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The Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming a Life Through the Pages of a Lost Journal (P.S.) Kindle Edition
Rescued from a Dumpster on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, a discarded diary brings to life the glamorous, forgotten world of an extraordinary young woman . . .
Opening the tarnished brass lock of a red leather diary found in the basement of a New York City apartment building, New York Times writer Lily Koppel embarked on a journey into the past. Compelled by the hopes and heartaches captured in the pages, Koppel set out to find the diary’s owner, a 90-year old woman named Florence. Eventually reunited with her diary, Florence ventured back to the girl she once was, rediscovering a lost self that burned with artistic fervor.
Joining intimate interviews with original diary entries, The Red Leather Diary is an evocative and entrancing work that recreates the romance and glitter, sophistication and promise, of 1930s New York, bringing to life the true story of a precocious young woman who dared to follow her dreams.
“Melds three life-affirming subjects—Florence Wolfson’s journal of life in 1930s Manhattan, Koppel’s discovery of it in a Dumpster decades later, and the meeting of the two women—into one enchanting memoir.” —Elle
“[An] amazing story . . . A highbrow fairy tale . . . Much of the book’s emotional power derives from the drama of an old woman reclaiming a past that was almost lost to her . . . Koppel writes with flair.” —Chicago Tribune
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHarperCollins e-books
- Publication dateOctober 13, 2009
- File size3610 KB
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From the Back Cover
Rescued from a Dumpster on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, a discarded diary brings to life the glamorous, forgotten world of an extraordinary young woman.
For more than half a century, the red leather diary lay silent, languishing inside a steamer trunk, its worn cover crumbling into little flakes. When a cleaning sweep of a New York City apartment building brings this lost treasure to light, both the diary and its owner are given a second life.
Recovered by Lily Koppel, a young writer working at the New York Times, the journal paints a vivid picture of 1930s New York—horseback riding in Central Park, summer excursions to the Catskills, and an obsession with a famous avant-garde actress. From 1929 to 1934, not a single day's entry is skipped.
Opening the tarnished brass lock, Koppel embarks on a journey into the past, traveling to a New York in which women of privilege meet for tea at Schrafft's, dance at the Hotel Pennsylvania, and toast the night at El Morocco. As she turns the diary's brittle pages, Koppel is captivated by the headstrong young woman whose intimate thoughts and emotions fill the pale blue lines. Who was this lovely ingénue who adored the works of Baudelaire and Jane Austen, who was sexually curious beyond her years, who traveled to Rome, Paris, and London?
Compelled by the hopes and heartaches captured in the pages, Koppel sets out to find the diary's owner, her only clue the inscription on the frontispiece—"This book belongs to . . . Florence Wolfson." A chance phone call from a private investigator leads Koppel to Florence, a ninety-year-old woman living with her husband of sixty-seven years. Reunited with her diary, Florence ventures back to the girl she once was, rediscovering a lost self that burned with artistic fervor.
Joining intimate interviews with original diary entries, Koppel reveals the world of a New York teenager obsessed with the state of her soul and her appearance, and muses on the serendipitous chain of events that returned the lost journal to its owner. Evocative and entrancing, The Red Leather Diary re-creates the romance and glitter, sophistication and promise, of 1930s New York, bringing to life the true story of a precocious young woman who dared to follow her dreams.
About the Author
Lily Koppel writes for the New York Times and other publications. She lives in New York City.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
The Red Leather Diary
Reclaiming a Life Through the Pages of a Lost JournalBy Lily KoppelHarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
Copyright © 2009 Lily KoppelAll right reserved.
ISBN: 9780061256783
Chapter One
The Discovery
Once upon a time the diary had a tiny key. Little red flakes now crumble off the worn cover. For more than half a century, its tarnished latch unlocked, the red leather diary lay silent inside an old steamer trunk strewn with vintage labels evoking the glamorous age of ocean liner travel. "This book belongs to," reads the frontispiece, followed by "Florence Wolfson" scrawled in faded black ink. Inside, in brief, breathless dispatches written on gold-edged pages, the journal recorded five years in the life and times of a smart and headstrong New York teenager, a young woman who loved Baudelaire, Central Park, and men and women with equal abandon.
Tucked within the diary, like a pressed flower, is a yellowed newspaper clipping. The photograph of a girl with huge, soulful eyes and marcelled blond hair atop a heart-shaped face stares out of the brittle scrap. The diary was a gift for her fourteenth birthday on August 11, 1929, and she wrote a few lines faithfully, every day, until she turned nineteen. Then, like so many relics of time past, it was forgotten. The trunk, in turn, languished in the basement of 98 Riverside Drive, a prewar apartment house at Eighty-second Street, until October 2003, when the management decided it was time to clear out the storage area.
The trunk was one of a roomful carted to a waiting Dumpster, and as is often the case in New York, trash and treasure were bedfellows. Some passersby jimmied open the locks and pried apart the trunks' sides in search of old money. Others stared transfixed, as if gazing into a shipwreck, at the treasures spilling from the warped cedar drawers: a flowered kimono, a beaded flapper dress, a cloth-bound volume of Tennyson's poems, half of a baby's red sweater still hanging from its knitting needles. A single limp silk glove fluttered like a small flag. But the diary seems a particularly eloquent survivor of another age. It was as if a corsage once pinned to a girl's dress were preserved for three quarters of a century, faded ribbons intact, the scent still lingering on its petals. Through a serendipitous chain of events, the diary was given the chance to tell its story.
The first time I came to 98 Riverside Drive, an orange brick and limestone building set like a misty castle overlooking leafy Riverside Park and the Hudson River, I felt I was entering a hidden universe awaiting discovery. Under the maroon awning, I entered the red marble lobby, pockmarked with age like the face of the moon. I passed an old framed print of a gondola gliding under Venice's Bridge of Sighs, the early August evening light that filtered through stained-glass windows illuminating a young gallant displaying a jeweled coat of arms, with a dagger stuck in his belt. He was carrying a locked treasure chest.
My gaze wandered to the building's rusted brass buzzer. There were fifteen stories, each floor divided into eight apartments, A through H, where I half expected to find Holden Caulfield's name. Among the residents were several psychoanalytical practices and an Einstein. Floating through the courtyard airshaft, I heard Mozart being worked out on piano. The building seemed to have an artistic soul.
I was twenty-two. I had just landed a job at the New York Times after graduating from Barnard College. An older woman I had met at the newspaper had put me in touch with a friend who wanted to rent a room in her apartment at 98 Riverside. The building was on the Upper West Side, which has long held the reputation of being Manhattan's literary home, although few young artists could still afford the rents.
I rang the pearl doorbell to 2E, waiting in front of the peephole. The red door bordered in black opened, and my new landlady introduced herself. Peggy was in her fifties, with a Meg Ryan haircut. Midwest born and bred, she was glad to learn that I was from Chicago. She was still wearing a pink leotard and tights from Pilates, and her pert expression was hard to read behind a black eye patch. "The pirate look," she said, explaining that a cab had hit her while she was biking through Midtown. Peggy shrugged. "Just my luck."
It was a marvelous apartment with an original fireplace, high ceilings with ornate moldings, Oriental carpets, and antiques. Her collection of Arts and Crafts pottery and vases covered every available surface. When turned upside down, they revealed their makers' names stamped on the bottom—Marblehead, Rookwood, Van Briggle, Roseville and Door. I admired a faun grazing on a vase. "All empty." Peggy giggled, since none held flowers. "I know, very Freudian." She opened French doors, showing me the dining room with a parquet border, and led me through the kitchen, past a no-longer-ringing maid's bell. Down the hallway, she pointed to her own paintings, acrylic portraits and rural landscapes. "The building even has a library," added Peggy, who had just finished Willa Cather's A Lost Lady, which she recommended.
Over Brie with crackers and red grapes set out with silver Victorian grape scissors, we became acquainted on the couch, a pullout, where Peggy said she would sleep. I offered to take the living room instead of her master bedroom, but Peggy insisted. She mentioned rigging up a Chinese screen for privacy. This way she could watch TV late or get up if she couldn't sleep. She told me that when she was my age, she had also come to New York to become an artist. There was a short-lived marriage in her early twenties to a jazz musician. Peggy admitted she lived quietly now, designing Impressionist-inspired napkins and guest towel sets painted with café chairs and names like Paris Bistro, which she sold on the Internet.
Continues...
Excerpted from The Red Leather Diaryby Lily Koppel Copyright © 2009 by Lily Koppel. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Product details
- ASIN : B0013TPYQM
- Publisher : HarperCollins e-books; Illustrated edition (October 13, 2009)
- Publication date : October 13, 2009
- Language : English
- File size : 3610 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 327 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #68,084 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #10 in Literary Diaries & Journals
- #19 in Ancient Rome Biographies
- #24 in Educator Biographies
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
![Lily Koppel](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71EHBPuiKzL._SY600_.jpg)
Lily Koppel is the New York Times bestselling author of The Astronaut Wives Club (the basis for the ABC TV series) and The Red Leather Diary. She has written for the New York Times, the New York Times Magazine, the Daily Beast, and Glamour. Koppel grew up in Chicago and graduated from Barnard College. She currently resides in New York City.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book engaging and enjoyable. They praise the writing style as descriptive and easy to read. The characters are described as intelligent, thoughtful, and adventurous. Readers appreciate the insights into NYC during the early 20th century and the rich details about that era. While some felt the storyline was choppy and redundant at times, overall they found the book educational and well-researched.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers enjoy the book's readability. They find it interesting and enjoyable, with a good story and great ending. The diary story is fun, but some readers felt the book got dull after about 2/3 of the way through.
"...What a spellbinding book!!..." Read more
"The story of how the diary was revealed was fun...." Read more
"...There are many interesting tidbits of history, literature, and women's roles in twentieth century U.S. which I found enlightening." Read more
"...Also lacked the flow of a good novelist, written more like the journalist the author is. A good story and interesting characters...." Read more
Customers enjoy the story's intrigue and interesting historical perspective from a young girl's point of view. They find the period and place fascinating, especially New York City in the 1920s and 1930s. The book is described as an extraordinary account of a young woman's life with interesting facts and historical notes.
"...Though the parts about people were interesting, the portions of the diary dealing with 1930s life in New York City were absolutely fascinating...." Read more
"...The book's best feature was its revelation of life in NYC during the golden age of the 20's and 30's ." Read more
"...There are many interesting tidbits of history, literature, and women's roles in twentieth century U.S. which I found enlightening." Read more
"...unexpected parts (PG-13 for sure)and some parts that were really interesting facts. I thought it was a great look back in time...." Read more
Customers enjoy the writing style. They find it well-written, easy to read, and descriptive. The book contains interesting dialogue about the 20th century in New York City and the people. Readers appreciate the author's research and interviews to create this diary.
"...I will recommend this to people who like history and easy reading." Read more
"...Lily did an impressive amount of research and interviews to create this book . I admire her willingness to ferret out this story...." Read more
"The Red Leather Diary is written in a simplistic style...." Read more
"...She truly has a descriptive way with words and transported us to a brilliant and daring young woman's life in old New York...." Read more
Customers enjoy the book's personality. They find the young woman intellectually gifted and daring. The author seems talented and deeply connected to both young and old. Readers appreciate the well-written story and pictures included.
"...Florence is a very bright, upper class girl, the Manhattan daughter of a doctor and a woman who owned her own high-end dress/gown business..." Read more
"...I admire her willingness to ferret out this story. She, too, seems talented as well as deeply connected to young and old Florence...." Read more
"...way with words and transported us to a brilliant and daring young woman's life in old New York...." Read more
"...yound woman's life in NYC in the late 20's and 30's, it's a fascinating look at her life , her friends, her family, and most importantly of New..." Read more
Customers enjoyed the insights into NYC during the early 20th century. They appreciated the great descriptions of places and things of that era. The content was rich in detail, but the storyline was a bit choppy and redundant. However, it recalled many of their travels and experiences.
"...Although the content was rich in detail, the storyline was a bit choppy and redundant, as if the reader did not have a memory and had to be reminded..." Read more
"...She, too, seems talented as well as deeply connected to young and old Florence...." Read more
"...and made it her mission to find Florence has done a wonderful job compiling Florence's memories with the old diary entries and adding little..." Read more
"I LIKED THE DESCRIPTIONS OF THE PLACES AND THINGS OF THAT ERA...." Read more
Customers find the book's pacing good. They say the author introduces the idea well and it's intriguing. The book is fascinating, although at times it seems more like a list of things. Readers appreciate the impressive research and interviews used to create this educational and easy-to-read story.
"...Lily did an impressive amount of research and interviews to create this book . I admire her willingness to ferret out this story...." Read more
"...Most of the book was fascinating, although at times it seemed more to be a list of things she'd done and people she'd met without much meat~..." Read more
"...One of the most skillfully written and researched books I have ever read. Buy a copy for you and give another as a gift to a friend!..." Read more
"This was a good idea and a good story. Takes you back in history to a different, simpler time." Read more
Customers have different views on the book's intelligence. Some find it engaging and interesting, with a brilliant mind and creative passion. Others feel the observations of a teenager are shallow and not worth reading.
"...Moreover, she had a brilliant mind, a creative passion, and a zest for living and for being her own person...." Read more
"...As one might expect, the observations of a teenager are not deep, but they are entertaining." Read more
"...Florence was indeed a very interesting person and led a very interesting life." Read more
"...is unbearably egocentric to the point of narcissism, shallow, and unlikeable...." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on October 26, 2013A young woman, a 20-something New York Times reporter moved into a new place in NYC. She discovers that the building is throwing out old foot lockers full of abandoned stuff from old residents and, while poking around, she came across an old red leather diary, along with some other things.
It's a 5-year diary, from the 14th to 19th birthdays of a girl named Florence in 1929 to 1934. Florence is a very bright, upper class girl, the Manhattan daughter of a doctor and a woman who owned her own high-end dress/gown business (but who had all their money invested in the stock market when it crashed in 1929).
We learn, via brief lines of daily writing, of Florence's friends and lovers, both male and female, during her late high school years, up through her years at Hunter College, and through a 3-month trip to Europe. Florence is a very artistic girl and talked much, too, about her art and her writing.
Though the parts about people were interesting, the portions of the diary dealing with 1930s life in New York City were absolutely fascinating. What a spellbinding book!!
Also of interest, the reporter tracked down Florence, who, in her early 90s, was able to tell of her life after the diary abruptly ended.
I notice that the reviews of this book are all over the board but I, for one, thought it was absolutely terrific. Loved it!!
- Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2016Although I enjoyed this book, I feel like it could have been done with far fewer pages. Although the content was rich in detail, the storyline was a bit choppy and redundant, as if the reader did not have a memory and had to be reminded quite often. Also lacked the flow of a good novelist, written more like the journalist the author is. A good story and interesting characters. I will recommend this to people who like history and easy reading.
- Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2014The story of how the diary was revealed was fun. The life of the woman who wrote the diary was certainly interesting to anyone who grew up in a midwestern, middle-class home- maybe a little shocking- though not really inspiring. The book's best feature was its revelation of life in NYC during the golden age of the 20's and 30's .
- Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2016Florence wrote in the red leather diary for five years beginning in her mind-teens in the late 1920's and early 1930's in New York City. Lily, the author, found the red leather diary in 2003 in her early twenties and eventually she found Florence. As a teen in the Great Depression, Florence had some incredible opportunities at a time when opportunities were rare. Moreover, she had a brilliant mind, a creative passion, and a zest for living and for being her own person.
Lily did an impressive amount of research and interviews to create this book . I admire her willingness to ferret out this story. She, too, seems talented as well as deeply connected to young and old Florence.
There are many interesting tidbits of history, literature, and women's roles in twentieth century U.S. which I found enlightening.
- Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2013The Red Leather Diary is written in a simplistic style. It relates of a girl maturing into adulthood,who lived in Manhattan in the 1930's in diary form.It tells the reader about many places that no longer exists.The diarist was from a comfortably wealthy home which enabled her see things that the average teen might not be able to experience. The diary is a 'fast read' requiring no particular intellect, but interesting
- Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2008For some reason I really love NY in the 20's and 30's. So this book was perfect for me. Plus, I do have to admit I am little nosey, so getting the opportunity to read someone diary sounded fun! Sometimes I have trouble with a book keeping my interest. I had no trouble at all with this one. It had some unexpected parts (PG-13 for sure)and some parts that were really interesting facts. I thought it was a great look back in time. There was only one thing I would change about the book... There were several chapters on the diary and then the next several chapters were in real time. I thought the flow was a little choppy. Other than that it was great!
- Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2014I saw a public TV talk given by the author about discovering the old trunks in a dumpster outside an apartment building in NYC. She brings the diary writer to life, taking us back in an earlier ear of life as an adolescent in NYC. It makes one wonder what kind of other wonderful discoveries there might be in the basement storage of so many prewar apartment buildings in the city.
The author tracks down the diary writer, now living in Florida and they develop a lovely friendship.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2020The retelling of the story of the entries of the owner of the found diary had promise but the few times the author jumped around in time could be confusing. The subject even though about a maturing young woman in the bohemian years after World War I made her seem so self centered this reader got bored with her escapades. Otherwise the view of New York City in the early 20th century was interesting especially the the encounters of the subject with some well known writers and actors
Top reviews from other countries
- shelleyReviewed in the United Kingdom on December 1, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Would Florence be able to live her life if she’d been born a century later?
If Florence were a teenager today, she’d be called a rebel, trouble, she needs help and be labelled!
Thank god she was able to live the life she wanted, along with her peers. Thank you for bringing Florence’s teenage years to life in this book.
Fascinating history of a young woman growing up in New York in the well-to-do 1930’s
- Bettyjane WylieReviewed in Canada on November 14, 2014
4.0 out of 5 stars I never met a diarist I didn't like.
For my diary collection. I never met a diarist I didn't like.
- Maria SavvaReviewed in the United Kingdom on August 21, 2008
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful
I really enjoyed reading this book. This is the true story of the discovery of a long-forgotten diary. The diary of Florence Wolfson lay undiscovered for over half a century until the author, Lily Koppel, finds it in a dumpster. Koppel is a writer for the New York Times and was naturally curious about the content of the diary. She searched for the diary's author, and 90 year-old Florence told her all about her life in 1920s and 1930s New York. Florence as a teenager had been full of energy and had a zest for life and the arts. Her story is an amazing one. Lily Koppel brings the pages of the diary to life brilliantly.
- J.AReviewed in the United Kingdom on July 8, 2013
5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible
Bought this book second hand out of slight curiosity: one of the best buys I've made book wise this year. An absolutely amazing insight in to bygone New York, Koppel really pulls you in to Florence's life and gets you attached to all the people she writes about, so much so I was rather upset when I finished it!
Light and easy to read, Florence's story and do-everything insight on life really makes you think and now when I want to make a decision I think to myself, What Would Florence Wolfson Do?
- Jean HReviewed in the United Kingdom on April 25, 2018
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Arrived quickly and as described am very happy with purchase.