First published 2008
Franklin Delano Roosevelt emerges in this comprehensive biography as a figure who transcended his aristocratic origins to become America's champion during its darkest hours. H.W. Brands draws from archives, letters, speeches, and family accounts to examine how Roosevelt's wealthy upbringing and domineering mother shaped his character, while his complex marriage to Eleanor became a political partnership that redefined the presidency. The book details Roosevelt's transformation of American government through New Deal programs during the Great Depression, his strategic leadership as World War II approached, and his diplomatic skills in forging international alliances. Brands shows how Roosevelt's willingness to break from his social class earned him the loyalty of ordinary Americans while creating the framework for modern America's role in global affairs. This portrait reveals the political acumen and personal relationships that enabled Roosevelt to guide the nation through economic collapse and world war.
Genres: biography, 20th-century, political-science, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: America
Period: Great Depression, World War II
896 pages · Hardcover · Doubleday