Eleanor and Hick

A warm,intimate account of the love between Eleanor Roosevelt and reporter Lorena HickokΓÇöa relationship thatover more than three decadestransformed both women’s lives and empowered them to play significant roles in one of the most tumultuous periods in American history In 1932as her husband assumed the presidencyEleanor Roosevelt entered the claustrophobicduty-bound existence of the First Lady with dread. By that timeshe had put her deep disappointment in her marriage behind her and developed an independent lifeΓÇönow threatened by the public role she would be forced to play. A lifeline came to her in the form of a feisty campaign reporter for the Associated Press: Lorena Hickok. Over the next thirty yearsuntil EleanorΓÇÖs deaththe two women carried on an extraordinary relationship: They wereat different pointsloversconfidantesprofessional advisorsand caring friends. They couldn’t have been more different. Eleanor had been raised in one of the nationΓÇÖs most powerful political families and was introduced to society as a debutante before marrying her distant cousinFranklin. Hickas she was knownhad grown up poor in rural South Dakota and worked as a servant girl after she escaped an abusive homeeventually becoming one of the most respected reporters at the AP. Her admiration drew the buttoned-up Eleanor out of her shelland the two quickly fell in love. For the next thirteen yearsHick had her own room at the White Housenext door to the First Lady. These fiercely compassionate women inspired each other to right the wrongs of the turbulent era in which they lived. During the DepressionHick reported from the nationΓÇÖs poorest areas for the WPAand Eleanor used these reports to lobby her husband for New Deal programs. Hick encouraged Eleanor to turn their frequent letters into her popular and long-lasting syndicated column \