Propaganda Girls in an excellent account of an untold story of World War II. If you just rely on the traditional historical accounts, it is easy to miss this significant achievement of women both during the Second World War and the founding of the OSS (later the CIA). Rogak provides for us a powerful story of strong and clever women who used their talents to help America fight and win a war. They came from disparate backgrounds, but they all did amazing things in the war. This story tells us of their lives, often in their own words, and helps complete a picture that was missing some pieces.

Propaganda Girls is a real winner from start to finish! With a great cover and fascinating topic, readers are sure to enjoy this multi-biographical nonfiction read. Lisa Rogak gives us a view into the world of four women who bucked the restrictive role of women in wartime and carved out their place in history. Each woman has a very different life and very different experiences. We have Betty, the reporter who wanted more than to publish articles about food rationing. Zuzka leaves her homeland of Czechoslovakia in search of adventure and eventually becomes an American citizen and soldier. We also meet Jane Smith-Hutton, who gives us a unique look into being held prisoner in Japan during the war. Finally, our most famous woman, Marlene Dietrich is presented as never before as a strong advocate of the US and enemy of the Nazis.
Each chapter illustrates the concerted use of propaganda in both the European and Japanese fronts. Our female propagandists not only help spread the stories that helped change the war, they in many cases created the plan to use it. This book is a real page turner which could have only been strengthened by pictures. Sadly, there are no photographs in the book to enrich the reading experience. Rogak's story does make you want more. These are definitely women who belong in the pages of our history books.

I give the book 4.5 stars. I received a free ebook in exchange for a fair and unbiased review of the book. I like non-fiction. I like books about women and the war. This was one of the only books I have read of women in the resistance who weren't holocaust survivors.

The women and there stories are amazing. I can't imagine how strong these women were. The fact they all dealt with sexism is horrendous.

The book covers 4 women. At times, it would take me a minute to remember who was who. The stories were incredible.

The book was easy to read. The chapters were short. I finished the book in less than a week.

I am so thankful for the author and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book. Being back in the Trump times, the book seems even more relevant today.

There is a lot more to war than guns, tanks, and bombs. Government agencies like England’s SOE and the US’s OSS fought differently, with spies, saboteurs, and propagandists. This book describes four women who had the particular skills, motivations, and circumstances to make them useful in the OSS’s propaganda war.

Of course you’ll recognize the famous Marlene Dietrich, who’d been a celebrated German actress, musician and singer, but came to the US as a fervent anti-Nazi, willing to do anything to help the Allied war effort. Three other, lesser-known women, had unique skills and opportunities. Each of them traveled extensively, sometimes to dangerous places, working night and day to try to save American lives and shorten the war.

The book describes each woman’s prewar lives, their war work, and postwar lives. It’s impressive and entertaining to read about the clever tricks they played to weaken the Axis enemies. Anyone familiar with the period will not be surprised that they were not paid or treated appropriately, and that they struggled after the war to find rewarding work that was available to women and that came anywhere close to the intensity and meaning of their war work. The book isn’t an in-depth treatment, but it’s a decent read.

Betty, Jane, Zuzka, and Marlene: four very different woman who found a place creating propaganda for the OSS (forerunner of the CIA) during the second world war. Their job was to convince enemy soldiers to surrender or desert. Betty was a reporter from Hawaii. Zuzka was a language scholar from Czechoslovakia. Jane was the wife of a naval attaché stationed in Tokyo. Marlene was a German-American actress and singer. I knew nothing about the role these woman played and recommend the book to anyone interested in women's history, or in the history of World War II. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This was an amazing read! These women were so strong and brave. They did things I don’t know if I would have had the courage to even consider. This was an easy read, the words flowed and it was over before I realized. I could have read so many more pages because the author did such an awesome job.

I want to thank NetGalley and St Marins Press for this advanced reader copy. This is my honest opinion.

For me, this book contained too much speculation and conjecture about what the people involved were thinking and feeling. It's an interesting work of pop history, but I was looking for something a little more . . . factual.

I received an ARC from NetGalley.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: Mar. 4, 2025
Betty, Zuzka, Jane and Marlene (as in Dietrich) were four very different woman living in different parts of the world who had a very important thing in common- they were all members of the O.S.S. who contributed to the creation of propaganda that helped Allied soldiers during World War Two. All four woman created pamphlets, delivered radio broadcasts and wrote and contributed to news stories, mostly fabricated, in order to break the morale of enemy soldiers. Although very talented in their own ways, they were overlooked for promotions and pay raises, due to their gender, and found themselves floundering to find their place when the war was over.
Non-fiction writer Lisa Rogak’s “Propaganda Girls: The Secret War of the Women in the OSS” is a clever examination of four very inspiring women who did not settle for the lot they had been given and instead chose to seek out adventure and danger in foreign countries, all with the aim of helping the United States and its Allies.
With the many stories, fiction and non-fiction both, that feature women in World War Two at the forefront, it was refreshing to read Rogak’s clever iteration. “Girls” alternates so that the reader learns about each female in turn, from their upbringing to their experiences in the U.S Army, their lives after the War and their partners and children. It was fascinating to learn about the “Girls” as women first and war heroes second.
“Girls” is a historical glimpse of female camaraderie and the powerful changes that can happen as a result. The four women in the story rarely crossed paths, being from separate parts of the world and often working in different parts of the world, yet they performed the same job and managed to uplift and support each other.
Rogak has written a story that is compelling and interesting. There were no slow segments and I was pulled in from the beginning. Each of the four women had an inspiring and fascinating story to tell and Rogak ensured they were given the proper respect. Marlene Dietrich’s contribution is just as important and entertaining as Betty or Jane’s, and I found myself invested in the outcome of all of the four women equally.
Fans of historical non-fiction who are seeking to find out more about females in World War Two and their contributions should not ignore Rogak’s “Propaganda Girls”.

For nonfiction, I really liked the voice it was written in. I could really vividly imagine every sentence, while also being a bit amused like I was sitting down chatting with a friend.

As others have stated, Propaganda Girls is about four women--Betty, Zuzka, Jane, and the celebrated star Marlene Dietrich--and their individual contributions to the war effort during WWII. Each woman is given her own sections, although those sections do not rotate in a firm order. We learn about their backgrounds and skills, plucky personalities and different things they did to help boost morale and work behind the scenes. It's an interesting concept. I wish that the women's stories didn't rotate, that each one had her own full section, because, with the exception of Marlene Dietrich's, they started running together. Still, they are true stories that deserve to be told.

A deep dive into the lives and driving forces of four extraordinary women in an extraordinary time. The author's presentation is detailed and meticulously documented, but it is their lives and what drove them to do as they did that is the most memorable and amazing.
Did you know that Marlene played and entertained with a musical saw? Or that (long before the film Goldfinger) she suffered lead poisoning from being painted with gold for a movie?
There is a great amount of their lives that is there for the interested and it is worth noting that (in spite of being directly sprayed with DDT) they continued to live complicated lives until their 90s (or more)!
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected digital galley from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. Avail Mar 04, 2025
#PropagandaGirls by Lisa Rogak @lisarogak @stmartinspress
#OSS #WW2 #nonfiction #empowerment #BettyMacDonaldReporter 1915-2015 #ZuzkaLauwersLawyer 1914-2009 #JaneSmithHuttonPropagandist 1912-2002 #MarleneDietrichActressSinger 1901-1992 #USOtours #VoiceOfAmerica
#postWW2

This book tells the story of four women - Betty McDonald, Zuzka Lauwers, Jane Smith-Hutton, and Marlene Dietrich. All were recruited by the OSS (Office of Strategic Services) in World War II, to create propaganda that would break the morale of the Axis soldiers.
This was a fascinating read. With the exception of Marlene Dietrich, I had never heard of these women, and I only knew her as an actress. This is the first time I have heard this story, and that's a shame. It should be part of our known history. Highly, highly recommended.

I found this book to be interesting and informative! It's enjoyable to me when I learn new (to me) parts of history. In this book, we meet four women who undoubtedly helped the Allies in WWII.

Betty McIntosh, Zuzka Lauwers, Jane-Smith Hutton, and Marlene Dietrich were all highly intelligent women. Their boss, Donovan, allowed them to use their creativity to get the job done. They were also courageous. At any time, they could be discovered and killed.

This is the first book that I've read by this author, but it certainly won't be the last. The amount of research done for the book is very impressive.

I was provided a complimentary copy of the book from St. Martin's Press via Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a rather unexpected book for me, as it focused on four creative women during the course of WWII, working to help improve the Allies' chances in a long, horrible war, by doing their part to not only deceive the enemy, but also to bolster the morale of the Allied troops overseas. Many women, of course, did their part during that war, working jobs that ordinarily men would be performing, in factories and other industries to support the military, but the very few that did the specialized work for MO worked above and beyond what was expected of them. Very few of the women involved were famous like Marlene Dietrich was--she actually had a German bounty placed on her!--but what they all did was due to their immense patriotism. I really did enjoy this book!

This was such a fun book! Zuzka and Marlene were my favorite stories. Zuzka was amazing, joining the army and working harder and faster than any man around here. She deserved to be promoted more times than she was, but times were against women then. She’s absolutely a trailblazer though and I was so happy for her that things seemed to end up well for her.

Marlene was equally amazing. She loved entertaining the troops, “her boys”, and didn’t care what risk she put herself at. It was important to her to keep up the moral of Americans and she gave her heart and soul to it. I know she brought a lot of joy and light to some very dark times. She was not just a pretty face and refused to sit idly by. I read this book in a day, I could not put it down. These women were phenomenal and their story was incredible.

*I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.*

Lies, fake news and propaganda: it’s bad unless it’s used to win a war. Four women are highlighted with the unconventional skills they used to help end WWII.

This isn’t new. Since the early times, all forms of propaganda have been used as a power tool. It makes sense that it was also utilized by General William J. Donovan, director of the Office of Strategic Planning (OSS later named CIA).

What’s new, however, is that this book gives credit to women -- Betty MacDonald, Jane Smith-Hutton, Zurka Lauwers and Marlene Dietrich -- who were able to manipulate emotions with propaganda. Donovan understood the importance of women who could work behind the scenes in all sorts of ways. They formed a Morale Operations department and should have received awards for their outstanding roles undermining the enemies.

The book has four sections which documents the significant events that shaped the women before, during and after the war. It focused each of their lives and how they were able to influence the soldiers with their guilt-driven tactics through newswriting, radio broadcasting, and lyrics on stage.

However, I didn’t get an impression that these women worked together even though they were in the same department. You would think they might have stayed in contact somehow celebrating together in 1945 when it was over.

Nevertheless, a book like this takes an enormous amount of research gathering facts from interviews, news clippings and books. There was a lot to digest especially at the end when they had to bounce back into society after the war. It’s hard to imagine.

My thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of March 4, 2025.

Wow! This is a very interesting historical read. Different take on WWII starting with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. This book follows the lives of four women that enlisted to become Donovan’s girls. They used propaganda to help bring down the Germans and Japanese with half truths. Marlena Dietrich was a strong supporter by entertaining for the troupes. I learned a great deal about these courageous women and their contributions to ending the was. Highly recommend. I was given an advanced reader copy of this very well written book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review.

There have been a lot of history books on the OSS in recent years, as more and more documents and operations have been declassified or uncovered. This book does an excellent job highlighting the contribution of women in the OSS, an organization largely portrayed as 'men only'. This is a well-written and researched contribution to the overall subject of women in WWII as well.

BOOK REPORT
Received a complimentary copy of Propaganda Girls: The Secret War of the Women in the OSS, by Lisa Rogak, from St. Martin's Press/NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.

I had never heard of Propaganda Girls before earlier today, when I got an email from NetGalley telling me it was available to read. My interest was piqued because while I knew Marlene Dietrich played some role in World War II I wasn’t sure exactly what it was, and reading this book seemed like it would be a good way to fill in that particular gap in my knowledge.

And not only did it do that, it did it well. This is the sort of history book I enjoy reading—one that has a story arc to it, in addition to being factually correct, well written, and interesting. Not earth-shattering, by any means; just a good, serviceable nonfiction book.

DESCRIPTION
The incredible untold story of four women who spun the web of deception that helped win World War II.

Betty MacDonald was a 28-year-old reporter from Hawaii. Zuzka Lauwers grew up in a tiny Czechoslovakian village and knew five languages by the time she was 21. Jane Smith-Hutton was the wife of a naval attaché living in Tokyo. Marlene Dietrich, the German-American actress and singer, was of course one of the biggest stars of the 20th century. These four women, each fascinating in her own right, together contributed to one of the most covert and successful military campaigns in WWII.

As members of the OSS, their task was to create a secret brand of propaganda produced with the sole aim to break the morale of Axis soldiers. Working in the European theater, across enemy lines in occupied China, and in Washington, D.C., Betty, Zuzka, Jane, and Marlene forged letters and “official” military orders, wrote and produced entire newspapers, scripted radio broadcasts and songs, and even developed rumors for undercover spies and double agents to spread to the enemy. And outside of a small group of spies, no one knew they existed. Until now.

In Propaganda Girls, bestselling author Lisa Rogak brings to vivid life the incredible true story of four unsung heroes, whose spellbinding achievements would change the course of history.

This is such an eye opening read, the woman behind the scene that actually helped win WWII.
Through the words of the author she brings these women to life, and we learn a lot about them from beginning to end of their lives.
This is a book about Jane Smith-Hutton, Betty MacDonald, and Zuzka Lauwers, and Marlene Dietrich, the last being the only one I had heard of before.
All of these women came from vastly different background, but what they each had to offer, was exactly what the OSS, predecessor to the CIA, needed at the time. They really never got the recognition each and every one deserved!
I loved this informational read, and am so glad that others will get to meet and know these amazing women whom sacrificed so much!
I received this book through Net Galley and St. Martin's Press, and was not required to give a positive review.