Three Books Inspired by Van Gogh
I went to a Van Gogh exhibit this week and it was super inspiring! When I got home I immediately started searching for any historical fiction books about the artist. I’ll go ahead and tell you now, I didn’t see a lot of promising options. However, it led me on a rabbit trail of google searching and I now have three art related books downloaded on my phone. I thought I’d share those with you today!
The Last Van Gogh by Alyson Richman
To be perfectly honest, Van Gogh had a tragic life story. So, most of the books I found looked super depressing. This one seemed most promising to me based on the description and other reviews. But it focuses on the last few months of Van Gogh’s life, which is spent living with a doctor. During his time there he created 70 paintings before his unfortunate demise. In this historical fiction version, the doctor’s daughter develops a relationship with the tortured artist.
I’m not expecting this one to be a barrel of laughs or anything, but I definitely think I’m in the right frame of mind to read it since I just visited the exhibit. If I like it I’ll be back here with a review later!
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Theo is left orphaned as a child after a bombing of an art museum and then adopted by a wealthy family. Growing up he struggles to cope with the loss of his mother. Theo becomes enamored with a painting that reminds him of his mother, which ultimately leads him into the “art underworld” as an adult working in an antique store.
This book was so popular online a few years ago and I never read it. Then it was made into a movie…and I never watched it. But after an hour of searching for art related historical fiction novels, this one comes highly recommended and I finally stopped dragging my feet and downloaded it. Honestly, I expect to enjoy this one a lot. It’s advertised as suspenseful, which is usually right up my alley!
The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel and Bret Witter
Ok, I don’t think this one is technically historical FICTION, but I’m always leery about nonfiction books that add dialogue. Regardless, this is a fascinating and real historical thing. A group of art and museum people spent part of World War II trying to save art and culture from being stolen or destroyed by Hitler. It’s an aspect of Hitler’s depravity that is overshadowed by his much more heinous crimes against humanity. But it was still necessary to keep him from erasing parts of culture he deemed “degenerate.”
I’m either going to devour this one, or take the rest of the year to finish it. I find those are the only two ways I can read nonfiction. There is no in between for me.
BONUS: Here are a few pictures from the immersive art exhibit!
Krystle Goodman is a crazy cat lady, who loves to drink exorbitant amounts of coffee, and read a shocking amount of books. She lives in Benton with her husband Josh, her son Roman, and their two cats Roxanne and Abby. When she isn’t reading, you’ll find her cooking, painting, or watching true crime shows. Watch for Krystle’s book reviews every other Friday. Send fanmail to: [email protected]
See more of Krystle’s reviews at www.mysaline.com/krystle.
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