BY: BOOKMANS

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
by Betty Smith
One of my favorite books. The story of Francie Nolan and her family in 1900s-1910s in Brooklyn, New York. It's said to be based on the author's childhood and is another fascinating read. Especially after reading about the middle-class family of Day's, you'll see the class division quite strikingly between these two families that weren't too far away from each other in distance, but worlds apart in living. This book always makes me appreciate what I have.

Hotel Bemelmans
by Ludwig Bemelmans
Ludwig Bemelmans is best known for his "Madeleine" books for children. What most people do not know is that his biographical novels are humorous at best. "Hotel Bemelmans" is one of many gems he has out in the literary world waiting to be discovered again. He emigrated to the United States from Germany in the early 1920s, worked in many New York city hotels, and here he describes what high-society life was like then. Especially interesting is how the industry handled Prohibition and how the ultra-wealthy fared right before the Great Depression.

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