BOOKS . . . TO RENEW AMERICA

George Washington had his cherry tree, Abe Lincoln his log cabin and Newt Gingrich -- according toa new inspirational tract available at bookstores everywhere-- had French inflation. The House Speaker's controversial book, "To Renew America," which went on sale today, is full of revelations, says TIME Daily's Robertson Barrett. Among them: When Newt's military dad was stationed in France, sky-high French inflation taught a 13-year-old Gingrich that "when a government cheats its own people by inflating the currency rather than facing tough political decisions, it is inviting trouble." On the return trip to America, the teenager vowed to change the world: "There was no moral choice except to immerse myself inthe process of learning how to lead and how to be effective."