Thursday, December 9, 2010

On the 14th day of Christmas, Babbitt's Books gave to me . . .

. . . three Eleanor-Roosevelt-centric books in honor of Human Rights Day (December 10th) and four Emily Dickinson books in honor of Emily Dickinson's birthday (December 10th). 


Human Rights Day honors the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (which may be read hereby the UN General Assembly in 1948. Though not a treaty, the declaration has since been adopted into most of the world's nations' constitutions. Eleanor Roosevelt figures into the equation because she served as the first chairwoman of the Commission for Human Rights (CHR), helped draft the declaration, and ardently supported it. 

First up in our small Eleanor Roosevelt library is The Extraordinary Mrs. R: A Friend Remembers Eleanor Roosevelt (1999) by William Turner Levy. Levy talks about international and political events that involve Roosevelt, but as her personal friend, also writes about never-before-read anecdotes.


Second up is volume II of Blanche Wiesen Cook's 1999 biography, Eleanor Roosevelt: 1933-1938. The first volume of this biography caused a ruckus when it was first released because of  Cook's claim that Roosevelt had a romantic affair with reporter Lorena Hickok. Though we have volume II only, both volumes were published separately and can be read separately. 



Last up is Eleanor Roosevelt's own take on her life, simply titled This is My Story (1937). This is an older, '50s-era edition and also an ex-library discard, but that shouldn't discourage you from checking it out, no pun intended. The pages are still nice and clean, and the content is just as good as ever. 



All of these books are superb candidates if you want to learn about the smart, dynamic figure that was Eleanor Roosevelt. 

If you'd prefer to celebrate Dickinson's birthday instead on December 10th, that's okay with us, too. We have at least four books of her poetry, all in very good condition. Three are her collected poems and one is Final Harvest, edited by Thomas H. Johnson. They range in price from $3 to $5. Famed recluse Dickinson was almost the opposite of the outgoing, politically active Roosevelt, but you'll find her quiet observations and social commentary no less wise than Roosevelt's. 


Title: The Extraordinary Mrs. R: A Friend Remembers Eleanor Roosevelt
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Year: 1999
Condition: Very Good
Price: $4

Title: Eleanor Roosevelt: 1933-1938
Publisher: Viking
Year: 1999
Condition: Very Good
Price: $5

Title: This Is My Story
Publisher: Harper & Brothers, Publishers
Year: 1937
Condition: G+ (Ex-library, no dust jacket)
Price: $8

Title: The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Classics
Year: 2003
Condition: Very Good
Price: $3

Title: Selected Poems of Emily Dickinson
Publisher: The Modern Library
Year: circa 1960s
Condition: Very Good-
Price: $4

Title: Final Harvest: Emily Dickinson
Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
Year: circa 1990s
Condition: Very Good-
Price: $4

Title: Collected Poems
Publisher: Courage Books
Year: 1991
Condition: Very Good
Price: $5

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