Imelda

Steel Butterfly of the Philippines

By: Katherine Ellison

Narrated by: Katherine Ellison

Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

Imelda Marcos - famous for her 1,060 pairs of shoes was also one of the most powerful and controversial figures in world history. She was extraordinarily beautiful, charismatic, determined and savage.

Imelda: Steel Butterfly of the Philippines, a uniquely unauthorized biography by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Katherine Ellison, describes the Philippine first lady's rise from near-poverty to unimaginable riches, her surprisingly tenacious attempt to take over as dictator, and her fatal grudge match with her chief political rival, Benigno Ninoy Aquino.

After helping reveal Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos multi-billion-dollar corruption in a Pulitzer-prize-winning newspaper series, Ellison returned to the Philippines, New York City, and Washington, D.C. to interview scores of Imelda's relatives, friends, bodyguards, Blue Ladies, political rivals and allies, as well as every U.S. Ambassador to serve in Manila during the Marcos 1965-1986 regime.

Acclaimed by The Washington Post for its exceptional research and compelling writing, Ellison's book chronicles Imelda's journey from her modest upbringing on the island of Leyte to her powerful role beside her husband, who called her his secret weapon.

Imelda, now in her 90s, and at the helm of a political dynasty with her son, President Ferdinand BongBong Marcos Jr., appears to have triumphed over her critics, even inspiring a cheerful recent Broadway musical.

Get Imelda: Steel Butterfly of the Philippines to learn the much more fascinating truth.

Katherine Ellison is a former foreign correspondent and author and co-author of a dozen books, including the family ADHD memoir, Buzz: A Year of Paying Attention.

©1988, 2012, 2024 Katherine Ellison (P)2024 Katherine Ellison

Critic reviews

"The research here is superb, the writing is gripping and graceful."-The Washington Post

"Katherine Ellison has a reporter's zeal for finding the story within the story. Her book is full of surprises."-David Haward Bain, author of Sitting in Darkness: Americans in the Philippines

Getting to Know Emelda and the Politics of the Marcos Regime

I was glad to have an opportunity to learn about Emelda from childhood of poverty to the power behind the Marcos throne and it all came about from beginning to end. She was such an overarching influence, showy for sure, but overlooking the severe needs of her people. Her influence throughout the world and especially the United States.She served her obcessions well, but to the Phillippines’ detriment. Corruption ran rampant during her time in power. I learned so much about the Phillippines about I always wondered. I wonder how it fares now.

An Unauthorized Biography

This was my first experience with Katherine Ellison's work. It was a book about the life of Imelda Marcos, who once was the first lady of the Philippines. I was amazed at the depth and amount of research that went into this book. The facts of Imelda's life were presented clearly. The story was easy to follow. I liked that the details were not presented in a sensationalized way. Katherine Ellison's narration was fine in that her voice was easy to understand; however, there were a few times when she had to start a sentence or group of words over. Katherine did speak a little fast, and her voice had little tonal variation. I was given a free copy of the audiobook, and I have voluntarily posted this review which included my opinions.