In this riveting book we see Teddy, the flamboyant politician and Rough Rider, who was also a "Papa Bear", passing on an ethos of sacrifice and achievement to his "cubs". There is Theodore, Jr., the "crown prince", handpicked by his father to carry on the traditions of Oyster Bay but unable to complete the mission. And Alice, Teddy's acid-tongued and fiercely loyal daughter, whose antics became the talk of Washington and who finally became a caricature, raving against her cousin's New Deal and trying desperately to preserve her father's legacy. There's also Eleanor, who translated the unhappiness of her marriage to FDR into political activism, eventually becoming First Lady of the World. And finally there is Franklin, always underestimated by Teddy's family, who made an alliance with Eleanor to become the nemesis of the Oyster Bay Roosevelts and, in the web of ironies that bind this family together, a truer heir to Teddy than any of his own children. Filled with drama and anecdote, presenting familiar characters in a penetrating new light,The Roosevelts is a soaring tale of triumph over heartbreak and frailty. But it is also a daunting story of the vanity of human wishes.