The Personal Librarian

by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

Louise's copy paperback 324 pages plus historical note and authors' notes

Published: 2021

Genre: historical fiction

 

Interesting that I like historical fiction and I love libraries, but I didn't care much for this book. I definitely learned some new things, though! Belle Marion Greener was raised by Richard Greener (first Black graduate of Harvard and an activist for equal rights) and Genevieve Ida Fleet ( a member of a prominent Black DC family). Her parents separated when Belle was a teen and her mother chose to raise the family as white, since they were light-skinned enough and she saw the horrors of racial discrimination. Thus, the young lady became "Belle da Costa Greene" and her skin tone was attributed to fictional Portugese ancestors. She became J.P. Morgan's personal librarian and built a renowned collection of books and artifacts.

 

Page 19: "But the time for hope is past; things are only going to get worse. There is only black and white - nothing in between - and they will always be separate, but never equal. Segregation will take care of that."

 

This is part of a fight between Belle's parents before they split. They had huge ideological differences on how to best navigate life in America in 1905. I learned that the Supreme Court overturned the Civil Rights Act in 1890 . . . it's sad to think of what could have happened (in a positive way) if the politicians of the day hadn't fought to protect the status quo. 

Page 121: But I could not have guessed London's greatest gift. Here, as I walk the streets, I don't feel the same assessment of my color that I routinely experience, and constantly anticipate, in America. Perhaps London's citizens don't have the same need to categorize us by race as they do in America.

I thought that was a very interesting observation. Also the next one.

Page 133: His eyebrows furrow. 'Because he's a Jew,' he spits in a tone that I've heard from him before. 'Or is rumored to be one anyway, though that is not what Berenson claims.' Inside, I sigh. Anti-Semitism is as rampant as racism against the colored in this country.

This makes me sad. People hating people because of skin color, religion, etc. makes our world more difficult.

Page 139: . . . a glimmering shade almost like grisaille . . . 

 

 A word I've never seen before! I knew it was a color, but I had to look it up. Dictionary.com says:

a method of painting in gray monochrome, typically to imitate sculpture.

"trompe l'oeil elevations painted in grisaille"

 

So it's more of a painting technique than a color. The guy had gray eyes that looked like sculpture? Okay.

 

 

 

Page 176: "Not that I'm concerned, of course. Because no matter who you see or what you do, you are my personal librarian. You must always remember that you belong to me."

 

 

It's historical fiction, but I can imagine someone like J.P. Morgan saying something like this!  How awful for a black woman passing as white to hear her boss say that he OWNS her. Yuk.

 

Page 207 broke my heart. I didn't like her romance with the older, married Bernard Berenson. But when she got pregnant and he urged an abortion and then wasn't there with her! That was too much. She was physically, mentally, and emotionally broken. (This may or may not have happened in real life. Greene destroyed all her personal papers before she died.)

 

Page 288: We shared an insatiable curiosity. The deeper we each read, the more we would understand about this world we live in, and the more questions we had.

 

This resonated for me. I love reading. I love learning. I'm a tiny bit curious to learn more about J.P. Morgan, but that can wait for another day. I'm glad I read about this woman - a real librarian, a strong woman, a person who made a difference. (I looked up the Morgan Library. That would be an amazing place to visit!)