The First Ladies by Marie Benedict & Victoria Christopher Murray

The First Ladies is a historical fiction novel by bestselling authors Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray, published in paperback by Berkley (Penguin Random House) on June 4, 2024. The book spans 416 pages and is an instant New York Times bestseller as well as Target's 2023 Book of the Year.

The novel chronicles the remarkable true friendship between First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and civil rights trailblazer Mary McLeod Bethune — the daughter of formerly enslaved parents who rose to become an educator, activist, and advisor to U.S. presidents. Drawn together by their shared convictions about women's rights and the power of education, Eleanor and Mary forge a bond that deepens through two turbulent decades marked by the Great Depression, World War II, Jim Crow laws, and the ongoing fight for racial equality. Their story is told in alternating chapters, capturing both women's voices as they hold each other through tragedy and triumph.

The paperback edition (ISBN 9780593440292) is also available in hardcover (ISBN 9780593440285) and as an audiobook narrated by Robin Miles and Tavia Gilbert.