Eleanor Roosevelt : Volume 2 , The Defining Years, 1933-1938 [Paperback]

Blanche Wiesen Cook (Author)

Book Description

Series: Eleanor Roosevelt, 1933-1938 | Publication Date: June 5, 2000

Historians, politicians, feminists, critics, and reviewers everywhere have praised Blanche Wiesen Cook's monumental Eleanor Roosevelt as the definitive portrait of this towering female figure of the twentieth century. Now in her long-awaited, majestic second volume, Cook takes readers through the tumultuous era of the Great Depression, the New Deal, and the gathering storms of World War II, the years of the Roosevelts' greatest challenges and finest achievements.

In her remarkably engaging narrative, Cook gives us the complete Eleanor Roosevelt: an adventurous, romantic woman, a devoted wife and mother, and a visionary policymaker and social activist who often took unpopular stands, counter to her husband's policies, especially on issues such as racial justice and women's rights. A biography of scholarship and daring, it is a book for all readers of American history.

"Fascinating . . . Cook's portrait of a woman in the thick of things during the hardest of times . . . will stand as definitive." --The Washington Post

"Engrossing . . . Cook is especially good at probing Roosevelt's psychological state and explaining her many complex relationships with friends and family."--The Boston Sunday Globe (front page)

"Cook gets at the tender, sprightly creature behind the starchy, strident image." --Maureen Dowd, The New York Times Book Review (front page)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

With its gripping tale of a privileged ugly duckling turned socially conscious swan with the help of strong female friends--many of whom were lesbians and one of whom was probably her lover--the first volume of Blanche Wiesen Cook's biography of Eleanor Roosevelt won awards and made headlines. That book followed its subject from her birth in 1884 through her husband Franklin's election to the presidency in 1933. Volume 2, which chronicles Roosevelt's first six years as America's most controversial first lady (Hillary Clinton doesn't even come close), maps her contributions to the New Deal, which Cook convincingly argues was primarily the fulfillment of a political agenda promoted by female reformers as early as 1912. Eleanor's turbulent relationship with journalist Lorena Hickok gets more space here than it probably deserves, and the story isn't as inherently exciting as the first volume's drama of a woman's coming of age. Nonetheless, Cook's subtle analyses of everything from Roosevelt's exceedingly complex marriage to her role as warm-up act for the New Deal's most radical programs are bracingly intelligent, her evocation of a remarkable personality rivetingly vivid. Eleanor emerges as neither the liberals' saint nor the conservatives' Satan, but an entirely human bundle of contradictions: warm-hearted, yet ice-cold when hurt; happiest in the public arena, yet needing the comfort of private relationships. --Wendy Smith --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Readers who enjoyed the award-winning first volume of Cook's biography of Eleanor Roosevelt may have expected just one other volume after all these years (the first published in 1992); if so, they underestimated both Cook, a City University of New York history professor, and her remarkable subject. Volume 2 covers just six years: the first years of FDR's presidency. At this rate, one can easily imagine at least two more volumes: one on the war years, ending with Franklin's death in 1945, and a second on Eleanor's very active life after the White House. ER went to Washington with doubts and concerns: Would she be able to play a role in the critical issues that had given her life meaning, or would she be forced to serve simply as hostess and housekeeper? Cook traces the ways Roosevelt continued to exercise influence: on housing, race, and women's issues, for example. A major concern here is why both Roosevelts were largely silent about Germany's treatment of its Jewish citizens; Cook examines what the Roosevelts knew and when, and she notes that FDR and his staff did not object to Eleanor expressing her views on domestic matters that conflicted with administration policy, but they severely restricted her speeches and articles on foreign policy subjects. Full of fascinating details; expect requests. Mary Carroll --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 686 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (June 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140178945
• ISBN-13: 978-0140178944
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #187,473 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #23 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( R ) > Roosevelt, Eleanor

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific! Outstanding, June 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume 2 , The Defining Years, 1933-1938 (Hardcover)

I am still reading and re-reading this book. I was initially disappointed because it does not have the focus on Ms. Roosevelt's private life that Volume I does. But after I got over that, I realized that I was reading a major work on the history of social justice movements in this country. Ms. Roosevelt's anti-racism work (including her own personal evolution) is documented here. The racism of her dear friend, Hick, is portrayed along with their disagreements on the issue. Most fascinating are those times that Ms. Roosevelt was reviled and condemned -- for having African American leaders in the White House, for receiving flowers from an African American girl -- perhaps we HAVE progressed in dismantling our racist past. The derision and contempt for poor people in the 30s and 40s is shocking. Ms. Roosevelt's constant, persistent and terribly courageous advocacy for the oppressed is inspirational! Viva Eleanor! Viva Blanche!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eleanor Stands Tall, November 9, 2002

By 

Stargazer (St.Kilda, Victoria Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eleanor Roosevelt : Volume 2 , The Defining Years, 1933-1938 (Paperback)

Although not being an American, I'm aware that there are many in the States who are not too fond of ER and who are very critical of her. This second volume of Blanche Wiesen Cook's series on America's former First Lady is as remarkable and absorbing as was the first. There is no doubt FDR was a man of character,courage and great personal charm and warmth, there is equally no doubt that his wife suffered great personal trauma (and embarrassment) at his refusal (doubtless for political reasons)to speak out against the racial problems (in particular lyching in the South) and the Hitlerites treament of Jews in prewar Germany and Austria whilst the US continued to trade with the Germans. The same could be said of his stance during the Spanish Civil War. Eleanor was a nag (as was mentioned here in other summaries of this book) but never without good reason.
And all of her dire predictions came true. ER's passion for life, her beliefs, her love and respect of her husband, come through over and over again. Her ability to manipulate people, a less attractive aspect of her character - is also here for all to see (as her relationship with Lorena Hickock so aptly demonstrates).
Was there too much of Hick in this book ? I didn't think so. The relationship was a long term, on going one. The letters were not destroyed by ER, who I believe must have realised they'd become public after her death. Finally, ER's energy levels must have been extraordinary - her ability to criss cross the country seemingly non stop was remarkable considering that travel and the mode of travel was nothing like it is today. What an absolute bonus such a partner was to FDR's re electibility !
I look forward to the next "installment" with great anticipation.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Makes reading a pleasure, September 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume 2 , The Defining Years, 1933-1938 (Hardcover)

I have read numerous books about Eleanor Roosevelt over the years, but none has gone into the detail of this wonderful author and scholar. Not only do I love reading about Eleanor Roosevelt, the woman, but about the turbulent times she lived in. I was bored in school to learn about the Depression, but in this book, it comes to life and one can't help but to read on.

I admired Eleanor Roosevelt for all the good works she did in her life, but have even more regard for her as a person because of reading Cook's biography.

I really enjoyed the first 2 volumes of Cook's biographies of Eleanor Roosevelt and cannot wait until the third volume is published.