About
The remarkable, little-known story of Belle da Costa Greene, J. P. Morgan's personal librarian—who became one of the most powerful women in New York despite the dangerous secret she kept in order to make her dreams come true, from New York Times bestselling author Marie Benedict and acclaimed author Victoria Christopher Murray.
In her twenties, Belle da Costa Greene is hired by J. P. Morgan to curate a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and artwork for his newly built Pierpont Morgan Library. Belle becomes a fixture on the New York society scene and one of the most powerful people in the art and book world, known for her impeccable taste and shrewd negotiating for critical works as she helps build a world-class collection.
But Belle has a secret, one she must protect at all costs. She was born not Belle da Costa Greene but Belle Marion Greener. She is the daughter of Richard Greener, the first Black graduate of Harvard and a well-known advocate for equality. Belle's complexion isn't dark because of her alleged Portuguese heritage that lets her pass as white—her complexion is dark because she is African American.
The Personal Librarian tells the story of an extraordinary woman, famous for her intellect, style, and wit, and shares the lengths to which she must go—for the protection of her family and her legacy—to preserve her carefully crafted white identity in the racist world in which she lives.
My Thoughts
I went into this book blindly, with no prior knowledge of what it was going to be about and I was blown away by the story of Belle De Costa Greene, personal librarian of the powerful JP Morgan. Imagine my surprise also to learn that this work was loosely based on a true story.
The authors of this book did an excellent job with this. Reading Belle's experience as a coloured woman who passed for white was mind blowing to me. She experienced the glitz and glamour of the time period while working for one of the most powerful man in the United States at the time.
I now appreciate after reading many books on the hardships that African Americans had to face to be accepted, that many went to great lengths to just have some form of equality. What was amazing was how she pulled it off for as long as she did going on to be a successful and powerful woman ahead of her time. This was a very daring thing to do.
Belle's life while there were triumphs came with a bit of sadness, in her family, in love, but what I admired most is that in spite of everything she was going through in her personal life her determination to make the Pierpont Morgan Library a success never faltered.
I really enjoyed this book.
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