Rating: 
Summary: This would make a beautiful film!! Someone take notice!!
Review: I laughed reading reviews of this book - it seems to me that everyone took what Tracey Chevalier was trying to do a little too seriously. It is not an explicit biography of Vermeer. It is for every person who has ever looked at a work of art and wondered, "Who is that person? This person must have really existed, beyond this moment, and what was their life like?" Chevalier creates and intimate portrait of what might have been - I admired the mental processes she underwent, and her attention to detail (for example, how was it that this peasant girl had her ears pierced? How might this have come about?). This book is a testament to the power of imagination and of the gift human beings have to project - and create - what it might have been like to live in a century that we otherwise no longer have access to.
Rating: 
Summary: It started off good
Review: The book started off a good read, tenison and sorrow. However I was left with the feeling the author lost interest about half way through. I am not a student of this time period so was left confused over several plot twists such as why would being painted in a picture lead to ruin?
Rating: 
Summary: Simply elegant
Review: This novel is an unusual achievement -- deeply powerful, yet told with brevity and simplicity. Griet's story takes the reader on an engrossing journey into history, flawlessly weaving a fictional account into the nuances of an artistic masterpiece. It is simple enough to be enjoyed by readers of all levels, yet sophisticated enough to haunt the imagination for days after the last chapter has been read.Yes, Griet's character can be frustrating at times -- it is difficult to observe such a bright and talented woman unquestioningly accept her subservient position in the world. My 21st-century mind railed against her servitude, her many disappointments, and the abuses she suffers (particularly her rivalry with Cornelia.) However, this was the world into which she was born. The descriptions of her day-to-day life, the markets, religious practices, and social customs opened my eyes to a part of history I'd never before explored. How sad that some reviewers missed the richness this novel achieves without high drama, flashiness or explicit sexuality. Ms. Chevalier elevates subtlety to an art form. Much like a fine painting, it is best appreciated by those with open mind, a vivid imagination, and a willingness to be transported to another place and time. I would highly recommend this book.
Rating: 
Summary: this is NOT a book about Vermeer!
Review: I hate to have to say this right off the bat, but this book is not a story about Vermeer. It is the story of a maid in his house and her relationships and struggles with the new world she has been forced into. It is also not a fast paced shoot-em-up of a novel. This should be fairly obvious from the dust jacket, but apparently not, given some of the recent reviews this novel has received. All ranting against the "it didn't go boom" crowd aside, this is an enjoyable and quick read about how Griet, a sixteen year old girl, forced through bad fortune to become a servant, survives and changes during her stay with the family of the famed painter Vermeer. After Griet's father loses his eyesight in a kiln accident, she must become a servant in order to help her family survive. She quickly finds herself thrown into a foreign world; she is beset with problems on all sides from an unfamiliar religion to a mistress who hates her, a master who demands much of her working time and energy and a patron who lusts after her. Her plight is best summed up by the words of the butcher's son: "You're getting caught where you should not be, Griet... Theirs is not your world." As I said, this is a quick read and is highly enjoyable and well written. The author, Chevalier, uses language beautifully and paints a deft portrait of life in the 16th century herself. It's an interesting story behind a famous painting. Give it a try!
Rating:
Summary: A pearl to me.
Review: Enjoyable. Eloquent. A thoroughly enjoyable read. Griet is a girl with values. Knows her place but does what is necessary for her family. Well-developed characters. Some you love to hate. Tracy Chevalier's description of everyday life back in the late 1600's is as clear as if she were there. Is this the true story behind Vermeer's painting of the same name? Whatever your age, it's an enjoyable novel.
Rating:
Summary: Waiting for something important to happen
Review: The book is very well written. However, I went through the entire book waiting for something to happen. While most of the characters were very well developed, the character of the artist was not. I was hoping to get a better understanding of his position and feelings, but nothing. I actually felt the book was pretty boring. I am enjoying the Girl in Hyancith Blue much more.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing story!
Review: Tracy Chevalier eloquently conveys the richness and rustics of everyday life back in the mid-1600's to a piece of paper. This book sent shivers down my spine. Griet, is an amazing character, full of spunk and confidence, and is the subject of one of Vermeer's most celebrated paintings. This book truley is a gem, and whatever your age, its an amazing novel.
Rating:
Summary: quiet elegance
Review: This is a beautifully told story. It explores the complications and private motivations in the heart and home of the painter Vermeer. We are privy to the interior world of the artist through the eyes of a young maid. Her relationship with the painter and his capacity to "see" her and the world around him are a fascinating study in human perception. He uses a box to transpose the image of the girl and to allow him to experience the world in a different way and thereby paint with a different vision. The family around him is turning upside down while he hides under the cover of the black box. The placement of this gentle story on the best seller list is a reaffirmation of humanity's need for mystery. The slow revelation of the characters to the reader mirrors the experience of visually absorbing a great work of art. We stand and stare until we see what we perceive to be the true message behind the painting.
Rating:
Summary: Sophisticated yet highly readable
Review: I was very surprised to see a negative review of this book. The review suggested that this book lacked momentum. This book, indeed, is far more than a simple, unfolding plot. This is a book with rich characters and rich description of the Dutch society, culture and scenery of 17th century. While the very romantic story-line is subtle in many ways, it is the more meaningful for it and held me spellbound over the day and a half over which I read it. I read "Tulip Fever" (by Moggach) immediately afterwards, in the hopes that it would be a repeat of Chevalier's book. It's story-line and characters seemed so simplistic and formulaic in comparison to "Girl with a Pearl Earring" and left me very disappointed. "Girl with a Pearl Earring" is really a treasure.
Rating:
Summary: A simple treasure
Review: Have you ever looked at a portrait and wonder about the artist or the subject? Well, Girl With a Pearl Earring magically does this for you by telling the story of Griet and Vermeer. Griet is a very young girl sent to be a maid for Vermeer when her father lost his sight in an accident and could no longer provide for the family. Upon arriving at the Vermeer home Greit is instantly troubled by the family and especially Cornelia (one of many children in the household). She is torn between this man that she is drawn to and what she knows is right. Take a step inside a painting a read this book. You will not be sorry.
| 
