[fusion_builder_container backgroundcolor=”” backgroundimage=”” backgroundrepeat=”no-repeat” backgroundposition=”left top” backgroundattachment=”scroll” video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” bordersize=”0px” bordercolor=”” borderstyle=”” paddingtop=”20px” paddingbottom=”20px” paddingleft=”0px” paddingright=”0px” menu_anchor=”” equal_height_columns=”no” hundred_percent=”no” class=”” id=””][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][fusion_text]With the possibility of next year’s Presidential election resulting a first-ever “First Gentleman”, and the uncertainty about what his role might be, interest will soon pick up in past First Ladies’  lives in general and their changing roles over the years. The possibility of a Clinton vs. Bush election also raises questions and discussions about family dynasties in U.S. politics.

One of the more extensively written-about families is the Roosevelts. Alice Roosevelt Longworth, Teddy Roosevelt’s oldest daughter, and Eleanor Roosevelt, Teddy’s niece and Franklin Roosevelt’s 5^th cousin, are the two best-known of the Roosevelt women. A recent release by Marc Peyser and Timothy Dwyer titled Hissing Cousins is somewhat of a combined/parallel biography of the two women. I’ve read biographies of both women so although there isn’t much new to me in this book, it’s an interesting presentation of each woman’s life in the context of the other’s life. Both had rough childhoods in that, although they were born into wealthy families, Eleanor was an orphan by age 9, and after Alice’s mother died when she was only two days old, her father left her in the care of an aunt and headed west for a couple of years to grieve, rarely seeing his daughter. But how the two women grew and matured, and related to each other in their adult years, has long fascinated many. Although Alice has been known for her acid tongue and some really cutting remarks she made about Eleanor and Franklin, the book title is a little over-the-top; it isn’t non-stop catfighting with bared teeth and pulling hair. It is a good and not-too-lengthy read about family, politics, and history.

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