What do you think?
Rate this book
The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison: America's First Female Foreign Intelligence Agent
In September 1918, World War I was nearing its end when Marguerite E. Harrison, a thirty-nine-year-old Baltimore socialite, wrote to the head of the U.S. Army’s Military Intelligence Division (MID) asking for a job. The director asked for clarification. Did she mean a clerical position? No, she told him. She wanted to be a spy. Harrison, a member of a prominent Baltimore family, usually got her way. She had founded a school for sick children and wangled her way onto the staff of the Baltimore Sun. Fluent in four languages and knowledgeable of Europe, she was confident she could gather information for the U.S. government. The MID director agreed to hire her, and Marguerite Harrison became America’s first female foreign intelligence officer. For the next seven years, she traveled to the world’s most dangerous places—Berlin, Moscow, Siberia, and the Middle East—posing as a writer and filmmaker in order to spy for the U.S. Army and U.S. Department of State. With linguistic skills and knack for subterfuge, Harrison infiltrated Communist networks, foiled a German coup, located American prisoners in Russia, and probably helped American oil companies seeking entry into the Middle East. Along the way, she saved the life of King Kong creator Merian C. Cooper, twice survived imprisonment in Russia, and launched a women’s explorer society whose members included Amelia Earhart and Margaret Mead. As incredible as her life was, Harrison has never been the subject of a published book-length biography. Past articles and chapters about her life relied heavily on her autobiography published in 1935, which omitted and distorted key aspects of her espionage career. Elizabeth Atwood draws on newly discovered documents in the U.S. National Archives, as well as Harrison’s prison files in the archives of the Russian Federal Security Bureau in Moscow, Russia. Although Harrison portrayed herself as a writer who temporarily worked as a spy, this book documents that Harrison’s espionage career was much more extensive and important than she revealed. She was one of America’s most trusted agents in Germany, Russia and the Middle East after World War I when the United States sought to become a world power.
300 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 1, 2020
5 people are currently reading
61 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
August 15, 2021
Marguerite Harrison: America's first female foreign intelligence agent is an interesting subject. The author has obviously done some deep research but informs the reader that Marguerite kept no journal or diaries so much has to be guesstimated.
Early on I didn’t care for Marguerite. She was nearing 40 yrs.old and a widow when she decided on this particular career choice never mind that she had a 16 yr. old son who she happily left to go off on her great adventure.
Chapter 2 tells of Marguerite’s early life and her family. I also took a dislike to her mother Elizabeth.
Chapter 3 is about of Marguerite’s marriage and I didn’t even finish the chapter.
Since I found Marguerite annoying and she was getting on my nerves I didn’t finish the book.
Early on I didn’t care for Marguerite. She was nearing 40 yrs.old and a widow when she decided on this particular career choice never mind that she had a 16 yr. old son who she happily left to go off on her great adventure.
Chapter 2 tells of Marguerite’s early life and her family. I also took a dislike to her mother Elizabeth.
Chapter 3 is about of Marguerite’s marriage and I didn’t even finish the chapter.
Since I found Marguerite annoying and she was getting on my nerves I didn’t finish the book.
May 20, 2020
Marguerite Harrison was born into American aristocracy as it were. With rich Baltimore family connections, parents high up in the social classes and considered attractive according to her time, she had pretty much everything a young woman could want. She married for love, had a child and lived the life expected of her by her family, the charmed life. But then her husband died suddenly and she was suddenly a widow at 37 years of age, hardly the time to put her feet up and live the rest of her life in quiet solitude doing good works and being a society dame. She took it into her head to become a journalist and worked for a time as such, but decided that working for the government as a spy during WW1 was much more the kind of job she craved. Despite some major reservations about whether a woman could even do the job (without resorting to using sexual methods to gain intelligence) Harrison eventually found someone who was willing to place her in a situation as such to gather information against the Russian nation that was currently in turmoil with the take over by Stalin and communism and the anarchy that ensued. For several years Harrison worked as a spy, was taken prisoner and lead a life of wild adventure before settling down again in her later years with her second husband and eventually died a relative nobody.
With those few words, Marguerite Harrison's life can be summed up. She was., according to this biographer, not really a successful spy, indeed she could be considered a failure, who was captured, confessed her activities, implicated other people, putting their lives into danger, she was careless with her information and quite possibly had a romantic attachment to one of her capturers. And she failed in her personal life also; she betrayed her mother, had a sexual relationship with her brother-in-law and often was guilty of abandoning her only son in situations that were less than conducive to him being able to live his best life, being brought up by servants and grandparents as she galivanted around the world seeking adventure. All in all, there really is not a lot to like about this woman.
But this biography, which one must recognise as being difficult to write because of the lack of evidence and the trouble corroborating information resulting from conflicting reports was still detailed and took the reader along a journey of Harrison's life, never shying away from showing Harrison being truly mercurial and near impossible to follow. There is always the danger in biography to give too much information as to laden it down with facts and figures, losing the flow of the story, or it doesn’t give enough information leaving the reader feeling cheated of really knowing and understanding the person being explored. This book treads the fine line between the two possibilities and keeps the story moving along at a fine pace but never becoming bogged down with minutiae that can be boring reading.
The one consistent issue with this book is that all too often during the reading of this piece, it became difficult to develop any form of attachment to Harrison and care about her life. Much is made of her being the first female Foreign Intelligence Agent, but the reality is, Harrison was never much into feminism, didn’t go after the job because of a deep belief that woman could and should be working for their countries and she didn’t really do such a great job at what she was doing. Other women who came after her would possibly be much more interesting subjects of study. Harrison is studied simply because she was the first, not because she was the best.
This biography is interesting in its insights into how the American government began to seek out its intelligence work, and it was interesting for the development of the world and how it changed so dramatically from when Harrison was born to her death. If you read this book expecting to find a feminist hero you will be sorely disappointed.
With those few words, Marguerite Harrison's life can be summed up. She was., according to this biographer, not really a successful spy, indeed she could be considered a failure, who was captured, confessed her activities, implicated other people, putting their lives into danger, she was careless with her information and quite possibly had a romantic attachment to one of her capturers. And she failed in her personal life also; she betrayed her mother, had a sexual relationship with her brother-in-law and often was guilty of abandoning her only son in situations that were less than conducive to him being able to live his best life, being brought up by servants and grandparents as she galivanted around the world seeking adventure. All in all, there really is not a lot to like about this woman.
But this biography, which one must recognise as being difficult to write because of the lack of evidence and the trouble corroborating information resulting from conflicting reports was still detailed and took the reader along a journey of Harrison's life, never shying away from showing Harrison being truly mercurial and near impossible to follow. There is always the danger in biography to give too much information as to laden it down with facts and figures, losing the flow of the story, or it doesn’t give enough information leaving the reader feeling cheated of really knowing and understanding the person being explored. This book treads the fine line between the two possibilities and keeps the story moving along at a fine pace but never becoming bogged down with minutiae that can be boring reading.
The one consistent issue with this book is that all too often during the reading of this piece, it became difficult to develop any form of attachment to Harrison and care about her life. Much is made of her being the first female Foreign Intelligence Agent, but the reality is, Harrison was never much into feminism, didn’t go after the job because of a deep belief that woman could and should be working for their countries and she didn’t really do such a great job at what she was doing. Other women who came after her would possibly be much more interesting subjects of study. Harrison is studied simply because she was the first, not because she was the best.
This biography is interesting in its insights into how the American government began to seek out its intelligence work, and it was interesting for the development of the world and how it changed so dramatically from when Harrison was born to her death. If you read this book expecting to find a feminist hero you will be sorely disappointed.
February 14, 2021
In Summary
Despite being the first woman in her field, Marguerite Harrison isn’t exactly an inspiring trailblazer. Although the author continually presses the point that Harrison was an agent valued by her superiors, the anecdotes in the text paint her as a bored socialite who had all the right connections, but not necessarily the right skills. Still, Harrison did lead a unique life, and for those interested in how espionage was conducted by the United States in the early twentieth century, this book might prove valuable.
The Review
The title The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison can be interpreted in a couple of ways. Liberation can refer to the way Harrison bucked early twentieth-century social conventions to roam the world in her very unusual field of work. Liberation can also refer to the fact that Harrison got caught by the Soviets and had to be bailed out of a Russian prison – twice.
I haven’t studied spies or journalists, so I’d never heard of Margaret Harrison prior to this book. Her main claim to fame is that she was the United States’ first female foreign intelligence officer. Most of what is known about her comes from her 1935 biography (which is referenced repeatedly throughout this book). However, that work apparently omitted and distorted key aspects of her espionage activities. What the author Atwood has done is to delve into documents from the United States National Archives and the Russian Federal Security Bureau that are now available to researchers and use them to paint a different and often contradictory picture of Harrison’s life.
The initial chapters focus on Harrison’s family background, her upbringing and marriage as a Baltimore socialite, and her career as a journalist following her husband’s death. Most of these pages are based off Harrison’s autobiography and supplemented by details from newspaper social pages or newspaper articles Harrison wrote. The chapters establish that Harrison was a woman of privilege who was only able to accomplish what she did because of her connections. For instance, she was fluent in four languages because her family vacationed in Europe every summer. After her husband died, she immediately got a job as assistant society editor of the Baltimore Sun despite having no writing experience. She didn’t even know how to operate a typewriter. However, she got in through the door because she was a friend of one of the newspaper’s owners.
As a result of this opportunity, Harrison eventually got assigned to writing articles promoting America’s efforts in World War I, which was taking place at the time, and became interested in foreign affairs. She made up her mind that she wanted to be a spy, and thanks again to personal connections (this time her father-in-law), she got hired to be a Military Intelligence Division (MID) foreign agent and was sent to Europe shortly after the end of the war.
It should be noted that Harrison wasn’t the sort of spy who went in disguise under assumed names. Rather, she used her real name and social connections to obtain access to those in power and used her job as a journalist as an excuse to ask questions and conduct interviews. Some of this information went into newspaper articles; the rest went into MID reports. The chapters about Harrison’s espionage years lay out the details of her activities, and where records conflict, which they often do, the author offers conjectures for the discrepancies in details.
As with journalism, Harrison had no training in espionage, and in winging it, she made major mistakes. She blew her cover to her roommate, female British journalist Stan Harding, because she left scraps of reports around their apartment. She was indiscreet in the way she conducted herself and wound up caught by the Soviets and coerced into becoming a double agent. However, she managed that task so poorly the Soviets eventually threw her into prison. Even her claim to fame as the only American woman to survive the infamous Lubyanka Prison is a dubious compliment. One might argue she was the only American woman foolish enough to wind up there. Moreover, Stan Harding also survived detention there, and Harding only wound up there because Harrison fed the Soviets inaccurate information about Harding being a spy. Yet the narrative for some reason continually describes Harrison as a prized and valuable agent.
While Harrison definitely led a unique life, it reeks of privilege. She went into espionage because she was bored and wanted excitement. When she got caught, she had relatives in high political positions to petition for her release. Not even five years after she got out of Lubyanka, she wound up there a second time because she couldn’t give up playing at espionage, and again, she got out through the efforts of a distant relation with Russian connections.
Subsequent to her second release, she became part of a collaboration with Merian Cooper and Ernest Schoedsack, two men who would eventually go on to create the King Kong film. Harrison’s project with them, however, was Grass, a kind of docudrama about a Persian tribe’s search for pasture. While their footage was eventually turned into a feature film, the film project was also a cover for the three to gather intelligence for the United States at a time that Britain, America, and Russia were competing over control of Persia’s oilfields. This chapter draws from the writings of Harrison, Cooper, and Schoedsack, and as in the chapters about Europe, Atwood points out differences in their narratives and offers conjectures for discrepancies and omissions.
Harrison’s life after the release of Grass is quickly wrapped up in a single chapter. Although this period spans forty-two years, Atwood doesn’t offer many details about Harrison’s second marriage, her son and grandchildren, or how she died in possession of a sizable estate despite her inability to hold a steady job or manage finances. The focus of the book is Harrison’s time as an agent, an opportunity I can’t help but think should’ve gone to someone more capable and deserving.
The book includes several black-and-white photos of Harrison and the people in her life, footnotes, bibliography, and index.
For more manga and book reviews, drop by my blog Keeping It In Canon!
Despite being the first woman in her field, Marguerite Harrison isn’t exactly an inspiring trailblazer. Although the author continually presses the point that Harrison was an agent valued by her superiors, the anecdotes in the text paint her as a bored socialite who had all the right connections, but not necessarily the right skills. Still, Harrison did lead a unique life, and for those interested in how espionage was conducted by the United States in the early twentieth century, this book might prove valuable.
The Review
The title The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison can be interpreted in a couple of ways. Liberation can refer to the way Harrison bucked early twentieth-century social conventions to roam the world in her very unusual field of work. Liberation can also refer to the fact that Harrison got caught by the Soviets and had to be bailed out of a Russian prison – twice.
I haven’t studied spies or journalists, so I’d never heard of Margaret Harrison prior to this book. Her main claim to fame is that she was the United States’ first female foreign intelligence officer. Most of what is known about her comes from her 1935 biography (which is referenced repeatedly throughout this book). However, that work apparently omitted and distorted key aspects of her espionage activities. What the author Atwood has done is to delve into documents from the United States National Archives and the Russian Federal Security Bureau that are now available to researchers and use them to paint a different and often contradictory picture of Harrison’s life.
The initial chapters focus on Harrison’s family background, her upbringing and marriage as a Baltimore socialite, and her career as a journalist following her husband’s death. Most of these pages are based off Harrison’s autobiography and supplemented by details from newspaper social pages or newspaper articles Harrison wrote. The chapters establish that Harrison was a woman of privilege who was only able to accomplish what she did because of her connections. For instance, she was fluent in four languages because her family vacationed in Europe every summer. After her husband died, she immediately got a job as assistant society editor of the Baltimore Sun despite having no writing experience. She didn’t even know how to operate a typewriter. However, she got in through the door because she was a friend of one of the newspaper’s owners.
As a result of this opportunity, Harrison eventually got assigned to writing articles promoting America’s efforts in World War I, which was taking place at the time, and became interested in foreign affairs. She made up her mind that she wanted to be a spy, and thanks again to personal connections (this time her father-in-law), she got hired to be a Military Intelligence Division (MID) foreign agent and was sent to Europe shortly after the end of the war.
It should be noted that Harrison wasn’t the sort of spy who went in disguise under assumed names. Rather, she used her real name and social connections to obtain access to those in power and used her job as a journalist as an excuse to ask questions and conduct interviews. Some of this information went into newspaper articles; the rest went into MID reports. The chapters about Harrison’s espionage years lay out the details of her activities, and where records conflict, which they often do, the author offers conjectures for the discrepancies in details.
As with journalism, Harrison had no training in espionage, and in winging it, she made major mistakes. She blew her cover to her roommate, female British journalist Stan Harding, because she left scraps of reports around their apartment. She was indiscreet in the way she conducted herself and wound up caught by the Soviets and coerced into becoming a double agent. However, she managed that task so poorly the Soviets eventually threw her into prison. Even her claim to fame as the only American woman to survive the infamous Lubyanka Prison is a dubious compliment. One might argue she was the only American woman foolish enough to wind up there. Moreover, Stan Harding also survived detention there, and Harding only wound up there because Harrison fed the Soviets inaccurate information about Harding being a spy. Yet the narrative for some reason continually describes Harrison as a prized and valuable agent.
While Harrison definitely led a unique life, it reeks of privilege. She went into espionage because she was bored and wanted excitement. When she got caught, she had relatives in high political positions to petition for her release. Not even five years after she got out of Lubyanka, she wound up there a second time because she couldn’t give up playing at espionage, and again, she got out through the efforts of a distant relation with Russian connections.
Subsequent to her second release, she became part of a collaboration with Merian Cooper and Ernest Schoedsack, two men who would eventually go on to create the King Kong film. Harrison’s project with them, however, was Grass, a kind of docudrama about a Persian tribe’s search for pasture. While their footage was eventually turned into a feature film, the film project was also a cover for the three to gather intelligence for the United States at a time that Britain, America, and Russia were competing over control of Persia’s oilfields. This chapter draws from the writings of Harrison, Cooper, and Schoedsack, and as in the chapters about Europe, Atwood points out differences in their narratives and offers conjectures for discrepancies and omissions.
Harrison’s life after the release of Grass is quickly wrapped up in a single chapter. Although this period spans forty-two years, Atwood doesn’t offer many details about Harrison’s second marriage, her son and grandchildren, or how she died in possession of a sizable estate despite her inability to hold a steady job or manage finances. The focus of the book is Harrison’s time as an agent, an opportunity I can’t help but think should’ve gone to someone more capable and deserving.
The book includes several black-and-white photos of Harrison and the people in her life, footnotes, bibliography, and index.
For more manga and book reviews, drop by my blog Keeping It In Canon!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 24, 2020
In this biography, Elizabeth Atwood tells us of the life and adventures of Marguerite Harrison, ‘America’s First Female Intelligence Agent’. In the book, a well-documented piece of research, we discover a woman of spirit, culture, and individualistic ways. However, one is left to wonder if the title, "The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison", refers to the two times Mrs Harrison had to be rescued from imprisonment due to accusations of espionage in the nascent USSR; from her bourgeois background; or from the constraints being a woman imposed on her.
Marguerite Harrison, we learn, was born in a well off, and well known, Baltimore family. Never a conformist, she learned to use her social skills to influence others, to get her way, to reach beyond the home. Following widowhood, she decided to become a journalist, before deciding she wanted more adventures and to experience directly the aftermath of WW1 in Europe. Using her connections, her polyglot skills, as well as her wiles, she managed to get herself a position as a spy in Germany. From then, she turned to Russia, a country undergoing deep changes which impacted her so much she may have turned coat. Despite repeated stints in Lubyanka Prison she remained interested in international affairs, possibly even going to the Middle East on additional missions disguised as cinema, but was never really trusted again.
I find the Afterword most truthful: “Marguerite Harrison was a failure”, both personally and professionally. The accounts her biographer Atwood has to draw on (Harrison’s own memoirs) are suspect, whilst all other documents show a very short-lived flare of grace. The premise of a woman breaking stereotypes is tempting, yet "The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison" demonstrates that being extraordinary does not necessarily mean being admirable.
Who would enjoy this
Mrs Harrison’s biography is the sort of book that I would often suggest for people who like well researched work. This is particularly true for those who like biographies, not gossip. This is an unabashed investigative paper, reliant on its many footnotes and data.
Additionally, Atwood’s work is clearly an example of a woman overcoming social and political ‘glass ceilings’. Readers with an eye for female history will definitely find it both enlightening and empowering.
Who should give this a pass
As already mentioned, Atwood herself recognises that this is not a story of success. Therefore, I would not suggest it for readers who idealise or, worse, romanticise spies. Even less so if they are looking for a feminist and idealist woman ‘pioneer’ to use as example.
Another group who may not enjoy this volume are those who want light, rousing, biography. Even with the best intentions, and the narrator trying to justify her heroine from time to time, Mrs Harrison’s life was not inspirational.
Conclusions and suggestions
Elizabeth Atwood presents us with a book more academic than general biography. The depth and constancy of reference use is admirable, as opposed to many other similar works. Also, the author tries very hard to remain a mere biographer, not a judge, which deserves praise. Sadly, she cannot help but try to ‘save’ her subject from time to time with inserts which show clear leaps of faith, as well as lack of notes. The most extreme – the suggestion that maybe it was Mrs Harrison who was trying to lure Solomon Mogilevsky, head of Russian Foreign Intelligence, into becoming an agent for the US – makes one cringe.
Nevertheless, I was pleasantly surprised by the awareness Atwood shows, at the end of the volume. It speaks of honest reporting, her own interests and expectations notwithstanding (although clear in between the lines). Bravo, because "The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison" dares show that the sort of person to life such extraordinary a life is not nice, and thoughtful, and trustworthy. Even more so, it exposes how such a choice of lifestyle would impact those around, for generations to come.
So yes, I applaud Ms Atwood on a coherent narrative report. After all, my main issue with the tome is the unbelievable account of certain events, that I understand derives from having to depend on Mrs Harrison’s clearly unreliable writings as source. In turn, this takes me to my main suggestions for biographies:
- When there are no sources for comparison of claims, explicitly remind the reader to take it all with a pinch (sometimes, a whole shaker-full) of salt.
- Don’t try to justify any actions or put forward theories, unless you have solid evidence to back you up.
- Be conscious of the format you are presenting to your reader. Notes and references as a section at the end of the book is good in traditional print format, but an e-reader would find that less comfortable than as footnotes on the page.
Marguerite Harrison, we learn, was born in a well off, and well known, Baltimore family. Never a conformist, she learned to use her social skills to influence others, to get her way, to reach beyond the home. Following widowhood, she decided to become a journalist, before deciding she wanted more adventures and to experience directly the aftermath of WW1 in Europe. Using her connections, her polyglot skills, as well as her wiles, she managed to get herself a position as a spy in Germany. From then, she turned to Russia, a country undergoing deep changes which impacted her so much she may have turned coat. Despite repeated stints in Lubyanka Prison she remained interested in international affairs, possibly even going to the Middle East on additional missions disguised as cinema, but was never really trusted again.
I find the Afterword most truthful: “Marguerite Harrison was a failure”, both personally and professionally. The accounts her biographer Atwood has to draw on (Harrison’s own memoirs) are suspect, whilst all other documents show a very short-lived flare of grace. The premise of a woman breaking stereotypes is tempting, yet "The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison" demonstrates that being extraordinary does not necessarily mean being admirable.
Who would enjoy this
Mrs Harrison’s biography is the sort of book that I would often suggest for people who like well researched work. This is particularly true for those who like biographies, not gossip. This is an unabashed investigative paper, reliant on its many footnotes and data.
Additionally, Atwood’s work is clearly an example of a woman overcoming social and political ‘glass ceilings’. Readers with an eye for female history will definitely find it both enlightening and empowering.
Who should give this a pass
As already mentioned, Atwood herself recognises that this is not a story of success. Therefore, I would not suggest it for readers who idealise or, worse, romanticise spies. Even less so if they are looking for a feminist and idealist woman ‘pioneer’ to use as example.
Another group who may not enjoy this volume are those who want light, rousing, biography. Even with the best intentions, and the narrator trying to justify her heroine from time to time, Mrs Harrison’s life was not inspirational.
Conclusions and suggestions
Elizabeth Atwood presents us with a book more academic than general biography. The depth and constancy of reference use is admirable, as opposed to many other similar works. Also, the author tries very hard to remain a mere biographer, not a judge, which deserves praise. Sadly, she cannot help but try to ‘save’ her subject from time to time with inserts which show clear leaps of faith, as well as lack of notes. The most extreme – the suggestion that maybe it was Mrs Harrison who was trying to lure Solomon Mogilevsky, head of Russian Foreign Intelligence, into becoming an agent for the US – makes one cringe.
Nevertheless, I was pleasantly surprised by the awareness Atwood shows, at the end of the volume. It speaks of honest reporting, her own interests and expectations notwithstanding (although clear in between the lines). Bravo, because "The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison" dares show that the sort of person to life such extraordinary a life is not nice, and thoughtful, and trustworthy. Even more so, it exposes how such a choice of lifestyle would impact those around, for generations to come.
So yes, I applaud Ms Atwood on a coherent narrative report. After all, my main issue with the tome is the unbelievable account of certain events, that I understand derives from having to depend on Mrs Harrison’s clearly unreliable writings as source. In turn, this takes me to my main suggestions for biographies:
- When there are no sources for comparison of claims, explicitly remind the reader to take it all with a pinch (sometimes, a whole shaker-full) of salt.
- Don’t try to justify any actions or put forward theories, unless you have solid evidence to back you up.
- Be conscious of the format you are presenting to your reader. Notes and references as a section at the end of the book is good in traditional print format, but an e-reader would find that less comfortable than as footnotes on the page.
April 14, 2023
The book that I present to you today is a journey in all possible senses. A journey through history to the beginning of the 20th century, a journey into the world, through the adventures of the protagonist, expertly narrated by journalist Elizabeth Atwood. But who is the protagonist who stands out on the cover, with the charm of a silent movie actress? Marguerite Harrison was many things in her life and among them also an actress, although this experience lasted very little.
Marguerite Harrison née Baker is one of the most enigmatic women of the period, certainly of an above average intelligence, she was born into an upper middle class family in Maryland, at a time when women were not yet emancipated from the feminist struggles that were taking place beyond the ocean and in other parts of the world.
Her youthful years were spent in high society and during that time she met her husband, Thomas Harrison, with whom she had a son, Thomas known as Tommy. It was perhaps her husband's death that changed her life, brought out a hitherto repressed side, and thanks to the help of her brother-in-law Albert Ritchie, she got a journalist position at The Baltimore Sun. From there, events took a turn. completely unexpected or maybe Marguerite just followed her instincts. With a propensity for language learning, I would say a gift, she offered herself as an informant or "spy" in the Military Intelligence Division of the US Army, which in 1918 had finally entered the war against the Central Powers to which it would strike the coup de grace. Here begins the real adventure of Marguerite, an enigmatic woman like few who, through a work of gathering information in Germany, ended up facing dramatic situations in the Russia of the Revolution and the Civil War. Here she met figures of enormous charisma, such as her nemesis, the Bolshevik official Solomon Mogilevsky, towards whom her attitude was never made clear. Just as many of her actions remain enigmatic even today, amidst contradictory accounts of her time of imprisonment in the famous Lubyanka prison in Moscow, or of her relationships with other agents and journalists at the time established by choice or against their will in that Russia on the brink. of the tragedy.
The author of the book, Elizabeth Atwood, clearly follows events that can confuse the reader, as Marguerite, who wrote some works on her travels, did not always reveal everything, and therefore it is necessary to refer to other sources as well. Merian C. Cooper, adventurer, Polish aviation pilot, prisoner along with Marguerite, later film producer and director, was one of her friends, one of those "larger than life" figures that Harrison often met in her years as a spy. Helped by her in prison, he was instrumental in proposing, after the end of the war, a journey (on which the genesis is not very clear, according to the sources) for the making of a film, "Grass", which narrates the transhumance , or migration of a Middle Eastern tribe. An epic journey with Marguerite as an actress who, however, hid the intentions of gathering information for the American government, at a time when the great powers were struggling to grab oil concessions in places that are still topical today.
Marguerite Harrison was instrumental in creating the Society of Women Geographers and the Children's Hospital of Baltimore, but many aspects of her life are still obscure, as well as her motives. This woman, for years on the front pages of newspapers, perhaps driven by a huge ego, but which was certainly also supported by a great intelligence and understanding of the human soul, of every nation, at a time when every country had its own traditions and its differences, she was undoubtedly an interesting figure, although it cannot be said that she fought for women's rights, except indirectly. But her life was an example, a turning point, a line drawn, a point of no return to make it clear that women could do some things that were forbidden at the time and in many cases do them better than men. Perhaps Marguerite was not always consistent, her intentions were not always clear, revealing an underlying restlessness, but certainly her legacy deserves to be known and her adventures narrated, and this book does her justice. A figure that I believe deserves to be known and a life narrated in a movie or a TV series.
Marguerite Harrison née Baker is one of the most enigmatic women of the period, certainly of an above average intelligence, she was born into an upper middle class family in Maryland, at a time when women were not yet emancipated from the feminist struggles that were taking place beyond the ocean and in other parts of the world.
Her youthful years were spent in high society and during that time she met her husband, Thomas Harrison, with whom she had a son, Thomas known as Tommy. It was perhaps her husband's death that changed her life, brought out a hitherto repressed side, and thanks to the help of her brother-in-law Albert Ritchie, she got a journalist position at The Baltimore Sun. From there, events took a turn. completely unexpected or maybe Marguerite just followed her instincts. With a propensity for language learning, I would say a gift, she offered herself as an informant or "spy" in the Military Intelligence Division of the US Army, which in 1918 had finally entered the war against the Central Powers to which it would strike the coup de grace. Here begins the real adventure of Marguerite, an enigmatic woman like few who, through a work of gathering information in Germany, ended up facing dramatic situations in the Russia of the Revolution and the Civil War. Here she met figures of enormous charisma, such as her nemesis, the Bolshevik official Solomon Mogilevsky, towards whom her attitude was never made clear. Just as many of her actions remain enigmatic even today, amidst contradictory accounts of her time of imprisonment in the famous Lubyanka prison in Moscow, or of her relationships with other agents and journalists at the time established by choice or against their will in that Russia on the brink. of the tragedy.
The author of the book, Elizabeth Atwood, clearly follows events that can confuse the reader, as Marguerite, who wrote some works on her travels, did not always reveal everything, and therefore it is necessary to refer to other sources as well. Merian C. Cooper, adventurer, Polish aviation pilot, prisoner along with Marguerite, later film producer and director, was one of her friends, one of those "larger than life" figures that Harrison often met in her years as a spy. Helped by her in prison, he was instrumental in proposing, after the end of the war, a journey (on which the genesis is not very clear, according to the sources) for the making of a film, "Grass", which narrates the transhumance , or migration of a Middle Eastern tribe. An epic journey with Marguerite as an actress who, however, hid the intentions of gathering information for the American government, at a time when the great powers were struggling to grab oil concessions in places that are still topical today.
Marguerite Harrison was instrumental in creating the Society of Women Geographers and the Children's Hospital of Baltimore, but many aspects of her life are still obscure, as well as her motives. This woman, for years on the front pages of newspapers, perhaps driven by a huge ego, but which was certainly also supported by a great intelligence and understanding of the human soul, of every nation, at a time when every country had its own traditions and its differences, she was undoubtedly an interesting figure, although it cannot be said that she fought for women's rights, except indirectly. But her life was an example, a turning point, a line drawn, a point of no return to make it clear that women could do some things that were forbidden at the time and in many cases do them better than men. Perhaps Marguerite was not always consistent, her intentions were not always clear, revealing an underlying restlessness, but certainly her legacy deserves to be known and her adventures narrated, and this book does her justice. A figure that I believe deserves to be known and a life narrated in a movie or a TV series.
September 1, 2020
This was a fascinating book. Obviously well researched and full of details, it tells the story of a woman who I had never heard of before, yet by her own account, and the title of the book, was instrumental in breaking women into the world of international espionage.
Marguerite Harrison was born into a rich, well connected family in Baltimore, MD. Her father was a shipping magnate, and she summered in Europe meeting Kings and Queens of Europe. She seemed to be a natural at learning languages and could often be mistaken for a native speaker, which is no small feat. She married for love, to a man probably beneath her station, she was widowed in her 30’s, with little money left to raise her son, so Marguerite found a job as a journalist covering society and gossip and theater reviews. A perfectly suitable job for a woman at the time. No doubt, with nationalist fever taking over during WWI, and wanting to write about more than tea parties, she felt the urge to do more for her country and somehow convinced the Army to let her go to Europe after the Armistice to access the situation.
There are certainly parts of her story that don’t seem to make sense, and even the author points to conflicting narratives between sources. Was Marguerite a double agent? Was she having an affair with a Russian? Why did she return so quickly to the Soviet Union after being released from prison for being a spy? I think she was spoiled. I think she had been spoiled her entire life and given into her every whim and never for a moment believed she would be executed. She saw everything as an adventure, and she was the star.
I found the story about her traveling through the Middle East with Merian Cooper (whom she helped survived a Soviet prisoner of war camp) and Ernest Schoedsack making the movie “Grass” fascinating. (Cooper and Schoedsack went on the make King Kong). I even watched the movie on the Internet. It brought to life the stories from the book and it was amazing seeing these tribesmen cross the raging river with the animals and then cling over the mountain barefooted while digging a path through the snow with shovels!
In the afterward, the author says Marguerite was a failure, both professionally and personally. I’m not sure she felt that way. As a spy, she did not follow the path of Mata Hari-she did not trade sex for secrets. Again, I think she saw it all as a game. How much information can I get out of you? It is amazing to see the access she was able to gain to high ranking people in so many countries. She was an amazing polyglot with a natural affinity for languages (she taught herself Persian while waiting for Cooper and Schoedsack in Turkey). We may never know if she was a double agent or what information she traded if any, but she definitely opened doors for women without realizing or trying to.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Marguerite Harrison was born into a rich, well connected family in Baltimore, MD. Her father was a shipping magnate, and she summered in Europe meeting Kings and Queens of Europe. She seemed to be a natural at learning languages and could often be mistaken for a native speaker, which is no small feat. She married for love, to a man probably beneath her station, she was widowed in her 30’s, with little money left to raise her son, so Marguerite found a job as a journalist covering society and gossip and theater reviews. A perfectly suitable job for a woman at the time. No doubt, with nationalist fever taking over during WWI, and wanting to write about more than tea parties, she felt the urge to do more for her country and somehow convinced the Army to let her go to Europe after the Armistice to access the situation.
There are certainly parts of her story that don’t seem to make sense, and even the author points to conflicting narratives between sources. Was Marguerite a double agent? Was she having an affair with a Russian? Why did she return so quickly to the Soviet Union after being released from prison for being a spy? I think she was spoiled. I think she had been spoiled her entire life and given into her every whim and never for a moment believed she would be executed. She saw everything as an adventure, and she was the star.
I found the story about her traveling through the Middle East with Merian Cooper (whom she helped survived a Soviet prisoner of war camp) and Ernest Schoedsack making the movie “Grass” fascinating. (Cooper and Schoedsack went on the make King Kong). I even watched the movie on the Internet. It brought to life the stories from the book and it was amazing seeing these tribesmen cross the raging river with the animals and then cling over the mountain barefooted while digging a path through the snow with shovels!
In the afterward, the author says Marguerite was a failure, both professionally and personally. I’m not sure she felt that way. As a spy, she did not follow the path of Mata Hari-she did not trade sex for secrets. Again, I think she saw it all as a game. How much information can I get out of you? It is amazing to see the access she was able to gain to high ranking people in so many countries. She was an amazing polyglot with a natural affinity for languages (she taught herself Persian while waiting for Cooper and Schoedsack in Turkey). We may never know if she was a double agent or what information she traded if any, but she definitely opened doors for women without realizing or trying to.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.
May 10, 2020
This is a highly readable book. I read this book during the quarantine when people stated that they had problems concentrating and reading books. However, I was able to enjoy this book.
Like many foreign agents she came from upper society and had many political connections. She was a flawed person both on a personal and professional level. Perhaps as to be expected from a spy, Marguerite Harrison herself was a bit of a mystery. Often times there are discrepancies between her and other people’s version of events. There were enough of these differences in versions of events with multiple individuals to make me think that Marguerite Harrison herself often was the one who was lying.
Her motivations to be an agent seemed to be a desire for adventure rather than from patriotism. She started as her career in espionage by doing domestic spying and providing information on other Americans. I have read in other books that informants are often not reliable people.
The one weakness I found with the book is that the author does not make the case until the end of the book of why the reader should be interested in Marguerite Harrison considering she got caught as a spy and had many personal flaws.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Like many foreign agents she came from upper society and had many political connections. She was a flawed person both on a personal and professional level. Perhaps as to be expected from a spy, Marguerite Harrison herself was a bit of a mystery. Often times there are discrepancies between her and other people’s version of events. There were enough of these differences in versions of events with multiple individuals to make me think that Marguerite Harrison herself often was the one who was lying.
Her motivations to be an agent seemed to be a desire for adventure rather than from patriotism. She started as her career in espionage by doing domestic spying and providing information on other Americans. I have read in other books that informants are often not reliable people.
The one weakness I found with the book is that the author does not make the case until the end of the book of why the reader should be interested in Marguerite Harrison considering she got caught as a spy and had many personal flaws.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
September 4, 2020
The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison involved breaking all of the norms within the society in which she was born.
Originally, Marguerite was a rich and respected Baltimore wife and mother. When her husband died, she was only 37. So she decided to live life to the fullest. First, she became a journalist. When World War I broke out, she volunteered to spy in Berlin and Russia for the United States government. After she was hired, she became the first female foreign agent that didn’t use her body to learn secrets. All before women in the United States even had the right to vote!
But there is more to Marguerite’s story! She was imprisoned in a Russian jail, where she may, or may not, have become a double agent. Generally, Marguerite is not a very sympathetic character. But, of course, this is not fiction. She must be taken as she comes—flaws and all. The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison is so well written that I frequently forgot this is a true story. If you want to read about a woman who squeezed adventure out of life like an orange, read this book. 4 stars!
Thanks to Naval Institute Press and Edelweiss+ for a copy in exchange for my honest review.
Originally, Marguerite was a rich and respected Baltimore wife and mother. When her husband died, she was only 37. So she decided to live life to the fullest. First, she became a journalist. When World War I broke out, she volunteered to spy in Berlin and Russia for the United States government. After she was hired, she became the first female foreign agent that didn’t use her body to learn secrets. All before women in the United States even had the right to vote!
But there is more to Marguerite’s story! She was imprisoned in a Russian jail, where she may, or may not, have become a double agent. Generally, Marguerite is not a very sympathetic character. But, of course, this is not fiction. She must be taken as she comes—flaws and all. The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison is so well written that I frequently forgot this is a true story. If you want to read about a woman who squeezed adventure out of life like an orange, read this book. 4 stars!
Thanks to Naval Institute Press and Edelweiss+ for a copy in exchange for my honest review.
August 17, 2020
Since this was an advanced copy, I'm going to ignore the many typos and grammatical errors for my review as I hope they will be corrected before publishing. I'll also attribute the randomly placed U.S. Naval Institute seal that was all over the place. My rating is based on the information alone.
This book was interesting and, I think, well written for the average person. It isn't too technical and Marguerite was a fascinating woman. I had never heard of her before reading this so I can't speak to any accuracy. Based on the notes section, I would say it was well researched. She was a complicated and messy person and I don't think that even she knew why she did many of the things that she did. Because of that, it made it harder for other's to try to understand why she made some of the decisions that she did and they fared no better. We will likely never know her true motivations, mostly because I don't think that even she knew what her true motivations were. Overall, an interesting read!
This book was interesting and, I think, well written for the average person. It isn't too technical and Marguerite was a fascinating woman. I had never heard of her before reading this so I can't speak to any accuracy. Based on the notes section, I would say it was well researched. She was a complicated and messy person and I don't think that even she knew why she did many of the things that she did. Because of that, it made it harder for other's to try to understand why she made some of the decisions that she did and they fared no better. We will likely never know her true motivations, mostly because I don't think that even she knew what her true motivations were. Overall, an interesting read!
February 21, 2022
A wonderful well researched book about one of the founders of the Society of Woman Geographers. Harrison is a fascinating woman, working as a spy, journalist and having the travel bug. She loved Russia and traveled throughout the region but spends time in Russian prison when she is arrested for spying- not just once, but twice! Both times for 6 months, the first time she only saw the sun twice, and was in solitary confinement for a spell. She traveled to Japan, China, central Asia and made one of the first films about nomads, Grass, following the annual migration of the Bakhtiari people of then Persia. She spoke several languages including Russian, German and Turkish, and later in life traveled to Africa and South America. A fascinating life. Highly recommended!
July 21, 2020
I absolutely loved The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison by Elizabeth Atwood! The writing kept me turning the pages to the very end! The research the author has done to write this book is remarkable! I found that I learned so much more than just about a woman in espionage! I couldn't put this book down! I will be recommending this one for days to come!
September 25, 2020
A fascinating and beautifully written book about a person I wasn't aware existed. It can be a little tedious at time when cataloging all of the people from her early life but in general it was an enjoyable book.
January 20, 2021
The best description of Marguerite is Churchill's quote defining Russia, "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma. Even in death, she was still a mystery to her son, her grandchildren, family and peers.
September 23, 2023
Excellent, well annotated. I find myself wondering if this author should sue Wallach since the latter's book has so much that looks lifted from this book. I realize that they both used Harrison's writings as a source but still...
December 12, 2024
Not well edited and difficult to read, but the subject matter is really interesting and leaves you with lots to think about.
December 29, 2020
Marguerite once described herself as a chameleon. She would be a flirtatious debutante, a devoted housewife, a music and drama critic, a foreign correspondent, and an American secret agent.
The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison follows the first female American spy, who began working for the Military Intelligence Division (MID), at the end of WWI. During the interwar war period, she ended up imprisoned in Russia for espionage not once but twice, made multiple perilous journeys through some incredibly remote areas, and picked up an astonishing number of languages.
Through the use of her charm and intelligence, Atwood was able to convince MID to take her on as their first female agent. She was sent into Europe to pose as a journalist in Berlin. When the war ended shortly thereafter, she continued to send information pertaining to the horrible living conditions of the German people. But Atwood had her eyes set on a different locale: she very much wanted to conduct her espionage activities in Russia.
Once she managed to get into Russia, Harrison was very quickly detained by the Cheka, the Soviet secret police. She was given the option (on threat of imprisonment) to pass information onto the Soviets and act as a double agent. After a little while, discontent with the quality of information provided by Harrison, the Cheka arrested and imprisoned her in the notorious Lubyanka Soviet prison.
While Harrison was eventually released in exchange for American food aid, she was not content to leave Russia for good. A little while later, she would return, trekking through the Far East of Russia, hoping to avoid the Red Army. Following her second imprisonment, Harrison would never return to her beloved Russia.
The contradictory information surrounding Harrison’s life has led many to conclude that she was in actuality a Soviet agent. The strange circumstances surrounding her second arrest and imprisonment—which I will leave for those who read the book to discover—certainly support this conclusion. Harrison’s life has all of the ingredients for an incredible spy book.
The story itself was very captivating, but the pacing of this book was incredibly slow. Harrison’s spy activities did not take up as much of the book as I would have liked. As soon as I felt it starting to get good, the author launched into a very lengthy description of Harrison’s time in the Middle East working on a movie, which appears to have been a cover for more espionage work. Given the lack of information about much of Harrison’s spy career, there was a lot of filler in this book.
Nevertheless, I would recommend this book to anyone looking to learn more about this remarkable woman. I did enjoy the story itself, even though it did drag at parts.
Thank you so much to the Naval Institute Press and Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.
The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison follows the first female American spy, who began working for the Military Intelligence Division (MID), at the end of WWI. During the interwar war period, she ended up imprisoned in Russia for espionage not once but twice, made multiple perilous journeys through some incredibly remote areas, and picked up an astonishing number of languages.
Through the use of her charm and intelligence, Atwood was able to convince MID to take her on as their first female agent. She was sent into Europe to pose as a journalist in Berlin. When the war ended shortly thereafter, she continued to send information pertaining to the horrible living conditions of the German people. But Atwood had her eyes set on a different locale: she very much wanted to conduct her espionage activities in Russia.
Once she managed to get into Russia, Harrison was very quickly detained by the Cheka, the Soviet secret police. She was given the option (on threat of imprisonment) to pass information onto the Soviets and act as a double agent. After a little while, discontent with the quality of information provided by Harrison, the Cheka arrested and imprisoned her in the notorious Lubyanka Soviet prison.
While Harrison was eventually released in exchange for American food aid, she was not content to leave Russia for good. A little while later, she would return, trekking through the Far East of Russia, hoping to avoid the Red Army. Following her second imprisonment, Harrison would never return to her beloved Russia.
The contradictory information surrounding Harrison’s life has led many to conclude that she was in actuality a Soviet agent. The strange circumstances surrounding her second arrest and imprisonment—which I will leave for those who read the book to discover—certainly support this conclusion. Harrison’s life has all of the ingredients for an incredible spy book.
The story itself was very captivating, but the pacing of this book was incredibly slow. Harrison’s spy activities did not take up as much of the book as I would have liked. As soon as I felt it starting to get good, the author launched into a very lengthy description of Harrison’s time in the Middle East working on a movie, which appears to have been a cover for more espionage work. Given the lack of information about much of Harrison’s spy career, there was a lot of filler in this book.
Nevertheless, I would recommend this book to anyone looking to learn more about this remarkable woman. I did enjoy the story itself, even though it did drag at parts.
Thank you so much to the Naval Institute Press and Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.
November 22, 2020
Ms. Atwood wrote a clear picture of Marguerite Harrison , she was bright , daring and complex. I went on to do some research of this woman after reading the book and was amazed at her tenacity in the Russian jail system, it might be a good follow up to read one of Ms. Harrison' own books. I can see that it may have difficult to get more personal if she did not leave any trace of diaries or journals. It may have been helpful to explore her relationships with her mother and her relationships with men, her son to add to the picture. I was fascinated with her fearlessness and espionage skills . She is an unsung hero of her day and so this story needed to be told - thanks to the author .
December 20, 2020
This is an ambitiously undertaken book following the history of Marguerite Harrison. The author has obviously slogged through a ton of material in order to piece together this extraordinary woman's life.
I enjoyed every minute of reading this book. Marguerite was a bit society lady, a bit adventurer, and a whole lot of enigma. You are left enjoying her escapades around the globe, seeing her struggle in her personal life, wondering what she really was thinking, and trying to diagnose what kind of neuroses she lived with.
I especially loved her interpretations of people and conditions in the early Soviet state.
Keep an open mind as you read, and you will find yourself transported into the experience of living a life of an extremely intelligent woman trying to live within the boundaries of her society.
I enjoyed every minute of reading this book. Marguerite was a bit society lady, a bit adventurer, and a whole lot of enigma. You are left enjoying her escapades around the globe, seeing her struggle in her personal life, wondering what she really was thinking, and trying to diagnose what kind of neuroses she lived with.
I especially loved her interpretations of people and conditions in the early Soviet state.
Keep an open mind as you read, and you will find yourself transported into the experience of living a life of an extremely intelligent woman trying to live within the boundaries of her society.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews