an effective strategy. Change is necessary and you need to adapt daily. And since you’re the product of evolutionary forces – adapting is something you’ll probably be very good at.
So, if you get a job offer in another city, don’t contemplate it. Just accept it! Usually, you can always go back. But, the same is not true with moving forward.
Stay Positive
Dana Perino practiced this all through her life; even when this meant working as a waitress after a short Capitol Hall spell.
Look where that got her!
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“And the Good News Is…” Quotes
We’ve gone from being the confident leader of the free world to bickering about every living thing under the sun. Click To Tweet A pet peeve of mine is with people who give backhanded compliments. Click To Tweet I understood early on that the freedom of America is what made our way of life possible, and that we should help other people live in freedom, too. Click To Tweet I didn’t have a plan to be the White House press secretary, but, looking back, I can see how my life experiences built up to that career achievement. Click To Tweet Just as civility doesn’t mean shrinking from an argument, it also doesn’t have to mean, ‘You must agree with me.’ To the contrary, being civil means that we can argue vehemently and then either find some compromise, call it a tie, or move… Click To Tweet
Our Critical Review
Unassuming and down-to-earth, Dana Perino’s memoir has been lauded as “a gem” in its genre by many reviewers.
Why shouldn’t it be?
It’s a success-story, wrapped in a series of “lessons and advice from the bright side of life”, dressed with a mild-flavored republicanism not bereaved of decency and respect, and topped with an alluring laidback style as sweet as a cherry!
Read it – even if you’re a Democrat and don’t like Dana Perino. Because that’s what being decent and civil actually means.
Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.
