The Washington times., 1937-12-11
MY Story
Inspiring
Biography
BY MARIE MANNING

fascinated by this warmly
human, yet starkly honest auto
biography Of perhaps the best
loved woman in the country.
Why is this true?
Because it tells the personal
story Of the rise to eminence Of
the President Of the United
State ? Because it takes you be-
hind the scenes at the White
House, the Executive Mansion
at Albany, the Roosevelt homes
at Hyde Park and in New York?
Because it intimately pictures
the New York society Of 40 and
so years ago, into which Eleanor
Roosevelt was born and in which
she grew up?
Because it snapshots the en-
tire Roosevelt clan. Americas
royal family? Or because it tells,
with appealing simplicity and
modesty. the life story Of an
exceptional American woman,
with her problems Of childhood,
girlhood, marriage, motherhood,
participation in her husbands
public life and, finally, accept
ance Of a public life Of her
own?. ..
People will read '"This Is My
Story for all these reasons,
and will find in it what they
seek. But to my mind the dis
tinguishing value Of this delight
full book is that it shows how a
brave, earnest woman can re-
create herself and make a bril-.
liant success Of it. It is a psyche
logical marvel that she has &C.
compLlSneo.
WAS A SHY CHILD
As many people already know,
Eleanor Roosevelt was a shy,
ttnid, orphan child. deeply
stricken at the age Of ten by the
loss Of an idolized father, Theo-
dore Roosevelt's younger
brother, and brought up in the
house Of a none too sympathe-
tic grandmother, Mrs. Hall.
Little Eleanor was q good,
docile, conscientious child, but
virtue was not, in her case, its
own reward. Not only did her
grandmother endlessly hedge
her life about with prohibitions,
but other relatives thought it
their duty to warn her that she
wasn't pretty Ind would never
be a social success.
She was nursed, governessed,
chaperoned within an inch Of
her life, which was at that pc
riod probably inevitable; and
she was also forced to wear
clothes that she detested, for
which there is less excuse.
Certain Of those childhood or.
deals Of hers were amusing as
well as pitiful and Mrs Roose-
velt, clearsightedly looking back
upon her infant self, recounts
them with humor.
SCHOOL IN ENGLAND
At IS, the young girl went to
school in England for three
years. At eighteen, returned to
New York, she was a miserable
young debutante, still trying
desperately hard to do what she
was told, and to remember what
the things were that you were
supposed to talk about at par
ties.
At 10, she became engaged to
her fifth cousin, Franklin RooSe.
velt, and a year later married
him.-the wedding being not
able for the presence Of Uncle
Theodore, who came on from
Washington to give the bride
away and completely stole the
spotlight from the bridal pair.
It wasn't, in fact, until after
the war that she began, as a
human being, to come Toto
make her own judgments, form
her own decisions.
WRITES WITH CHARM
Victorious over her own natu.
raj tendency to be, as she says,
"a clam" she has turned the
lessons Of her own life to such
good account that she has bios
somed out not only into gracious
ness and wisdom, but complete
expreSsiveneSs. Never having had
any economic problem Of her
own, she has triumphantly
learned to feel with people whose
lives are a prolonged economic
defeat.
Mrs. Roosevelt tells her story
which ends before her hsuband's
accession to the Presidency