Rating: Summary: WHAT A TREASURE!! Review: Tracy Chevaliar has accomplished something I have considered many times when viewing art...."Who is the muse?" She shares that information with us in a fictional account of Griest, "The Girl with the Pearl Earring." Her words are such lovely compliments to the visual. I was astounded at her ability to create the perfect tale for the picture, and bring to life every aspect of the art. This was a joy to read and I recommend it to all who love to learn history through fiction. I was not that acquainted with Vermeer's work, but now I am captivated by it. I wish I could be among the lucky patron's in NYC who are privy to a showing of Vermeer's masterpieces at the MET, inspired by the response to Chevalier's book. BUT, I will settle for having had the grand opportunity to read this book, and be privy to Vermeer's and Griet's world in Delft. Wonderful, wonderful, reading!!!!!!
Rating: Summary: Enjoyable Review: It's a good thing I have a book with all of Vermeer's paintings because I had it next to me while reading this book. It made the experience so much more enjoyable. I know this book is pure fiction based [very] loosely on the little known facts about Vermeer's life, but that did not detract anything from the book. I liked all the characters with the exception maybe of Vermeer's wife Catharine. She was a little over the top. All in all a good read.
Rating: Summary: Tender, beautiful, imaginative Review: I was completely taken in by this magical novel of another time and another place. I am astounded by the imagination the author demonstrates by creating this rich and utterly believable story around a piece of artwork, weaving the sparse facts we know about Vermeer's life with knowledge of the people and customs of Delft. Thank you, Tracy Chevalier, for a look into lives I didn't know I'd been missing.
Rating: Summary: I'll never look at a painting the same! Review: Chevalier engages the reader in the creation of this painting by developing a fictional character as the subject and expounding on Vermeer's style as an artist. The historical account surrounding the lives of subject and artist adds a whole new dimension to the work itself, giving the reader some insight into the reason the portrait may have been painted and how it was most likely influenced by social, religious and economic factors of the time. Chevalier has been immensely creative in so carefully weaving history, fact and fiction to create this book. Save the stuffy art history books - I think every work of art should have such a wonderful, believable story behind it - fictional or not!
Rating: Summary: A lot of hype for nothing Review: I was really excited to get this book and read it. I started it right away and was promptly dissapointed. This book is BORING! I am suprised I stayed awake long enough to finsh it. I don't know were everyone is getting all this stuff about this book being great. I did not see the point of this book. In one word, yuck.
Rating: Summary: A Perfect Pearl Review: If I hadn't been involved in a reading group I never would have known about and would have missed reading one of the best books I've ever read. The author creates the story behind one of Vermeer's most celebrated paintings, "Girl with a Pearl Earring". Griet is that girl. She is from a simple upbringing and due to her father's accident on the job he is unable to work. She must work to earn money to help the family and is sent to work for an upper class family as a servant. The family is that of the famous painter, Johannes Vermeer. She has a sense of color and organization that captures the painter's interest from the moment he meets her. With Griet in their home there is lots of tension, which is ruled over by the Vermeer's jealous, clumsy, eternally pregnant wife and his mother-in-law. Griet is quiet but strong. As the story continues Griet finds that she is falling in love with Vermeer. I also believe that Vermeer respects and loves Griet as much as a self-absorbed person can love. But this love can never be fulfilled. For not standing up for Griet I feel that Vermeer tried to apologize in the end. The author captures life in 1660s Delft, Holland beautifully. The book was a pleasure to read from beginning to end.
Rating: Summary: Captivating, Passionate and Mysterious.....A must read Review: This is a must read. It has got to be one of the most captivating and chilling stories i have ever read. After reading, I decided to look up information on Johannes Vermeer only to discover that most of the names and information on the artist and his family were correct...right down to where he married into a catholic family after being a christian. I could not put it down, it was so, moving in a way, knowing that half of it was true. It was like you were Griet and you were being painted...Really this is a must read for anyone, no matter what your tastes are like, I am only 15 and i loved it, yet I'm not usually interested in history... it will make you want to keep reading..to learn more...i am now going to study history in school because of this book. Please read it or you may regret doing so.
Rating: Summary: The painting, not the painter, is what matters Review: Ignoring scholarly confusion about the identity of the sitter for this famous painting, Chevalier invents a housemaid whose intelligence and resourcefulness come into conflict with the meekness expected of those in her station. Perhaps it was the psychologically complex combination of uncertainty and surprise in the portrait that inspired her. The beautiful girl, dressed like neither a lady nor a maid, seems ill at ease and willful at the same time. The novel is a tale of domestic intrigue in 17th-century Delft with a minimum of details bringing the time and place to life. Delft never really rises physically before our eyes, unfortunately, and Vermeer's luminous paintings are described as shockingly mundane lists of the objects and people they depict, without a glimmer of the dialogue between silence and light that is what makes them extraordinary. The closest Chevalier comes is in her description of the figure in another painting: "A window lit her from the left, falling across her face and tracing the delicate curve of her forehead and nose." (A window fell across her face?) Nothing in the writing hints at why these works of art are special, beyond the fact that everyone says they are. Chevalier isn't really interested in the paintings, or in Vermeer, who is little more than a cipher. Her subject is particular: the imagined story behind a painting. In unadorned language, suitable to her protagonist, she creates a cautious, observant, thoughtful young woman the reader comes to both know and like. Most of the other characters fail to emerge as vivid individuals, with the exception of a senior maid, Tanneke. There are murky references to a possible attraction between the master and the maid which should have been deleted -- Griet, the girl with a pearl earring, rightly concludes that Vermeer was always more interested in the painting than the sitter. Chevalier, the young novelist, should have learned from Griet's wisdom. The novel's flaws notwithstanding, it's an enjoyable read, and Griet's lot in life after she sits for the fateful painting has a satisfying authenticity.
Rating: Summary: No good Review: This book was to my taste disappointing. It is a period novel and it deals with a young woman who as a 16 year old works for a few years for a great artist. The book describes the tensions which arise in household as a result of her employment and growing relationship with the artist. In some ways the book is a strange one having almost no plot and it deals with the reaction of its characters to minor incidents and the various power shifts in the household. The dramatic highpoint is when the heroin has to have her ears pierced. The period detail is sketchy and one does not really develop a sense of the period. The portrait of Vermeer the artist is at best sparing. This is no real surprise as historical records say little about him. The portrait of his family is very sparse and they come across not really as characters but as focal points to move the plot along. The writer has a conception of art which he/she tries to develop through the novel. It is the notion of art as a vision as opposed to being a craft. The heroin has this vision and it is the basis of her relationship with Vermeer. In reality their relationship makes little sense as they do not talk and never even really touch. A strange and disappointing book, however one that seems much loved.
Rating: Summary: Women's Heart Review: In general, I find women to be very complex creatures. Sometimes they are capable of enormous sacrifices and other times ruthlessly selfish. They appear completely rational, but, at the same time, emotionally charged. They seem helpless but decisive in making difficult choices and committing to them. Griett is everything above and more. And I cant stop admiring her. Maybe it is those qualities that are captured in the painting and that is why we are so attracted to it. 18 year-old wide-eyed maid in brown clothes. Her head wrapped in blue and yellow cloth that is coming undone, showing a few strands of her brown hair. Her indecent open mouth, pierced ear lobe with a sparkling pearl. Her eyes reflecting sadness as well as noble integrity. Captured in a painting that Griett never saw. The author transformed a mundane love story into a study of women's heart. That mysterious but wonderful side of women that is just beyond our grasp and understanding but engulfs our lives regardless. Forever preserved, if not in a painting, then in our brain.
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