The characters represented a cornucopia of social issues: single mothers, mothers with mother's instinct, mother's without mother's instinct; single woman with mother's instinct; lesbians. The careful characterizations of the players . . . mean that, as the mystery unfolds to reveal them as suspects or victims, the reader feels deep empathy that comes from perceiving them as real people, not plot devices. Hummel builds visceral intimacy around 'women’s oppressive anxiety about [their] ultimate vulnerability' in this often uncomfortable tale about the media’s fetishistic fascination with the violent murders of beautiful women.”— Publishers Weekly(starred review) i am also not the type of reader who appreciates when authors make certain stylistic choices, such as not using quotations marks. theres soooo much dialogue in this, so it drove me up the wall.

I spent almost three days reading this novel and just threw in the towel after 75% in. I did read the last chapter to find some sort of reason why I should continue. I did not find it. It was just more of the same, with a blunt ... whatever. I really tried again. And then again. Fast forward to after the war, Massimo, an Italian lawyer, presents Ulysses with the opportunity to return to Florence and see where it takes him. How to convey writing that is so suffused with warmth and wit, color and energy? Themes that are enormous in their strokes and yet intimate in detail? Landscapes that belong to a particular moment yet are timeless in their effect? Still Life is anything but still - it dances and sings, weeps and trills with delight. This is as lovely a novel as I can hope to read, one that offers both hope and longing during a time when they seem too dear to hold onto. And then there is the particular quality of light in Florence, which helps one forgive the fact that it is quite smelly, for divinity must always be accompanied by mundanity. And where a central character is a parrot named Claude that swears like a sailor and quotes Shakespeare. (Hence that gorgeous cover illustration.)However, I appreciated the vast array of personalities and the immense effort of the author to make this an informative experience. It just felt everything was overstaying the welcome, sort of. And too familiar. A lot of word dumping. Too much for me. Yes, yes, and yes. There is so much doom-and-gloom and existential malaise in our world right now. So far, 2021 has been much worse than last year, simply if you look at the inexorable toll that Covid-19 has taken, not only in terms of friends and loved ones lost to the pandemic, but the erosion of our own simple humanity. At this point in time, I am soul-weary. With thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Australia for an eARC to read and review. Note that as this was an advance copy, the quote above may have changed at publication. The painting underwent a complicated X-radiograph. After studying X-radiographs Van Thiel also believes the bread roll, glass, jug and plate were all added after the painting was completed. Van Thiel states that it was assumed the addition of the items was the work of another painter. Recently some authorities believe these items were added as the artist's "late inspiration". The conclusion is that Van Thiel does not know if the additional items were painted later, or it was an "uncharacteristic working method adopted by the artist". [9] Art versus humanity is not the question. One doesn’t exist without the other. Art is the antidote.”

Alys — the young girl (cute, but unconvincing - her behavior did not correspond with her age) - who had to endure an unknown father and a mother devoid of mother's instinct. In the image there is a lute case, which resembles a lute. The images of books display the bindings and they have soft covers of either leather or parchment. These books are used primarily for keeping documents or bills. [1] The books are portrayed as empty bindings without substance. [8] The items in the image all appear to be old and discarded things. In the image there is a pewter jug, and a pewter plate with bread roll. There are two globes and just above the lute case on the wall there is a palette. [1]A book begging to be read on the beach, with the sun warming the sand and salt in the air: pure escapism.

Jan Lievens: A Dutch Master Rediscovered". Milwaukee Art Museum. Archived from the original on 30 June 2022 . Retrieved 4 March 2023. Beautiful art opens our eyes to the beauty of the world, Ulysses. It repositions our sight and judgement. Captures forever that which is fleeting. A meager stain in the corridors of history, that's all we are. A little mark of scuff. One hundred and fifty years ago Napoleon breathed the same air as we do now. The batallion of time marches on. Art versus humanity is not the question, Ulysses. One doesn't exist without the other. Art is the antidote. Is that enough to make it important? Well yes, I think it is." Once again, it's beautifully character-driven with a simple yet emotive writing style. Characters lead the story rather than plot, however of a book of this length I was kind of waiting for... something to happen. It's a long old book and — although this is because it spans decades in both Florence and East London in the mid-20th century — perhaps it could have worked better if it was trimmed down significantly. a b Chong, Alan (1999). Still-life paintings from the Netherlands, 1550-1720. Zwolle: Waanders Publishers. p.146. ISBN 9789040093173. Archived from the original on 4 March 2023 . Retrieved 4 March 2023. I've already recommended this book to a couple of people I know who are as in love with Florence as a person can be, yet overall I'm not really sure how I feel about it. Disappointed, probably, however that is mostly down to having such high expectations based on a previous Winman book. It's certainly not bad. In fact it's pretty damn good.Here would be your answered prayer. A simple image of what the moon sees: Us. A blue marbled sphere, amplified by the lunar horizon, precious and beautiful and vulnerable, floating in the eternal darkness we all shall face. [. . .] Love and love. The only ingredient required” (350). Ulysses Temper is an English soldier in Tuscany, Italy, in 1944 at the beginning of the story. 24-years-old, Ulysses has fallen in love with the Italian countryside. With his good friend, Captain Darnley, they have sought out frescoes and other gems of artwork. Ulysses meets Evelyn Skinner, an art historian in her 60s, who is in Italy to help as art that has been looted by German soldiers is recovered. Evelyn is part of the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives program. Saving Italy: The Race to Rescue a Nation's Treasures from the Nazis by Robert M. Edsel is a book about the history of the Monuments Men. Another book on the subject is The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History by Robert M. Edsel and Bret Witter. ‘The Monuments Men’ movie directed by George Clooney and based on the book was released in 2014. As Darnley shows Evelyn a recovered cache of art, Evelyn ever the teacher, talks about the style of the art, the use of color, then says, “It’s about feeling, Ulysses that’s all. People trying to make sense of something they can’t make sense of.” Throughout the book, I get the sense that Winman is marrying emotion to art, to music, to food. Just like the Monuments Men, Winman is returning something that we may have lost while listening to the daily news, our sense of beauty and wonder in the world. this book is exactly like a still life painting - everyone is going to get something different out of it. for some, it may not resonate. but for others, it may be the story that speaks to them.

If listening to the evening news has ever left you feeling as though you were on an edifice that was starting to crumble into the great abyss…, and made you hungry to remember again the sacred beauty of what it means to be human, Sarah Winman is an author that can satisfy that need. ‘Still Life’ is a book that caused me to consider the wonderment of friendships, the joy and colors of love in all its forms, and the enduring loyalties of the people we choose to call family. There is a richness in Winman’s prose that is elegant and almost worshipful of soft, still, moments. Her words are like a camera that captures a moment and holds it out for us to absorb into our senses. In her fluid narrative, I felt strengthened by her recognition of what is most important in life, the connections that bind us, whether they are biological or chosen. In this narrative, most of them are chosen, and there’s something very empowering about that. It tells me, don’t limit yourself to biology. The people that are meant to be meaningful and connected to your life are the ones you choose. Tuscany, 1944: As Allied troops advance and bombs fall around deserted villages, a young English soldier, Ulysses Temper, finds himself in the wine cellar of a deserted villa. There, he has a chance encounter with Evelyn Skinner, a middle-aged art historian who has come to Italy to salvage paintings from the ruins and recall long-forgotten memories of her own youth. In each other, Ulysses and Evelyn find a kindred spirit amongst the rubble of war-torn Italy, and set off on a course of events that will shape Ulysses's life for the next four decades.Starred Review. Hummel builds visceral intimacy around 'women's oppressive anxiety about [their] ultimate vulnerability' in this often uncomfortable tale about the media's fetishistic fascination with the violent murders of beautiful women." - Publishers Weekly Stone, Harriet (2019). Crowning Glories: Netherlandish Realism and the French Imagination during the Reign of Louis XIV. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. p.212. ISBN 9781487530150. Archived from the original on 4 March 2023 . Retrieved 4 March 2023. A] suspenseful and profound novel . . . This suspenseful crime novel has echoes of far more profound questions than 'who done it?' though: What is the role of women in the art world? Objects? Artists? How do we view women in our society at large? What is truly dangerous? SoCal readers will appreciate Hummel’s insider view of L.A., too. Not just her portrayal of the sparkling L.A. art scene, informed by her days working at MOCA, but a deep understanding of the 'real' city: sun–bleached, peeling reality. “— Whittier Daily News, 1 of 5 Summer Beach Reads Landi, Ann (22 October 2008). "He's Restoring a Reputation Lost in Rembrandt's Shadow". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 4 March 2023 . Retrieved 4 March 2023.