Description

Propaganda Girls tells the fascinating and previously untold story of four extraordinary women who masterminded a secret campaign of deception to help the Allies win World War II.

Betty MacDonald, a young reporter from Hawaii, was just twenty-eight years old when she joined the secret team. Zuzka Lauwers, fluent in five languages by age twenty-one, grew up in a tiny village in Czechoslovakia. Jane Smith-Hutton, the wife of a naval attaché stationed in Tokyo, provided invaluable covert assistance. And Marlene Dietrich, the renowned German-American singer and Hollywood actress, used her celebrity and influence to play a critical role behind the scenes.

Individually remarkable and collectively unstoppable, these four women worked undercover as part of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), crafting specialized propaganda designed exclusively to undermine Axis troop morale. Across occupied territories—from the heart of wartime Europe to behind enemy lines in China and even from offices in Washington D.C.—Betty, Zuzka, Jane, and Marlene created fake letters, counterfeit official military orders, produced clandestine newspapers, wrote scripts for radio broadcasts, and composed songs. They also carefully planted rumors that double agents and undercover operatives spread deep within enemy territory.

For decades after the war ended, their story remained hidden—known only among a select few in intelligence circles. Now, acclaimed bestselling author Lisa Rogak vividly illuminates the incredible achievements of these four brave women who, through their creativity and courage, quietly reshaped the course of history.