Book Review for: "Claude and Camille"
Composed by: Stephanie Cowell
Crown Publishers
ISBN: 978-0-307-46321-0
330 pages
4 Stars
Cowell pens a poignant narrative filled with soul and the drive to be successful with"Claude and Camille," the narrative of Monet and the muse which has been his wife, Camille Doncieux.
The book opens with a youthful Monet residing on the French coast in a city named Le Havre. His dad owns a nautical store and earns a small living. Monet is famous for his caricatures, but his elderly buddy, Boudin, shortly interests him landscapes. Monet goes to research in Paris against his father's dreams.
Monet's artistic ability develops and that he soon makes friends: Manet, Bazille, Renoir, and Pissarro. While gifted, the struggling artist and his buddies reside in abject poverty.
Camille Doncieux shortly catches young Monet's interest. Camille is from a well-to-do household and is participated. Monet hungers to paint her and persuading her to accompany him along with his buddy, Bazille, to the countryside. They remain there for a week after which Camille is now gone. Monet can not forget her. If he sees her weeks afterwards, he convinces her to pose for him , this time at a green dress.Soon after this, Camille becomes his lover and forsakes her well-do-do life.
Monet enjoys Camille profoundly, but he is so bad, he can not give her life that she is left behind. Since Monet struggles to find success as an artist, could Camille remain with him or return to the stable, yet dull life she led before?
Cowell has captured the life and times of Monet having an uncompromising pencil - siphoned Monet's very own uncompromising artistic character. The narrative flows into a liner fashion for the most part with short interludes towards the conclusion of Monet's lifetime because he paints water lilies.
Cowell makes the reader feel as though they are there, at the present time, painting together with Monet, the writing is somewhat weighty, which slows the narrative down in certain areas and makes for a slow, attentive read so that the reader does not miss something.
Cowell does a riveting job showing the reader the many aspects of Claude and Camille.Both are driven and determined, however both are haunted - Monet from the fear of collapse, Camille, with a lack of security.
Cowell paints the placing, Paris/France from the mid 1800's, and a Monet picture.
Both Monet and Camille come across as real, with Cowell constituting them in their best and weakest minutes. Both love , nevertheless their insecurities are ones which many can talk with.
"Claude and Camille" is an intriguing read, shooting a peek at the origins of both impressionism and the love which motivated a legitimate artist.