The interviews with her sister were quite interesting, especially the way the competition Mama Rose had instilled in them since birth continued when both recognized where it really came from but neither chose to do anything to change it. Mama Rose wasn't really covered in depth in this book, so her motives didn't really reveal anything about Gypsy herself that most fans wouldn't have already known. I was hoping it would go deeper into the unique relationship Rose had with her mother. With a supporting cast of such Jazz- and Depression-era heavyweights as Lucky Luciano, Harry Houdini, FDR, and Fanny Brice, Karen Abbott weaves a rich narrative of a woman who defied all odds to become a legend - and whose sensational tale of tragedy and triumph embodies the American Dream. Modeling their shows after the glitzy, daring reviews staged in the theaters of Paris, the Minsky brothers relied on grit, determination, and a few tricks that fell just outside the law - and they would shape, and ultimately transform, the landscape of American entertainment. Using exclusive interviews and never-before-published material, she vividly delves into Gypsy’s world, including her intensely dramatic triangle relationship with her sister, actress June Havoc, and their formidable mother, Rose, a petite but ferocious woman who seduced men and women alike and literally killed to get her daughters on the stage.Īmerican Rose chronicles their story, as well as the story of the four scrappy and savvy showbiz brothers from New York City who would pave the way for Gypsy Rose Lee’s brand of burlesque. With her superb narrative skills and eye for compelling detail, Karen Abbott brings to vivid life an era of ambition, glamour, struggle, and survival. Enter Gypsy Rose Lee, a strutting, bawdy, erudite stripper who possessed a preternatural gift for delivering exactly what America needed. When the dust settled, Americans were primed for a star who could distract them from grim reality and excite them in new, unexpected ways. But then, almost overnight, the Great Depression leveled everything.

Speakeasies beckoned beyond dimly lit doorways money flowed fast and free.

Talking pictures were only a distant flicker. Now she returns with the gripping and expansive story of America’s coming-of-age - told through the extraordinary life of Gypsy Rose Lee and the world she survived and conquered. With the critically acclaimed Sin in the Second City, best-selling author Karen Abbott “pioneered sizzle history” ( USA Today).

American Rose by Karen Abbott