Synopses & Reviews
In 1978, more than 3,500 letters written over a thirty-year friendship between Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hickok were discovered by archivists. Although the most explicit letters had been burned (Lorena told Eleanor's daughter, "Your mother wasn't always so very discreet in her letters to me"), the find was still electrifying enough to create controversy about the nature of the women's relationship. Historian Rodger Streitmatter has transcribed and annotated more than 300 of those letterspublished here for the first timeand put them within the context of the lives of these two extraordinary women, allowing us to understand the role of this remarkable friendship in Roosevelt's transformation into a crusading First Lady.
Synopsis
"Documents the American landscape as seen by two intelligent, influential women who loved their country, and each other, with a passion that is rare." -- New York Times Book Review In 1978, more than 3,500 letters written over a thirty-year friendship between Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hickok were discovered by archivists. Although the most explicit letters had been burned (Lorena told Eleanor's daughter, "Your mother wasn't always so very discreet in her letters to me"), the find was still electrifying enough to create controversy about the nature of the women's relationship. Historian Rodger Streitmatter has transcribed and annotated more than 300 of those letters-published here for the first time-and put them within the context of the lives of these two extraordinary women, allowing us to understand the role of this remarkable friendship in Roosevelt's transformation into a crusading First Lady.
Synopsis
Now in paperback: 300 letters between Eleanor Roosevelt and her "first friend" shed new light on their legendary, passionate bond.
About the Author
Rodger Streitmatter is a professor of communications at American University. A former reporter for the Roanoke (Virginia) Times and World News, he is the author of five previous books. He lives in Washington, D.C.