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Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery
The Newbery Medal-winning author of A Photobiography presents an inspirational portrait of Eleanor Roosevelt, from her youth, through her years in the White House, to her humanitarian work as an advocate for world peace and human rights.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1993
24 people are currently reading
1424 people want to read
About the author
Russell Freedman
90 books132 followersRussell A. Freedman was an American biographer and the author of nearly 50 books for young people. He may be known best for winning the 1988 Newbery Medal with his work Lincoln: A Photobiography.
He grew up in San Francisco and attended the University of California, Berkeley, and then worked as a reporter and editor for the Associated Press and as a publicity writer. His nonfiction books ranged in subject from the lives and behaviors of animals to people in history. Freeedman's work has earned him several awards, including a Newbery Honor each for Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery in 1994 and The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane in 1992, and a Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal.
Freedman traveled extensively throughout the world to gather information and inspiration for his books. His book, Confucius: The Golden Rule was inspired by his extensive travels through Mainland China, where he visited Confucius' hometown in modern day QuFu, in the Shantung Province.
He grew up in San Francisco and attended the University of California, Berkeley, and then worked as a reporter and editor for the Associated Press and as a publicity writer. His nonfiction books ranged in subject from the lives and behaviors of animals to people in history. Freeedman's work has earned him several awards, including a Newbery Honor each for Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery in 1994 and The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane in 1992, and a Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal.
Freedman traveled extensively throughout the world to gather information and inspiration for his books. His book, Confucius: The Golden Rule was inspired by his extensive travels through Mainland China, where he visited Confucius' hometown in modern day QuFu, in the Shantung Province.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 188 reviews
July 25, 2014
I loved this book.
Since Eleanor's life was quite complex and complicated, I would think it a challenge to present her life to young readers, yet Freedman narrates with both a look at the failures and successes of arguably the first "working" first lady. Personally I am drawn to this book since the heroine is an example of a tireless reformer and social worker. I especially love that she was instrumental in writing the International Bill of Human Rights.
Reading this book made me appreciative of the women nearly a century ago that disrupted the gender rolls of the time by demanding a voice in social and political issues.
"It was not until I reached middle age that I had the courage to develop interests of my own . . . From that time on, though I have had many problems, though I have known the grief and loneliness that are the lot of most human beings . . . I have never been bored, never found the days long enough for the range of activities with which I wanted to fill them. And, having learned to stare down fear, I long ago reached the point where there is no living person whom I fear, and few challenges that I am not willing to face."
Since Eleanor's life was quite complex and complicated, I would think it a challenge to present her life to young readers, yet Freedman narrates with both a look at the failures and successes of arguably the first "working" first lady. Personally I am drawn to this book since the heroine is an example of a tireless reformer and social worker. I especially love that she was instrumental in writing the International Bill of Human Rights.
Reading this book made me appreciative of the women nearly a century ago that disrupted the gender rolls of the time by demanding a voice in social and political issues.
"It was not until I reached middle age that I had the courage to develop interests of my own . . . From that time on, though I have had many problems, though I have known the grief and loneliness that are the lot of most human beings . . . I have never been bored, never found the days long enough for the range of activities with which I wanted to fill them. And, having learned to stare down fear, I long ago reached the point where there is no living person whom I fear, and few challenges that I am not willing to face."
February 1, 2022
Talk about a fascinating trailblazing woman! I had read about her in other books, but this audiobook helped bring it to life! Although she came from an extremely wealthy family, she had feelings of inferiority and self-perceptions of being stupid and ugly. Among so many other things, she learned to overcome her fears and use her public spotlight to help fight for human rights and equality on an international platform.
July 1, 2022
A good introduction into the life and service of Eleanor Roosevelt . After watching The First Ladies on Netflix, I was curious to know more about Eleanor..........I knew so little. This book is a good place to start. I have gotten two more books from the library.
June 3, 2012
Overall, this book is very readable, though it suffers from a lack of direction. There are simply too many personalities, stories and events that occur for a casual reader to keep up with without making notes. People such as Eleanor's many friends will accompany her for life and weave in and out of the story without warning. The author cannot be blamed for the fullness of his subject's life, but I wish he could have found a way to present it better. The only consistency in Eleanor's life is that she was very shy and afraid in her youth, until a few long experiences kickstarted her awareness for the less fortunate of the world, and her discovery of Franklin's affair caused her to take a more active role in...well, everything.
It is interesting to wonder how Eleanor and FDR would have turned out if their parents had lived longer. Though both were incredibly wealthy socialites, both also had huge shoes to fill. Eleanor would despair of not pleasing her father (dead of alcoholism at age 10) and later of debuting on the same level as her glamorous mother (dead not long after). Living in the shadow of the dead, she grew up to be very serious and seemed incapable of trivially having fun, eventually being nicknamed "Granny" by the grandmother who raised her. Years later, this would result in her playing bad cop to FDR's good cop on raising the kids, but would prove detrimental when she wasn't able to provide the carefree support that a wartime president needed. On the other hand, FDR also lost his dad early, but his mom lived and proceeded to try and live through him.
It wasn't until Eleanor lived abroad at a boarding school that she began to question things, and not until she joined a group of wealthy women dedicated to improving the community that she began to see another side of life. When she married FDR, she was content to be the typical subservient wife until she discovered his affair with Lucy Mercer and he developed polio. From then on, she began to push back against FDR's mother and she treated her marriage as more of a mutual partnership than a typical romantic item. By this time, she had given birth to her children, so she was able to concentrate on her own projects.
From visiting France post-World War I, she developed a lifelong hatred of war after seeing towns reduced to nothing but scattered stones and noticing that it seemed that almost every Frenchwoman was dressed in black (1/20 of French men of fighting age died in that war. Not wounded, or became a casualty - died). Interestingly enough, Eleanor began with the conventional belief that men were inherently better suited to politics until she was asked to join committees that advised legislators, whereupon she saw that women were grossly underutilized. When her husbands paralysis kept him from vigorously inspecting the places he visited (as he had done as Secretary of the Navy), Eleanor was sent in his place and quickly learned to be very thorough, looking not only at the menus, but looking inside the cooking pots to see what was actually being served.
Throughout this time, she developed into quite an extraordinary person for her time. She traveled everywhere, becoming the first to fly. Insisting on driving herself, and driving alone, she was asked to carry a pistol - and learned to use it well, having been trained by both NY prison guards and later the Secret Service. At her best, she would arrive too early for her hosts to spruce things up, allowing her to see things as they were instead of how they should have been. Keeping step with the new president's policy of holding the first free form press conferences, Eleanor started the first press conferences open only to female reporters. Along with all her activities, she kept up a prodigious stream of media output (a daily newspaper column, guest articles, a radio broadcast) and, before moving to the White House, taught classes in the humanities.
Her accessibility to reporters, to interviewers, to letters, and to other people made her one of her husband's best assets, and most importantly, made people think that someone in their government cared about their problems. One government official commented that she would often refer a letter to someone to address, and that that person had better do, because she never forgot anything. By seeing people from all walks of life and situations (an important thing to do during the Great Depression), she unwittingly became an early proponent for many social causes that either didn't exist or were in their infancy. From the point where the only blacks she saw were servants, she ended up being a proponent of civil rights at a time when that phrase hadn't even been coined. Though her views were left of the mainstream, FDR was able to use her as a trial balloon for potential ideas. If accepted, he could benefit politically, and if they didn't he could always disavow support or use her views as a sop to the groups whose support he could appreciate but were too politically risky to accept outright.
In the end, she generally proved better at pushing her own brand of advocacy than in serving in formal capacities. While the former allowed her to put her best skills to use, the latter often saw her run into too much political opposition or lambasted as a way of criticizing the President by proxy. Though she suffered her share, I found it inspiring that many of her critics who once excoriated her would later come around to sing her praises. Admiral "Bull" Halsey considered her another do-gooder until he watched her in action, speaking to an endless amount of wounded servicemen. Later assigned to the UN, she was stuffed on a Human Rights committee. When that committee was asked to decide whether refugees should be forcibly repatriated to their homelands, she somehow outspoke the Soviet delegate (who later came to her 70th birthday party to wish her well). Later, she pushed the committee to work 14-16 hour days to draft a Declaration of Human Rights. When a country begged her to remember that the delegates had human rights too, she replied that the work hours would be shorter if the speeches were briefer. Upon presenting the document to the General Assembly, she received an unheard of standing ovation.
Did you know that all four Roosevelt children served in the armed forces during World War II?
So the book clearly presents Eleanor that was interested in the problems of others, or at least was very good at pretending to be. What is not quite answered is why she was that way. It's easy enough to answer how she grew up to be a strong and independently-minded woman - a bit of going rogue, if you will. But how did she take a few small experiences that she had while young and translate that into a lifetime of advocacy and service? That's the question that goes unanswered in this book.
Eleanor lived a full life of events, experiences and friends. Considering that the contents of her life would be enough to fill dozens of books (and they do!), the author has done an admirable job of providing a sampler of the major highlights of her life, as well as going into some depth on selected items and setting up a framework for the surrounding events and attitudes, but social and political, of that time. However, none of this changes the fact that this book suffers from a severe lack of cohesion. While the author tries to separate personal and professional into different chapters, the contents of each chapter are still littered with dropped names, events, and the names of places and organizations. Fortunately, the photos which makes this a photobiography make it tolerable. A photo montage and a guide to her museum round out the book.
It is interesting to wonder how Eleanor and FDR would have turned out if their parents had lived longer. Though both were incredibly wealthy socialites, both also had huge shoes to fill. Eleanor would despair of not pleasing her father (dead of alcoholism at age 10) and later of debuting on the same level as her glamorous mother (dead not long after). Living in the shadow of the dead, she grew up to be very serious and seemed incapable of trivially having fun, eventually being nicknamed "Granny" by the grandmother who raised her. Years later, this would result in her playing bad cop to FDR's good cop on raising the kids, but would prove detrimental when she wasn't able to provide the carefree support that a wartime president needed. On the other hand, FDR also lost his dad early, but his mom lived and proceeded to try and live through him.
It wasn't until Eleanor lived abroad at a boarding school that she began to question things, and not until she joined a group of wealthy women dedicated to improving the community that she began to see another side of life. When she married FDR, she was content to be the typical subservient wife until she discovered his affair with Lucy Mercer and he developed polio. From then on, she began to push back against FDR's mother and she treated her marriage as more of a mutual partnership than a typical romantic item. By this time, she had given birth to her children, so she was able to concentrate on her own projects.
From visiting France post-World War I, she developed a lifelong hatred of war after seeing towns reduced to nothing but scattered stones and noticing that it seemed that almost every Frenchwoman was dressed in black (1/20 of French men of fighting age died in that war. Not wounded, or became a casualty - died). Interestingly enough, Eleanor began with the conventional belief that men were inherently better suited to politics until she was asked to join committees that advised legislators, whereupon she saw that women were grossly underutilized. When her husbands paralysis kept him from vigorously inspecting the places he visited (as he had done as Secretary of the Navy), Eleanor was sent in his place and quickly learned to be very thorough, looking not only at the menus, but looking inside the cooking pots to see what was actually being served.
Throughout this time, she developed into quite an extraordinary person for her time. She traveled everywhere, becoming the first to fly. Insisting on driving herself, and driving alone, she was asked to carry a pistol - and learned to use it well, having been trained by both NY prison guards and later the Secret Service. At her best, she would arrive too early for her hosts to spruce things up, allowing her to see things as they were instead of how they should have been. Keeping step with the new president's policy of holding the first free form press conferences, Eleanor started the first press conferences open only to female reporters. Along with all her activities, she kept up a prodigious stream of media output (a daily newspaper column, guest articles, a radio broadcast) and, before moving to the White House, taught classes in the humanities.
Her accessibility to reporters, to interviewers, to letters, and to other people made her one of her husband's best assets, and most importantly, made people think that someone in their government cared about their problems. One government official commented that she would often refer a letter to someone to address, and that that person had better do, because she never forgot anything. By seeing people from all walks of life and situations (an important thing to do during the Great Depression), she unwittingly became an early proponent for many social causes that either didn't exist or were in their infancy. From the point where the only blacks she saw were servants, she ended up being a proponent of civil rights at a time when that phrase hadn't even been coined. Though her views were left of the mainstream, FDR was able to use her as a trial balloon for potential ideas. If accepted, he could benefit politically, and if they didn't he could always disavow support or use her views as a sop to the groups whose support he could appreciate but were too politically risky to accept outright.
In the end, she generally proved better at pushing her own brand of advocacy than in serving in formal capacities. While the former allowed her to put her best skills to use, the latter often saw her run into too much political opposition or lambasted as a way of criticizing the President by proxy. Though she suffered her share, I found it inspiring that many of her critics who once excoriated her would later come around to sing her praises. Admiral "Bull" Halsey considered her another do-gooder until he watched her in action, speaking to an endless amount of wounded servicemen. Later assigned to the UN, she was stuffed on a Human Rights committee. When that committee was asked to decide whether refugees should be forcibly repatriated to their homelands, she somehow outspoke the Soviet delegate (who later came to her 70th birthday party to wish her well). Later, she pushed the committee to work 14-16 hour days to draft a Declaration of Human Rights. When a country begged her to remember that the delegates had human rights too, she replied that the work hours would be shorter if the speeches were briefer. Upon presenting the document to the General Assembly, she received an unheard of standing ovation.
Did you know that all four Roosevelt children served in the armed forces during World War II?
So the book clearly presents Eleanor that was interested in the problems of others, or at least was very good at pretending to be. What is not quite answered is why she was that way. It's easy enough to answer how she grew up to be a strong and independently-minded woman - a bit of going rogue, if you will. But how did she take a few small experiences that she had while young and translate that into a lifetime of advocacy and service? That's the question that goes unanswered in this book.
Eleanor lived a full life of events, experiences and friends. Considering that the contents of her life would be enough to fill dozens of books (and they do!), the author has done an admirable job of providing a sampler of the major highlights of her life, as well as going into some depth on selected items and setting up a framework for the surrounding events and attitudes, but social and political, of that time. However, none of this changes the fact that this book suffers from a severe lack of cohesion. While the author tries to separate personal and professional into different chapters, the contents of each chapter are still littered with dropped names, events, and the names of places and organizations. Fortunately, the photos which makes this a photobiography make it tolerable. A photo montage and a guide to her museum round out the book.
April 24, 2018
Eleanor Roosevelt is my first pick of people from history I’d want to have lunch with. She is an incredibly delightful, unassuming, intelligent, and driven woman. I loved learning more about her life and her contributions to the world in this easy-to-read biography. Reading this left me feeling inspired to overcome fears, be a better human, and truly LIVE.
October 18, 2018
It's okay. It's a good book if you are an Eleanor Roosevelt fanatic.
May 30, 2025
3.5. Brief, accessible and interesting biography of the iconic First Lady. Written for middle schoolers without being too simplistic, it charts the life and times of the ugly duckling who became a leading light in the United Nations. It's somewhat hagiographic in tone, although not without good cause, and the audio version is read in the rather intimidating no-nonsense tones that I see from watching interviews matches the lady herself.
November 11, 2024
What an amazing woman
March 9, 2009
Do you consider heroes being people that save millions of lives and have super powers? Or, do you consider heroes people that brake world records or do supernatural things? One of my heroes was a first lady for 16 years, she was not amazingly beautiful but she was very brave and kindhearted... her name was Eleanor Roosevelt. Her biography caught my attention as soon as I set eyes on it and just by reading it I learned what a hero really is. Russell Freedman showed Eleanor as a hero through three original ways. The first way was with detailed characterization. An example of characterization is, " She was an unusually tall woman, she moved with the grace of an athlete, and when she walked into the room, the air seemed charged with her vibrancy(Freedman, 3)". The second way he did this was with great word choice. In the book, during the presidential campaigns of FDR (Eleanor's husband) her admirers "Marveled her energy, her honesty, and her independent stance as a woman making a mark on the world(Freedman, 113)". The third and last way that Freedman showed Eleanor as a hero was with the quotes that were included in the book. One of my favorite quotes was, "You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.... You must do the thing you think you cannot do(Freedman, 0). By reading this book I learned that heroes are not necessarily good looking or very muscular, you can find a hero in a person that overcomes their fears and have great hope and courage.
April 28, 2010
i didn't know much about eleanor roosevelt before this reading. i was impressed with the fact that although she was born into great wealth, she had a dark childhood. her father, whom she idolized, was an alcoholic (my gosh, have i read a memoir or biography this year that didn't have an alcoholic father in it?)and she always felt her plain, if not ugly looks made her a disappointment to her mother, a socialite beauty. she was a shy, frightened child, and i delighted in reading how she eventually came out of her cocoon. she was unusally tall and gangly, just like me in my youth, and there was the issue of inferiority that i related to.
fdr was such a handsome, dashing devil in his youth, (lots of pictures) and although eleanor wasn't a beauty, he fell in love with her and her magnificant character. i was surprised to read that after about ten years of marriage, her 4-term usa president husband, fdr; had an affair with eleanor's personal secretary. this discovery knocked the wind out of eleanor (to say the least) and although the roosevelts stuck out the marriage, life was not the same for eleanor after that. (eleanor said, "i can forgive, but i can't forget.") they lived out the rest of their marriage in a rather strange set-up. so sad.
if she were alive today, she and i would probably be on opposite ends of today's political spectrum, but i admire her tenacity and her personal creed that serving others is the only thing that brings real happiness in life.
fdr was such a handsome, dashing devil in his youth, (lots of pictures) and although eleanor wasn't a beauty, he fell in love with her and her magnificant character. i was surprised to read that after about ten years of marriage, her 4-term usa president husband, fdr; had an affair with eleanor's personal secretary. this discovery knocked the wind out of eleanor (to say the least) and although the roosevelts stuck out the marriage, life was not the same for eleanor after that. (eleanor said, "i can forgive, but i can't forget.") they lived out the rest of their marriage in a rather strange set-up. so sad.
if she were alive today, she and i would probably be on opposite ends of today's political spectrum, but i admire her tenacity and her personal creed that serving others is the only thing that brings real happiness in life.
July 10, 2015
1994 Newbery Honor Book
This was a very interesting biography about the famous first wife of FDR. She has a very interesting backstory. She was a rich girl but she was raised by relatives a lot because of her mother's early death and her father's alcoholism and subsequent death. She found her voice at a fancy finishing school in Europe before returning to America and eventually marrying her 5th cousin FDR. She was more closely related to Teddy Roosevelt than FDR was (Teddy was her uncle).
She entered the political fray shortly after women's suffrage had passed so she became a much more visible and politically involved first lady. Her paths crossed with Marion Anderson (who also has a book on the Newbery list) at one point.
This was a very interesting biography about the famous first wife of FDR. She has a very interesting backstory. She was a rich girl but she was raised by relatives a lot because of her mother's early death and her father's alcoholism and subsequent death. She found her voice at a fancy finishing school in Europe before returning to America and eventually marrying her 5th cousin FDR. She was more closely related to Teddy Roosevelt than FDR was (Teddy was her uncle).
She entered the political fray shortly after women's suffrage had passed so she became a much more visible and politically involved first lady. Her paths crossed with Marion Anderson (who also has a book on the Newbery list) at one point.
July 22, 2008
I just reread this book and it is such a powerful story of an amazing woman. I love her story because of the personal challenges she overcomes and the fears she is able to conquer in order to participate in causes that she feels so passionate about. For any individual who has ever felt overwhelmed by their personal weaknesses or circumstances, this is an amazing story of moving beyond perceived limitations and truly becoming anybody you want to be. She is a remarkable woman and a true role model!
June 6, 2021
Newbery Challenge 183/415. This was a well-crafted book about a fascinating woman. Eleanor Roosevelt has always been one of my favorite historical figures because of her humanitarian work and her sheer pluck. I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about her life. This book is very readable and well-researched. It would be perfect for middle schoolers and up.
August 29, 2012
Inspiring book, inspiring woman. I have learned so much from reading about her life. She had so many hard things happen in her life and yet she was so selfless and thought only of others. Great book, lots of pictures. I wish they would make a great movie about her life!
November 14, 2011
A thorough, well-researched photobiography about Eleanor by one of the best biographers today - Russell Freedman.
August 14, 2019
Summary
Eleanor Roosevelt was a very influential woman who was very talented and accomplished the impossible. She went through many hardships from day one, both of her parents died when Eleanor was under the age of 10. Her mother was very strict and saw Eleanor as a disappointment. Eleanor’s mother, Anna, was stunningly beautiful and Eleanor was not. She the “ugly duckling” and had nicknames of “granny” because she was old fashioned and funny looking. Her father, Elliott was a raging alcoholic, gone for days if not weeks missing important holidays and birthdays. By the time Eleanor reaches age ten both of her parents had died and she was sent to live with her grandmother. After a few years of coming age she was sent to a girls exclusive finishing school in the outskirts of London where her troubles and fears faded. She called Allenswood home for 3 wonderful years. She became close with many of the teachers and made life long friends. Coming home was miserable she missed everyone so dearly and she had a drunk uncle to deal with following in the foresters of her father. To take her mind off of home life she spent time volunteering and helping others. She soon met her Fifth cousin, Franklin who she would soon marry. They had five happy children. But life wasn’t all that it seemed...Franklin came down with polio and that left Eleanor in charge, going to meetings etc. Also, later we find out that Franklin was having a affair with his secretary, Lucy. Eleanor is devastated. Franklin and Eleanor’s relationship isn’t the same. It changed to more of a partnership than a intimate marriage. Eleanor helped Franklin win the presidency and then once again. Her time as First Lady was not forgotten...She did not want to be in the background and worked independently. She traveled to see troubles in the “American life” that she may not notice from the White House. She showed up to places sporadically and without notice so that there were no “changes” done in preparation. She stood up for the unemployed, women, the discriminated and for this she gained friends but also enemies. She was branded a communist. Of course, Eleanor being Eleanor she didn’t let that stop her. She led great work and had many accomplishments. Even today, everyone knows who Eleanor Roosevelt is...a strong woman who will never be forgotten for the work she accomplished.
Impact
Eleanor changed the use of the typical role of the First Lady and that had a huge lasting impact on Americans. She pushed toward developed and expanded roles for women in the workplace, civil rights of African Americans and Asian Americans, and the rights of World War II refugees.
Theme
The theme, Hakuna matata, (no worries), is extremely shown through Eleanor’s life and through the text. She faced many challenges and worrying about them didn’t solve anything. Try your best and that’s all you can do, “Life has got to be lived-that’s all there is too it”.
Recommendations
I would recommend this book if you need a lil bit of inspiration, for sure! She is a great role role model and the book clearly shows that!
Eleanor Roosevelt was a very influential woman who was very talented and accomplished the impossible. She went through many hardships from day one, both of her parents died when Eleanor was under the age of 10. Her mother was very strict and saw Eleanor as a disappointment. Eleanor’s mother, Anna, was stunningly beautiful and Eleanor was not. She the “ugly duckling” and had nicknames of “granny” because she was old fashioned and funny looking. Her father, Elliott was a raging alcoholic, gone for days if not weeks missing important holidays and birthdays. By the time Eleanor reaches age ten both of her parents had died and she was sent to live with her grandmother. After a few years of coming age she was sent to a girls exclusive finishing school in the outskirts of London where her troubles and fears faded. She called Allenswood home for 3 wonderful years. She became close with many of the teachers and made life long friends. Coming home was miserable she missed everyone so dearly and she had a drunk uncle to deal with following in the foresters of her father. To take her mind off of home life she spent time volunteering and helping others. She soon met her Fifth cousin, Franklin who she would soon marry. They had five happy children. But life wasn’t all that it seemed...Franklin came down with polio and that left Eleanor in charge, going to meetings etc. Also, later we find out that Franklin was having a affair with his secretary, Lucy. Eleanor is devastated. Franklin and Eleanor’s relationship isn’t the same. It changed to more of a partnership than a intimate marriage. Eleanor helped Franklin win the presidency and then once again. Her time as First Lady was not forgotten...She did not want to be in the background and worked independently. She traveled to see troubles in the “American life” that she may not notice from the White House. She showed up to places sporadically and without notice so that there were no “changes” done in preparation. She stood up for the unemployed, women, the discriminated and for this she gained friends but also enemies. She was branded a communist. Of course, Eleanor being Eleanor she didn’t let that stop her. She led great work and had many accomplishments. Even today, everyone knows who Eleanor Roosevelt is...a strong woman who will never be forgotten for the work she accomplished.
Impact
Eleanor changed the use of the typical role of the First Lady and that had a huge lasting impact on Americans. She pushed toward developed and expanded roles for women in the workplace, civil rights of African Americans and Asian Americans, and the rights of World War II refugees.
Theme
The theme, Hakuna matata, (no worries), is extremely shown through Eleanor’s life and through the text. She faced many challenges and worrying about them didn’t solve anything. Try your best and that’s all you can do, “Life has got to be lived-that’s all there is too it”.
Recommendations
I would recommend this book if you need a lil bit of inspiration, for sure! She is a great role role model and the book clearly shows that!
October 22, 2020
I've always admired the strength of Eleanor Roosevelt. This book was segmented into various chapters of her life. Born into extreme wealth, a story of a emotionally stunted, nail-biting, fearful of everything child. Often told she was odd both in personality, and old her teeth were too large for her mouth, and was that nothing could be done to rectify these odd things that contributed to her lack of self esteem.
All the wealth could not abate supreme feelings of inferiority. Her mother was a beautiful socialite who was invited to all the exquisite balls and dinners in New York. Born a very wrinkled baby, early on, her mother saw her as a very ugly child. Shoving her aside with demeaning names, Eleanor's early years were as a child whose beautiful mother called her "granny." Laughing about her with her friends, her mother often remarked that Eleanor must have been switched. How could such a lovely couple produce such a ugly thing.
Her father was the love of her life. An alcoholic who was handsome and very much liked for his outgoing, charming ways. When his alcoholism was totally out of control, Eleanor's mother left in in Europe, taking the children home.
When he came back to the states, he was granted visits. Until, one night, he left little Eleanor outside of the social club for six hours. As she held the leash of his dog. After this incident, he was banned from seeing her, they wrote letters which she kept throughout her life.
Marrying FDR, she help campaign for his presidential election. When she was young, she was sent to a prestigious school on the outskirts of London. It was here that the headmistress of the school gave her confidence and brought her intelligence to the forefront. This changed Eleanor immensely.
Marrying FDR, she helped campaign for his presidential election. Throughout their marriage she supported him, as he did her as well. They had five children. Tragically FDR developed Polio and was never able to walk again.
When Eleanor discovered that her husband was cheating on her with her social secretary, Lucy Mercer, she was hurt, demanding a divorce. Later, she agreed to stay. She never recovered from this injustice which brought back feelings of inferiority.
It is in her later life that she shone. Independent of her husband, she traveled throughout the world advocating for civil rights, nuclear disarmament and issues that she strongly embraced.
Voted the Most Admired Woman in the world, this shy, sad child became a force to reckon with. Her personality shone when she visited those in need.
Her imprint on changing America lasts to this day!
All the wealth could not abate supreme feelings of inferiority. Her mother was a beautiful socialite who was invited to all the exquisite balls and dinners in New York. Born a very wrinkled baby, early on, her mother saw her as a very ugly child. Shoving her aside with demeaning names, Eleanor's early years were as a child whose beautiful mother called her "granny." Laughing about her with her friends, her mother often remarked that Eleanor must have been switched. How could such a lovely couple produce such a ugly thing.
Her father was the love of her life. An alcoholic who was handsome and very much liked for his outgoing, charming ways. When his alcoholism was totally out of control, Eleanor's mother left in in Europe, taking the children home.
When he came back to the states, he was granted visits. Until, one night, he left little Eleanor outside of the social club for six hours. As she held the leash of his dog. After this incident, he was banned from seeing her, they wrote letters which she kept throughout her life.
Marrying FDR, she help campaign for his presidential election. When she was young, she was sent to a prestigious school on the outskirts of London. It was here that the headmistress of the school gave her confidence and brought her intelligence to the forefront. This changed Eleanor immensely.
Marrying FDR, she helped campaign for his presidential election. Throughout their marriage she supported him, as he did her as well. They had five children. Tragically FDR developed Polio and was never able to walk again.
When Eleanor discovered that her husband was cheating on her with her social secretary, Lucy Mercer, she was hurt, demanding a divorce. Later, she agreed to stay. She never recovered from this injustice which brought back feelings of inferiority.
It is in her later life that she shone. Independent of her husband, she traveled throughout the world advocating for civil rights, nuclear disarmament and issues that she strongly embraced.
Voted the Most Admired Woman in the world, this shy, sad child became a force to reckon with. Her personality shone when she visited those in need.
Her imprint on changing America lasts to this day!
March 8, 2020
This is an interesting book about our former First Lady.
I realized how little I knew about her and was impressed with everything from her growing up and overcoming the losses of both parents, being raised in France in a private school and becoming First Lady. I love how she wrote a daily column to all newspapers about her day, drive her own car without security and traveled to be her husband’s eyes and ears.
This quote was incredibly timely, “What has happened to us in this country?” Eleanor asked in her column. “If we study our own history, we find we have always been ready to receive the unfortunates from other countries, and though this may seem like a generosity on our part, we have profited a thousandfold by what they have brought us.” P128
“My philosophy has been that if you have work to do and do it to the best of your ability, you will not have much time to think about yourself.” P154
I also loved that she was friends with Hellen Keller and flew with Amelia Earhart; and that she would only be interviewed by female news correspondents and supported so many women.
I feel like it would have benefited this book to be in a more contemporary size with a different appearance, maybe edited a bit more. I think it might be interesting to give different groups of students different chapters to summarize - I don’t think many middle or upper grade students would read 200 pages in this format. But it is an interesting story of her life.
I realized how little I knew about her and was impressed with everything from her growing up and overcoming the losses of both parents, being raised in France in a private school and becoming First Lady. I love how she wrote a daily column to all newspapers about her day, drive her own car without security and traveled to be her husband’s eyes and ears.
This quote was incredibly timely, “What has happened to us in this country?” Eleanor asked in her column. “If we study our own history, we find we have always been ready to receive the unfortunates from other countries, and though this may seem like a generosity on our part, we have profited a thousandfold by what they have brought us.” P128
“My philosophy has been that if you have work to do and do it to the best of your ability, you will not have much time to think about yourself.” P154
I also loved that she was friends with Hellen Keller and flew with Amelia Earhart; and that she would only be interviewed by female news correspondents and supported so many women.
I feel like it would have benefited this book to be in a more contemporary size with a different appearance, maybe edited a bit more. I think it might be interesting to give different groups of students different chapters to summarize - I don’t think many middle or upper grade students would read 200 pages in this format. But it is an interesting story of her life.
February 8, 2021
It was fulfilling to discover more about Eleanor Roosevelt. Coming from a childhood plagued with alcoholism, death of her parents, absence of nurturing extended family, and floundering self-esteem, this incredible woman rose to achieve great influence and change. I appreciated the strong, capable women like Madame Sylvestre, who realized Eleanor's many talents and encouraged her to flourish.
It was interesting to read that despite growing up in an upper class, prosperous household, Eleanor was quite unprepared for managing her own home once married. Living in constant close proximity to her over-bearing mother-in-law, Eleanor yearned for a home of her very own, though this was not fulfilled for several years. Upon discovering her husband's affair with her own secretary, Lucy Mercer, Eleanor's passion and love for Franklin dissolved abruptly, never really returning, replaced instead by a working partnership.
I soon realized that I was not aware of just how much good this determined woman accomplished, especially after the death of her husband, and well into her later years. She demonstrated such genuine compassion and enviable stamina as she toured ravaged countries proudly donning her Red Cross uniform. Although Freedman's writing well covers the life and experiences of this extraordinary woman, my interest is now piqued to read her autobiography.
It was interesting to read that despite growing up in an upper class, prosperous household, Eleanor was quite unprepared for managing her own home once married. Living in constant close proximity to her over-bearing mother-in-law, Eleanor yearned for a home of her very own, though this was not fulfilled for several years. Upon discovering her husband's affair with her own secretary, Lucy Mercer, Eleanor's passion and love for Franklin dissolved abruptly, never really returning, replaced instead by a working partnership.
I soon realized that I was not aware of just how much good this determined woman accomplished, especially after the death of her husband, and well into her later years. She demonstrated such genuine compassion and enviable stamina as she toured ravaged countries proudly donning her Red Cross uniform. Although Freedman's writing well covers the life and experiences of this extraordinary woman, my interest is now piqued to read her autobiography.
April 28, 2019
This book is ideal if you are looking for an overview of the life of Eleanor Roosevelt or more generally a person who overcame difficulties to have an impact on the world. Appropriate for middle school readers and above.
Eleanor Roosevelt was a woman who grew, evolved from a shy awkward girl whose mother often commented that she wasn't a beauty so she needed to have manners. She blossomed when she was sent to Europe as a teen to finish her education but after coming back to the U.S. was thrown back into a chaotic home life of her grandmother. She was betrayed by her husband when he had a love affair with a woman that woman in their inner circle only 13 years into a 40-year marriage.
Eleanor became the icon an incredible force through her will, wit, and determination. She was loved by many but also called a dangerous idealist. She often won the admiration of her adversaries as demonstrated after she was named to the U.N. committee by President Truman. She was relegated by the four men in the committee to the least desirable position which turned out to be the most powerful and she won their respect with her indomitable spirit. She found a place in the world and made the world better for her contribution.
Eleanor Roosevelt was a woman who grew, evolved from a shy awkward girl whose mother often commented that she wasn't a beauty so she needed to have manners. She blossomed when she was sent to Europe as a teen to finish her education but after coming back to the U.S. was thrown back into a chaotic home life of her grandmother. She was betrayed by her husband when he had a love affair with a woman that woman in their inner circle only 13 years into a 40-year marriage.
Eleanor became the icon an incredible force through her will, wit, and determination. She was loved by many but also called a dangerous idealist. She often won the admiration of her adversaries as demonstrated after she was named to the U.N. committee by President Truman. She was relegated by the four men in the committee to the least desirable position which turned out to be the most powerful and she won their respect with her indomitable spirit. She found a place in the world and made the world better for her contribution.
May 16, 2020
I do not normally read middle grade, but someone chose this for our book club. I honestly put off reading it for a long time, almost completely, but a week before book club I got it on audio. I also do not normally listen to audiobooks. I have a hard time staying focused and found that again to be true here, but I think the passages I missed were few and I could easily stay on track (perhaps because it was middle grade).
I realized how little I knew about Eleanor Roosevelt. I had no idea how tall she was, that her maiden name was Roosevelt, and she and Franklin were fifth cousins, once removed. She was orphaned by the time she was twelve, yet still grew up in New York Society. She was a fearful and anxious child, and in the early years of her marriage she just followed her mother-in-law's ideals. It wasn't until Franklin went into public life that she began to really come into her own. These are just a few of the new things I learned about the truly great Eleanor Roosevelt. It makes me want to learn more.
I realized how little I knew about Eleanor Roosevelt. I had no idea how tall she was, that her maiden name was Roosevelt, and she and Franklin were fifth cousins, once removed. She was orphaned by the time she was twelve, yet still grew up in New York Society. She was a fearful and anxious child, and in the early years of her marriage she just followed her mother-in-law's ideals. It wasn't until Franklin went into public life that she began to really come into her own. These are just a few of the new things I learned about the truly great Eleanor Roosevelt. It makes me want to learn more.
October 14, 2021
A very short book (less than 4 hours as an audiobook).
I knew very little about Eleanor Roosevelt, and this book serves as a fine introduction. It provides the basics of her life, her character and the many, many accomplishments she had. It champions her efforts, hardships, and accomplishments without shying away from her privilege and advantages, with one chapter even called "Poor rich girl".
More importantly: it plants a seed. It left me hungry for more. I know want to read as much as I can from her, starting probably with her autobiography.
I love quotes, so here are my favorites:
“If anyone were to ask me what I want out of life I would say- the opportunity for doing something useful, for in no other way, I am convinced, can true happiness be attained.”
“Life was meant to be lived, and curiosity must be kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn his back on life."
"If you have work to do and do it to the best of your ability, you will not have much time to think about yourself"
I knew very little about Eleanor Roosevelt, and this book serves as a fine introduction. It provides the basics of her life, her character and the many, many accomplishments she had. It champions her efforts, hardships, and accomplishments without shying away from her privilege and advantages, with one chapter even called "Poor rich girl".
More importantly: it plants a seed. It left me hungry for more. I know want to read as much as I can from her, starting probably with her autobiography.
I love quotes, so here are my favorites:
“If anyone were to ask me what I want out of life I would say- the opportunity for doing something useful, for in no other way, I am convinced, can true happiness be attained.”
“Life was meant to be lived, and curiosity must be kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn his back on life."
"If you have work to do and do it to the best of your ability, you will not have much time to think about yourself"
April 23, 2020
In this biography it talks about the life of Eleanor Roosevelt and the life she lived. In this story it actually gives you pieces of information like she never want to be a president's wife, she served as a fact-finder and trouble-shooter for her husband and she fought to vocalize her own views about social justice and world peace. Eleanor Roosevelt became one of the most influential woman in the world. She was first lady during the depression and the second world war, she helped her husband run the country. I would have my kids read this as a class for history in 4th-5th grade, I would have them split into group and create a presentation for other influential people during the same time period, I would also do a comprehension paper about each chapter to recap what they read, each group would present there presentation at the end of the book. I would hang the students presentations in the hallway.
March 10, 2018
Eleanor Roosevelt was a fascinating women I wish I could have known. It amazes me that she started out so shy and even frightened, but went on to be such a force for good. I believe this biography is designed for younger readers, but I felt it gave a good balance of information and showed the depth of Eleanor’s life. It received a Newbery Honor Medal and the writing is excellent. Approachable for middle school readers, but great for adults as well. Eleanor Roosevelt’s strength and conviction was inspiring.
June 6, 2018
I had a housemate who was an avid reader and said that if she could meet anyone in the world, it would be Eleanor Roosevelt. She admired all she had done with her life. I didn’t know much about this First Lady and I wanted to read a biography. This was a good story of her public life working alongside her husband throughout his presidency and after his death. I have such respect for this woman who worked tirelessly for the war efforts, the United Nations, and human rights. She was not presumptuous in any way and could relate to children and adults alike.
April 15, 2022
What an interesting life. The book is well written and formatted. She is one person on a list I’ve created that I wish I could interview today. It would be fascinating to see her view of our world today. What impressed me the most was her ability to change the mind of her foes. She seemed to be able to face some critics and sometimes change their minds on issues or at the very least maintain respect and civility. Wish we had more of that in today’s world. This biography does not include information about her sexuality. She is a poster child of an example extreme privilege.
September 9, 2024
I usually don't read biographies but I really enjoyed this one. I'm never sure how to rate biographies because it really is about the person's life more so than the book itself. To me, not being an avid reader of biographies, I'm not much for discerning the difference. As biographies do, it roughly followed the course of her life from birth to death with quotes from her and others in her life. She was a remarkable woman and I found myself researching her a bit after I read about her. So the book was good enough to spur me on to read more and that was a good thing!
November 6, 2018
Adult biographies tend to be tomes, too long and detailed when I just want an overview of the person. While 198 pages, the large print and multitude of historical photographs make it much shorter than it appears. I thought the book short changed Eleanor's later life and avoided many of the rumors that plague her legacy to this day. A bit too vanilla flavored, I wish Russell Freedman had added another 50-100 pages and was more willing to show the clear complexity of this wonderful woman.
December 6, 2019
This is an autobiography is one of the completer and more interesting I’ve read. It starts at her childhood, like most autobiographies, but then shows how it later played into life as a first lady. Unlike most biographies, it doesn’t just show how awesome and easy her life was, it also shows the things she overcame. I feel like with most autobiographies its just a highlight reel of everything great they’ve ever done. Its an okay read, unless you are an Eleanor Roosevelt super fan.
January 20, 2021
Freedman writes a straightforward, factual biography of Eleanor Roosevelt. He documents her many achievements, made possible by her position as First Lady that she never sought and didn't always to enjoy. Written for young readers, Freedman manages to deal with FDR's infidelities and Eleanor's speculated relationship with Lorraine Hickok in an age appropriate manner. Recommend for grades 6 and up.
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