The Roosevelts and the Royals
Franklin and Eleanor, the King and Queen of England, and the Friendship That Changed History
-
- $31.99
-
- $31.99
Publisher Description
Advance Praise
"Fascinating and well researched.... Dr. Swift is the first to concentrate on this unusual subject with such a wealth of sympathetic detail."
–Sarah Bradford, author of America’s Queen: The Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Elizabeth: A Biography of Britain’s Queen, and The Reluctant King: The Life and Reign of George VI, 1895—1952
"A splendid addition to our understanding of an extraordinary Anglo-American partnership. Both intimate and expansive, Will Swift’s vigorously researched book is timely, illuminating, and dramatic."
–Blanche Wiesen Cook, author of Eleanor Roosevelt, Vol. 1: 1884-1933 and Eleanor Roosevelt, Vol. 2: The Defining Years, 1933-1938
"The Anglo-American alliance has long been a bedrock of the global order, and Will Swift’s The Roosevelts and the Royals details an important chapter in that fascinating story with warmth and verve."
–Jon Meacham, author of Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship
"Those who remember only that the Roosevelts served hot dogs to the royals will be fascinated by this well-researched account of an historic and ennobling relationship–a great story!"
–James MacGregor Burns, author of The Three Roosevelts: Patrician Leaders Who Transformed America and Roosevelt: Soldier of Freedom
"A gripping account of four very different lives that were woven together to change the world in wartime."
–Hugo Vickers, author of Cecil Beaton and Alice: Princess Andrew of Greece
"Written in fluid and lucid prose, this book is not only eminently readable but also historically illuminating. It explores the contrasting personalities of the four main protagonists with skill and insight and it is both convincing and refreshingly candid."
–Brian Roberts, author of Randolph: A Study of Churchill’s Son and Cecil Rhodes and the Princess
"This book brings to life my grandmother and her royal friends. Reading it, I found myself reliving the times I shared with them. A wonderful story."
–Nina Roosevelt Gibson, Ph.D., psychologist and granddaughter of Eleanor and Franklin Roosevelt
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This melodramatically subtitled footnote to history by Swift, a longtime writer on royal history for Majesty magazine, focuses on the brief visits, in the summer of 1939, by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth to Washington, D.C., and Hyde Park. Foreign visits by heads of state are carefully choreographed. This one was especially so, as the president was wheelchair-bound and the king, more withdrawn than his outgoing queen, was a stammerer and still new to his role as sovereign. On both sides of the Atlantic, the abdication of Edward VIII to marry a twice-divorced American was still deplored. The colorless George VI was on probation. Massive press hype as well as diplomatic reticence made the brief visits, which also included a stop at the New York World's Fair, a success. King George was still colorless, but few noticed, and his royal style during the war beginning that September was sufficiently self-effacing and quietly steadfast to erase concerns about his authority on the throne. Even stretched with asides, though, the royal progress encompasses only 47 pages. The rest following the protagonists from the 1880s to the 1950s is padding. A passionate collector of royal memorabilia, Swift has packaged a book for collectors of royal memorabilia. 44 b&w illus.
