Eleanor

Title: Eleanor

Author: Barbara Cooney

Genre: Non-fiction, Informational, Diversity, Biography

Summary: Anna Eleanor was born a disappointment to her mother; red and wrinkled and ugly and not a boy. Three months after she was born, she was dressed in frills and lace when Reverend Satterlee came to the house to christen her. The house on was East 38^th Street. Uncle Ted was the godfather; Aunt Tissie and Cousin Susie were the godmothers. Eleanor’s father called her “a miracle from heaven.” Eleanor adored her father, and sometimes, she felt like he was the only person who cared about her. When she was two and a half, her family sailed for Europe on the S.S. Britannic, but father was not well. The first day out, due to the fog, their ship was rammed by another steamer and Eleanor went flying in the air. Even though her father caught her, she was scared of the ocean from that day forward. That summer, she was left behind with her Great-Aunt Gracie while her mother and father sailed again. Eleanor mostly went to the park with her Nanny, who only spoke to her in French. At the park, all of the nannies would gossip together, but stranger children scared Eleanor so she stayed close to her nanny. Eleanor’s mother called her “granny” because she looked funny and old-fashioned. Eleanor realized that not everyone lived in luxury when she went with her father on Thanksgiving to serve dinner at a house. She also went to “Hell’s Kitchen” with her Uncle Vallie to trim a Christmas tree. This was one of the saddest and poorest sections of New York City. With Aunt Pussie and Aunt Maude, Eleanor went along and sang for the homeless. She would never forget these places. Eventually, Eleanor had two little brothers, Ellie and Brudie. Nobody would pay attention to Eleanor anymore because her father left home. Her mother died of diphtheria when she was eight, so her and her brothers moved in with their grandma Hall. That winter, Ellie died too. One spring day, her father came back. His visits made Eleanor very happy. Father sent Eleanor many letters, but they never lives together, because when she was nine, her father was killed in a fall. Eleanor kept his letters her whole life. Other girls called Eleanor a “grind” because of the way she dressed; she was truly an orphan. During the summertime, things were better because Eleanor and her two aunts went up the Hudson River to Tivoli and they overlooked the river. They did many things together, and Eleanor even learned to fish for tadpoles. Often, she was only with her daydreams. On rainy days, Eleanor curled up with a book. Sometimes, Eleanor would visit Uncle Ted, Aunt Edith and her six cousins. Alice, who was her age, would make fun of Eleanor because she was “too serious.” One time, her uncle told her to go jump off the dock, but Eleanor didn’t know how to swim. She did it anyways, and almost drown. She wished to be brave like her father. One day, when Eleanor was turning fifteen, her grandma told her that she had to go to boarding school. This would be a new beginning. She arrived at Allenswood with her father’s letters. She left her old life behind her. Eleanor was liked here and she stood tall and proud in her uniform. The center of her life was Mlle. Souvestre, who inspired her to think for herself. Eleanor had a dress made for herself and she never loved one more. Years later, Eleanor arrived at the White House, as the first lady. Her husband-Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Characters: Eleanor, her father, her mother, Great-Aunt Gracie, Mlle. Souvestre, Alice, Aunt Pussie, Aunt Maude, Ellie, Brudie, Uncle Vallie

Plot: Eleanor needed to speak up for herself and live her own life. She was too far under the negative connotations and comments from her family and needed to start a new life.

Theme: Biography about Eleanor and how she committed herself and got far in life. By doing the things she did, she became the First Lady

Setting: Europe, the America’s

Opinion: I liked this story because it had a good message. It basically said that you can do anything. Once Eleanor went to boarding school and realized that she was the same as all of the other girls, she went very far in life and it just goes to show that if you put your mind to something and believe in yourself, you can do it. What other people think about you doesn’t matter.