James Patterson has a new bestselling book with Bill Clinton


He feels presidential

Even the Bible does not sell any better than James Patterson. His latest, No. 1 on the bestseller list, is – with Bill Clinton – “The President’s Daughter”.

“I wrote my first book when I was 25. I did not have money. I moved to New York, stayed in a hotel room that was barely 8×10 and had someone draw X’s all over the wallpaper. I knew I had to get out of there. Three publishers refused my first book. But it was a miracle. It actually won the award for best mystery – so immediately I set off for the races.

“This Clinton book began with a sketch. We have all seen movies and TV shows about presidents. The chairs are usually made of plastic. I wanted something that would humanize them. And what more than if a family member was taken away? Clinton, very bright, reads everything. His details about the White House and the FBI were helpful. This book reads as if it really happened because all the details are right.

“We sat down and started with a preview. I write with a pencil what is strange today. This way I can write on trains, planes, anywhere.

“I am a simple person. If I had any problems my mom would call me James Brendan. I am friends with Dolly Parton. She calls me JJ. I just live. My wife and I have friends. Not a ton. We don’t have big parties. I’m not the type to tell the same story over and over again. We’re dating maybe a couple or two. Sometimes with the Clintons.

Former President Bill Clinton co-wrote
Former President Bill Clinton co-wrote “The President’s Daughter” with James Patterson.
Photo by Theo Wargo / Getty Images for CARE

“I always see the world through the lens of a guy from Newburgh. My dad grew up in the Newburgh hospice. Her mother was a cleaning lady. This is what I knew as a child.

“The stuff I read myself is ‘Jack Reacher’ and my lawyer friend, John Grisham.

“Recently I was supposed to give a graduation speech to the state of Mississippi, so I said, ‘I’m talking to your alma mater, will you come? Grisham said, ‘Damn, I’m going to Paris.’ So I said, ‘Well, have a good time in France,’ and he said, ‘Yeah, and you’re having a good time in Starkville, miss.’

“In the 1960s, Philip Roth said during the Nixon and Vietnam era, ‘I can’t write fiction anymore because I can’t compete with reality.’ This is how I feel now. Again . . . I think I will continue with what I am doing.

Restaurants move and shake

Restaurants are changing. Their structures, menus, staff, prices, customers. Now their management. Cipriani, forever in the 60th and fifth Sherry-Netherland hotels, closed when our whole world closed. He is in the process of renegotiating with the unions, management, etc. Hopes to reopen by the end of the year. When the family members who owned The Frog went bad, what was concocted was Majorelle at the Lowell Hotel in E. 63rd. Now all of a sudden this new management has decided again that too many cooks are spoiling the menu. Some wanted to brighten up the place, to make it more modern. Others resisted. Result? Supposedly, a split, and we could now open another restaurant. In Florida. Forget that beef is suddenly more expensive, help more expensive, food more expensive, warehouses cost more. Somehow, the hot post-pandemic menu is steak. At Benjamin Steakhouse – 41st between Park and Madison – orders were rib eye, T-bones, porterhouse, tenderloin, sirloin and tenderloin.

Talk politics

And civilization is changing. While Andrew Cuomo isn’t moving, lined up for his shot may be our crazily adored de Blasio. . . And, as I reported long ago, the hustle and bustle of Eric Adams in Gracie Mansion? His revenge is to obtain Mrs. de Blasio the post of president of the borough of Brooklyn. . . Meanwhile, New York’s underfunded and silent leftists are living well. AOC’s brother Gabriel Ocasio-Cortez posted his party and sloshing photo to the Boom Boom Room last week. And that our increased taxes help his lifestyle.


Containment of CVs has done great things for the marriage. A couple have opted for separate bedrooms and each drives their own car, and two vaccinations later, they take separate vacations. They say they will do anything to keep their marriage together.

Only in New York, kids, only in New York.


About Karren Campbell

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