The Confidante
The Untold Story of the Woman Who Helped Win WWII and Shape Modern America
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4.5 • 30 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Perfect for readers of A Woman of No Importance, Three Ordinary Girls, and Eleanor: A Life comes the first-ever biography of Anna Marie Rosenberg, the Hungarian Jewish immigrant who became FDR’s closest advisor during World War II and, according to Life, “the most important official woman in the world”—a woman of many firsts, whose story, forgotten for too long, is extraordinary, inspiring, and uniquely American. Her life ran parallel to the front lines of history yet her influence on 20th century America, from the New Deal to the Cold War and beyond, has never before been told.
A Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee
"What The Confidante provides, with cinematic color and encyclopedic clarity, is a resurrection.” —THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
As Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s special envoy to Europe in World War II she went where the president couldn’t go. She was among the first Allied women to enter a liberated concentration camp, and stood in the Eagle’s Nest, Hitler’s mountain retreat, days after its capture. She guided the direction of the G.I. Bill of Rights and the Manhattan Project. Though Anna Rosenberg emerged from modest immigrant beginnings, equipped with only a high school education, she was the real power behind national policies critical to America winning the war and prospering afterward. Astonishingly, her story remains largely forgotten.
With a disarming mix of charm and Tammany-hewn toughness, Rosenberg began her career in public relations in 1920s Manhattan. She became friends with Eleanor Roosevelt, who recommended Anna to her husband, who was then running for Governor of New York. As FDR’s unofficial adviser, Rosenberg soon wielded enormous influence—no less potent for being subtle. Roosevelt dubbed her “my Mrs. Fix-It.” Her extraordinary career continued after his death.
By 1950, she was tapped to become the assistant secretary of defense—the highest position ever held by a woman in the US military—prompting Senator Joe McCarthy to wage an unsuccessful smear campaign against her. In 1962, she organized John F. Kennedy’s infamous birthday gala, sitting beside him while Marilyn Monroe sang. Until the end of her life, Rosenberg fought tirelessly for causes from racial integration to women’s equality to national health care.
More than the story of one remarkable woman, The Confidante explores who gets to be at the forefront of history, and why. Though she was not quite a hidden figure, Rosenberg’s position as “the power behind,” combined with her status as an immigrant and a Jewish woman, served to diminish her importance. In this inspiring, impeccably researched, and revelatory book, Christopher C. Gorham at last affords Anna Rosenberg the recognition she so richly deserves.
“Far and away the most important woman in the American government, and perhaps the most important official female in the world.” —LIFE magazine, 1952
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
High school history teacher Gorham debuts with an eye-opening biography of presidential adviser Anna Rosenberg (1899–1983). Born in Budapest, Rosenberg immigrated with her family to New York City in 1912. After high school, she joined the suffragist and labor movements and became the protégé of Tammany Hall boss James Hagan after confronting him over his opposition to women's suffrage. Eventually, Rosenberg opened her own business as a labor mediator and drew the attention of Eleanor Roosevelt and her husband, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who hired her as an adviser for first his gubernatorial, then presidential campaigns. Installed by Roosevelt as the "Labor Czar of Buffalo" in 1942, Rosenberg developed an influential plan to mobilize women workers to make up for labor shortages that were compromising the war effort. Following D-Day, Roosevelt sent Rosenberg to Europe to interview U.S. servicemen to help them "find places in the civilian economy upon their return," a mission that led to the creation of the G.I. Bill. In later administrations, Rosenberg helped remobilize the military for the Korean War and counseled President Johnson on creating a more equitable draft during the Vietnam War. Gorham also delves into Rosenberg's tangles with anticommunist senator Joseph McCarthy and suggests that "sexism and ethnic prejudice" have diminished her place in the historical record. This is a fitting tribute to a trailblazer. Correction: The author's name was misspelled in an earlier version of this review.
Customer Reviews
The Confidant
Was enjoying this book, but midway through, the page numbers advanced, but not the writing. So got as far as Fix-It, when the book stopped. Disappointing!