Catherine Grace Katz's "The Daughters of Yalta: The Churchills, Roosevelts, and Harrimans in the Cold War"

Charles Salmans: The Daughters of Yalta

The wartime conference at Yalta in early 1945, which brought together Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Josef Stalin, came at an exceptionally important time as Germany was about to be defeated and the future of postwar Europe had yet to be determined. Invited to accompany their fathers were Roosevelt’s daughter Anna, Churchill’s daughter Sarah, and Kathleen, the daughter of Averell Harriman who at the time was U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union.

Author Catherine Grace Katz’s research into the three daughters’ letters, diaries, and reminiscences adds “you are there” insight to what we know about the most controversial meeting of World War II leaders. As such, it adds color and perspective to the historical record about the decisions taken — or not taken — over seven days.

We learn from Katz’s book that opportunities were wasted for Roosevelt and Churchill to coordinate positions prior to Yalta. Indeed FDR and daughter Anna went sightseeing in Malta, a stopover that would have allowed for the two leaders to consult with each other. Nor was Averell Harriman, who was prepared to give FDR a briefing on Stalin,...

United States on Oct 17, 2023

Zazzsu: World War II has been of particular interest to me as my father fought in the European theater. As a student and a teacher of history I have read and heard so much on the subject, but looking at it through the relationships of these women with their fathers is a welcome addition to what I already had learned. The insights here were interesting, especially how the women were able to compartmentalize what they did as daughters and as aides to their fathers. I'm glad Katz followed them beyond Yalta, showing how their relationships fared through the years beyond the times they worked with their fathers.

United States on Aug 06, 2023

andré lalonde: Trop de details redondant

Canada on Oct 10, 2022

Deborah Hatter: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I knew very little of the background to this period and found that it was presented in a very readable way. I really enjoyed the perspective from the three daughters. I would highly recommend it.

United Kingdom on Jul 17, 2022

NanaK: So unusual to read war history from the perspective of three young women who had access to the highest echelons of leadership. A must read - fascinating, compelling, and moving. We read this after reading The Splendid and the Vile (the male view of Churchill and WW2), and Clementine (another female perspective) and the three books make a great historiographic trilogy.

Canada on Jul 20, 2021

Will824: This is an easy to read, well-written book on the roles played by Sarah Churchill, Kathy Harriman and Anna Roosevelt during the Yalta Conference. It also serves as a useful, brief history of the Conference. Kathy Harriman and Sarah Churchill had had much experience serving their fathers in matters of state before Yalta, especially Harriman, and were far better prepared than Anna Roosevelt to deal with the various issues that arose at the Conference. The role Anna played at Yalta is, in some ways, a disturbing read. By the time of the Conference, February 1945, her father was barely able to function physically or mentally - he died two months later. Her main job seemed to have been to serve as a gatekeeper who, along with the President’s doctors, tried to cover up what was obvious to both Stalin and Churchill, ie, that FDR was not remotely able to function at the high level necessary to make Yalta a success for the Allies. (That the sickly Roosevelt agreed to travel thousands of miles to Yalta because Stalin requested that the Conference be held there was itself evidence of FDR’s cognitive decline at that point.). There was an understandable psychological component to how Anna...

United States on Jun 19, 2021