White Houses - Book Review

When I first heard what Amy Bloom's novel White Houses was about (the relationship between Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hickok), I just knew it would have been a book that my mom would have wanted to read. My mom was a big Eleanor Roosevelt fan. She knew all the history and all the rumors, including that Eleanor was a lesbian.

Bloom's novel takes a fictional look at the real-life friendship between the two women, telling the story from Lorena's perspective. Starting with right after FDR dies in 1945 and alternating the time period with flashbacks, we learn about Lorena's childhood, how she came to be a newspaper reporter, how she met Eleanor, and how they hid their romance in plain sight.

The book was a little different from what I was expecting, but I still enjoyed it. I wasn't expecting it to be told from one point of view. I thought it would be third person and give perspectives from both sides. But it was pretty one-sided, with us only seeing things and experiences through Lorene's eyes. I guess what I really wanted was to know more about both women.

There is also a lot of name dropping in the book, and I had trouble keeping track of who all the characters were because I wasn't familiar with who the majority of them were.

But knowing what I do know about the Roosevelts and Eleanor, I thought this was a very interesting look at devotion, love, and duty. It makes me want to know more and read more about both women through non-fiction accounts.