The House of Fragile Things: Jewish Art Collectors and the Fall of France
(Libby/OverDrive eBook, Kindle)

McCauley, the Paris correspondent for the Washington Post, immerses readers in the personal lives of elite Jewish families in France and the worlds they inhabited prior to WW II. Using their art collections as a vehicle for deeper examination, McCauley unpacks the histories and identities of the Reinach, Cahen d'Anvers, Rothschild, and Camondo families. He examines their experiences from the 19th century through the fall of France in 1940 and the Shoah, underlining the materiality of both their cultural milieus and the anti-Semitism that existed in France throughout the period. This detailed, multigenerational examination is built using letters, articles, and personal archives, as well as prominent pieces of art. Organized thematically and chronologically into nine major chapters, each section of the book focuses on a specific aspect that is then woven into the larger narrative. Early chapters introduce the families and their art collections while also providing an overview of Jewish life in France after 1789, including the Dreyfus Affair. Three chapters focus on specific individuals: Moïse de Camondo, Théodore Reinach, and Béatrice Éphrussi de Rothschild. Particularly compelling is the chapter on Béatrice, while those detailing the Shoah and its aftermath are devastating. Summing Up: Recommended. General readers, advanced undergraduates, and graduate students. --Meredith L. Scott, United States Air Force Academy