Winner of the Pulitzer Prize No Ordinary Time is a monumental work, a brilliantly conceived chronicle of one of the most vibrant and revolutionary periods in the history of the United States. With an extraordinary collection of details, Goodwin masterfully weaves together a striking number of story lines–Eleanor and Franklin’s marriage and remarkable partnership, Eleanor’s life as First Lady, … Eleanor’s life as First Lady, and FDR’s White House and its impact on America as well as on a world at war. Goodwin effectively melds these details and stories into an unforgettable and intimate portrait of Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt and of the time during which a new, modern America was born.
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I’m a big Doris Kearns Goodwin fan and this is Goodwin at her best. A wonderful look inside the hearts and minds of FDR and Eleanor. You can’t help but feel compassion for each of them, albeit for different reasons and in different ways. Like FDR or not, his presidency was transformative and his legacy, enduring. Great book.
This was one of the first books about the Roosevelts I have read, and even after reading probably twenty other books on the subject since then, it remains one of my favorites. Goodwin goes into so much detail and writes it in such an enjoyable way you can almost imagine being there. This book focuses on the war years, but it gives a glimpse into the White House that you have never seen before.
One of the best books I’ve ever read. If you are a history buff, this book gives you an incredible insight into a period of history that changed the world forever. Doris Kearns Goodwin is a fabulous writer.
Anything Doris Kearns Goodwin writes you should read. I felt like a friend reading this book about someone I had known. Excellent book.
L
The story of FDR and Eleanor, and “Winston” their sometime visitor at the White House during WW II with colorful detail and insight. Doris Kearns Goodwin at her best.
I am always fascinated to read works that humanize the “larger-than-life” names of our past that we might otherwise only know from historical events. Goodwin’s detailed account of the lives of Eleanor and Franklyn Roosevelt give a detailed account, not only of their involvement in our nations early to mid 20th century history but of their personal relationships that surely prove that all people, no matter how great, have flaws.
Excellent work by the presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin. It reveals the remarkable efforts by the president and First Lady during an extraordinary time in US history
An excellent, very well researched and written account of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt in the years leading up to WWII and follows through to their deaths. Goodwin concentrates on life in the US during these years, touching on subjects like civil rights, Japanese internment, worker’s rights, and women in the workplace. While the book was dense, it was very readable. It was exhaustive and entertaining. It is also a very raw and personal look into the personal lives of the Roosevelts. Franklin was a proud and concerned President who spent over 3 terms in office working toward winning the war through to his dying day. Eleanor was a hardworking advocate of the people working toward human rights at home and throughout the world. Although they had much love for each other, they were separate, individual people whose work seemed to compliment each other. Yet they were not without their flaws and Goodwin captured warts and all.
Although it was a heavy read, it was very engaging. I feel like I have had a very personal peek into the lives of Franklin and Eleanor.
If you read biographies, you just cannot go wrong with any of Doris Kearns Goodwin’s works. An excellent biography of FDR!
Love the story and the way the author has put the book together
Another Goodwin hit! Reading this book is like visiting with both Eleanor and FDR and being part of what went on day to day during their time in the White House. Provides a really good look at what it was like to live through the war, from visits from Churchill to FDR’s declining health and Eleanor finding her own voice. Goodwin provides lots of information but as usual does so in a way that is both informative and entertaining.
One of my favorite books
Such great writing makes learning history fun!
Just a top shelf story from one of America’s great writers and historians .
One of the seminal motivator of my love of the reading of history. Read it approx 25 years ago
It is a good companion to Lynne Olson’s Citizen’s of London and Those Angry Days. Anyone interested in the background history of the lead up to America’s entry into WW11 should read all three.
Well researched and written. Doris Kearns-Goodwin has a way of making history interesting to read.
One of my all time favorites. A wonderful slice of American history.
Great read!
Best book I’ve read