American Woman - by Katie Rogers (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The first definitive exploration of the role of the twenty-first century First Lady, painting a comprehensive portrait of Jill Biden and the evolution of the First Lady's role from ceremonial figurehead to political operative-from a White House correspondent for The New York Times. Since the Clinton era, tectonic shifts in media, politics, and pop culture have all redefined expectations of First Ladies, even as the boundaries set upon them have at times remained frustratingly anachronistic. With sharp insights and dozens of firsthand interviews with major players in the Biden, Obama, Trump, Bush, and Clinton orbits, including Jill Biden and Hillary Clinton, New York Times White House correspondent Katie Rogers traces, from the dawn of the twenty-first century, the evolution of the role of First Lady into a modern power broker with the potential to deliver on behalf of the president, while also painting a full portrait of Jill Biden. Dr. Jill Biden began her journey toward public life in 1975 as a separated twenty-three-year-old who caught the eye of a widowed Senator Joe Biden. Recovering from her own heartbreak after a failed marriage, she found a man who was still grieving. He drew her into his close-knit family, and, in return, she knitted his life together after unspeakable tragedy, raised his children as her own, and stood by his side through three presidential campaigns. Along the way, they weathered shared tragedies of their own. Over the past four decades, Jill Biden has nurtured her husband's ambitions and emerged as a prime guardian of one of the most insular operations in modern politics. But she has also struggled with low approval ratings, critical headlines, and a changing Washington much different from the one that she and her husband first encountered together in the late 1970s. She is a disciplined First Lady by design, mirroring her family's guarded approach to the public and the media. She is also the only First Lady in history to work outside of the White House in a paid role as a teacher, a choice that was received with a mix of acclaim and misogyny. It was a decision that will inevitably clear a path for future first spouses to keep their chosen careers. Through deep reporting and new correspondence, American Woman is the first book to paint a comprehensive portrait of Jill Biden and grapple with the idea of what the role of a modern First Lady should be"--

Book Synopsis

The first definitive exploration of the changing role of the twenty-first-century First Lady, painting a comprehensive portrait of Jill Biden--from a White House correspondent for The New York Times

"A fascinating and deeply researched exploration into the most public facing and least understood role in Washington."--Kate Andersen Brower, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Residence and First Women

Since the Clinton era, shifts in media, politics, and pop culture have all redefined expectations of First Ladies, even as the boundaries set upon them have often remained anachronistic. With sharp insights and dozens of firsthand interviews with major players in the Biden, Obama, Trump, Bush, and Clinton orbits, including Jill Biden and Hillary Clinton, New York Times White House correspondent Katie Rogers traces the evolution of the role of the twenty-first-century First Lady from a ceremonial figurehead to a powerful political operator, which culminates in the tenure of First Lady Jill Biden.

Dr. Jill Biden began her journey toward public life in 1975 as a twenty-three-year-old who caught the eye of a widowed Senator Joe Biden. Recovering from the heartbreak of her failed first marriage, she found a man who was still grieving. She knitted his life together after unspeakable tragedy and stood by his side through three presidential campaigns.

In some ways, her legacy as First Lady was set before she ever entered the White House: She is the first presidential spouse in history to work in a paid role outside the White House, a decision that blazes the path for future first spouses. But as a prime guardian of one of the most insular operations in modern politics, she is also a central part of her husband's presidential legacy.

Through deep reporting and newly discovered correspondence, American Woman is the first book to paint a full picture of Jill Biden while exploring how she helps answer the evolving question of what the role of the modern First Lady should be.

Review Quotes

"[A] deeply interesting, and thoroughly researched, look at the role of First Lady."--Town & Country

"[Katie] Rogers is a gimlet-eyed White House reporter for the New York Times who writes with more verve than many on the beat, and she has studded her book with delicious aperçus and insider tea."--The Washington Post

"The continued existence of [Jill] Biden's teaching career illustrates how inviolable assumptions about first ladies can seem--until they are smashed by the obstinacy of an individual woman."--The Atlantic

"Rogers is personable, relatable, and witty about the absurdities that accompany covering the White House."--Los Angeles Review of Books

"From one of our shrewdest students of the Presidency comes this trenchant, fresh and fascinating story of Jill Biden and earlier First Ladies in our time, and how--both in public and private--they have transformed what we should expect of a Presidential spouse."--Michael Beschloss

"Katie Rogers's fresh reporting offers striking revelations about the inner lives of the first ladies. Each of these women has faced the society's fickle expectations and arbitrary limitations on female power."--Kate Andersen Brower, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Residence and First Women

"American Woman is a triumph. Katie Rogers brings each of her subjects alive on the page with the care, empathy, guts, and first-class reporting chops that have made her one of the most powerful political writers of the century."--Olivia Nuzzi, Washington correspondent for New York magazine

"Americans expect a lot from their first ladies and throughout our history many of their contributions have been overlooked. Katie Rogers explores the challenges first ladies face in both meeting and defying those expectations."--Anita McBride, executive-in-residence at American University and author of U.S. First Ladies

"With deep reporting and revealing firsthand anecdotes, American Woman takes readers inside the East Wing and into the bizarrely essential role of an American First Lady."--Kate Bennett, former CNN White House correspondent, author of Free, Melania

"Katie Rogers illuminates this elite club of American women, including their varied personalities and lasting impact."--Mary Jordan, national political correspondent for The Washington Post, author of The Art of Her Deal

"Katie Rogers shows us the knowledge, wisdom, tenacity, and world-building powers some of the most famous women were holding right in front of us."--Sam Sanders, founding co-host of The NPR Politics Podcast

"Katie Rogers rigorously examines the notion of legacy and the first lady in the modern era."--Booklist, starred review

"A well-written, extensively researched account of a challenging role in the public eye."--Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Katie Rogers is a White House correspondent for The New York Times, where she has worked since 2014. She has traveled the world covering two presidential administrations, writing extensively about domestic policy, foreign policy and the complicated dynamics of first families. A native Hoosier, Katie lives in Washington, D.C., with her husband and daughter. This is her first book.