I had always thought that only accomplished figures and revolutionary life experiences warranted memoirs about them, that those were the only stories we may want to hear firsthand. Summer at Tiffany made me rethink memoir as a genre. I realized that our most ordinary moments too can be worth sharing, and that they can become memories and turning points. Yet reading it was a learning experience (as delving into another’s person’s memories should be!). I have read memoirs by writers, refugees, celebrities, and political figures. Still, Summer at Tiffany is a coming-of-age novel and certainly comes with deeper aspects as the war hits close to home. The real world and its small joys back then could be immensely exciting to someone who had never left their hometown. Social issues weighed less heavily and constantly on their minds. People were not bombarded with as much stimuli. Through these moments I could sense the naivety of a small-town girl during a simpler time.

Misunderstandings due to the New York accent.

Her need to prove herself by making it through the summer without financial help.

Her clumsiness with some very expensive pearls.

Her fear that the midshipman she’s been seeing might have forgotten her.Her excitement at being able to ride an elevator without an elevator operator.Her bewilderment at the concept of cheesecake, which was just gaining popularity.

There are so many moments that emphasize Marjorie’s youth and the novelty of her experiences that summer: During a time of rationing and uncertainty during WWI, she highlights the glamor and excess inseparable from the city. I especially appreciated Hart’s description of the fashion at the time-cartwheel hats, silk scarves, even paint-on hosiery. With lush imagery and an earnest voice, Hart paints the landscape of a retro metropolitan, including diners, bars, and the movies. Photographs, letters, and even a budget (9 cents for Nestle chocolate milk and toast!) serve as additional primary sources, providing a look into the past. Summer at Tiffany is a simple, slice-of-life book which reads like a diary. Coincidentally, it was written by a fellow San Diegan-Marjorie Hart is a cellist and music professor with ties to SDSU and UCSD. As a college girl on summer break myself, I thought it could be relatable. It’s about two college girls from Iowa and their summer of 1945 working in New York. I found this memoir at a thrift store in Arizona.

Summer at Tiffany by Marjorie Hart