This Is My Story.
Roosevelt, Eleanor. This Is My Story. New York and London: Harper and Brothers, 1937.
8vo.; frontispiece of Eleanor Roosevelt; title page printed in blue; photographs interspersed throughout; blue cloth stamped in gilt, spine lightly faded; t.e.g.; blue slipcase mended with tape, now removed, at bottom edge.
First edition, deluxe issue, 250 numbered copies signed by the author. In this first volume of her autobiography, Roosevelt discusses the early years of her marriage and her first steps toward becoming involved with American government. In a brief section she calls “The Budding Of a Life Of My Own,” Eleanor writes:
[I began] thinking things out for myself and becoming an individual. Had I never done this, perhaps I might have been saved some difficult experiences, but I have never regretted even my mistakes. They all added up to my understanding of other human beings, and I came out in the end a more tolerant, understanding and charitable person. It has made life and the study of people more interesting than it could have been if I had remained in the conventional pattern. (p. 326)
It is in this book that Eleanor writes: “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”
Together with:
Roosevelt, Eleanor. This Is My Story. New York and London: Harper and Brothers, 1937.
8vo.; frontispiece of Eleanor Roosevelt; title page printed in yellow; offsetting opposite title page; photographs interspersed throughout; blue cloth stamped in gilt, edges and spine faded.
Third edition, so stated on verso of title page. Inscribed to Bernard Baruch: To my friend & partner with gratitude & affection & the humble hope that he may find some parts in this to enjoy. Eleanor Roosevelt. Also Baruch’s ownership signature: “B M Baruch 105 5- 5th Ave,” in pencil, on first blank.
Baruch, who often said “no matter who suffers, the president cannot be wrong,” was a lifelong friend of the Roosevelts. He donated $50,000 to FDR’s presidential campaign, and was a member of the “brain trust,” an informal group of advisors to FDR before and during his presidency. Baruch and Eleanor co-founded the Arthurdale school, established in 1933 in Morgantown for children whose parents worked in the mines. In This I Remember, Eleanor wrote: “Bernard Baruch, our old friend, will always have my gratitude for his advice and help in many enterprises in which I was interested. No amount of prodding by other people ever made Mr. Baruch feel hurt or slighted, and he was always ready to perform any service that was asked of him. I think he is one of the wisest and most generous people I have ever known, and he never forgets or neglects a friend” (p. 286). Indeed, after FDR’s death in 1945, Baruch proposed marriage to Eleanor; although she refused him, he remained a close friend.
(#4812 / #4813)
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