The former first lady finally speaks up – and it appears she has a lot to say.

Former first lady Melania Trump, who is typically reticent in her public statements, will go on record about life before, during, and after her time in the White House when her book is published on October 8. Simply titled Melania, the memoir will be the 12th authored by a first lady of the United States. If nothing else, the Slovenian-American wife of Donald Trump emits a mysterious and compelling countenance, and a very personal account of her experience in the public square is likely to soar to the top of the best-seller lists.

The first such account of a first lady’s experience inside the White House fishbowl written during her lifetime came from the pen of Nellie Taft. Smithsonian Magazine labeled Mrs. Taft as “[T]he smoking, prohibition-hating, car driving and suffragist-supporting wife of President William Howard Taft.” Such a profile illustrates that there was no love lost for Nellie.

Melania: It’s Her Turn

Except for Louisa Catherine Adams – wife of John Quincy Adams – Mrs. Trump is only the second foreign-born first lady. This fact did not sit well with many Americans in either case. Adams, who was born in London to an English mother and American father, was mercilessly derided by her husband’s political rivals as a “Tory of aristocratic birth,” as previously noted by Liberty Nation News.

The leftist Fourth Estate was equally callous with Mrs. Trump, making fun of her accent and just about everything else when she first came on the scene. In 2018, Liberty Nation News averred:

“The legacy media has been nothing short of ruthless in its reporting of Melania Trump. In fashion: Michelle Obama is trendy while Melania is hopelessly inappropriate. In marriage: The Obamas are an American love story while Mr. and Mrs. Trump have a relationship “on the rocks. For sure, First Lady Melania Trump has been persecuted and pilloried for anything and everything by a malicious and cruel Fourth Estate.”

The only other first lady in recent memory to bear such vitriol was Nancy Reagan, who published a memoir titled My Turn, which didn’t alter Mrs. Reagan’s unpopularity in the press. “Nearly every reviewer was turned off by the unapologetic anger and frustration Reagan openly vented,” according to Smithsonian Magazine.

Melania attacks the press from higher ground without Mrs. Reagan’s open resentment and uses the book to reframe her public persona. According to the Amazon synopsis, “Melania Trump’s story is one of resilience and independence, showcasing her strength and unwavering commitment to her true self.”

Melania: Don’t Tread on Me

A threatening combination of brains and beauty, Mrs. Trump comes off as a cool customer who uses her quiet manner and self-assured countenance in powerful ways. Indeed, the former first lady is no wallflower. She successfully brought two defamation legal actions against British publications and was victorious in both. And when the press came after her only son, Barron, she exhibited the fierceness of a mama bear protecting her cub. Widely ridiculed for her “Be Best” campaign while serving as first lady, Melania brushed aside the critics and used her platform to effectively zero in on the “social, emotional, and physical health of children.”

Melania Trump had not given an interview until she recently sat down with Ainsley Earhardt of Fox News. In excerpts leading up to the full program, airing tonight at 8 p.m. on Fox, Mrs. Trump appeared affable and gracious, indicating she wrote the book to set the record straight. And there are a plethora of topics from which to choose.

She quietly but forcefully defended her husband’s record, telling the Fox audience: “We didn’t have any wars, people were prospering, they had jobs, they – they could support their families. So, I think Americans are going to decide what they really want.” Earhardt asked about the two recent attempts to assassinate her husband, to which Melania responded, “I think both of the events, they were really miracles if you really think about it.”

The title of first lady brings with it some heavy baggage, and – more often than not – the wife of a president is viewed in the reflection of her husband. Thus, Mrs. Trump has frequently labored under the toxic animosity of a hostile media. Still, she has managed to maintain a sense of self, and her story of living as one who is both bold and beautiful is likely to be a fascinating read.