The Bohemians by Jasmin Darznik

 

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Publication date : April 6th 2021

Pages: 304

(With special thanks to blogpartner Penguin Random House International USA)

In 1918, photographer Dorothea Lange leaves her troubled life on the East Coast to start a new life in San Francisco. Only starting over in a new city for a woman alone is anything but easy. First of all, she is robbed of her wallet, and has to start penniless and without a roof over her head. While searching and asking around for a job and a place to stay (she finds a place to stay in a boardinghouse for women alone)  she meets Caroline Lee, who lives in the city. Caroline is half Chinese, and during the story the reader learns about the horrible disdain for Chinese people in the United States back then and about the Chinese Exclusion act which was sadly in working order during that time era, and how hard  and difficult it makes the life for Caroline. Caroline becomes her best friend in the city and Caroline introduces to Monkey Block, a community of artist and the artistic heart of San Francisco.  Dorothea is catapulted into a heady new world of freedom, art, and politics. She also finds herself unexpectedly--and unwisely--falling in love with Maynard Dixon, a brilliant but troubled painter. Dorothea and Caroline eventually create a flourishing portrait studio, but a devastating betrayal pushes their friendship to the breaking point and alters the course of their lives. 

I absolutely love this new book! I totally didn't know what to expect but I was completely blown away by it after I finished reading. I love historical fiction so this was right up my alley. I didn't know until afterwards that Dorothea Lange isn't a total fictional person but actually a real one! The story of Dorothea and Caroline is beautiful and tragic at the same time. They both suffered some tragic events in their past. Discrimination against the Chinese population at that time was horrific and cruel. Signs saying No Chinese were prevalent and it was impossible for them to rent property outside of Chinatown. The title of the book refers to the group of artists, painters, photographers, journalists in San Francisco living in the early 20th century, as the city had been rebuilt after the devastating 1906 earthquake and fires. Many of the characters in the book are real historical figures, others are fictional characters based on real people. I truly recommend reading this amazing book!!