Drawing on historical documents and interviews with the long-silent 'illegitimate' branch of the family, celebrity biographer William J. Mann paints a group portrait of this legendary family. Mann argues that the Roosevelts' rise to power and prestige was driven by a series of intense personal contests that at times devolved into blood sport. Eleanor Roosevelt experienced this brutality firsthand, witnessing her uncle Theodore cruelly destroy her father, Elliott -- Theodore's brother and bitter rival -- for political expediency. This 'worshipful niece,' Mann contends, in fact bore a grudge against TR for the rest of her life. A new understanding of Eleanor, as well as of her relationship with Franklin, emerges. Mann also brings into focus Eleanor's cousins, TR's children -- Alice, Ted, and Kermit -- whose stories propelled the family rivalry. We also learn the story of Eleanor's illegitimate half-brother, Elliott Roosevelt Mann, who inherited his family's ambition and skills without their name and privilege, and whom TR did his best to exile. Illustrated with never-before-seen photographs from Elliott's archives, The Wars of the Roosevelts is a deeply psychological history, illuminating not only the enviable strengths but also the profound shame of this remarkable and influential family.