The iconic face of the history of cinema, Marilyn Monroe continues to be one of the figures of the 20th century that generates fascination, perhaps because in part an aura of mystery surrounds her that transcends the borders of her life and her premature death.
The actress knew how to be much more than a silly girl who graced the screen in the 1950s. With a childhood marked by misfortune, Norma Jeane was born in 1926 in Los Angeles and spent her childhood in various orphanages after her mother had to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital.
Intense, but brief was her career in the cinema. She shot 29 films among which "Gentlemen prefer blondes" or "Temptation lives above Billy Wilder" stand out. None of her performances received Oscar recognition, although she was awarded a Golden Globe and several Baftas.
A Marilyn Monroe, perhaps less well known, was the woman who fell in love with books, perhaps because with them, through them, she had the possibility of escaping a life that had little celluloid. The most famous blonde on the screen had a library of more than 400 copies of subjects as diverse as literature, theater, art, biographies, philosophy, theology, history, poetry, and psychology.
From literary classics, through poetry, to fashionable books at that time, many of her readings are an option to enjoy these days of Easter and we take advantage of listing five favorite Marilyn Monroe books.
"Poet in New York" by Federico García Lorca was one of the bedside books of the American actress. Perhaps it is one of the most emblematic poetry books of this author who in the 21st century remains fully valid and that we would surely put in the top 1 of an essential reading list.
Another option that this reader Marilyn Monroe recommends to us is Plato's “Banquet”. If you like philosophy, this book is a good alternative to delve into love as a concept that permeates us as human beings.
In her library and among her favorites, Marilyn Monroe had copies of "Madame Bovary" by Gustave Flaubert, "Poems and Tales" by Oscar Wilde, and "Alice in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll, so far our five titles. As an extra bonus, we added other readings that the actress liked and that, if you haven't read them, are also ideal to cope with these pandemic holidays: "The Great Gatsby" by Scott Fitzgerald, "Ulysses" by James Joyce and "The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint Exupéry.
