Book Review – Daring: My Passages by Gail Sheehy

From Goodreads: The author of the classic New York Times bestseller Passages returns with her inspiring memoir—a chronicle of her trials and triumphs as a groundbreaking “girl” journalist in the 1960s, to iconic guide for women and men seeking to have it all, to one of the premier political profilers of modern times

Candid, insightful, and powerful, Daring: My Passages is the story of the unconventional life of a writer who dared . . . to walk New York City streets with hookers and pimps to expose violent prostitution; to march with civil rights protesters in Northern Ireland as British paratroopers opened fire; to seek out Egypt’s president Anwar Sadat when he was targeted for death after making peace with Israel. Always on the cutting edge of social issues, Sheehy reveals the obstacles and opportunities encountered when she dared to blaze a trail in a “man’s world.” Daring is also a beguiling love story of Sheehy’s tempestuous romance with and eventual happy marriage to Clay Felker, the charismatic creator of New York magazine. As well, Sheehy recounts her audacious pursuit and intimate portraits of many 20th century leaders, including Hillary Clinton, Presidents George H. W. and George W. Bush, and the world-altering attraction between Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev.

Sheehy reflects on desire, ambition, and wanting it all—career, love, children, friends, social significance—and lays bare her major life passages: false starts and surprise successes, the shock of failures and inner crises; betrayal in a first marriage; life as a single mother; flings of an ardent, liberated young woman; her adoption of a second daughter from a refugee camp; marriage to the love of her life and their ensuing years of happiness, even in the shadow of illness.

Now stronger than ever, Sheehy speaks from hard-won experience to today’s young women. Her fascinating, no-holds-barred story is a testament to guts, resilience, smarts, and daring, and offers a bold perspective on all of life’s passages.

My review: This is the kind of book I like to call a “settle-in book.” It’s a long, long read (over 400 pages), so it won’t be something you can quickly read through. But there’s something so nice about those books that you really have to sink in with and spend a ton of time with. I felt as if I really got to know Gail Sheehy, and it was like losing a friend when I finished the book.

I was really interested in reading this book because I was a journalism major in college and, even though I ended up not taking that career path, I wanted to learn more about someone who went after this career and attacked it with such vigor. Gail Sheehy is one fricken amazing woman! She did so much, saw so much, and went through so much and it was just so amazing to read. And, even though I expected nothing else, it was incredibly well-written. I couldn’t help falling right into her story and her words just absolutely gripped me. Sheehy has led such a cool life, but it was because she worked hard for it. She fought for it. It’s so inspiring and I’m so glad I was given the chance to read it.

I received this book for free from TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. All words and opinions, unless otherwise stated, are my own.

What was the last memoir you read?