Summary of Ghosted by Nancy French: An American Story

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Summary of Ghosted by Nancy French: An American Story

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Ghosted is a memoir by New York Times bestselling ghostwriter Nancy French, detailing her life from poverty to success as a ghostwriter for conservative political leaders. Despite facing mockery, ostracization, and death threats, she learned the importance of finding her voice and that people she thought were enemies could be her closest friends. Ghosted is a deeply American story of change, loss, and ultimately love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: XinXii
• Release date: Apr 23, 2024
• ISBN: 9783989838383

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Introduction

The author receives a business card from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, threatening her husband with an urgent call. The agent calls her back, revealing that she is familiar with the Cesar Sayoc case. The FBI had been covering the case since the 2018 midterm elections, when Sayoc sent pipe bombs targeting prominent Democrats. The author, a ghostwriter, works with celebrities to write books about their lives, often working in obscurity to meet tight deadlines.

The FBI identified Sayoc as a stockily built Florida man who lived in a van covered with pro-Trump posters. They found binders full of media clippings, photo collages, and writings that said, Kill your enemy. The author was surprised to find her husband on the FBI's list, as he targets prominent critics of the president. David, a conservative Iraq-war veteran, had been one of the only Republican thought leaders to oppose Trump and had even been briefly floated for a third-party run for president. He declined, but his reputation among Republicans was sealed: traitor. The author's husband, David, had been one of the only Republican thought leaders to oppose Trump and had even been briefly floated for a quixotic, third-party run for president.

The author recounts their experience as a ghostwriter, working with celebrities and prominent Republicans. They experienced emotional trauma in 2016, when the GOP faced a shift in values and a newfound discord within the party. They were forced out of their tribe and lost their main source of income. The author worked with political clients, writing speeches and even attending Fox News headquarters to sharpen their talking points. They specialized in witty insults and political statements aimed at provoke liberals.

Despite their previous respect, the clients resented their questioning and softening of their rhetoric. The author quit or was fired by all of them, putting them in a financially and physically precarious situation. Their multiracial family had taken a stance against Trump, leading to mockery by Republicans, White nationalists, threats of death, and alienation from their church community.

The author's refusal to bow the knee to an unsuitable president allowed them to see their nation and fellow Americans in new, more accurate, and ultimately more meaningful ways. They quit the GOP, liberating them from all expectations and allowing them to reveal what really happened. As a ghost, they are now telling their own story, coming out and making themselves known.

Rough and Ready

The author recounts their family's upbringing on Monteagle Mountain, where they were influenced by their grandmother and aunts. They were taught to look for a letter from the last name of the man they were going to marry, which was the first letter of the last name of the man they were going to marry. The author was initially hesitant to learn this information, but eventually realized that it was the result of their grandmother's knife.

The family was known for their mischief, with their cousins being known for their violent behavior. Uncle Jasper, a troubled uncle, was known for his nicknames and stealing vehicles. His father and siblings would sometimes find his drunken parents shooting each other, with gunshots puncturing the ceiling. The author's grandparents were self-sufficient, but had to purchase coffee, tobacco, and sugar. Grandfather owned land for corn cultivation and ran a joint selling bootlegged liquor.

Dad was responsible for keeping the peace during operational hours, sleeping in the car while the older boys closed late at night. One night, his cousins shot the windows out of the packed bar when he was tired of giving them his stash. Another time, a bar fight moved onto a neighbor's property, and one of the fighters died when he was nearly decapitated.

The author loved their family and never feared them, but their uncle Jasper threatened to kill anyone who harmed them or even dated them. This experience left the author questioning what normal is, as they knew what normal is.

Growing up in rural Kentucky, the author's family was drawn to a mountain with chaos and heat. Grandmother dropped a rag on the floor, hoping it would attract a woman or a man. The author read a book about twins living in their fictional suburb of Los Angeles and was invited by Aunt Zinnia to use their kitchen for her next client. Aunt Zinnia revealed that she is a seer and sees a crystal ball and tarot cards.

The author was intrigued by the crystal ball and the Indian tribe they belong to, who wear Indian headdresses, dances, and have their own names. Aunt Zinnia suggested that the author have a gift to see things far off, have passed, or will come. The author felt honored to be in her presence and hung on her every word.

Aunt Zinnia told the author that she had the gift to see things that were far off, have passed, or will come. She put her hand on the author's knee, and for the second time in an hour, her destiny shifted. She had some sort of mystical power, and she only hoped her future husband would appreciate that part of her.

The author's aunts and grandmother encouraged her to see things that were far off, have passed, or will come, and she felt honored to be in her presence.

The narrator's grandparents, who had black lung disease from coal mines, lived in a smoke-filled room with a couch, two upright pianos, and a chair. They had a resourceful family, never threw anything away and faced problems in the face. The narrator's father asked his mother to play a tune, and his uncle Jasper suggested they play music. The narrator's grandmother played the opening chords to Your Cheatin' Heart, while the narrator's grandmother played all eightyeight keys. The music was syncopated and the beat was loose, making the narrator's parents lull in the music.

The narrator's grandparents remembered the gravy and decided to get supper while the getting was good. Grandfather, a coal miner, had packed dynamite to save his family from the explosions. He and his brothers were with him, hauling coal out of the hole in a mule-pulled cart. The narrator's grandparents were jarred by the explosions and sometimes didn't even know where they were. The narrator's grandparents' resilience and resourcefulness made them a strong family.

The narrator's family lives on Monteagle Mountain, a two thousand-foot mountain that casts a long shadow over them. They try to hide their shadow in a mothball-filled closet in Kentucky, labeled Grandfather's KKK Robe. The KKK was not presented as evil or a hate group but as a way to preserve peace among lazy White people. The narrator's family had been involved in illegal activities, but murder was not one of them.

The narrator's cousin Buck, who was a cardcarrying member of the KKK, is standing right before their eyes. He laughs at the idea that only rich people like him have business cards. The narrator and her sisters lived well below the poverty line, but Buck made them seem like they flew in on a private jet.

All day, the narrator thinks about Uncle Jasper's dead wife and how Buck was in the KKK. As the sun dipped below the mountain, it was time to leave. The narrator hugged