A review by jower
The Barbizon: The Hotel That Set Women Free by Paulina Bren

4.0

This was a in-depth, poignant look at a building and phenomenon in New York's history that I had never heard about before. Bren does a wonderful job at exploring what life was like for the women who called the Barbizon home, and the unique situation that they were put in that helped many to succeed and others to stagnate. The parts that I found the most hard-hitting were the connections with early feminism - this book viscerally communicated the hopelessness that 1950s femininity placed on women with so much empathy. I did not expect to like the chapters about Sylvia Plath but they became my favourites. An excellent read!