


Pretending to be something else, as a survival instinct, is complicated enough but add to that moving among the elite, JP Morgan’s family, where one false move could ruin you, make you a criminal even and the reader gets a taste of life in Belle’s Greene’s shoes.

I loved LaPierre’s book on Artemisia Gentileschi, but this one is even better. The Morgans, of course, Belle’s own family, and the many other scholars, rogues, and collectors (some being all three at once!) who inhabit her orbit. LaPierre does a wonderful job of balancing the perils of Belle’s “passing” as white with her scholarly work, and how the two things intertwined in her private life and her professional life.Įqually vibrant are the other figures who are part of her story. It’s hard to do an incredible human like Belle justice in written format, or any format that isn’t being lucky enough to encounter her in the flesh, but Alexandra LaPierre has given us such a rich, detailed account that Green and the rest of the cast come to life as you read. I’ve long been fascinated by Belle Greene and with her relationship to the Morgan Family and the Morgan Library, so I was absolutely delighted to discover this vibrant, thorough account of Belle’s life and work. One of the most exceptional things I’ve read all year.
