White Houses

A Novel

By: Amy Bloom

Narrated by: Tonya Cornelisse

Length: 6 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

For readers of The Paris Wife and The Swans of Fifth Avenue comes a “sensuous, captivating account of a forbidden affair between two women” (People).

Eleanor Roosevelt and “first friend” Lorena Hickok.

Named one of the best books of the year by:

• Financial Times
• San Francisco Chronicle
• New York Public Library
• Refinery29
• Real Simple

Lorena Hickok meets Eleanor Roosevelt in 1932 while reporting on Franklin Roosevelt's first presidential campaign. Having grown up worse than poor in South Dakota and reinvented herself as the most prominent woman reporter in America, "Hick", as she's known to her friends and admirers, is not quite instantly charmed by the idealistic, patrician Eleanor. But then, as her connection with the future first lady deepens into intimacy, what begins as a powerful passion matures into a lasting love, and a life that Hick never expected to have.

She moves into the White House, where her status as "first friend" is an open secret, as are FDR's own lovers. After she takes a job in the Roosevelt administration, promoting and protecting both Roosevelts, she comes to know Franklin not only as a great president but as a complicated rival and an irresistible friend, capable of changing lives even after his death. Through it all, even as Hick's bond with Eleanor is tested by forces both extraordinary and common, and as she grows as a woman and a writer, she never loses sight of the love of her life.

From Washington, D.C. to Hyde Park, from a little white house on Long Island to an apartment on Manhattan's Washington Square, Amy Bloom's new novel moves elegantly through fascinating places and times, written in compelling prose and with emotional depth, wit, and acuity.

Praise for White Houses:

“Amy Bloom brings an untold slice of history so dazzlingly and devastatingly to life, it took my breath away.” (Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife)

“Vivid and tender...Bloom - interweaving fact and fancy - lavishes attention on [Hickok], bringing Hick, the novel’s narrator and true subject, to radiant life.” (O: The Oprah Magazine)

©2018 Amy Bloom (P)2018 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"A remarkably intimate and yet informative novel of the secret, scandalous love of Eleanor Roosevelt and her longtime friend and companion Lorena Hickok, who relates the tale in her own, quite wonderful voice." (Joyce Carol Oates)

"Amy Bloom illuminates one of the most intriguing relationships in history. Lorena Hickok is a woman who found love with another lost soul, Eleanor Roosevelt. And love is what this book is all about: It suffuses every page, so that by the time you reach the end, you are simply stunned by the beauty of the world these two carved out for themselves." (Melanie Benjamin, author of The Swans of Fifth Avenue)

"Hick's pragmatic personality and wry sense of humor, well portrayed by narrator Tonya Cornelisse, determine the production's point of view, pace, and tone. Eleanor's patrician elocution and humanitarian sensibilities are depicted without imitation. Listeners discover the scope of the women's connection through various lenses, such as shared childhood tales on a train trip and a letter from Eleanor's cousin Parker Fiske. Cornelisse delivers these sections in a style that adds emotional dimension to the story." (AudioFile)

A very subtle love story

The reader threw me off at first hard to engage. However, I think that the reader captured the essence of her character. It was a great story, left a lot of information or holes in the story, but it came across beautifully written.

Beautiful story

I feel at times it was difficult to follow. Its written jumping back and forth through time and has some tangents, but overall it is a beautiful story.

A Great Story

I was a little doubtful about this audiobook because of some of the reviews, but I should not have been. It is a novel I will never forget, well written and the narration fits the story beautifully.

Beautiful

this book was so beautiful that it made me cry. I fell in love with both of these women and I didn't want the book to end.

Great read: not a great listen

I began listening to this audiobook while on a car trip, but my husband took an immediate dislike to the narrator. It was not until after I had finished actually READing the book, and liking it very much, that I went back to the audio version. I found that I could barely stand to listen to the voice actor's version of Hick's cigarette smoke-graveled voice. Unfortunate.

Wonderful, beautiful.

Exquisitely written and told. This book brings into light a wonderful and beautiful love between two women in a time that such love was an act of raw courage. Love wins.

Surpring Story

Wonderful love story I never heard of. So much great history and name dropping too.

Enjoyable and we'll written

The narration matched the character perfectly. Enjoyed the dialogue and intimate viewpoint into public figures.

Interesting

Beautifully told story of two lives that impact each other deeply. I wanted to step back in time to meet both of these people! #RelationshipsComeInAllForms #History #Inspirational #Tagsgiving #Sweepstakes

Touching story beautifully written

This book is precisely the reason I belong to a book club. I would likely never have even heard of this book, much less read it had it not been a selection of my book club. And I’m so glad I had the experience. A story of true love told with great love and respect for the characters. Wonderfully brought to life by the narration.