Camille is an opera singer of some renown. In the 1980s, she performed lead roles for the Utah and Salt Lake opera companies in productions of "Don Giovanni" and "Madame Butterfly." She still performs occasionally on Temple Square. Her children recall waking up to the sound of their mother practicing opera in the bathroom. She converted the entire family to opera aficionados to such an extent that the kids would actually fight over opera tickets if there weren't enough to go around. They made annual trips to an opera festival in Albuquerque, and Merrill and Camille have traveled the world to see performances in the best opera houses.

The Cooks have lived modestly but spent money lavishly on their three passions — opera, education and politics. Brian, who went to college at 16 and earned a degree at 19, did graduate work at Yale and Cal Tech and now works for NASA. Allison graduated from Pepperdine and owns a public-relations agency. Barbara took a degree in literature at St. John's and teaches Sanskrit and ayurvedic medicine in New Zealand. David took a history degree from Yale and an MBA from Northwestern and will soon take a job with a Wall Street law firm. Michelle studies Spanish and art history at Vanderbilt and is currently studying in Madrid.

Cook, who has shed 100 pounds since leaving Congress, is still a bookworm. He reads thick volumes about astronomy, sciences, biographies, history and economics. After seeing the movie "Alexander," he read books on the history of Greece and Rome. He underlines with a pen as he reads — not to remember, but because it helps him concentrate. By the time he is finished with a book, nearly every sentence is underlined.

"He's the most fascinating man I've ever known," says Camille. "He has so many interests. He's always reading, and he can remember what he read."

His memory and innate intelligence are so keen that when his kids asked for help with their homework, he could remember algebraic equations he had learned in high school.

His memory served him well in politics. "He knows about people in Congress the way other dads know stats for baseball players," says David. "It was fun to walk around with him on Capitol Hill. He could point to anyone and tell you his voting record, what district he was from, what the demographics of that district were. When we went to small towns in Utah, he remembered names of people and things about them even if he hadn't seen them in years."

The future is unclear for Cook. He is trying to revive his explosives business, but as always politics are in the back of his mind. "Nothing gets my juices flowing like the political stuff," he says. "But I have to consider Camille's feelings. And we did have a wonderful life when I was just doing the business. She didn't have to read how crazy her husband was in the newspaper. I won't do it without her support."

After a pause, Cook says, "I want to add something. I'm not bitter. I don't want people to think that. I'm a very happy person. Few people have had the opportunities I've had. It's been great."

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E-mail: drob@desnews.com