Book Review: White Collar Girl

Author: Renee Rosen

Publication Date: November 3, 2015

Publisher: NAL

The latest novel from the bestselling author of Dollface and What the Lady Wants takes us deep into the tumultuous world of 1950's Chicago where a female journalist struggles with the heavy price of ambition...

Every second of every day, something is happening. There’s a story out there buried in the muck, and Jordan Walsh, coming from a family of esteemed reporters, wants to be the one to dig it up. But it’s 1955, and the men who dominate the city room of the Chicago Tribune have no interest in making room for a female cub reporter. Instead Jordan is relegated to society news, reporting on Marilyn Monroe sightings at the Pump Room and interviewing secretaries for the White Collar Girl column.

Even with her journalistic legacy and connections to luminaries like Mike Royko, Nelson Algren, and Ernest Hemingway, Jordan struggles to be taken seriously. Of course, that all changes the moment she establishes a secret source inside Mayor Daley’s office and gets her hands on some confidential information. Now careers and lives are hanging on Jordan’s every word. But if she succeeds in landing her stories on the front page, there’s no guarantee she’ll remain above the fold.…

“That’s not my plan.” It wasn’t. I didn’t even have a boyfriend. And yes, I was going to be the next Nellie Bly.

The WCG – White Collar Girl – column focused on stories for career-minded women, like secretaries and schoolteachers.

I couldn’t sleep that night. My mind was still back in the city room, my head full of typewriters plinking, telephones and news chatter.

Renee Rosen is at the top of my must read list. Whenever she publishes a new book, it will be on my to be read list and will not long after be in my hands. This book captures exactly what it is like to be a journalist in the 1950’s in Chicago. Rosen captures the time period in which she is writing about so well. Jordan Walsh is our leading lady; she is twenty-0ne and ready to prove herself to the world. She is the daughter of a journalist and a poet and wants to carry on the family tradition. Rosen’s world shows the way of life in the 1950’s better than any other I have read. Any journey that Rosen starts, please know that I will finish with her. I cannot say enough good things about her work. Jordan comes from a highly intellectual and literary couple, as I stated before, so I believe this is what allows me to connect with her even more. She was a phenomenal character and oh so beautifully written!

This historical fiction novel was just what I needed to kick off the holidays. It was cozy and made me really want to invest my time and interest into finishing the story. I found it hard to put the book down because the story was being so eloquently told. Another reason Rosen’s books speak so much to my heart is because she deals with gender politics and focuses on the way women were often viewed or treated throughout history. Jordan soon learns that she is living in a man’s world. The men that work with her think that she does not belong there and make life difficult for her. Jordan is also not given the opportunity to write or focus on the topics that she wishes to cover. She is made to write about Marilyn Monroe sightings, society news, juicy gossip, weddings, and more. This book was such a pleasure to get wrapped up in – I will do it again soon!

***A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at NAL in exchange for my honest review***