"What I have learned from my own experience is that the most important ingredients in a child's education are curiosity, interest, imagination and a sense of the adventure of life." --Eleanor Roosevelt, from You Learn by Living
In her introduction to this collection of Eleanor Roosevelt's sayings, editor Mary Jo Binker notes that the words collected here are from a woman who, like a diamond, was "multifaceted and brilliant," who left her indelible stamp on the office of First Lady, and was instrumental in the creation and passage of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Her careers spanned diplomacy, politics, education and journalism, and her convictions led her to become "an icon of female empowerment." Roosevelt's total writings are vast, and this collection endeavors to condense them into a digestible format (albeit more of a gift book than a volume of essays) while also providing a full bibliography to direct readers to the original sources. Nevertheless, with topics including politics and government, law, democracy, citizenship, voting, race, ethnicity, emotions, rights, ethics, faith and so much more, What Are We For presents a good picture of Roosevelt's values, her mores and why she remains a powerful feminist figure today. The quotes collected here remain inspiring and relevant in the current political, social and cultural context. They allow readers to step beyond their awareness of Roosevelt's most popular sayings, as passed around on the Internet or via greeting cards, and learn about the depth of this remarkable woman's mind. --Michelle Anya Anjirbag, freelance reviewer