#Belle da Costa Greene

[dontdenymeshakespeare]

Christmas & Birthday Book Haul

My 2022 Christmas and Birthday Book Haul

As always, I combine these two lists because my birthday is two days after Christmas. They are in no particular order The Letters of Virginia Woolf, Volume Four, 1929-1931, edited by Nigel Nicholson & Joanne Trautmann Volume four of Virginia Wolff focuses on Wolff’s correspondence with Ethel Smyth and the book The Waves. The Circus Train by Amita Parikh Lena Papadopoulos has never found her…

[first-ex-wife]

reading about Belle da Costa Greene who was a librarian and art historian who worked for the Morgan Library in New York and was famous for her efforts at adding to and maintaining the collection. and she was a Black woman who passed for white so that she could be successful, and the book I’m reading is historical fiction but still, knowing she would be recognized for her true self at one point and could shine as a beacon of a successful Black woman in a time when that was nearly impossible… like it’s so beautiful

[abwwia]

Belle da Costa Greene (November 26, 1879 – May 10, 1950) was an American librarian who managed and developed the personal library of J. P. Morgan. After Morgan's death in 1913, Greene continued as librarian for his son, Jack Morgan, and in 1924 was named the first director of the Pierpont Morgan Library. Despite being born to Black parents, Greene spent her professional career passing for white. via Wikipedia

[thewomanwhoreads]

She wears her hair long and does not use glasses, runs to Europe on secret missions, and is the terror of continental collectors’ agents. Her name is Belle Green.

An Illuminated Life: Belle da Costa Greene's Journey from Prejudice to Privilege

[jewishcissiekj]

Left out too many people last time, oops

[blysse-and-blunder]

in lieu of a labor day long weekend

11pm, sunday, september 1, 2024

couldn't remember if i've done 'in lieu of a long weekend' before, so i specified. raise your hand if you're spending the day off doing more work than ever, because you're a grad student and/or poor planner!

reading

francis spufford's cahokia jazz (2024) absolutely entranced me this week. i couldn't put it down, stayed up all night (literally) to get through the big confrontation and then stayed up to make sure i knew how things shook out afterwards. i have found two book reviews which seem to agree that there's a lot to 'work through' here, pull-quote below, but this was not my experience-- i was thoroughly hooked by the (to me) subtle and eloquent clues about how this timeline was different from our own, and fascinated by the city politics, religion, infrastructure-- if anything, the focus on public transit struck me more than the exposition! shoutout to the streetcars!--but most importantly, maybe, spufford knew how to write his protagonist's relationship to music, and incorporate joe's jazz into his pov in a beautiful way, a real way. i'm fucking mourning the what-could-have-been of cahokia, of indigenous america, of. god. that vision of a different form of modernity-- not less complicated, not less industrialized, with all its own moral ambiguities and darkness...but nevertheless a living society.

from the new york times' review, ivy pochoda:

Reader, let me ask you a question. How much work are you willing to do to dive into a new novel? Do you want to step into a speculative world frustratingly close to our own? Do you want to spend time in an imaginary city constructed with the world-building minutiae of a high fantasy novel? Do you want to engage with new forms of government and religious sects? Are you cool if there’s foreign language peppered throughout? How about the Klan? A Red scare? A nascent F.B.I.? A love story? Do you also want jazz? And do you want all of this to be part of a detective novel?

fucking of course YES I DO.

also finished just today, the personal librarian (2021) by Marie Benedict, Victoria Christopher Murray, narrated by Robin Miles. i had known there was a belle da costa greene award offered by the maa for medievalists of color, but it took me until reading this novel to actually learn anything about belle herself, and i am thrilled it exists. i'm so, so glad she existed. figuring out how to work her into my medieval book syllabus as we speak. a very different book than the one above, though they both must have taken a huge amount of research and informed imagination and inference-- belle destroyed her correspondence, apart from her business letters apparently-- but the academic in me was hoping there would be. two or three more skosh more precision and detail in the discussion of manuscript / incunabula research. there was a lot of 'the beauty of art' and 'the value of the written word' but it felt a little cursory. still, i know i'm an outlier. the discussions of her relationships to her parents, her identity, her passing, were all executed with so much care.

watching

the build up of intensity / count-down to the opening of the restaurant in the bear s2 was getting to me in the count down to the new semester, so i turned to something a little different. what if this is the year i actually get into psych. so far, signs point to this being a good decision. just finished the spelling bee episode (s1e02 i think? i didn't realize that the pilot was two parts, i thought those were two separate eps but whatever) and it was absurd, but. i'm just so glad to be watching tv made in an era where...you have to watch the screen to get everything that's happening! and there are contrived/ridiculous premises in the same episode as some layers are built up in the main characters' relationships and actual, like, continuity! it's a serial detective show that is at bottom incredibly silly but i'm here to over think and get invested in it. love to see dulé hill in a lead role. what the hell was i doing in 2006, when not watching this.

listening

i'm exploring a bit lately, new music, new (to me) artists-- I think i'm enjoying pop girlies at the moment, song of the summer etc., and charlie xcx's brat and caroline polachek have both been on my repeat list, but i don't have a ton to report yet. honestly this week it's been a lot of listening to the podcast a more civilized age: a star wars podcast (thanks @knifepadme for the rec!!) break down over andor. it is so incredibly cute to hear how excited they get over the first three episodes, and continue to get over the whole first arc. TELEVISION! it makes me feel like i'm rewatching the show with friends, their insights and the parallels and interpretations they keep pulling out are enriching it a lot, but also their star wars nerdery is picking up on things i wouldn't have thought to get excited about, and predictions that never occurred to me, and it's. delightful.

playing

finished chants of sennaar! total play time was about 20 hours, and that's with getting all the glyphs and all but two of the accomplishments (a little sore about that since I'm pretty sure i was in proximity for at least one of them that ended up not counting, but, whatever). i did consult a guide for the final series of puzzles, not the last language but the stuff that came after, i guess because i wanted to be completionist about it--but there were also some obstacles that weren't logic or anything, but more about learning the game's patterns (the first thing i looked up was staring right in front of me, i just wasn't paying attention to the right shit). there was a moment when the genre of the game shifted, i think i've mentioned before maybe, and it happens again towards the end-- but this time it didn't hit in quite the same way? perhaps because it wasn't as big a shock. more of a 'oh well, i guess this might as well be happening' reaction. i'd done a few of the puzzles out of order, i think, earlier than they'd anticipated / as i was progressing up the tower rather than all at the end, except for one at the very bottom that i had to go back and find (thank you to the people online who write guides and do playthroughs).

i really loved the visuals and design of this game-- the colors, the angles, the wild perspectives in some of the scenes. i liked that, once i'd gotten the hang of something, i could typically repeat that manner of thinking and succeed the next time as well-- a game about learning. learning to learn!

making

sewed part of one of the new patches onto the jacket. just barely worked out a stitch i could handle, only to have my housemate lend me a little rubber finger...thingy, and make everything so much easier. why did i decide to sew through denim and multiple layers of stitching? because i don't trust the iron-able backing, and also love to make life harder for myself i guess.

working on

it's been syllabus lockdown hours over here, and considering that the first class is thursday, it will continue to be until the absolute last fucking minute. i want too much and also shy away from making literally any decision. you'd think that this level of avoidance might make it easier to productively procrastinate by working on other things, but that's a funny joke.

[haveyoureadthispoll]

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.

[dontdenymeshakespeare]

Favourite Reads of 2023

[amethystandemma]

Shelter

A Sunny Castle and Peter Parker one-shot

TW: somewhat descriptive depiction of a teen’s death. The paragraphs that could be potentially triggering are separated from the rest by a series of dashes.

Please tell me what y’all think!

. . . . .

Living in NYC means that you get used to the city being threatened pretty quickly. Between Green Goblin blowing up the Brooklyn Bridge to aliens invading to find the perfect cucumber sandwich recipe (long story), it becomes normal that something weird will happen daily.

Dating Spider-Man didn't help either. He regularly fought insane maniacs like Electro or Mysterio while on his way to and from work. Occasionally, he needed help, which is when Sunny as Halo would show up.

Mostly, criminals attacked buildings or civilians, regardless of what they looked like or were. Mostly.

And then you have the anti-mutants.

"I'm here outside Sasha's Supreme Steaks where a Sentinel just attacked the restaurant looking for mutants," the young newscaster, Bette Brant, reported. She stood in front of the smoldering remains of the restaurant while firefighters desperately tried to get control of the situation. "Amateur footage recorded the attack. We are about to show it now, but please be advised, the video you are about to see can be disturbing."

I should turn it off, Sunny thought.

But she couldn't. No matter how disgusting the images she was about to see were going to be, she couldn't help but watch. This was happening to people like her, people who were just born different. They didn't ask for this.

—————————————————

Sunny watched in horror as a giant hand ripped through the roof of the restaurant, sending patrons into a screaming frenzy. The person recording leapt beneath a table, making the film shaky. It didn't prevent the camera from catching a mutant, a green male with fish scales, being crushed into a bloody pulp.

He couldn't have been over fifteen years old.

—————————————————

"I'm heading out."

She had been so focused on the news that she didn't even see Peter walk into the room. He already had his Spider-Man suit on, the only thing missing was the mask.

He'd once told her he wears the mask so no one could tell he was afraid. Some people are able to hide it pretty well, but Peter's blue eyes always gave away his alarm. As they did now.

"I'm going with you," Sunny replied, heading towards their room.

"Sun, you can't."

The young man grabbed onto her elbow and turned her around, forcing her to look him in the eyes. Sunny realized he wasn't scared for his sake, he was scared for her's.

“Those things are targeting mutants. If you go out, you're at an even higher risk of being hurt. Or worse."

She tried to get free from his grip, but it was too strong.

"I'm not losing you." He whispered.

They stared, her green eyes meeting his blue ones. The air was charged around them; the tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

Ding dong.

The doorbell once. Neither one of them broke eye contact.

Dingdongdingdongdingdongding-

The door opened before the bell finished ringing. Jubilation Lee, the mutant better known as Jubilee, stepped in through the open entryway, holding Roberto da Costa up with an arm around his shoulders. Both were bleeding from multiple spots with cuts all over their bodies.

"Hey, there is a situation going on out there and we need a doctor," she snapped, her normal bubbly personality nowhere to be seen. "Kitty is on her way. She's bringing some kids along with her."

Jubilee dropped Roberto on the loveseat with a grunt from both of them. She turned back to the couple who were still in the same position.

"We need a safe space. You're the only one we got," she continued. Her voice wavered, the cracks beginning to show on how much pain she was in. "Are you in?"

Sunny turned back to Peter. The two exchanged a look that said what a thousand words could not. No matter what was going to happen; they were going to help those in need, and they were going to stick together.

"We're in." Sunny confirmed.

[whitehotel]

Laura Coombs Hills, Belle da Costa Greene in Egyptian costume (1910)

[partialto]

Thank you for the tag, @monster-fuzz​!

Last song I listened to: I just got a voicemail from my little brother that was nothing but Skee-Lo’s “I Wish” so ... that 💀

Books I’m currently reading: The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell, which I’m enjoying quite a bit although it doesn’t compare to Hamnet, and The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray, which I am getting through with gritted teeth (it’s the writing. If I came across a fanfic with this level of prose, I'd hit the back button and move on). Belle da Costa Greene's fascinating life and career deserve better. I had more fun reading her Wikipedia article.

Currently watching: Every now and then when I need cheering up, the kdrama Heartbeat via my mother’s Amazon Prime account. It’s nothing earth-shattering but extremely cute.

Movie watch list: Nothing in particular; I can’t even get interested in Barbenheimer, though both are very much up my alley. I think with work & life stuff, it’s easier right now to watch things I can dip into in small chunks. I’ll catch up eventually!

No-pressure tags: @letjulybejuly, @lightswings, @mistymoonlight, @wild-hyacinths

[rockislandadultreads]

Women’s History Month: Fiction Recommendations

The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn

In 1937 in the snowbound city of Kiev (now known as Kyiv), wry and bookish history student Mila Pavlichenko organizes her life around her library job and her young son - but Hitler's invasion of Ukraine and Russia sends her on a different path. Given a rifle and sent to join the fight, Mila must forge herself from studious girl to deadly sniper - a lethal hunter of Nazis known as Lady Death. When news of her three hundredth kill makes her a national heroine, Mila finds herself torn from the bloody battlefields of the eastern front and sent to America on a goodwill tour.

Still reeling from war wounds and devastated by loss, Mila finds herself isolated and lonely in the glittering world of Washington, DC - until an unexpected friendship with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and an even more unexpected connection with a silent fellow sniper offer the possibility of happiness. But when an old enemy from Mila's past joins forces with a deadly new foe lurking in the shadows, Lady Death finds herself battling her own demons and enemy bullets in the deadliest duel of her life.

Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

Montgomery, Alabama, 1973. Fresh out of nursing school, Civil Townsend intends to make a difference, especially in her African American community. At the Montgomery Family Planning Clinic, she hopes to help women shape their destinies, to make their own choices for their lives and bodies.

But when her first week on the job takes her along a dusty country road to a worn-down one-room cabin, Civil is shocked to learn that her new patients, Erica and India, are children - just eleven and thirteen years old. Neither of the Williams sisters has even kissed a boy, but they are poor and Black, and for those handling the family’s welfare benefits, that’s reason enough to have the girls on birth control. As Civil grapples with her role, she takes India, Erica, and their family into her heart. Until one day she arrives at their door to learn the unthinkable has happened, and nothing will ever be the same for any of them.

Decades later, with her daughter grown and a long career in her wake, Dr. Civil Townsend is ready to retire, to find her peace, and to leave the past behind. But there are people and stories that refuse to be forgotten. That must not be forgotten. Because history repeats what we don’t remember.

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silva Moreno-Garcia

Carlota Moreau: A young woman growing up on a distant and luxuriant estate, safe from the conflict and strife of the Yucatán peninsula. The only daughter of a researcher who is either a genius or a madman.

Montgomery Laughton: A melancholic overseer with a tragic past and a propensity for alcohol. An outcast who assists Dr. Moreau with his experiments, which are financed by the Lizaldes, owners of magnificent haciendas and plentiful coffers.

The hybrids: The fruits of the doctor’s labor, destined to blindly obey their creator and remain in the shadows. A motley group of part human, part animal monstrosities.

All of them live in a perfectly balanced and static world, which is jolted by the abrupt arrival of Eduardo Lizalde, the charming and careless son of Dr. Moreau’s patron, who will unwittingly begin a dangerous chain reaction. For Moreau keeps secrets, Carlota has questions, and, in the sweltering heat of the jungle, passions may ignite.

The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict

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 in New York City society 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 create 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.

[thewomanwhoreads]

Love when all my interests come together in a book!