In this richly illustrated coming-of-age-story, FDR’s eldest grandson recreates the strange and magical world of the Roosevelt White House. Curtis Roosevelt was three when he and his sister arrived at the White House. The country’s “First Grandchildren,” they were known to the media, and to the American people, as “Sistie-and-Buzzie.” Roosevelt masterfully depicts “the goldfish bowl,” as his family called it—that glare of public scrutiny to which all presidential households must submit—and recounts his adventures as a child caught up in the heady atmosphere of his family’s complex relationships.

A unique portrait of two of the most influential figures in modern American history, Too Close to the Sun provides rich insights into the emotional impact of growing up in Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt’s irresistible aura.

Curtis Roosevelt was three when he and his sister, Eleanor, arrived at the White House soon after their grandfather’s inauguration. The country’s “First Grandchildren,” a pint-sized double act, they were known to the media as “Sistie and Buzzie.”

In this rich memoir, Roosevelt brings us into “the goldfish bowl,” as his family called it—that glare of public scrutiny to which all presidential households must submit. He recounts his misadventures as a hapless kid in an unforgivably formal setting and describes his role as a tiny planet circling the dual suns of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Blending self-abasement, humor, awe and affection, Too Close to the Sun is an intimate portrait of two of the most influential and inspirational figures in modern American history—and a thoughtful exploration of the emotional impact of growing up in their irresistible aura.