Dear First Lady: Letters to the White House - Hardcover

Dwight Young is the author of Alternatives to Sprawl, Saving American’s Treasures, and the bestselling Dear Mr. President: Letters to the Oval Office from the Files of the National Archives. He is perhaps best known as the author of the regular "Back Page" feature of Preservation magazine. He has been actively involved in historic preservation for more than 25 years.

Margaret Johnson is an illustrations researcher based in Washington, D.C. She was honored with an Emmy Award nomination in 2006 for her work on the PBS documentary American Experience: Victory in the Pacific. Her books include Dear Mr. President; An American Idea: The Making of the National Parks; Songcatchers; and Battlegrounds: Geography and the History of Warfare.

Grade 5–9—Young and Johnson provide a glimpse into America's political and social history through letters received and written by the presidents' wives. Images of original correspondences appear opposite narratives that provide accessible historical context. Additional drawings and photographs enhance the visual experience. The letters range in content from politically significant to personally insightful. Dolley Madison describes her famed 1814 flight from the White House during the War of 1812 and dramatic rescue of Washington's portrait to her sister. Queen Victoria comforts Mary Todd Lincoln after her husband's assassination. Jane Pierce writes elaborate messages to her dead son, revealing the fragility of her grief-stricken mind. Sometimes, the letters provide an opportunity to notice contradictions present in these famous women. Eleanor Roosevelt denounces the racial discrimination practiced by the Daughters of the American Revolution, and on the next page makes excuses for the policy of Japanese Internment. What emerges is not only a portrait of the privilege and power of these women, but also a palpable sense of their humanity. A few of the letters are neither politically nor personally significant and one wonders why they were included. The occasional triviality of the subject matter, as well as the book's lack of index, make it an enjoyable example of anecdotal history rather than a source for serious research. While the original documents give the book an appealing primary-source quality, the handwritten words are often hard to decipher. The authors provide transcriptions for selected letters at the back of the book. A vibrant, but not vital, addition to most collections.—Emma Burkhart, formerly at The Winsor School, Boston, MA
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