Eleanor (Picture Puffins)

I bought this polarizing book simply because I was curious about the reviews. Some love it... some definitely do not! But I trust Barbara Cooney as an author, and I was very eager to read it when it arrived. My opinion is that it is an excellent book BUT it is for middle school children. This is not a picture book in the classic sense of the word (Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, Blueberries for Sal). Her life was just so hard. But it really made me admire the woman she became! If you're homeschooling I say you and your child should definitely read this book, but save it for the older grades.

Well, bring honest, I really don’t think the book’s content is appropriate for a younger kid. I will not read it to my kid, so I have to return it.

This is a picture book. So, presumably the intended age is about 3-5 years old. When I read this to my 4 year old, I was horrified at how it kept harping on the fact throughout that little Eleanor (a name my daughter shares) was so ugly. Really? You think this is a good thing to read to little girls? I'm trying to teach my daughters not to use words like ugly and fat and not to be cruel to their friends, and this book comes right out and says she was ugly. Has this author ever watched preschool girls play?The story itself was also not very well crafted for this age group. It opens not with an explanation that this is the story about a little girl who grew up to do great things, or any really introductory language, but with a rather odd sentence that Eleanor was a disappointment to her mother because she was such an ugly baby. I didn't find the story, as told in this book, to be very uplifting at all. Her grace in maturity didn't translate well at all to a little kid, and given the large number of pages devoted to her early and depressing years, it didn't really make up for it. The whole book was depressing for both me and my 4 year old.

This is my childhood book. My favorite book ever! And yes, I'm 20, in college and I decided to buy this book as my inspiration because life is so hard. I look up to Eleanor Roosevelt because she was so strong. Through everything she endured, she kept going through her life and helped so many others in the process. This book is beautiful and will remind your child that no matter what others may see in them or how they treat them, they're still someone great, even when the odds are stacked against them.

What a nicely illustrated and written children's book about Eleanor's childhood and young adulthood. Entrancing for young and old alike. Children will be able to imagine a time gone by, and their imaginations will be stirred about this wondrous woman. I bought the book for my elderly mother, as Eleanor Roosevelt is one of her top heroes. She loved it.

Great book about a great lady. Appropriate for children. I purchased this book for my six year old daughter after she took an interest in Eleanor Roosevelt during a first grade biography project. She loves this book and is always asking to read it before bed!

My 7-year-old and I love reading this book together. I wouldn't suggest it for a child much younger than that. It's a little depressing at first but delivers a wonderful moral.

Purchased this for our daughter, Eleanor. Great illustrations and she likes reading about Eleanor Roosevelt.

Una storia triste ma reale della vita di Eleanor Roosevelt. Disegni bellissimi, come tutti i disegni di Barbara Cooney. Perfetto per approfondire l’inglese della mia figlia di 7 anni.

決して読んで心あたたまるという絵本ではないが、後にファーストレディとなったエレノア・ルーズベルトの子ども時代を描いた作品。他の伝記でも、エレノアは幸福な子ども時代ではなかったという記述は読んでいたが、これほどとは思わなかった。器量自慢の母は生まれたときからエレノアが気に入らず、客の前でも自分の娘をからかって「おばあちゃん」と呼んだという。父親は愛情は注いだものの、アルコール中毒で、家にはあまり寄りつかなかった。そして両親とも早死にし、エレノアは祖母の家へ引き取られるが、ここでも彼女を親身になって世話をしてくれる大人は誰もいなかった。裕福でも遺棄といってよいような状態である。十代になって寄宿舎学校に入り、そこで恩師となる校長に出会わねばエレノアの人生はどうなっていたことだろう。心に深く残る一冊。

A lovely book - for children and grown-ups too. Beautiful illustrations and a heartfelt, inspiring story, lovingly told, of Eleanor Roosevelt's early years. I am delighted with my purchase.