American Princess

Stephanie Marie Thornton, I have to tell you that this is the BEST book I've read so far this year!  If I had to guess, I would say that the Roosevelt family was the closest thing the US had to royalty during the last century.  Alice, Teddy's oldest daughter, was considered America's princess from the time her father took office until he left office in 1909.  After that, she became the "Other Washington Monument."

She was wild, she was untameable, she was strong-willed, strong-hearted, and well-versed in the political issues of the day. She would nickname many of the public figures and not hold back about calling them her nicknames to their faces.  One that stands out in my mind is her calling Franklin "Feather Duster," meaning there wasn't much substance to him.

One of Teddy's close advisors said something about taming Alice, Teddy is said to have replied, "I can take my daughter in hand, or I can run the country.  Which one should I do?"

There is no part of this book I didn't enjoy.  I laughed, I cried, I read until my eyes could no longer focus.  There was one quote I wished had made it into the book, but as I researched it, the quote was apocryphal at best, and wrongly attributed at worst.  Alice was married to the Speaker of the House until his health failed.  When she married him, his hair was thin, but as time went on, he went bald.  It was said that another Congressman came up to him and rubbed his head and remarked that it felt like his wife's bottom.  Longworth rubbed his head, and said, "You know, it really does." Alice's marriage to Nick Longworth was not a happy one, she was cuckolded left, right, and center.  Nick had no discretion when it came to his paramours, even being involved with one of Alice's friends.

This is a five-star book, with two thumbs up, and a "Bully" for you.

My thanks goes to Berkley Publishing Group for allowing me to read and review this book, and to NetGalley.com for providing the galley I read.