by Anne Sebba
First published 2021
Anne Sebba reconstructs the life of Ethel Rosenberg, the wife and mother electrocuted in 1953 for conspiracy to commit espionage. Sebba argues that Ethel died for a crime she did not commit, victim of Cold War hysteria and government prosecutors who knew their evidence was weak. The author draws on newly available prison correspondence between Ethel and her husband Julius, her attorney, and her psychotherapist during three years of imprisonment, two in solitary confinement. Sebba portrays a woman who dreamed of opera singing but instead navigated 1950s social expectations while facing political persecution, anti-Semitism, and family rejection. Rather than betray Julius under government pressure, Ethel chose execution, leaving their two young sons orphaned. This biography focuses exclusively on Ethel for the first time in thirty years, using dramatic letters that reveal her emotional journey from arrest to death. Sebba offers readers a story of government overreach driven by fear and the personal cost of loyalty and courage.
Genres: biography, historical-fiction, 20th-century, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: family-secrets, loyalty, political-persecution
Setting: United States
Period: 1950s
303 pages · Kindle Edition · Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Content warnings: death