I hadn't heard about Missy Meloney before reading "American Queenmaker" and I'm sad to think that such an impressive woman has been largely forgotten.

This book is an easy to read biography about a fascinating woman who met all the famous men and women of her time, helping them and their careers, while remaining in the shadows herself. It was truly fascinating to read and I'm in awe of all the things this woman achieved in her lifetime.

The only thing I didn't like was that the author occasionally pushed her own views a little to hard for my liking, but it didn't really detract from my enjoyment of reading more about Missy Meloney.

Marie “Missy” Mattingly Meloney (1878-1943) was a remarkable woman and led a remarkable life and I am astonished that she is so little known. “Journalist, publicist, social reformer, mother, rainmaker, diplomat, political operative, and patron of women, the arts and sciences” as one description puts it. She knew just about everyone who mattered in the US and indeed many influential people all over the world. She travelled extensively and never missed an opportunity to meet the movers and shakers of the country she was in. She worked tirelessly for women, understanding that they could influence the world from behind the scenes just as effectively as the men out on the world stage. Constant ill-health plagued her throughout her life but she was indefatigable in her campaigning for the causes she believed in. She advised Presidents from Hoover to FDR, and was enormously influential in the career of Marie Curie, raising vast sums of money for her work. This meticulously and thorough biography will restore Missy to her rightful place in social history. In view of the importance of the book, it is a shame a more watchful editor didn’t pick up on some of the stylistic infelicities. The one that really jarred with me was the constant use of the word “optics”, which the author seems to use to mean “image” or the “look of things”. I have never seen this used anywhere else, and to call Missy “a creator of optics” is very clumsy. Then to call Marie Curie just Curie, as she does throughout, also jarred, especially as she then calls Margot Asquith “Countess Margot Asquith”, which isn’t the usual way to refer to her (although she was indeed a Countess). Inconsistent to say the least. And Marie Curie’s daughter Eve has an accent on the first E all the way through, which is simply wrong. Minor quibbles perhaps but for me they detracted from the overall merit of the book. As did the fact that the author overstates her case far too often, almost turning a biography into a hagiography. No need to keep telling us what a wonderful woman Missy was – the reader will come to this conclusion independently. Nevertheless, quibbles apart, I really enjoyed this account of a woman I’d never heard of and I was very pleased to make her acquaintance.

How is it that I'd never heard of Missy Meloney? I studied U.S. History and never even knew that she existed. This book gives her the long-overdue credit for advancing women's interests in the U.S.!

Thank you to Net Galley and Perseus Books, Basic Books for the chance to read and review this book. I really liked this book! Even though it was long, it was well worth the read. This is the story of Missy Meloney, born in 1878. Even though she could not vote, she realized the influence women could have in the world. She worked tirelessly all of her life to improve the living conditions for women. Even though she battled health issues throughout her life, she continued to be involved in politics and world issues. I had never heard of Missy Meloney, but I'm glad I came across this book. It was VERY well researched and Missy certainly deserves all the credit she is given in this book. She led an incredible life. I highly recommend this book!