Blanche Wiesen Cook (born April 20, 1941 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

) is a historian and professor of history. She is a recipient of the Bill Whitehead Award.

Books

Cook is the author of a three-volume biography about

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...

: ''Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume One 1884–1933'' (published 1992); ''Eleanor Roosevelt: Volume 2, The Defining Years, 1933–1938'' (2000); and ''Eleanor Roosevelt, Volume 3: The War Years and After, 1939-1962'' (2016). Volume One was awarded the 1992 Biography prize from the ''Los Angeles Times.'' A ''New York Times'' review of the third volume called the entire biography a "rich portrait" of the "monumental and inspirational life of Eleanor Roosevelt." NPR included the third volume in its "Best books of 2016." Notably, the biography details a disputed affair between Eleanor Roosevelt and reporter

Lorena Hickok Lorena Alice "Hick" Hickok (March 7, 1893 – May 1, 1968) was a pioneering American journalist and devoted friend and mentor to First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. After an unhappy and unsettled childhood, Hickok found success as a reporter for the ...

. (This affair has itself been the subject of other books.) She edited ''Toward the Great Change:

Crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macro ...

and

Max Eastman Max Forrester Eastman (January 4, 1883 – March 25, 1969) was an American writer on literature, philosophy and society, a poet and a prominent political activist. Moving to New York City for graduate school, Eastman became involved with radical ...

on Feminism, Antimilitarism, and Revolution,'' published in 1976, and ''

Crystal Eastman Crystal Catherine Eastman (June 25, 1881 – July 28, 1928) was an American lawyer, antimilitarist, feminist, socialist, and journalist. She is best remembered as a leader in the fight for women's suffrage, as a co-founder and co-editor with ...

on Women and Revolution'', published in 1978. Cook is also the author of ''The Declassified Eisenhower: A Divided Legacy of Peace and Political Warfare'', which was listed as a "notable book" in 1981 by the ''New York Times''. Cook wrote opinion pieces for the ''New York Times'', including "Clearly, Eisenhower Was a 'Militant Liberal'" (1980) and "The Trashing of CUNY" (1994).

Academic career

She is a Distinguished Professor of History and Women's Studies at

John Jay College of Criminal Justice The John Jay College of Criminal Justice (John Jay) is a public college focused on criminal justice and located in New York City. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY). John Jay was founded as the only liberal art ...

City University of New York The City University of New York ( CUNY; , ) is the public university system of New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven senior colleges, seven community colleges and seven pro ...

. She is also a Distinguished Professor at the

Graduate Center, CUNY The Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY Graduate Center) is a public research institution and post-graduate university in New York City. Serving as the principal doctorate-granting institution of the ...

. An oral history interview with Cook is included in the ''Living U.S. women's history oral history project, 1999–2005'', in which 51 scholars of women's history were interviewed. These oral histories are housed in the Sophia Smith Collection of Women's History at

Smith College Smith College is a private liberal arts women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smith and opened in 1875. It is the largest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite women's coll ...

. Cook co-founded the Freedom of Information and Access Committee of the

Organization of American Historians The Organization of American Historians (OAH), formerly known as the Mississippi Valley Historical Association, is the largest professional society dedicated to the teaching and study of American history. OAH's members in the U.S. and abroad inc ...

, is a former vice president for research at the

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...

, and was chair of the Fund for Open Information and Accountability. In 1988, Cook took part in The History and Consequences of Anticommunism conference, where she argued that “every moment of our era has been touched and diminished by this crusade.”

Honors

Cook received the 2010 Bill Whitehead Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Publishing Triangle.

References

External links

Profile from the Graduate Center, City University of New York
June 22, 1999

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cook, Blanche Wiesen American biographers American women biographers 1941 births Living people John Jay College of Criminal Justice faculty Graduate Center, CUNY faculty 21st-century American women