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920 O'Farrell Street: A Jewish Girlhood in Old San Francisco (California Legacy Book)

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Harriet Levy was born in San Francisco in 1867 and lived at 920 O'Farrell Street until about 1904. Readers who are familiar with the sights and sounds of San Francisco will be equally pleased with the unfamiliar: "Near the corner of Polk Street stood the cow barn of old man Waller, to which the anemic children of the neighborhood, glass in hand, hurried in the early morning hours to receive warm milk fresh from the cow." About one-third of the chapters are named for rooms of her house. The rooms are described in great detail only to flow into some memory of an event that occurred there. For instance, before reminiscing about her sister Addie's beautiful singing voice and the songs she sang, Levy describes the room itself: "...the ceiling of the music room a lattice of bamboo intertwined with garlands of tea roses and autumn leaves, and burnished birds of copper and blue winging their flight..." Levy's vivid descriptions put you right there. Familiar names also pop up, like Alice Toklas who was a friend and neighbor. This book is a treasure.