{ "item_title" : "The Yankee Sphinx", "item_author" : [" Mark Frost "], "item_description" : "A COMPASSIONATE story about one of the most consequential Americans of the 20th century. --Kirkus (STARRED review)An extraordinary work of historical fiction by the co-creator of TWIN PEAKS--a novel about one of FDR's closest wartime advisers and the president's final days, INSPIRED BY THE AUTHOR'S OWN FAMILYIn 1934, Will Hassett is working as a journalist when he gets a call from an old friend who now works at the White House. He arrives expecting to catch up on old times but is instead brought right into the Oval Office to meet with Franklin D. Roosevelt. FDR needs help on his speeches; Will takes the job on the spot. For the next twelve years, Will is at FDR's side through the worst of the Depression, three reelection campaigns, and World War II.The Yankee Sphinx, inspired by Will Hassett's real diaries, focuses on the last few years of FDR's life. The war is raging in Europe and FDR's good friend, Winston Churchill, begs for America's help. But Roosevelt knows he can't bring the country in until it's ready, an opportunity that won't arise until the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor in 1941. From Will's empathetic perspective, we witness FDR managing the Allied military campaign abroad and parrying shots from isolationist politicians at home--all while reckoning with his rapidly deteriorating health. Will and Anna, Roosevelt's daughter, plot an intervention to get him a doctor more up to speed on a new discipline called cardiology so the president can maintain his strength and end the war. Elegantly written, bursting with personality, and perfectly capturing life in wartime Washington, The Yankee Sphinx is a marvelous work by one of our most versatile writers.", "item_img_path" : "https://covers3.booksamillion.com/covers/bam/1/25/087/689/1250876893_b.jpg", "price_data" : { "retail_price" : "29.99", "online_price" : "29.99", "our_price" : "29.99", "club_price" : "29.99", "savings_pct" : "0", "savings_amt" : "0.00", "club_savings_pct" : "0", "club_savings_amt" : "0.00", "discount_pct" : "10", "store_price" : "" } }

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The task of the contemporary historical novel is to recreate the consciousness of its chosen epoch, engendering compassion and perspective. The point, as Mark Frost’s new novel The Yankee Sphinx shows, is to give contemporary readers an experience of times they could otherwise only know through textbooks and documents. The writer and co-creator of the cult classic television phenomenon Twin Peaks returns with a novel tackling a turning point in the history of the United States: the presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the second World War. While featuring familiar major players of the period, the cast of The Yankee Sphinx is fronted by a few unsung heroes. 

In 1935, Will Hassett is a journalist who receives a call from an old friend with news that’s about to change his life: He’s been handpicked by FDR to work as a speechwriter. Will immediately begins working intimately with the president right as the U.S. is on the brink of stepping into the action of WWII. He gets along famously with his new boss—the president, fond of nicknames for those closest to him, starts calling Will “Bishop” because of his Irish Catholic roots and his devotion and solemnity (Will even has a past as a would-be priest). After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Winston Churchill comes to stay at the White House to negotiate an alliance, bringing his larger-than-life personality into the mix. Still, while FDR, Churchill and Eleanor Roosevelt fill the page whenever they appear, it’s Will and the Roosevelts’ daughter, Anna—with whom Will forms a friendship—who are at the heart of the story, both concerned with the human needs of the aforementioned titans.

The Yankee Sphinx highlights Frost’s ability to render for readers the suspense that these vital moments had while reminding us that, though our leaders might seem to be virtuous and clear-headed, oftentimes they are just as confused as anyone else. By showing the humanity behind the history, Frost unearths the past, not as we would have it (which is to say, the way history is often written) but as it truly was. The past, after all, is one of the few things we all share.