Closest Companion: The Unknown Story of the Intimate Friendship Between Franklin Roosevelt and Margaret Suckley - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1439103143 ISBN 13: 9781439103142

Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2009

Synopsis

For the first time in paperback, the highly acclaimed, remarkably intimate, and surprisingly revealing secret diary of the woman who spent more private time with FDR than any other person during his years in the White house. At once a love story and a major contribution to history, it offers dramatic new insights into FDR—both the man and the president.

· Bestselling author: Geoffrey C. Ward is an award-winning biographer of FDR and the bestselling coauthor of many books with Ken Burns, including The Civil War and Baseball.

· Widely acclaimed: “A fascinating, very personal view of the man and his life” (USA TODAY). “A remarkable portrait” (The Washington Post). “A new mirror on Roosevelt” (The New York Times). “engrossing” (The New York Review of Books).

· Intimate portrait of a president: FDR trusted Margaret “Daisy” Suckley completely—she was allowed to photograph him in his wheelchair, was privy to wartime secrets, and documented his failing health in great detail.

· Major contribution to history: Daisy’s diary offers unique insights into FDR’s relationship with Winston Churchill and other wartime leaders, his decision to run for an unprecedented fourth term, and his hopes for the postwar world.

About this title

About the Author:

Geoffrey C. Ward is the bestselling author of two books about FDR—Before the Trumpet and A First-Class Temperament—and the coauthor (with Ken Burns) of The War, The Civil War, Jazz, and Baseball. The former editor of American Heritage magazine, he is the winner of many awards, including the Parkman Prize for history and the National Book Critics Circle Award. He lives in New York.

From Library Journal:

Margaret Lynch Suckley, or "Daisy" as she was fondly called by Franklin Roosevelt, was the president's closest companion during his final years. Shortly after her death at age 100 in 1991, friends discovered her secret diary, many letters she wrote to FDR, and the 38 letters he wrote to her. Suckley's papers, skillfully edited by Roosevelt biographer Ward, reveal a mutual relationship of love, trust, and discretion, unlikely to be found in today's kiss-and-tell memoirs. As a confidante and probable lover, Daisy was unconditionally trusted by Roosevelt. He even informed her of the plans for the D-Day invasion. However, much of Daisy's diaries and letters to and from FDR deal with less pressing concerns?descriptions of seasonal changes, parties, FDR's cruises, and the antics of the Scottish terrier Fala, a gift from Daisy. These entries are repetitive and often tedious. More fascinating are the anecdotes about Churchill and Roosevelt and FDR's sad decline and death in 1945. Suckley's writings show a relaxed, not often documented, side of FDR and a likable, modest woman who lived for and loved Roosevelt. Recommended for large history collections.?Karl Helicher, Upper Merion Twp. Lib., King of Prussia, Pa.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1439103143
• ISBN 13: 9781439103142
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 464
• Editor: Ward Geoffrey C.