True Gretch -- Young Adult Edition: Lessons for Anyone Who Wants to Make a Difference - Hardcover

Whitmer, Gretchen

 
9781665983761: True Gretch -- Young Adult Edition: Lessons for Anyone Who Wants to Make a Difference
Hardcover
ISBN 10: 1665983760 ISBN 13: 9781665983761
Verlag: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2025

Inhaltsangabe

The young adult edition of the unconventionally honest, deeply personal, and sharply funny account from Michigan governor and rising Democratic star Gretchen Whitmer “will appeal to readers interested in politics and those seeking insights on leadership and attaining success” (Kirkus Reviews).

When Gretchen Whitmer was growing up, her beloved grandmother Nino taught her that you can always find something good in other people. “Even the meanest person might have pretty eyes,” she would say, a piece of advice that Gretchen carries with her today in her role as the governor of Michigan. (And one that resonated more than another her grandmother offered: “never part your hair in the middle.”)

From navigating a kidnapping and assassination plot in which she herself was a target to facing monumental challenges during a global pandemic, Big Gretch (as she’s now known) shares the key pieces of wisdom that have shaped her trailblazing career and personal experiences in this often hilarious, always uplifting book. Along the way, she tells stories about growing up gutsy in the Midwest, the wild comments she’s encountered as a public figure, and how to neutralize high-profile bullies with a fearless sense of humor.

Told in her famously straightforward and slyly funny voice, this young adult edition of the governor’s story not only offers an intimate insight into the life of a politician with an astounding journey, but also affords extraordinary lessons for young people everywhere who wish to make a difference in the world.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Gretchen Whitmer is the governor of Michigan and a rising figure in US politics. Known for her bold and plainspoken style, Whitmer is a national voice on the rights of women, voters, and the LGBTQ+ community. She rose to national prominence for her leadership in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, when her efforts to save lives in the state earned her the nickname “That Woman from Michigan” from the president. Later that year, a domestic terrorist cell began planning to kidnap and kill her, a plot that was foiled by the FBI and state police. Whitmer is a lifelong Michigander who first ran for office at age twenty-nine, has served in both state houses, and has never lost an election. She is the proud mother of two daughters, a huge Detroit Lions fan, and the subject of the song “Big Gretch” by rapper GMac Cash.

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Chapter 1: Don’t Let the Bullies Get You Down CHAPTER 1 DON’T LET THE BULLIES GET YOU DOWN
In 1981, when I was ten years old, the TV show Three’s Company was a huge hit. It was a silly comedy about two women and a man sharing an apartment, a situation that back then was seen as a little bit shocking. Everybody in my fifth-grade class watched it, tuning in every Tuesday night to see what kind of trouble Jack, Janet, and Chrissy were getting into.

In November of that year, the show introduced a new character named Greedy Gretchen. Played by actress Teresa Ganzel, Greedy Gretchen was a blond bombshell who wore a spaghetti-strap dress to show off her ample bosom. Unfortunately for me, I had started developing earlier than other girls in my class, so even in the fifth grade, I was already getting kind of busty. Not surprisingly, some of the boys started calling me Greedy Gretchen. Did I hate it? You bet I did. The only thing worse than having boobs suddenly sprout on your fifth-grade body is having hormonal boys point it out every three minutes. At age ten, I really didn’t want to stand out. But what could I do about it?

I hated that nickname, but I didn’t know how to respond. When I was a kid, people used to say, “Just ignore it.” Or worse: “If a boy teases you, it means he likes you.” No one ever suggested that I stand up for myself, and so I didn’t. The boys kept calling me Greedy Gretchen until middle school, when most of the other girls finally started developing too.

If I could go back and talk to my ten-year-old self, I’d tell her to share with a trusted adult what was going on. Ask for help. Advocate for herself. And I’ll be honest: I still struggle with doing this sometimes. Because even as adults, women get unwanted commentary on how we look (more on this later). People sometimes judge us more on what we’re wearing, rather than our intellect, our humor, our empathy. When that happens, it’s okay to tell them that what they’re doing isn’t right. And if you see that a friend is going through it, it’s okay to step up and support them, too. Add your voice to encourage people to focus on what matters.

Greedy Gretchen was just the first of many nicknames. A few years later, I went to a summer church camp in West Virginia. Our family wasn’t super religious, but my parents divorced when I was six, and my mom and stepfather used to take us to Cascade Christian Church on the weekends we were with her. For whatever reason, the youth group took an annual trip all the way to West Virginia, so that’s where I was the summer after I got my braces off.

I used to love these trips, because we’d all pile into a bus and just cut up and laugh all the way through the eight-hour ride. Dad used to joke that we packed enough food for two weeks just for the bus trip. Some of my best friends were in this church group, and it was exciting to take a trip together, away from our parents, to run wild at this camp five hundred miles from home.

One afternoon, we were playing a game that involved running all over the place, and another girl went to tag me. But instead of just tagging, she pushed the hell out of me (so much for church camp), and I went flying face-first into the cement. The impact knocked out both of my front teeth, scraped up my hands, and opened a huge gash on my knee. We were out in the woods, in the middle of nowhere, and with blood gushing out of my knee, the counselors had to improvise, using maxi pads to clean it up. When I finally got to the hospital, it took thirty stitches to close the cut, and the doctors sent me home toothless and in a wheelchair.

I looked awful, but I wasn’t worried about what my friends might think. I mostly dreaded seeing my dad. He’d just paid thousands of dollars for braces to fix the gap between my front teeth—and now they were gone. All that money, wasted! I was so worried he would be mad that I was actually glad to have been hurt so badly, because he might feel sorry for me instead.

When I got back to Michigan with my busted face and torn-up knee, my dad could only shake his head. Gravity Gretchen, he called me, and the nickname stuck. I had always been a klutzy child, banging into things and falling, and even though that girl had pushed me, this episode served to cement my reputation. But unlike when the boys nicknamed me Greedy Gretchen, I didn’t mind Gravity Gretchen. It was funny because it was true. And because my dad laughed when he called me that, it helped me learn how not to take myself too seriously.

People gave me other nicknames over the years: Stretchin’ Gretchen, Fetchin’ Gretchen, and much later, Big Gretch. But there was one nickname in particular that managed to propel me into the newspapers—though, in fairness, the coverage came about not so much because of the nickname itself, but because of who gave it to me.

“That woman from Michigan.” That’s me! President Donald J. Trump bestowed this very special name on me in the spring of 2020—though what he actually said, speaking to Vice President Mike Pence at a White House press conference, was “Don’t call the woman in Michigan.” It was his latest salvo in a battle that had been brewing between us for weeks, ever since Covid-19 began shutting down the country and growing numbers of Michiganders were dying.

In the early days of the pandemic, the White House didn’t take it seriously enough. As hospitals overflowed and makeshift morgues filled up, governors scrambled to get basic medical supplies such as masks, surgical gloves, and ventilators. Detroit was hit particularly hard, along with New York City, Chicago, and New Orleans. We hoped and expected that the federal government would help, but instead, the president pitted the states against each other in a cruel Hunger Games–style scramble for equipment.

After I pointed out the lack of a federal strategy to combat Covid during a March 16 interview on MSNBC, Trump took to Twitter—now called X—the next morning to chastise me. “Failing Michigan Governor must work harder and be much more proactive. We are pushing her to get the job done. I stand with Michigan!” he tweeted at 9:27 a.m. Well, good morning! So I tweeted right back: “Now that I’ve got your attention, Mr. President—attack tweets won’t solve this crisis. But swift and clear guidance, tests, personal protective equipment, and resources would.”

I didn’t love that the president of the United States was calling me out, but that was a very minor concern compared to what really mattered. Getting help for people was my job. That’s what was important. If I’d lost the plot, or begun to think that this was all about me, I might have gotten distracted. But leadership isn’t about protecting your own ego, it’s about keeping your eye on the ball. So I stayed focused on trying to get the supplies we needed to keep people alive in Michigan.

At that time, in late March of 2020, the whole world had turned upside down. I had planned to have an eighteenth birthday party for my daughter Sherry, but instead, her school—and every other school in Michigan—was shut down during her senior year. As a parent, I was heartbroken for my kids. As a governor, my focus had to be protecting the people of Michigan. When the districts shut down our schools, we had no idea how long that might last. No one had lived through anything like this before. (To find out...

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Verlag
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Erscheinungsdatum
2025
Sprache
Englisch
ISBN 10 
1665983760
ISBN 13 
9781665983761
Einband
Gebundene Ausgabe
Anzahl der Seiten
192
Kontakt zum Hersteller
Nicht verfügbar
Verantwortliche Person
Simon and Schuster Netherlands BV, GPSR Europäische Union
info@simonandschuster.nl

Herculesplein 96
AA Utrecht
3584
Niederlande

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