Welcome to Litsy!

I‘ve had this book on Kindle for months, way back when it was the last book for #EuropaCollective. Finally got around to it! A very interesting story about Belle Greene who became the chief librarian for J.P. Morgan in the early 1900s, all while passing as “white” even though her parents were descended from slaves. It‘s amazing how far we‘ve come from when having a single drop of black blood disqualified someone from so much.

The JP Morgan library celebrating 100 years and giving due credit to Belle. 😄 Gorgeous collection - hope to see it someday.

https://youtu.be/2hMrbtZQWxo?si=Cg8tVcodd_aRCnA9

#FeelinTheLove Day 19: There is #IllicitLoveAffair between Belle Greene and a famous married art historian. That was pretty toxic. Come to think of it, she had several #IllicitLoveAffair(s) with married men. My full review here: https://wp.me/pDlzr-r26

I didn't dislike this book. The premise is fascinating, actually, and I expected to be enthralled, but I was not. I kept putting it down and having no interest in picking it back up. Today I've decided not to try anymore and donate my copy. Was it better in French? Because this English version felt like it needed a better editor.

I think the length of this one had intimidated me a bit, so I‘m so glad #Roll100 (January) got me to pick it up, because I loved it! From the first page, it yanked me into the story and I wanted to learn as much as possible about the extraordinary Belle.

#25Alive! Day 20: My #FvWinterDrink is peppermint rum chata - but this one is a close second. Thoroughly enjoyed our final book for the #EuropaCollective. Scheduled my post at GatheringBooks in two weeks‘ time. 💕

#25Alive! Day 11: Belle‘s #TakeCharge attitude when it comes to JP Morgan‘s collections totally impressed the brilliant man - and the rest is history. Review is forthcoming. Finished reading the book and absolutely loved it. #ReadTheWorld2025: France (translated from French) - although setting is mostly US based. #EuropaCollective

#25Alive! Day 7: Belle Greene lived a most #Prosperous and charmed life, as she served as a personal librarian to the illustrious and obscenely wealthy JP Morgan during New York‘s Gilded Age in the early 1900s. I can see this #EuropaCollective December pick being made into a riveting TV series. In my last few pages of this fascinating story. So happy to be part of the #EuropaCollective book club. Any 2025 edition, @jlhammar ? 🤩😍

#25Alive! Day 2: A strawberry mojito #Toast to our #EuropaCollective pick for December which I have not finished reading yet, unfortunately. 🙈

I really enjoyed this and it didn‘t matter that I‘d already read The Personal Librarian previously - yes, I knew the general outline but the books are quite different stylistically, and complement each other.

This one felt a little bit more NF (even though the author doesn‘t claim that it is) and I thought Belle herself came across a bit more mercenary and unlikeable in this version.

Thanks @jlhammar for being a great host! #europacollective

Eye opening in so many ways! 😲 I have mixed feelings about Bella and some of her decisions. Ultimately, they cost her dearly and the question is whether it was worth it.

The weird thing is no mention is made of whether & what Belle liked to read recreationally! It appears her real passion was collecting & organizing & preserving treasures.

My only quibble with the book is it‘s a bit long in the detail at times. #Europacollective

Learn something new every day they say! Well, I‘ve been informed by my teens we celebrate what is commonly referred to as a “tacky Christmas.” 🤣

Definitely NOT in keeping with Morgan & Greene standards. Our decorations aren‘t matchy or themed. Wait, I guess the theme IS tacky.

Again the 💵 is simply astounding in this book. One shipment of collectibles alone was worth over $1B (BILLION). It was scheduled to come over on the Titanic. 😳

Belle Greene was a remarkable woman!!! The Morgan Library owes its ‘ life‘ to her!
I cant imagine what it would be like to carry the secret of passing.
This was another great read for #EuropaCollective.

I decided to see how much she inherited:
She I nherited $50,000 in 1913 from JP Morgan
Today‘s equivalent would be $1.6 million

She also inherited $50,000 in 1943 from his son
Which the equivalent today is $900,000

Enjoying learning more about the fascinating Belle Greene for #EuropaCollective
Thanks for curating such wonderful books this year @jlhammar 🩵💙🩵
A great companion book is The Personal Librarian

Belle is about to offer 125k for Lord Amherst‘s Caxton collection of Didlington Hall. That‘s a cool $50M in today‘s dollars. That isn‘t even her total book buying budget! 😳 Can you imagine?

I did a small dive into Didlington Hall, Caxton Collection, & the Amherst swindle. #Europacollective

All the secrets! 👀 It had to have been not only exhilarating at times, but I would think emotionally exhausting most of the time.

Hmmmmm 🧐 I wonder if Belle would have swapped offices with me? This is only 1 room of a three room suite comprising the librarian‘s office at the Morgan library. #Europacollective

📚🫶🏽

#Europacollective

Starting early because it‘s a big one. The prelude is devastating. 😔

I appreciate Lapierre is not sugar coating the story or the historically accurate attitudes & language. #Europacollective

#EuropaCollective ✨December 2024✨ REMINDER

Hope you all are as excited as I am for our next pick, Belle Greene by Alexandra Lapierre! Read the book sometime in December, post your review &/or any thoughts along the way and be sure to tag the group. All are welcome!

I‘m planning to take a break from Litsy in the new year. If any of you would like to take over hosting duties and keep the group going, please be my guest.

Next up.... Big chunky volume! Picked this up after seeing posts from @trishb

#AboutABook #SetinLibrary

Looking forward to our December #EuropaCollective book about Belle Greene and her tenure as librarian of JPMorgan‘s private collection.

@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

4 Stars • "Belle Greene" by Alexandra Lapierre is a biography of Belle da Costa Greene, a librarian and art historian who was the first director of the Morgan Library in New York. Born into an African-American family, Greene passed as white to avoid racial discrimination. The book explores her life, career, and the challenges she faced due to her secret.

#Bookstagram #BelleGreene #AlexandraLapierre

Absolutely fascinating. Didn‘t know anything about the MC- it‘s a novel about her life. What a tapestry of life she had- have no idea how she had the confidence to pull it all off, but she was brilliant.
Big exhibition about her next year in the Morgan Library, now just to get to NY.

As I‘ve been struck down by the non covid lurgy I‘ve banished myself off to bed early for a read.
And also to avoid my daughter yelling at the F1 😁

Layover at SeaTac on the way to see the in-laws and why yes, Elliott Bay Book Co, I think I will! I snagged the tagged book within.

#bookmail
Couldn‘t resist these (ofc) Tagged one was given as one of the blind date books at Gladstone‘s and it sounded great.
North Woods sounds fab too!

#EuropaCollective cast your vote for December 2024!

Links to book blurbs below.

@jlhammar @LeahBergen @squirrelbrain @mcctrish @GatheringBooks @DrexEdit @Aimeesue @charl08 @Deblovestoread @lauraisntwilder @BarbaraBB @CSeydel @TheKidUpstairs @Sapphire @Adventures-of-a-French-Reader @Cathythoughts

This is a fascinating story of the life of Belle Greene - a spirited and determined young woman who rose to become the highest paid woman in 1920s America, as the librarian of the JP Morgan library. With a fierce passion for books and manuscripts she built the library collection and laid the foundation for public access. Inspiring enough - and then you remember she did this whilst holding a secret that could ruin her.

I‘m looking forward to this one.

Extraordinary! Such an excellently written history - fictionalized - of Belle Greene! Enthralling from beginning to end.

Starting this fascinating sounding book tonight. Belle Greene sounds like an incredible woman. Loved that the author included this in her note: To The Reader