OVERVIEW

“If you haven’t got anything nice to say about anyone, come and sit here by me.” (Alice Roosevelt Longworth)

Long before Paris, even long before Zsa Zsa, there was Alice. Theodore Roosevelt’s eldest daughter was known for drinking, smoking, and gambling. She was rarely found without her pistol, her copy of the Constitution, or her pet snake. She was charming and witty and, despite her antics, she was America’s princess. And, having lost her mother just hours after she was born, all she ever really wanted was the love and attention of her father.

When an anarchist assassinates President McKinley, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt is propelled into the Executive Office. Just days after McKinley’s untimely death, Theodore, his prickly wife, Edith, his precocious 14-year-old son, Ted Jr., and his rebellious, rambunctious, 17-year-old daughter, Alice, find themselves living in the White House. While Theodore grapples with the challenges of having inherited the most powerful office in the world, his family must learn to navigate friendships, romances, and familial relationships while standing in the spotlight that has been forced upon them. Through it all, Alice must come to terms with the fact that, even though he may be one of the most respected men on the planet, Theodore may never be the father she needs.

Based on true, historical events, Crowded Hours is the story of the fierce tribalism and savage rivalry that defined the complicated Roosevelt family, told from Alice’s perspective. It is a story for American history buffs, for those who yearn to know more about our nation’s past, and for anyone who has ever felt that intense, confusing, undeniable combination of loving and loathing for the people we call family.