![]() Although she looks white, she is African American, the daughter of a famous black activist who sees her desire to hide her origins as the consummate betrayal. Flamboyant, brilliant, beautiful, Belle is among New York society’s most sought after intellectuals. Morgan, darling of the international aristocracy and one of the city’s richest men. A young girl fascinated by rare books defies all odds and becomes the director of one of the country’s most prestigious private libraries. An unfinished novel by the author of Invisible Man.īelle Greene by Alexandra Lapierre Translated from the French by Tina Kover As the two men talk, their respective stories come out. When he is shot on the Senate floor, the first visitor in hospital is a black musician-turned-preacher who raised him. The story of a black man who passes for white and becomes a race-baiting U.S. Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. The other secretly passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Ten years later, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it’s not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it’s everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. The Personal Librarian tells the story of an extraordinary woman, famous for her intellect, style, and wit, and shares the lengths 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. 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. She is the daughter of Richard Greener, the first Black graduate of Harvard and well-known advocate for equality. She was born not Belle da Costa Greene but Belle Marion Greener. But Belle has a secret, one she must protect at all costs. 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. Pierpont Morgan to curate a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and artwork for his newly built Morgan Library. In her twenties, Belle da Costa Greene is hired by J. 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. The remarkable, little-known story of Belle da Costa Greene, J. The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray The titles below, including the two books about Belle Greene, are recommended reads which address the theme of passing.įor more information about celebrating Black History Month, please visit Morgan, and a driving force in building the manuscripts and incunabula collections of the Pierpont Morgan Library, which is now the Morgan Library & Museum. Belle Greene was the “personal librarian” to J.P. Passing is a central theme in two newer books of historical fiction biography about Belle da Costa Greene (born Belle Marion Greener), which will be discussed together in the Hill Avenue Book Group (online, in Zoom) on Saturday, February 18 at 10:30 am. ![]() A difficult and devastating choice to face, and one that tore up families and lives. It meant carrying a secret through a lifetime, and likely generations to follow, in order to not just thrive in a career or relationships, but to avoid the threat of violence or death. ![]() This is known as “passing.” The choice to pass meant leaving family, community, and culture behind and severing ties with anyone or anything that might expose one as Black, either by accident or on purpose. ![]() One of the legacies of Black History in the US is the history of Black Americans with lighter skin finding opportunities otherwise unavailable to them–economic, social and cultural, health and safety–by living as White Americans. It’s a short month to recognize and wrestle with a complex history so long it predates the United States as a nation (Nicole Hannah-Jones’s The 1619 Project: A New Origin Storyis an excellent recent work to check out). We celebrate Black History Month in February.
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