The Best Lawyer in a One-Lawyer Town: A Memoir - Hardcover

Bumpers, Dale

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0375505210 ISBN 13: 9780375505218

Publisher: Random House, 2003

Synopsis

If Frank McCourt had grown up in Depression-era Arkansas, he might write like Dale Bumpers, one of the most colorful and entertaining politicians in recent American history: Atticus Finch with a sense of humor. In The Best Lawyer in a One-Lawyer Town, Bumpers tells the story of his remarkable journey from poverty to political legend, and the result is a great American memoir that is already attracting wide acclaim for its clever Southern charm:

“How agreeable to read a serious politician’s memoir and find it as full of wit, bite, scorn, compassion, and insight as Dale Bumpers himself.” -Norman Mailer

“Former Arkansas governor Bumpers served in the Senate for twenty-four years and is currently with a Washington law firm. However, this witty book indicates he may have a new career as a humorist on the printed page. . . . These charming tales from a country lawyer turned national politician are thoroughly enjoyable.”-Publishers Weekly

“This saga of bootstrapping from an impoverished boyhood to the Arkansas governor’s mansion and a distinguished senatorial career could easily serve as a manual for the legislatively inclined. But it is the author’s total candor, combined with his facility for humor spun out of rural America’s plain talk, that lifts this remembrance well above the ordinary.”- Kirkus Reviews

Dale Bumpers was reared during the depths of the Great Depression, in the miserably poor town of Charleston, Arkansas, population 851. He was twelve years old when he saw and heard Franklin Roosevelt, who was campaigning in the state. Afterward, his father assured young Dale that he, too, could be president.

Many years later, in 1970, after suffering financial disaster and personal tragedy, Bumpers ran for governor of Arkansas, starting out with one-percent name recognition and $50,000, most of which was borrowed from his brother and sister. He defeated arch-segregationist Orval Faubus in the primary and a Rockefeller in the general election. He served four years as governor and then twenty-four years in the U.S. Senate. He never lost an election.

Two weeks after Bumpers left the Senate, President Bill Clinton called him with an urgent plea to make the closing argument in his impeachment trial. That speech became an instant classic of political oratory.

The Best Lawyer in a One-Lawyer Town is the work of a master politician blessed with wry insight into character and a gift for rib-tickling tales. It is a classic American story.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

"Dale Bumpers is one of the most eloquent speakers ever to grace the United States Senate. He is also one of the wittiest. Far more important, he is a good and wise man, full of timeless lessons and unshakeable devotion to our Constitution and country." -Former President William J. Clinton

"How agreeable to read a serious politician's memoir and find it as full of wit, bite, scorn, compassion and insight as Dale Bumpers himself."
-Norman Mailer

"This is the first book I've read that made me feel the author should have been President, and that includes books by Presidents. Even if for some strange reason you wouldn't have voted for Bumpers, you'd have to have even stranger reasons not to enjoy his refreshing life story and his funny, often wild and woolly, stories."
-Roy Blount Jr.

"This memoir combines wit, humor, and Southern-style storytelling in a unique manner to illustrate major social and political developments since the 1930's. Human interest and high politics blend with rare harmony in this charming autobiography."
-James M. McPherson

About the Author:

Dale Bumpers retired from the Senate in 1998 and is currently of counsel at Arent Fox, a law firm based in Washington, D.C. This is his first book.

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0375505210
• ISBN 13: 9780375505218
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304