The Woman Who Knew Everyone: The Power of Perle Mesta, Washington’s Most Famous Hostess

In this winsome biography, Gordon (Bunny Mellon), a journalism professor at NYU, shines a light on the indefatigable Washington, D.C., socialite and activist Perle Mesta (1889–1975). Raised in Texas and Oklahoma, Mesta moved to D.C. with her husband, steel magnate George Mesta, in 1917, after he was asked to consult with the government’s steel committee as the U.S. entered WWI. Mesta inherited her husband’s fortune after his death in 1925 and became a fixture in society pages in the 1930s, her bon vivant lifestyle serving for many readers to “offset life’s daily sorrows.” Drawn into political activism late that decade by a friend who belonged to the National Women’s Party, Perle used her connections to unsuccessfully push for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. She became a close friend of Sen. Harry Truman, whose ascent to the presidency elevated her to the status of elite Washington party host. Leveraging influence through her Rolodex, Mesta hosted lavish Democratic Party fundraisers, talked up Truman’s initiatives to journalists, and served as diplomatic minister to Luxembourg in the early 1950s. Gordon’s thoroughly researched account showcases how Mesta wielded social power as political power, resulting in a finely observed character study of a woman with an “uncanny ability to... artfully sway [politicians] into compromising and working together.” It’s a reverent ode to an overlooked fixture of midcentury American politics. (Jan.)