In an age untouched by feminist principles, in a time of grave world peril, the daughter of poor Irish immigrants became the valued employee and confidante of the most influential man in the world.

Marguerite LeHand met Franklin Delano Roosevelt when she was an ambitious young office worker, having chosen that profession after a bout of rheumatic fever made motherhood unlikely and physical work impractical. It was 1920, and he was running for Vice President. She and her boss quickly bonded, and she was cosseted by the Roosevelt brood, who nicknamed her “Missy.” She was accorded special perks, like her own private room at Warm Springs where she accompanied FDR for his therapy visits.

"In Smith’s capable hands, LeHand has been given her rightful due --- a lively, intimate, exhaustively researched biography."

Missy’s value to the President was shown in her ability to manage people; she became his ears and eyes, shunting acquaintances in and out of his presence, offering discreet insights and jolly camaraderie behind the scenes. In public, too, she shone, able to fill a fashionable gown for state galas. Her aptitude in meeting and greeting gave her a unique edge; the press knew it and courted her. She hobnobbed with some of the vibrant politicos of the FDR years --- Joe Kennedy, Harold Ickes, Tommy Corcoran --- and stood in for the ever-busy First Lady as hostess when the occasion demanded, as it often did.

In private, Missy managed to have at least one love affair, despite the constant need to be on call for FD, as she alone called him. She and ambassador William Bullitt managed sporadic trysts in a romantically charged liaison with many crossing letters. Nonetheless, whether or not her relationship with FD went beyond mere business (and evidence for that is more presumed than proven), he was always the central figure in her life. And the affection went both ways: Missy, who predeceased FD, left her possessions to the Roosevelts, and he arranged a substantial inheritance for her, the only person outside the family so honored.

Journalist and author Kathryn Smith professes a lifelong admiration for FDR and LeHand; when she learned there was no comprehensive chronicle of this remarkable woman, she resolved to create one. In Smith’s capable hands, LeHand has been given her rightful due --- a lively, intimate, exhaustively researched biography.

Few people since, if any, have had the strong bond with the highest officer in the land that LeHand enjoyed. That she never violated his trust made her worthy of the responsibility.