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The Roosevelts: An Intimate History
An extraordinarily vivid and personal portrait of America's greatest political family and its enormous impact on our nation-the tie-in volume to the PBS documentary to air in the fall of 2014.
This handsome, engaging, revelatory book is an intimate history of three extraordinary individuals from the same extraordinary family-Theodore, Eleanor, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Geoffrey C. Ward, distilling more than thirty years of thinking and writing about the Roosevelts, and the acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns help us understand for the first time that, despite the fierce partisanship of their eras and ours, the Roosevelts were far more united than divided. All the history the Roosevelts made is here, but this is primarily a book about human beings, each of whom somehow overcame obstacles that would have undone less forceful personalities, and all of whom wrestled in their lives with issues still familiar to the rest of us-anger and the need for forgiveness, courage and cowardice, confidence and self-doubt, loyalty to family and the need to be oneself. This is the story of the Roosevelts-no other American family ever touched so many lives.
This handsome, engaging, revelatory book is an intimate history of three extraordinary individuals from the same extraordinary family-Theodore, Eleanor, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Geoffrey C. Ward, distilling more than thirty years of thinking and writing about the Roosevelts, and the acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns help us understand for the first time that, despite the fierce partisanship of their eras and ours, the Roosevelts were far more united than divided. All the history the Roosevelts made is here, but this is primarily a book about human beings, each of whom somehow overcame obstacles that would have undone less forceful personalities, and all of whom wrestled in their lives with issues still familiar to the rest of us-anger and the need for forgiveness, courage and cowardice, confidence and self-doubt, loyalty to family and the need to be oneself. This is the story of the Roosevelts-no other American family ever touched so many lives.
528 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2014
215 people are currently reading
693 people want to read
About the author
Geoffrey C. Ward
113 books138 followersGeoffrey Champion Ward is an author and screenwriter of various documentary presentations of American history. He graduated from Oberlin College in 1962.
He was an editor of American Heritage magazine early in his career. He wrote the television mini-series The Civil War with its director Ken Burns and has collaborated with Burns on every documentary he has made since, including Jazz and Baseball. This work won him five Emmy Awards. The most recent Burns/Ward collaboration, The War, premiered on PBS in September 2007. In addition he co-wrote The West, of which Ken Burns was an executive producer, with fellow historian Dayton Duncan.
He was an editor of American Heritage magazine early in his career. He wrote the television mini-series The Civil War with its director Ken Burns and has collaborated with Burns on every documentary he has made since, including Jazz and Baseball. This work won him five Emmy Awards. The most recent Burns/Ward collaboration, The War, premiered on PBS in September 2007. In addition he co-wrote The West, of which Ken Burns was an executive producer, with fellow historian Dayton Duncan.
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June 7, 2021
Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns have written an undoubtedly outstanding biography, although the title and the cover misled me slightly. I was expecting a portrait of the three eminent Roosevelts' relationship with each other, while in fact this book consists of three distinct biographies — of Theodore, of Eleanor, and of Franklin. But as Ken Burns points out in the introduction, what makes this book peculiar is that it is an intimate history — it gives much more insight into the Roosevelts' private lives than their political and social ones.
All the three Roosevelts suffered, and all the three of them overcame their traumas but were nevertheless shaped by them.
Theodore, who was a sickly child not expected to live beyond childhood, overcame his asthma through sport. He looked up to his father, Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. – an exceptional man and father – but could not understand and was ashamed of the fact that he had not fought in the Civil War like his brothers (Martha Bulloch Roosevelt, Teddy's mother, was a Southern woman that remained unreconstructed to the end of her life and who had vehemently opposed her husband's fighting for the Union.) The young Theodore grew up to become inquisitive, charming, and very active – qualities that helped him find his rightful place in his loving but competitive family despite his lack of strength. His whole life was characterized by incessant activity — a human dynamo he was called. After tragedy struck and he lost his beautiful first wife Alice and his mother in one day, Theodore realized that action was what enabled him to conquer the grief that had threatened to destroy him. “Black care,” he wrote, “rarely sits behind a rider whose pace is fast enough.” The authors effectively trace his life before, as well as during and after, the Presidency. His time on a rancho in North Dacota, for example, provides wonderful insight into how he battled and overcame fear through riding, hunting grizzlies, and doing all sorts of things he was afraid of. This fight his niece Eleanor and cousin Franklin would continue later. “If it had not been for my years in North Dakota, I never would have become President of the United States," wrote Theodore, and he is probably right. Interesting to read about was also his relationship with his daughter Alice, who was attractive, outspoken, and desperate for the attention her father was not giving her (because Theodore was trying to erase all memories of her deseased mother.) That's why Alice took special pains to do everything that was considered unladylike: she smoked; she jumped into swimming pools fully clothed; she flirted with batallions of wealthy young men from New York and Newport, and once wore "a green snake as a wriggling fashion accessory to divert attention during one of her father’s meetings with the press." Theodore lamented that he simply could not both be President of the United States and attend to Alice. Other peculiar details from the "Bully Pulpit"'s biography that I had not read about before but that are mentioned here were his complex relationship with his second wife, Edith, who had been his childhood sweatheart until the two of them fell out and who was devoted to him but never forgave him for chosing another woman over her, and the history of the Teddy Bear and Theodore's dislike for the name he got afterwards. “No man who knows me calls me by [that] nickname [Teddy],” he complained to a friend one winter, “and if it is used by anyone it is a sure sign he does not know me.”
Theodore's favorite niece, Eleanor Roosevelt, endured a childhood of humiliation, fear, and loss. Her mother, a celebrated beauty, did not hide the fact that she was disappointed with her daughter's looks and generally had no interest in her. Eleanor's father, whom she adored, suffered from alcoholism and mental illness. He, as well as his wife, died early, leaving Eleanor and her siblings orphaned. The sad lives of her parents were the reason for Eleanor's lifelong fear of never being loved for long. Three people proved to be most fundamental for making one of the most eminent First Lady what she was: her father, who in long letters to her encouraged the qualities she would later come to embody, “unselfishness, generosity, loving tenderness and cheerfulness,“ Mademoiselle Souvestre, the headmistress of a girls' school in Switzerland where Eleanor spent the happiest years of her life (“Whatever I have become,” Eleanor would say many years later, “had its seeds in those three years of contact with a liberal mind and strong personality.”), and of course, Theodore Roosevelt. Uncle Ted was always warm to his niece, but he could also be fearsome. When he learned she could not swim, he ordered her to jump into Oyster Bay anyways, an incident that left her with a lifelong fear of water. Although she rarely visited him, Eleanor came to resemble him in so many ways that Edith Roosevelt said she was more like her husband than any of his own kids. Most importantly, Eleanor was just as incessantly active throughout her whole life as Theodore had been. Her compelling need to be useful to others drove her to work hard for the public good — for equality for all regardless of race or gender, against poverty and injustice, and so on. Her social and political life could rival her prominent husband's. During the Second World War, an Washington story had it that the president prayed every night, “Dear God, please make Eleanor a little tired.” While she and Franklin were not close, she was often the influence behind his policy of reform.
One of the most interesting topics in the book is Eleanor's relationship with her domineering mother-in-law, Sara Delano Roosevelt. Eleanor's hopes to find in her the mother she virtually never had were soon shattered. Although Sara was definitely not the embodiment of "the evil stepmother," Eleanor never felt at home on her mother-in-law's sprawling estate, Springwood, and was always reminded that she was not the one in charge. On top of that, Sara assumed the role of a mother for her grandchildren, and further alienated them from their already distant mother, whose troubled childhood had not teached her to be a loving mother — she was often baffled by her kids' behavior.
And then there was Franklin Roosevelt. While other kids are loved, Franklin was adored, and his pampered childhood produced his extraordinary and inspiring self-confidence. He was attractive and charming, but he would have to put all of that confidence and charm and some more to use as he struggled with the polio that threatened his every ambition. In his childhood he had been taught not to show signs of unhappiness, so unpleasant things were rarely outwardly acknowledged. That mask served him well in public, but disappointed friends and associates and deprived him of meaningful companions in his private life. It was interesting to find out how much he looked up to his distant cousin Theodore. Maybe this can explain how FDR, "a patrician to the core," developed such authentic sympathy for his fellow citizens, such deep understanding of their needs and dreams. When the president's funeral procession from the Union Station to the White House moved past mourners on Pennsylvania Avenue, one man fell on his knees, weeping. Another asked if he'd known the president. "No," the man answered. "But he knew me."
The most touching story in the whole book is no doubt FDR's transformation of a ramshackle resort near the small town of Bullochville into a care center for polio patients. "Warm Springs", as he called it, was the first project Roosevelt had ever undertaken to benefit others. He thought up water excercises, hired physiotherapists to work with him and his fellow patients, and spent hours in the sun, chatting with everyone around. The physical progress he and the others made was minimal, but the psychological was enormous — for polio patients FDR's presence was "a tonic." "To see so celebrated a man in apparently perpetual high spirits while struggling to overcome the same obstacles that faced them helped restore their faith in the future," explain the authors, who also devote a considerable number of pages to Roosevelt's political life and major accomplishments.
The Roosevelts: An Intimate History is a truly remarkable work about a truly remarkable family. And in addition to being beautifully written, painstakingly researched, and meticulously footnoted, it is also really intimate. The three Roosevelts seem different from most of us — rich, famous, historically important — but Ward and Burns have managed to bring all their humanness, all their pain and struggle, and doubt to life. What Theodore, Eleanor, and Franklin shared was the ability to overcome limitations. Teddy and Franklin were both children of privilege who came to see themselves as the defenders of the common men; they both were hugely ambitious, in love with people and politics, unflinchingly confident and opitmistic, and had an almost magical ability to rally men and women to their causes. Eleanor was the "living link" between those two outstanding men. She had learned to conquer fear long before her husband declared that all Americans had to fear was fear itself, and her strong character and boundless energy would make her one of the greatest First Ladies — and women — in American history.
This book reads like a novel — a great novel at that — and it has the best collection of photographs I have ever come across in a historical work. I could not put The Roosevelts: An Intimate History down, and I bet you won't be able to too. Simply brilliant. One hundred stars.
All the three Roosevelts suffered, and all the three of them overcame their traumas but were nevertheless shaped by them.
Theodore, who was a sickly child not expected to live beyond childhood, overcame his asthma through sport. He looked up to his father, Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. – an exceptional man and father – but could not understand and was ashamed of the fact that he had not fought in the Civil War like his brothers (Martha Bulloch Roosevelt, Teddy's mother, was a Southern woman that remained unreconstructed to the end of her life and who had vehemently opposed her husband's fighting for the Union.) The young Theodore grew up to become inquisitive, charming, and very active – qualities that helped him find his rightful place in his loving but competitive family despite his lack of strength. His whole life was characterized by incessant activity — a human dynamo he was called. After tragedy struck and he lost his beautiful first wife Alice and his mother in one day, Theodore realized that action was what enabled him to conquer the grief that had threatened to destroy him. “Black care,” he wrote, “rarely sits behind a rider whose pace is fast enough.” The authors effectively trace his life before, as well as during and after, the Presidency. His time on a rancho in North Dacota, for example, provides wonderful insight into how he battled and overcame fear through riding, hunting grizzlies, and doing all sorts of things he was afraid of. This fight his niece Eleanor and cousin Franklin would continue later. “If it had not been for my years in North Dakota, I never would have become President of the United States," wrote Theodore, and he is probably right. Interesting to read about was also his relationship with his daughter Alice, who was attractive, outspoken, and desperate for the attention her father was not giving her (because Theodore was trying to erase all memories of her deseased mother.) That's why Alice took special pains to do everything that was considered unladylike: she smoked; she jumped into swimming pools fully clothed; she flirted with batallions of wealthy young men from New York and Newport, and once wore "a green snake as a wriggling fashion accessory to divert attention during one of her father’s meetings with the press." Theodore lamented that he simply could not both be President of the United States and attend to Alice. Other peculiar details from the "Bully Pulpit"'s biography that I had not read about before but that are mentioned here were his complex relationship with his second wife, Edith, who had been his childhood sweatheart until the two of them fell out and who was devoted to him but never forgave him for chosing another woman over her, and the history of the Teddy Bear and Theodore's dislike for the name he got afterwards. “No man who knows me calls me by [that] nickname [Teddy],” he complained to a friend one winter, “and if it is used by anyone it is a sure sign he does not know me.”
Theodore's favorite niece, Eleanor Roosevelt, endured a childhood of humiliation, fear, and loss. Her mother, a celebrated beauty, did not hide the fact that she was disappointed with her daughter's looks and generally had no interest in her. Eleanor's father, whom she adored, suffered from alcoholism and mental illness. He, as well as his wife, died early, leaving Eleanor and her siblings orphaned. The sad lives of her parents were the reason for Eleanor's lifelong fear of never being loved for long. Three people proved to be most fundamental for making one of the most eminent First Lady what she was: her father, who in long letters to her encouraged the qualities she would later come to embody, “unselfishness, generosity, loving tenderness and cheerfulness,“ Mademoiselle Souvestre, the headmistress of a girls' school in Switzerland where Eleanor spent the happiest years of her life (“Whatever I have become,” Eleanor would say many years later, “had its seeds in those three years of contact with a liberal mind and strong personality.”), and of course, Theodore Roosevelt. Uncle Ted was always warm to his niece, but he could also be fearsome. When he learned she could not swim, he ordered her to jump into Oyster Bay anyways, an incident that left her with a lifelong fear of water. Although she rarely visited him, Eleanor came to resemble him in so many ways that Edith Roosevelt said she was more like her husband than any of his own kids. Most importantly, Eleanor was just as incessantly active throughout her whole life as Theodore had been. Her compelling need to be useful to others drove her to work hard for the public good — for equality for all regardless of race or gender, against poverty and injustice, and so on. Her social and political life could rival her prominent husband's. During the Second World War, an Washington story had it that the president prayed every night, “Dear God, please make Eleanor a little tired.” While she and Franklin were not close, she was often the influence behind his policy of reform.
One of the most interesting topics in the book is Eleanor's relationship with her domineering mother-in-law, Sara Delano Roosevelt. Eleanor's hopes to find in her the mother she virtually never had were soon shattered. Although Sara was definitely not the embodiment of "the evil stepmother," Eleanor never felt at home on her mother-in-law's sprawling estate, Springwood, and was always reminded that she was not the one in charge. On top of that, Sara assumed the role of a mother for her grandchildren, and further alienated them from their already distant mother, whose troubled childhood had not teached her to be a loving mother — she was often baffled by her kids' behavior.
And then there was Franklin Roosevelt. While other kids are loved, Franklin was adored, and his pampered childhood produced his extraordinary and inspiring self-confidence. He was attractive and charming, but he would have to put all of that confidence and charm and some more to use as he struggled with the polio that threatened his every ambition. In his childhood he had been taught not to show signs of unhappiness, so unpleasant things were rarely outwardly acknowledged. That mask served him well in public, but disappointed friends and associates and deprived him of meaningful companions in his private life. It was interesting to find out how much he looked up to his distant cousin Theodore. Maybe this can explain how FDR, "a patrician to the core," developed such authentic sympathy for his fellow citizens, such deep understanding of their needs and dreams. When the president's funeral procession from the Union Station to the White House moved past mourners on Pennsylvania Avenue, one man fell on his knees, weeping. Another asked if he'd known the president. "No," the man answered. "But he knew me."
The most touching story in the whole book is no doubt FDR's transformation of a ramshackle resort near the small town of Bullochville into a care center for polio patients. "Warm Springs", as he called it, was the first project Roosevelt had ever undertaken to benefit others. He thought up water excercises, hired physiotherapists to work with him and his fellow patients, and spent hours in the sun, chatting with everyone around. The physical progress he and the others made was minimal, but the psychological was enormous — for polio patients FDR's presence was "a tonic." "To see so celebrated a man in apparently perpetual high spirits while struggling to overcome the same obstacles that faced them helped restore their faith in the future," explain the authors, who also devote a considerable number of pages to Roosevelt's political life and major accomplishments.
The Roosevelts: An Intimate History is a truly remarkable work about a truly remarkable family. And in addition to being beautifully written, painstakingly researched, and meticulously footnoted, it is also really intimate. The three Roosevelts seem different from most of us — rich, famous, historically important — but Ward and Burns have managed to bring all their humanness, all their pain and struggle, and doubt to life. What Theodore, Eleanor, and Franklin shared was the ability to overcome limitations. Teddy and Franklin were both children of privilege who came to see themselves as the defenders of the common men; they both were hugely ambitious, in love with people and politics, unflinchingly confident and opitmistic, and had an almost magical ability to rally men and women to their causes. Eleanor was the "living link" between those two outstanding men. She had learned to conquer fear long before her husband declared that all Americans had to fear was fear itself, and her strong character and boundless energy would make her one of the greatest First Ladies — and women — in American history.
This book reads like a novel — a great novel at that — and it has the best collection of photographs I have ever come across in a historical work. I could not put The Roosevelts: An Intimate History down, and I bet you won't be able to too. Simply brilliant. One hundred stars.
May 18, 2017
I recently visited Hyde Park and have subsequently become immersed in all things Roosevelt. This hefty book did an excellent job of presenting both the basics and intriguing side notes of these fascinating and important leaders, Theodore, Franklin, and Eleanor. The photos and documents added a great deal to the narrative. I poured over them all.
Oh how I long for leaders today with such strong characters, whose commitment to justice for the ordinary person transcended their own personal wealth and prestige. Despite serious illnesses and emotional trauma, they dedicated their lives to something greater than themselves. The book does not gloss over their flaws, but attempts to put them in context.
This is a companion to the Ken Burns series. In some ways I liked it more because I could process the information at my own pace, dong additional research when a subject intrigued me.
So you're not a history buff? Read it anyway! Highest recommendation.
Oh how I long for leaders today with such strong characters, whose commitment to justice for the ordinary person transcended their own personal wealth and prestige. Despite serious illnesses and emotional trauma, they dedicated their lives to something greater than themselves. The book does not gloss over their flaws, but attempts to put them in context.
This is a companion to the Ken Burns series. In some ways I liked it more because I could process the information at my own pace, dong additional research when a subject intrigued me.
So you're not a history buff? Read it anyway! Highest recommendation.
September 6, 2015
I watched the first couple of episodes of Ken Burns terrific documentary "The Roosevelts" before realizing there was an accompanying book. While the TV series is wonderful (and highly recommended!), this book fleshes out some of the details which couldn't all be covered in the seven episodes. I'm a sucker for a well-written, well-researched history book, and this is one of the best; was sad when the book was over, and am now looking for other books to learn more about these fascinating Roosevelt people. Very highly recommended.
September 23, 2014
If you are watching the PBS documentary about the Roosevelts and loving it, you are going to LOVE this huge coffee table book. Even if you only read the captions and study the pictures, you will come away understanding more 20th century history then ever before. Be warned, it's heavy, so you may have to read it in short stretches as your arms will get tired.
March 14, 2015
Excellent companion coffee table book to the equally excellent documentary which aired on TV last fall. A lavish number of photographs, many of which I had never seen before, despite a lifetime of reading about all three Roosevelts.
While their accomplishments are definitely on display here, so are the foibles and character flaws that each of them possessed. Also detailed is the interesting interplay between the Oyster Bay Roosevelts (TR's tribe), and the Hyde Park Roosevelts (FDR's kin), and how relationships between them waxed and waned as time passed and each family took its turn in the political spotlight.
The personal tragedies Theodore, Eleanor and Franklin faced and how they mastered them to build lives of purpose and productivity makes for fascinating reading and also teaches you a great deal of 20th century American history.
While their accomplishments are definitely on display here, so are the foibles and character flaws that each of them possessed. Also detailed is the interesting interplay between the Oyster Bay Roosevelts (TR's tribe), and the Hyde Park Roosevelts (FDR's kin), and how relationships between them waxed and waned as time passed and each family took its turn in the political spotlight.
The personal tragedies Theodore, Eleanor and Franklin faced and how they mastered them to build lives of purpose and productivity makes for fascinating reading and also teaches you a great deal of 20th century American history.
June 6, 2015
Enjoyable and easy-to-read coffee table book about the Roosevelts, tied in to the series on public television. I caught some unfortunate errors that will hopefully be corrected in future editions.
March 6, 2023
Enjoyed history in my early lifetime!
November 22, 2015
I really don't know which is better - The Roosevelts: An Intimate History the book or the PBS miniseries, because one is a definite must-read and the other is a definite must-watch. People today need to know that there was once (not so long ago) a family like the Roosevelts that used their name and influence not to further grow their wealth, but to serve the people. And "serving your people" was not limited to politics - when WWI and WWII broke out, there was not an able-bodied Roosevelt who could be kept from throwing himself into active military service: especially Theodore's brood.
It was so refreshing to read about a powerful and respected family that was content with it's level of wealth - not something we are used to seeing in the XXI century when morbidly rich families don't know when enough is simply enough and can't seem to stop "collecting" money and zeros on their bank account. But the genius and inspirational nature of the Roosevelt is not that they were just this wealthy family that wanted to give back or share their wealth with the common folk - philanthropy is only a temporary fix, because throwing money at a problem is not a permanent solution - NO, the Roosevelts went into politics to establish laws and policy that would permanently better the lives of the working class. No doubt, philanthropy is great and should be commended, but in certain cases it may be superficial: like [for example] if you are a member of the mighty Bush dynasty, you may donate to one charity or another, but then, you or one of your spawns takes the White Throne on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and starts pumping out legislation that easily replenishes your donation and royally fucks (for lack of a better word) the people you previously helped with your donation. That is not noble, that is evil.
As for the book, it is not cheap even by coffee table book standards, but worth every penny - a lot of interesting and rare photos that give you a more candid look into the private lives of these public figures. I especially enjoyed the pictures of one-year-old Theodore and Franklin where they were dressed in.. well, dresses and looked like two adorable little girls:) I just had to crack a smile, because T.R. is considered to be one of, if not the, manliest man to ever hold the office of the President of the United States - and there he was, the rugged THEODORE REX with a bow and a purse:
As for the 'main characters' of the book, Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor were definitely a special breed of people.
It was so refreshing to read about a powerful and respected family that was content with it's level of wealth - not something we are used to seeing in the XXI century when morbidly rich families don't know when enough is simply enough and can't seem to stop "collecting" money and zeros on their bank account. But the genius and inspirational nature of the Roosevelt is not that they were just this wealthy family that wanted to give back or share their wealth with the common folk - philanthropy is only a temporary fix, because throwing money at a problem is not a permanent solution - NO, the Roosevelts went into politics to establish laws and policy that would permanently better the lives of the working class. No doubt, philanthropy is great and should be commended, but in certain cases it may be superficial: like [for example] if you are a member of the mighty Bush dynasty, you may donate to one charity or another, but then, you or one of your spawns takes the White Throne on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and starts pumping out legislation that easily replenishes your donation and royally fucks (for lack of a better word) the people you previously helped with your donation. That is not noble, that is evil.
As for the book, it is not cheap even by coffee table book standards, but worth every penny - a lot of interesting and rare photos that give you a more candid look into the private lives of these public figures. I especially enjoyed the pictures of one-year-old Theodore and Franklin where they were dressed in.. well, dresses and looked like two adorable little girls:) I just had to crack a smile, because T.R. is considered to be one of, if not the, manliest man to ever hold the office of the President of the United States - and there he was, the rugged THEODORE REX with a bow and a purse:
Plus, you got a lot of visual material you didn't get in the PBS miniseries, like articles from newspapers and caricatures, among other things. Also, the narrative of the book was excellent - the author did not separate these three historical figures into exclusive chapters, but instead chose to show their lives unravel side-by-side. That way, you got to see the descent of TR while FDR was only starting his ascent. The parallels were fascinating.
As for the 'main characters' of the book, Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor were definitely a special breed of people.
Eleanor was a genuine First Lady - not a doll or an accessory to the President, but an intelligent woman who's persona demanded and received respect from several generations of World leaders. She was made of the stuff that the first woman President should be made of [and that is not the stuff Hillary Clinton is made of, in my uneducated opinion].I humbly bow my head before the Roosevelts.
Franklin's presidency was ironic, because he always wanted to be like his hero, Theodore, but turned out to be exactly what Theodore himself craved to be (yet, wasn't able to be) and that is a President that successfully navigated great national crises during his administration: The Great Depression and World War II.
And Teddy... I can't write anything objective about him, because he is my personal hero, my role model. He was everything you can hope to be in a lifetime.
May 28, 2015
Written as the companion book to the documentary series that aired in the fall, The Roosevelts: An Intimate History was an informative read. It succeeds in doing exactly what Ward and Burns advertised in the forward: it shows the interconnectedness of the entire Roosevelt clan. It begins with Theodore Roosevelt’s birth and continues until Eleanor Roosevelt’s death. It is important to keep the family dynamics in mind: FDR and Eleanor were born sixth cousins; FDR was fifth cousin to TR; and Eleanor was TR’s niece. Of particular interest was FDR’s struggle with polio and its effect on both his lives and the other polio suffers he helped.
In all, the book provided a good overview of the lives of TR, FDR, and Eleanor, their families (especially Sara Delano Roosevelt), and others close to them (ex. Daisy Suckley and Missy LeHand). However, it was just an overview. Often, I found myself wanting to learn more, something that can be supplemented by the biography of FDR and Eleanor’s autobiography I already own (still need something else for TR, though). Still, it provided a way to connect all the families together that I am not sure a biography strictly of one or two people could since all of their parents and children and some of their grandchildren were also profiled.
The book was filled with wonderful visuals. I already mentioned the political cartoons above. There were also hundreds of historic photos, excerpts from manuscripts and newspapers, photos of campaign items, maps, and more. Each was accompanied with a description, and if handwritten, also a transcription. Those visuals made the book! No other adult-level book could compare; most only have a couple dozen visuals. In fact, I probably spent as much time, if not more, examining the visuals and their captions as I did reading the main text. It was interesting to see the changes in FDR at the end of his life and how much Kermit Roosevelt looked like his father, TR. Changes in women’s fashion could be seen when looking at Eleanor and her mother-in-law. And the pictures of the houses, rooms, and other buildings provided a context to understanding not only the opulence of the eras covered but also how and where those covered lived. More than anything, the visuals are what made this book great! And it would be a good companion to have on hand when reading a biography of any member of the Roosevelt family, not just the big three.
In all, the book provided a good overview of the lives of TR, FDR, and Eleanor, their families (especially Sara Delano Roosevelt), and others close to them (ex. Daisy Suckley and Missy LeHand). However, it was just an overview. Often, I found myself wanting to learn more, something that can be supplemented by the biography of FDR and Eleanor’s autobiography I already own (still need something else for TR, though). Still, it provided a way to connect all the families together that I am not sure a biography strictly of one or two people could since all of their parents and children and some of their grandchildren were also profiled.
The book was filled with wonderful visuals. I already mentioned the political cartoons above. There were also hundreds of historic photos, excerpts from manuscripts and newspapers, photos of campaign items, maps, and more. Each was accompanied with a description, and if handwritten, also a transcription. Those visuals made the book! No other adult-level book could compare; most only have a couple dozen visuals. In fact, I probably spent as much time, if not more, examining the visuals and their captions as I did reading the main text. It was interesting to see the changes in FDR at the end of his life and how much Kermit Roosevelt looked like his father, TR. Changes in women’s fashion could be seen when looking at Eleanor and her mother-in-law. And the pictures of the houses, rooms, and other buildings provided a context to understanding not only the opulence of the eras covered but also how and where those covered lived. More than anything, the visuals are what made this book great! And it would be a good companion to have on hand when reading a biography of any member of the Roosevelt family, not just the big three.
October 23, 2017
Well written
This book is just incredibly well written. It takes 3 powerful, intelligent, well known people and makes sense of their intertwined lives. Yes they were family, yes they were politicians but they were each very different.
This book is just incredibly well written. It takes 3 powerful, intelligent, well known people and makes sense of their intertwined lives. Yes they were family, yes they were politicians but they were each very different.
September 11, 2025
This is like a photo book and yes its the Ken Burn documentary however....
There is unique stuff to the book.
Ok so ive see SOME Ken burn docs.
The roosevelts is probably one of the best.
This book is worth also reading WHILE you see the documentary
the reason is tha there is a ton of stuff that the doc does not show
a ton of political cartoons and some personal letters that the format just is not that good to show.
There is a small excerpt of a page from Teddy Roosevelt diary and its pretty insane how
much information is there and a ton of letters and
Also the reason i kinda prefer the doc is because ITS THE PERFECT DOC
the civil war doc is pretty much a slide show
but the roosevelts from Teddy to Eleanor is the first time a ton of camera usage is available and you can clearly see a ton of actual films that they took from the Roosevelts.
The book is pretty much only the Coyote narration it does not include the historians, characters talking. so its a great companion.
if you are interested in the Roosevelts this is a great companion
I would complain that Eleanor Roosevelt is not explored as much as the other two when FDR dies Eleanor career is barely mentioned.
great photo book recomend taking it out of your library and watch the doc while you see the book. thats what I did.
There is unique stuff to the book.
Ok so ive see SOME Ken burn docs.
The roosevelts is probably one of the best.
This book is worth also reading WHILE you see the documentary
the reason is tha there is a ton of stuff that the doc does not show
a ton of political cartoons and some personal letters that the format just is not that good to show.
There is a small excerpt of a page from Teddy Roosevelt diary and its pretty insane how
much information is there and a ton of letters and
Also the reason i kinda prefer the doc is because ITS THE PERFECT DOC
the civil war doc is pretty much a slide show
but the roosevelts from Teddy to Eleanor is the first time a ton of camera usage is available and you can clearly see a ton of actual films that they took from the Roosevelts.
The book is pretty much only the Coyote narration it does not include the historians, characters talking. so its a great companion.
if you are interested in the Roosevelts this is a great companion
I would complain that Eleanor Roosevelt is not explored as much as the other two when FDR dies Eleanor career is barely mentioned.
great photo book recomend taking it out of your library and watch the doc while you see the book. thats what I did.
November 22, 2017
This coffee table size book accompanies the Ken Burns series about Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor Rossevelt.
The photos are numerous, and add so much to the stories. Most of these photos I have never seen, and some were not even available for the public to see until decades after the three subjects of the book died. The press, especially with respect to FDR and his polio, had an unwritten agreement not to photograph him appearing to be disabled.
All three subjects were visionary, and true giants of the American scene. It's hard to pick one as my favorite. The strength, courage, and lasting effect all three of them had on everyone in their own time, and even today,is formidable. Geoffrey Ward is the primary writer of most of Ken Burns' films, and this book is so well written, and an easy read, too.
You can pick up the book at any point, read a story or two, and feel like you've read something truly important, because you have.
Highest Recommendation.
The photos are numerous, and add so much to the stories. Most of these photos I have never seen, and some were not even available for the public to see until decades after the three subjects of the book died. The press, especially with respect to FDR and his polio, had an unwritten agreement not to photograph him appearing to be disabled.
All three subjects were visionary, and true giants of the American scene. It's hard to pick one as my favorite. The strength, courage, and lasting effect all three of them had on everyone in their own time, and even today,is formidable. Geoffrey Ward is the primary writer of most of Ken Burns' films, and this book is so well written, and an easy read, too.
You can pick up the book at any point, read a story or two, and feel like you've read something truly important, because you have.
Highest Recommendation.
April 23, 2018
Like all the Ken Burns-Geoffrey Ward companion books--Glorious!!! I thought I had seen every photo of the young Theodore, but never the heartbreaking picture of young Teddy in mourning after the death of his father. The Theodores and FDR's are equally celebrated. We see the painting of Eleanor which drove her from a birthday celebration in tears because she thought it too flattering; it looked just like her. The wealth of pictures and paintings are matched by the prose of Geoffrey Ward, biographer with equal. This celebration matches the PBS miniseries, and belongs on the shelf of every Rooseveltphobe or student of Presidential and 20th. century history.
June 4, 2017
Geoffrey Ward and Ken Burns published "The Roosevelt's: An Intimate History" in 2014. The book is based on Ken Burns' highly regarded documentary film about Theodore, Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelts' personal lives. There are 796 outstanding pictures/illustrations in the book. After watching the Burns documentary on PBS television, I purchased the book. This was a great decision. The book and documentary film have profoundly influenced my understanding of the history of the first half of the 20th century. (P)
June 29, 2023
The photos in this book make it well worth your time because you've likely never seen most of them. However, reading it is very eye opening too. It's hard to imagine FDR taking a lot of flak for the work he did to fight the depression, but he was not very popular with a number of members of Congress. And his relationship with Eleanor was quite interesting. Then there's Teddy, who was a force unto himself--if you get the chance to read more about him you should because American history classes don't focus on him enough. This book is SO worth your time.
March 24, 2018
This leviathan coffee table book was absolutely marvelous and poignant! The Roosevelts are an outstanding lineage and this memoir serves as a rendition of the countless accomplishments made by this triad of honorable individuals. Every historical nut should retain this colossal memoir; I myself spent hours perusing the pages, imbibing Eleanor's insecurities, FDR's polio difficulties, and Teddy's tenacity and impetuosity in the face of calamities.
October 13, 2017
I watched the Ken Burns series and was so fascinated that I decided to read the book. Yes, it's mostly the same stuff, but what fascinating stuff. It was well worth the time to learn more about Theodore, Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelt. Remarkable, very human people who left a huge imprint on American and world politics and history.
July 2, 2020
Amazing family history
Complete family history, complete with amazing photographs, and details you never learn in basic history classes. Not just the lives of Theodore, Eleanor and Franklin but the battle between the two powerful families, the political aspirations and the intimate family relationships.
Complete family history, complete with amazing photographs, and details you never learn in basic history classes. Not just the lives of Theodore, Eleanor and Franklin but the battle between the two powerful families, the political aspirations and the intimate family relationships.
September 15, 2020
Wonderfully illustrated companion book to Ken Burns’ outstanding documentary focuses on Theodore, Franklin and Eleanor, three of the most extraordinary figures in American public life. The narrative is not particularly detailed but with the great selection of illustrations provides a meaningful introduction to this incredible family.
April 18, 2021
Clear and comprehensive
Well paced, with an easy blend of general and personal history. Major political and international crises and events outlined with brevity yet with sufficient depth to carry the reader through a comprehensive whole. A most satisfying read, well illustrated with photographs.
Well paced, with an easy blend of general and personal history. Major political and international crises and events outlined with brevity yet with sufficient depth to carry the reader through a comprehensive whole. A most satisfying read, well illustrated with photographs.
June 1, 2024
This oversized book is a companion to the Ken Burns PBS series The Roosevelts. It is a joy to read and filled with restored photographs, some never published before. It intermingles Theodore, Eleanore, and Franklins’s history’s. It is inspiring to read about these forceful personalities and the contributions that they made to their country and society.
March 8, 2017
This is a companion book to the documentary done by Ken Burns a few years back. While not a book to be read at one sitting, it is very information with great information and pictures. Well worth the time spent reading it but intersperse it with other books!
January 27, 2021
Excellent book, overview of the three primary figures, Theodore, Eleanor and Franklin. The authors cover the historical highlights of each, but give equal attention to their private lives and personal development.
August 30, 2018
Absolutely extraordinary book. The photography and stories are phenomenal.
April 6, 2019
I really enjoyed the reading about the connection of the Roosevelts, how similar they were in so many ways. The inclusion of so many pictures added to my enjoyment.
June 8, 2019
Loved the book, fast paced considering the amount of information conveyed.
May 1, 2020
awesome book. heavy...
June 21, 2020
4.5 / 5.0
Wonderful narrative and illuminating pictures. Enough detail for understanding but not cluttered.
Wonderful narrative and illuminating pictures. Enough detail for understanding but not cluttered.
June 23, 2020
A very interesting and good book about Theodore Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, and FDR, with many excellent photographs as well. I really enjoyed the book and learned a lot.
September 14, 2020
Returned by Kindle. A little difficult to follow 3 Roosevelts in this book. However, well-written and well-researched. Great resource for research and or a Term Paper. Enjoy!
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