Reviews with content warning for Grief - La bibliotecaria di New York

This book tells the story of JP Morgan's personal librarian, a Black woman who passes herself as Portuguese in early 1900s New York. It is a fascinating story that was incredibly eye opening. They tell the story of how they are able to live as a white family, not shying away from that trauma. The book talks about the immediate post Civil War South, and the hope that was sadly quickly dashed.

This book covers a lot of deep topics, and it doesn't hold much back. Be warned: there blatant racism, misogyny, heavy alcohol consumption, abortion, abandonment...

My main criticism of the book is that it's told in first person, but it very deliberately and overtly points things out. I think telling it in omniscient third person would have felt less like I was hearing a summary than a story. It's like in video games where the next person you need to talk to is highlighted, the author basically points and says "Look at this" instead of molding it into the story.

The book is less about what is in the library (though it is discussed) and more about how she loves through the world carefully, deliberately, and choosing to hide in plain sight. It was a fascinating look at life in 1900s New York as a woman, moving in orbit around the ultra rich (Morgan, Carnegie, Vanderbilt, etc.) but being constantly terrified of having it all taken away.

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kcrockford's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Initially the pace felt very slow but picked up about halfway through, and I couldn't put it down. I didn't initially realize this book is based off of real people which adds an extra layer of intrigue for the reader.

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readbycarina's review against another edition

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emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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susannah_knox's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I appreciated getting to know the real person behind the novel and this was an interesting, fun read... but I was not in love with the writing style.

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bookcasey's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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remie's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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libraryghost's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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erica_palmisano's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I'm not sure why I didn't connect with this book emotionally. The story certainly has lots of drama and tension baked in and seems quite well researched. I also appreciated the authors' notes about the inspiration and process of writing. I think perhaps the style of the book itself was just a mismatch for me. Too much dialogue (much of it flowery, as befits the period but still). There was a lot of overt exposition that I wish had been more deftly handled. I'd have preferred the narrative to flow over months and years without drawing so much attention to exact dates. And so often, I wondered: why draw an explicit conclusion when one could leave some mystery and room for doubt in characters' motivations? The narrative made all the subtext into text and thus had a didactic vibe. When comparing it to another book about a white-passing woman in "The Vanishing Half," which I read just a few months ago, I wished it had more the nuance of the latter. However, I'm not a big aficionado of historical fiction so perhaps that's me bringing my literary fiction expectations to a genre that has its own conventions.

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