The Three Roosevelts: Patrician Leaders Who Transformed America - Softcover

Burns, James MacGregor; Dunn, Susan

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0802138721 ISBN 13: 9780802138729

Publisher: Grove Press, 2002

Synopsis

The Three Roosevelts is the extraordinary political biography of the intertwining lives of Theodore, Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelt, who emerged from the closed society of New York's Knickerbocker elite to become the most prominent American political family of the twentieth century. As Pulitzer Prize- and National Book Award-winning author James MacGregor Burns and acclaimed historian Susan Dunn follow the evolution of the Roosevelt political philosophy, they illuminate how Theodore's example of dynamic leadership would later inspire the careers of his distant cousin Franklin and his niece Eleanor, who together forged a progressive political legacy that reverberated throughout the world. Theodore, Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelt led America through some of the most turbulent times in its history. The Three Roosevelts takes readers on an exhilarating voyage through these tumultuous decades of our nation's past, and these momentous events are seen through the Roosevelts' eyes, their actions, and their passions. Insightful and authoritative, this is a fascinating portrait of three of America's greatest leaders, whose legacy is as controversial today as their vigorous brand of forward-looking politics was in their own lifetimes. "A remarkable example of narrative and biographical history at its best." -- Bruce Clayton, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "No one has written more trenchantly about Franklin Roosevelt and American politics ... than James MacGregor Burns...." -- H. W. Brands, The Raleigh News & Observer "A detailed study.... Written with impeccable scholarship." -- Malinda Nash, Houston Chronicle

About this title

Review:

As president, Theodore Roosevelt modeled himself after the man he admired most--his father, who believed in moral justice--and after the man his father admired most--President Lincoln, for his ability to be both a radical reformer and a shrewdly conservative politician. Although all three men were Republicans, TR grew further away from the party ideals held by the privileged class into which he was born (a life dedicated to pleasure bored him, and he was stimulated by the opportunities politics presented despite its grimy reputation), pushing for better conditions for workers, nationalized health care, the Pure Food and Drug Act and much more. His fifth cousin, Franklin (husband to TR's favorite niece), consciously mimicked TR's career path, going from assistant secretary of the navy, to New York governor, to president, eventually following another reform-oriented mentor, Woodrow Wilson, to become a Democrat. Growing up knowing little about politics, Eleanor Roosevelt was active in Junior League volunteerism and later the League of Women Voters, but it was under the influence of her husband's aide Louis Howe that she refined her political voice as a ''big stick'' activist like her uncle TR and her husband, who founded the welfare state. Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winner Burns (Roosevelt: The Soldier of Freedom) and Williams College professor Dunn (The Deaths of Louis XVI) do an excellent job of summarizing the political theology shared by these three Knickerbocker bluebloods, who were, in their time, categorized as ''class traitors.'' While offering no new details, Burns and Dunn nevertheless succeed in approaching their subjects with grace, respect and insight. In the end, they do great justice to three remarkable lives superbly lived. ---- Publishers Weekly

In this eloquent book, noted political scientist and biographer Burns (Univ. of Maryland and Williams Coll.) demonstrates the masterly use of political psychology to understand both the power of leaders and the dynamic between leaders and followers. Co-written with Dunn (literature, Williams Coll.), this comparative case study of the Roosevelt political triumvirate applies Burns's leadership theory to Theodore and Franklin; an extension of his theory is also applied to Eleanor, the unelected member of the trio who was a national and world leader nonetheless. Skillfully woven throughout is the influence Abraham Lincoln had on the trioDa thread that gives this work cohesiveness and additional depth. A significant psychological element shared by all three was that they were members of society's upper crust who came to identify with those given society's crumbs. Essential. ---- Library Journal

From Booklist:

The Roosevelt family was part of the Knickerbocker elite that had run city and state institutions for generations. Burns and Dunn both hail from Williams College: Burns, political scientist emeritus, won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for Roosevelt: The Soldier of Freedom ; Dunn, professor of literature and the history of ideas, is author of Sister Revolutions: French Lightning, American Light [BKL O 15 99]. What fascinates both is the emotional and intellectual journey that transformed Theodore Roosevelt, niece Eleanor, and distant cousin Franklin from pampered upper-class snobs into practical but creative champions of democracy and the common man. The narrative traces their intertwined lives and ideas through four eras the authors label "Passion" (1876-1929), "Action" (1929-1936), "Conflict" (1936-1945), and "Change" (1945-1962). Drawing inspiration from one another and from leaders--like Abraham Lincoln--they all admired, the Roosevelts forged a notable legacy of twentieth-century leadership. Mary Carroll
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About this edition

• Publisher: Grove Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0802138721
• ISBN 13: 9780802138729
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 688