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Oh the Hell of It All: A Memoir
by Pat Montandon
Product Group: Book
Publisher: Harper (2007-04-01)
ISBN: 0061146064
EAN: 9780061146060
Dewy Decimal #: 973.92092
Hardcover: 368 pages
Release Date: 2007-04-10
SKU: 07060077
Condition: New As issued no jac
Comments: Trade Paperback. Uncorrected Proof in like new condition. No marks or creases and appears unread. Beautiful book.
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Editorial Reviews
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Product Description
The glamorous Pat Montandon lived a seemingly perfect life, complete with multimillionaire husband Al Wilsey, loving son Sean, and a penthouse overlooking San Francisco Bay. She socialized with the elite, and was immortalized as a character in Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City. Then everything fell apart. Wilsey divorced her and Sean abandoned her, both opting instead for the affections of Montandon's once-close friend, Dede Traina. Penniless and contemplating suicide, Pat needed to reinvent herself . . . again. Casting her old life aside, she became a humanitarian for peace, a voice speaking out for the world's helpless children. The preacher's daughter, celebrity, and socialite had a new mission: to spread a message of hope in times of crisis. A sumptuous feast of a memoir, Whispers from God is the tale of a poor-girl-turned-rich-turned-poor-again who has found peace through her devotion to something far greater than wealth and fame.
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Customer Reviews
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I swallowed the book!
Rating  (5)
Date: 2008-11-29
0 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
I start reading the book with the dictionary near and...I swallowed the book or book swallowed me(it's impossible to say now!)I didn't stop even to clear unknown words as I'm Not English well speaking girl(excuse me,woman).
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Larger than life and then some!
Rating (5)
Date: 2008-11-28
1 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
I've been a fan of Ms. Montandon's writing since 1975 when her non-fiction thriller "The Intruders" was published. Fast forward 33 years via "Whispers from God..." and the reader recounts her extraordinary journey incorporating the highest of highs (literally, by residing in a celebrated, sky-high San Francisco penthouse) to the lowest of lows: a former best friend secretly orchestrating the seduction of Pat's rich husband, "dairy & eggs man" Al Wilsey. Good over evil prevails when Pat, whose parents were Oaklahoma preachers, channels determination, indomitable spirit, and at times, sheer force, into becomming a recognized peace-maker commencing in the early 1980s. Received by world leaders from Mother Teresa to former Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev, Pat quickly engages the reader in her exploits as she decends upon country after country, charming her way into the hearts and minds of those in power. Meeting Pope John Paul II was inspirational; coordinating an intercepted food drop by outwitting the Russian mafia was a page-turner; and learning how she illegally unrolled the "Banner of Hope" along the Great Wall of China was fascinating. I read "Whispers..." in a weekend; the story does confirm than one person truly can make a difference.
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A life of importance
Rating  (4)
Date: 2007-10-12
2 out of 5 customers found this reveiw helpful
I'd admired Ms. Montandon for decades and finally had the opportunity to meet her at a booksigning. What a treasure.
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There's quite a spirited debate going on here...
Rating (5)
Date: 2007-07-07
6 out of 7 customers found this reveiw helpful
between the reviewers of this book. And, it all seems to pertain to the character of Dede Wilsey, castigated in both Pat and Sean's books.
I picked up Pat's book last week in Powell's in Portland. I had had no idea Sean's Mother had written her story, but was very pleased with both her writing and her candor. I was particularly taken with her reaction to Sean's book. When I read his book a few years ago, I thought he was brutal about his father and his step-mother (the saint/devil Dede), but was quite loving about his mother, Pat. He did write about her failings as a parent (quite understandable when going through such a vicious divorce) but I also saw the love and admiration he held for her, even when he was going through the rough patch in his childhood and adolescence. Pat evidently was quite hurt by his portrayal of her, but she really needn't have been.
And, looking at the pictures, I'd say she looks fabulous for almost 80 years old! I'd love to know who did her face-work.
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From someone who doesn't read books often, Oh the Hell of It All is great.
Rating (4)
Date: 2007-05-15
11 out of 13 customers found this reveiw helpful
I fell in love with Sean Wilsey's "Oh the Glory of It All" so when I saw that his mother wrote her own memoir I knew I had to read it. Going into the book I thought I might be bored reading about all the peace trips she took but to my surprise Pat Montandon was able to ditch the boring stuff and keep the book moving at a fast pace. I recommend that you read Sean Wilsey's memoir first and if you enjoy it move on to Pat Montandon's.
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