I am intrigued by Eleanor Roosevelt. I think a lot of people are. She was clearly a strong woman who served as her husband's proxy in traveling during his terms as President. In fact, in a lot of ways, they served as President in a dual role. But that's not the whole of Eleanor's story. In fact, her years as Franklin D. Roosevelt's wife are only a small part of her story and her accomplishments.

This particular title about "ER" focuses on how faith shaped her life. And to highlight how faith shaped her views and actions, Smith focused in on her early story and her life's work. He presents, evidence given by ER herself through her numerous writings and other forms of communication captured, a faith that was very "WWJD." She was unmoved, perhaps even put off, by shows of religiosity. She was honest about her implicit bias' and struggles in shedding herself of damaging and exclusive worldviews. Once she discovered her voice, she used it and didn't back down despite the haters. She was so firmly committed to her faith being the foundation of her work that she didn't allow the critics to make her doubt.

Despite being a Roosevelt from birth, Eleanor didn't have an easy start in life. She experienced and endured a lot of trauma but she did not allow it to make her bitter, angry, or reclusive. Instead, she broke free from the trauma and used her experiences to inform the work she did in life. I learned a lot about her as a person - woman, wife, mother - and as a powerful political voice. She became very settled in her skin and that showed through her interactions with others, the admirers, and the critics. Of course, that enraged her critics all the more but she kept calm and carried on.

Her life's work still impacts our world today, and her faith - whether you subscribe to it or not - informed that work. But her faith was the one I believe we all can at least consider subscribing to. It was gracious, not dogmatic. It was loving, not hateful. It embraced, it did not exclude. Eleanor Roosevelt was not a preacher but her life preached and we are all better for it.

Although Mr. Smith calls former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt the “most influential woman of the 20th century”, I doubt many of us who are Baby Boomers or younger know much about her. If we know anything at all, it may be that she was a long-suffering wife who endured her husband’s infidelities (President Franklin Roosevelt) by carving out an independent life for herself. But she went further, using her influence to advocate for social change, as First Lady and later as delegate to the United Nations and private citizen.
This “spiritual biography” delves far beyond Mrs. Roosevelt’s personal faith, developed as a child and adolescent from her Episcopalian Christian church and her own personal study of the Bible. The bulk of the book describes how that faith, especially her desire to follow the example of Jesus as portrayed in the Bible, propelled her activism for the social causes that she embraced so strongly.
Thus 21st century readers who care about social justice issues will enjoy learning how 70 years ago, our country wrestled with these same issues and Mrs. Roosevelt took them head on.
The author explores her work to address the poverty created by the Great Depression, especially its effect on children. She was an advocate for helping Jewish refugees who had escaped the Holocaust.
One might not believe that a woman born into privilege (she was President Theodore Roosevelt’s niece) would one day risk assassination by the Ku Klux Klan because she dared to speak to students at a Black high school. Based on the Bible, she shunned the racism that was prevalent and often legal, believing that all people are created equal and thus equal to the same rights. The author believes that the former First Lady would have been in the Civil Rights marches had her health allowed. (She died in 1962.)
Although born into privilege and wealth (President Theodore Roosevelt was her uncle) she grew up in a dysfunctional family marred by alcoholism, divorce, and death. In Eleanor: A Spiritual Biography, Harold Smith convincingly shows that her faith made not only her own life more bearable, but also the lives of millions of people, both in her lifetime and continuing through the present time.

I had high hopes for this book: Eleanor Roosevelt was a fascinating woman, and I was so intrigued to discover more about her. Instead, this book felt like a patchwork of other works, interviews, the author’s musings, and had the overall impression of a poorly made textbook. The history is interesting, but this book lost my interest and was very difficult to read: it did little justice to Eleanor.

very interesting book about a very interesting lady that i defiantly want to read more about!
Which sounds as if this book didn't give me what i wanted from it, it did. its filled with information but still very readable and interesting. But it just didn't give me enough with its not even 300 pages it was just too short too give me all the informations i wanted to learn about Eleanor!

Eleanor, a true version of the word Lady. I love reading about her and enjoyed this book as it went into a different direction than the many others.
The beginning pages pull you in and you know from the start - what an amazing woman, that is Eleanor. Learning about her faith was a refreshing topic and I just love her even more!
Thank you NetGalley, Harold Ivan Smith and to the publishers for allowing me the chance to read this wonderful piece.

I enjoyed reading Eleanor: A Spiritual Biography. I was surprised to realize that Eleanor was such spiritual figure. I do not know that much about Eleanor Roosevelt but I do know that she was involved in many social issues. It makes sense now knowing about her religious background. I would recommend this novel to anyone that is looking for spiritual inspiration.

I loved this book.
This is a First Lady like we need today. One who stands for those less fortunate and stays true to her beliefs.
I learned new things about Eleanor that I didn’t know
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book

This is the first biography I have read about Eleanor Roosevelt and it will most certainly not be the last. It was a great introduction to the life of a prominent and influential figure of the twentieth century. Eleanor Roosevelt left a lasting impression on everything she was involved with, including politics, diplomacy, activism and humanitarian causes. The fact that this remains her legacy, more so than serving as the First Lady, makes for a very impressive resume!

The author argues that Eleanor’s spirituality and faith played a vital role in helping to frame her worldview. We see Eleanor at various stages of her life, from childhood, adulthood and ultimately her death. The reader is introduced to Eleanor through moments, interactions and snapshots. This is where the text really shines. I thoroughly enjoyed reading snippets of conversations that Eleanor had with different individuals throughout her life. They helped to paint a vivid picture of who Eleanor was on a human level.

The only drawback I have is that there are a few times in the text where the author goes beyond the facts to provide personal conjectures.

Thanks to Westminster John Knox Press and NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

On every page of this book, I learned new things about Eleanor Roosevelt and her faith, and I felt inspired to exercise my faith more. A vibrant, tireless woman, she demonstrated her belief that faith without works is dead. Despite childhood abuse, her husband's infidelity and grief, Eleanor addressed meaningful issues and current events without backing down or refusing to be silenced by her critics. Her husband and others backed down because of political pressure or the need to get reelected, but she remained firm in her beliefs and activism, exercising a muscular Christianity until she died. I highly recommend this book for Christians, politicians, history lovers, and anyone who needs a reminder that loving God requires us to love others, too.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Net Galley. I highly enjoyed this different look at Eleanor Roosevelt's life. I have always known that Eleanor was a spiritual woman, this book framed her life through her spirituality. She had religion drilled into her from an early age from her grandmother Hall. From then on, she found religion to be a guiding force in her life. She used it to overcome her prejudices and push social injustices so that she could try and change minds and hearts all over the country and the world. She wrote many, many articles in magazines and newspapers about her faith and how it shaped her. She wrote many letters to people as they wrote to her as well. I have read many books about Eleanor over the years, but this was a different take on her that I highly enjoyed & would definitely recommend!

A great insight into Eleanor's personal life. She was a strong woman of faith and certainly lived out what she believed

Eleanor Roosevelt is known for her public activism and passion for human rights, championing the poor and oppressed. I had known vaguely of her work, but had no idea how extensive it was. In Eleanor, A Spiritual Biography, the author traces how she came by her religious faith and how it prompted her actions.
She was a lifelong member of the Episcopal Church and her understanding reflected the thinking of many who attend mainline churches. She believed in preparing for eternity by building a just world for all God’s children. This she did through her travel, columns, articles, interviews, and lectures, focusing attention on injustice and inhumane conditions.
Her outspokenness made her a target of hatred and criticism. She believed it did little good to believe something unless she told her friends and associates her beliefs. She was more concerned with how one lived one’s faith than with the particularities of one’s beliefs. Her personal mantra was “The way your personal religion makes you live your life is the only thing that matters.”
What religion one belonged to didn’t matter as long as one practiced that religion. One of her great-grandsons became a Reconstructionist rabbi, and the author believes that would have pleased her. During World War II, she harbored prejudice against Jews, writing to a friend in Germany, “I realized quite well that there may be a need for curtailing the ascendency of the Jewish people.” Many close friends were Jewish.
Jesus’ commands to care for “the least of these” spurred her activism. Yet she did not believe in hell or the virgin birth. She believed the story of Adam and Eve to be allegorical. On the basis of science, it couldn’t be true. For her, there was only one fundamental law: love one another. Everything else, including the Ten Commandments, was all interpretation.
There is no denying the good she did in a time of social upheaval. Her personal feelings may have been contradictory, but she pressed on because she took to heart and practiced the command to love one another.
I received a free copy of Eleanor, A Spiritual Biography in exchange for my honest opinion.

Good read. Interesting woman. Liked the way the book flowed and a look into her life and beliefs. History buffs should read this!

Eleanor Roosevelt believed that there was no greater time that people needed to look to their faith than “now.” Of course, that was during the Great Depression. How much more would this be true today? Eleanor Roosevelt: A Spiritual Biography explores exactly what Mrs. Roosevelt’s faith really did mean to her. Beginning with her tormented childhood to the White House and all of her staunch causes, Harold Ivan Smith crafts a masterful story that is hard to put down. This is a remarkable story of a truly remarkable woman-truly one to be emulated.

The book was informative what Eleanor believed and how it affected her choices to help others. She appreciated Jesus' teachings and did a good job living by them. Our world has been blessed to have her working for justice in it.
I received this book free from the publisher for the purpose of review.

Opening line:
"In the mid-1930's, a young child asked to name the President responded, "Franklin Eleanor Roosevelt."

This is a very insightful look into Eleanor Roosevelt's life from a child to her death; what influenced her spiritually and how that shaped her life. She was strong, courageous and easily beset by doubts. I thought that was an interesting insight into a great leader. Everyone has setbacks and low moments. "You must do the things you think you cannot do."
The book is interspersed with history, quotes from Eleanor and quotes from friends and close acquaintances. I learned a lot about her lonely childhood, drunk father and jealous mother. Not to mention the meanness of her grandmothers. It's a wonder that Eleanor was able to grow and make such an impact on the world, both here in the states and abroad.
I was moved by her words and courage many times while I read. At times I found myself wanting to do better in my own life. I especially want to do better by my children so they have a happy childhood!
One thing I did miss was more about her children. I'm not sure who raised them. There were hints form the author about her possible thoughts or reactions or even possible liaisons. I would rather just have the facts then possibilities but it was an interesting book and lots of reaearch and thought went into it.


Thanks to netgalley for the early read!

The author weaves together Eleanor Roosevelt's words into a statement of faith, illustrating the First Lady's commitment to living out her faith through social justice.

I was fortunate to receive this book as an advance copy from Netgalley. This isn't your typical biography. Most everyone knows who Eleanor Roosevelt (ER) was but many may not realize her deep spiritual nature. ER, quite frankly, was ahead of her time. She saw the inequities that were placed on blacks, homosexuals, certain religious sectors (such as Jews, Catholics) and many others. This book shed a light on her spiritual stamina when times and people challenged her. This book brought scripture in to assist in explaining ER's rationale -- why she said or did anything. Her life is a good example for all of us. While we may not always agree, the message she sent was from a person with strong Christian values. An interesting, good wholesome read.

Eleanor: A Spiritual Biography by Harold Ivan Smith is a wonderful look at the inspiration of the most controversial First Lady’s in American history.
This book looks deeper into her life and faith to try to answer the question of why someone of means chose to be so active in social justice causes. She was raised Episcopalian but learned through her travels that we must be prepared to listen to the ideas of other religions such as Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and Sikhs. That sure hits home today! Eleanor lived out her faith at all times, even when it was inconvenient following the words of Micah 6:8 “to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God”.
I give this book a rating of 5 of 5 stars. It is well organized and written in language one can easily understand. I believe it will appeal to a very broad audience. I learned a great deal from reading this book, history as well as the more personal side of Eleanor Roosevelt. I have always been interested in the life of Eleanor Roosevelt as she did so much for those who needed assistance the most and provided the voice for those who had none. The book goes well beyond what I knew and what I believe the majority of Americans know about this great lady. It was interesting to read her feelings about her accomplishments. This is a must read!
I received an advance copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.