France Books

"Life Á La Henri - Being the Memories of Henri Charpentier" by Henri Charpentier & Boyden Sparkes, © 2001

It is always exhilarating to read the story of some one who enjoyed life. Mr. Charpentier certianly enjoyed his life. It was not always cream and sugar, but he made do. He gives a good account of himself. He was proud and pleased with his life. He worked hard and, from his story, could about work miracles in the kitchen and dining room. His patrons appreciated his honesty and gourmet food. He was not a chef, but he could have been. He was a restaurateur. He enjoyed being the one who would present the food. His stories of the early days of the twentieth century are interesting.
In his life all was not wine and roses. At one point he describes getting mad at a boss of his and the next he and his wife are on their way to America. He does not tell us all about his travails (who was right or wrong or why he was so orney about it; just that it happened), but he does not leave them out, either.
After reading this book, I started to look at my food, smell it, etc. He inspired me to appreciate what I was eating. The service is generally my own, and the presentation on the plate, I do for myself, also, but the food itself, now that is the important part. My wife is a chef from the old school, good food you want to eat to much of because it is so good. She has no degree or education, but like writing, you can get the hang of it and do very well. I always enjoy her cooking and now even more, because I take the time to look at it and smell it and taste it. Chew your food: that is where the flavor is, not gulping it down.

"I, the creator of Crepes Suzette for the man who would become Edward VII, will now give you the recipe for Henri Charpentier."

And so he begins his sweetly swaggering and sentimental autobiography spanning his humble beginnings in 19th century France, to his auspicious apprenticeships in the world's top hotels and restaurants, his poverty while working in London, and his struggles to create a career as a restauranteur in America, only to be shut down by Prohibition. The story is told with a littering of the favorite recipes of the famous people he served. I could not put this book down! Full of anecdotal stories of princes and empresses, and his own enterprising yet generous heart comes through. Wish I weren't born too late to taste these meals ... At the end is a short cookbook of simple but elegant recipes, and excellent advice for choosing market produce. ... Merci, Henri!

What a fine autobiography! There's a LOT of wisdom in this book.

The book ends in the 1930s but Henri Charpentier, the man who invented the Crepes Suzette, lived until the 1960s and achieved a great deal after having written this fine work of non-fiction. He was a chef in many of the finer hotel restaurants on the planet and, of course, owned and operated his own restaurants as well. There were few of early 20th Century royalty and nobility whom he did not serve a fine meal to at one time or another.

But what comes out more in this book is Henri himself... his philosophy, his common sense, and his incredible ability to beat the odds, always with a positive attitude. He was an orphan but brought up in a loving (very poor) home. Before it was all over, he even trained under the great Escoffier.

This book is about food and the art of cooking, yes, and there are even a number of incredible recipes. But more importantly, it is all about life and a man who knew how to make the most of it.

My highest recommendation.

By the way, don't pay 40 bucks for this book as it is currently priced -- go to a used bookstore or a Goodwill store and find it for 2 or 3 dollars. Henri would want it that way!

Hello . My name is Robert Charpentier . I am please that may of you have taken the time to not only search , but purchase the " Henri Charpentier Cookbook " . At first printing , there were only 100 in circulation , most of them to close personal friends and family . Later , the world began to catch on , and additional books were printed .

I am proud to be a close relative of Henri . I met him when I was a child growing up in Westport , Connecticut where I lived with my parents until we moved to the south in 1968 where I still reside . My parents are also living . My dad is a proud man , and holds close to his heart the fact that Henri was his fathers brother , and I , am the nephew .

Perhaps i'll write additional words later , but for now , I will continue to honor Henri's work , as it is part of who I am and my heritage .

Thank you for reveiwing this letter . Please feel free to E-mail me at home anytime , I will return the honor .

We first found a copy of this book several years ago in a used bookstore, and absolutely fell in love with it! It features marvelous tales that any food lover who wants to understand the love that great chefs bring to this profession will definitely enjoy. (Don't miss the one about stealing a ham -- and the one about serving the moon on a plate!) We plan to buy copies of Life a la Henri to give to a few young friends soon graduating from culinary school to inspire them on the road ahead.

Of the three volumes of A Life of Picasso that have been completed, I liked The Cubist Rebel, 1907-1916 best. John Richardson moves his focus around to see Picasso's life from many angles, much like a Cubist painting deconstructs reality into two dimensions representing all sides. There is fine balance in his portrayal so that no element gets out of proportion.

The scholarship involved with showing the connections between Picasso's lovers and his art during those years is most interesting, filled with many details I had not run across before. I was also pleased to be better informed about Picasso's relationship with other Cubist artists of the era.

In other histories and biographies that cover this part of Picasso's life, I'm always a little puzzled about the role of Apollinaire, but in this book the man comes into reasonably clear focus.

Many of the references to places where Picasso had his studios come into sharper focus as well in this book which describes and portrays those places quite well.

Surprisingly, the weakest part of the book comes in its discussion of Picasso's Cubism per se which gets surprisingly short shift after he shifted into synthetic Cubism. I expected a lengthy description of the developments in that work. There are some very fine discussions of individual major works, but the overall subject drifts away into nothingness. Hmmm.

I found the book's details constantly fascinating in explaining the gaps between what happened in those days and how matters shifted. Since few Americans were major collectors of Picasso in the early days (the Steins being a happy exception), how did all those works end up in the United States? If Les Demoiselles d'Avignon is one of the great works of the 20th century, why did it have so much trouble finding the right home? John Richardson shares our natural curiosity and is happy to satisfy that curiosity.

As with the other works in the series, it is a disappointment that none of the reproductions are in color. But with the Cubist period, color is less important so the loss is less significant in this volume.

Bravo!

I've read several books on Picasso and this is easily the best. I think that's because it focuses on a specific finite period of 10 years. I wish the other books had taken this tact.

If you're a fan of Pablo's, or a lover of fine art, this is a must read.

Please allow me to gush. I usually labor through biographies, but the two Richardson volumes are so well written and thoroughly researched that I was done before I knew it. The illustrations are black and white, but it was little trouble to go to my Picasso catalogs to see the things in color. I was quite disappointed when I was through with each volume. I enjoyed the second even though I'm not thrilled with Cubism. I can hardly wait for the third volume. I'm also interested in Richardson himself showing up in the biography. At the risk of sounding morbid, I pray to God John Richardson is in good health. I'm looking forward to the volumes dealing with Picasso in the 1920's and 1950's.

This is the best biography I have ever read. It was absolutely brilliant. If you have ever wondered what it was like to live in Paris in the early twentieth century, as an emerging artist (what a cool daydream, right?) this is the book for you. All of those tales of Hemingway and Fitzgerald on the French Riviera, the women, the cafes; Richardson captures it here: the life of an artist realizing his potential as an artist -- it is truly amazing. His explanations accompanying each painting, the way they came to fruition, the stories behind the early masterworks, the market (Les Demoiselles [i.e., the 'most studied painting of the 20th Century' Richardson opines, and arguably the first cubist painting, so upset Picasso and unsettled his friends that he kept it virtually hidden for a decade [this was a young Picasso before his artwork {and ego} commanded millions] and it was touching to read and see this side of young Pablo). Sure, recent trends have tended to treat Picasso with great disdain, and while this IS only a biography, it is the most incisive biography into one of the most celebrated creative minds of the twentieth century that I have ever read. Honestly. The biography itself is an intense revelation -- thoroughly, exhaustively researched and written, and a credit to John Richardson as a human being, a researcher, and a biographical author -- an artist in his own right.

I agree largely with the other review. One of the things worth mentioning is that this book is also one of the best descriptions of cultural life in France in the first and second decades of the 20 th century I have ever read. You meet people like Appolinaire, Gide, Max Jacob, Kahnweiler, Vollard, Gris, Matisse and Bracque and begin to understand the particular, immensely productive environment of pre-war France. It was also of huge interest to read about the real friendship between Bracque and Picasso and how this lead to such wonderful, very similar pictures like "Le Portugais" (Bracque) and "Man with Mandolin" (Picasso). I look forward indeed to the next volume and aim to read the first one immediately.

I've read all my life and am a professional in publishing, but lately, I haven't had the pleasure of coming across such marvelous, well-constructed turns of phrase and great story lines until "Lighter Than Air." Thanks, Mr. Leefeldt, for a can't-put-it-down page turner. I'll be picking up a few more copies for gifts and looking forward to your next piece.

I really liked this book. It had an old-fashion action quality and something that turned me on a lot when I used to look at my dad's hardcover books--illustrations that perk up the story. The story itself grabs you from the first page. It's set in a time when aviation had a kind of sci-fi edge, and people were still romantic about the miracle of flight. There are good guys (and girls) and bad ones. There are surprises. There's some wonderful insights into the technology of early 20th century flying machines. This would make an absolutely dynamite movie. I hope some producer has the good sense to turn it into one.

The sounds, smells, and scenes of late nineteenth-century Paris are painted so clearly in this book that the reader steps back in time. Any yet, realities of everyday life remain all-too-familiar: the uncertainty of love, the power of politics, the finality of death, the forboding of evil. I enjoyed the memorable mix of characters caught in a race for fame and fortune as well as the well-crafted, tighly woven plot. This book goes far beyond the typical coming-of-age story--it's a celebration of the creative spirit kept aloft only through human connection.

"Lighter Than Air" was given to me as a gift. At first glance, didn't think this story would interest me. To my surprise, found myself drawn to the characters in this book.

The author did an incredible job in describing the characters and the time period. The research must have been extensive. More importantly, the romantic adventure kept me reading on.

Mary Ann Pitman was my favorite. She was a woman ahead of her time. Daring and brave without losing her feminity.

Woman will be surprised by this book. As for men, Harding Cooper is a man everyman would like to know.

This book was a great suprise.

This book is a wonderful combination of story lines.

It's a romance, of course, but with twists.

It's the story of a technological paradigm shift in an era when such changes weren't always appreciated.

It's a tale of skulduggery, honor and redemption.

And underneath it all is a thread of hope for the capacities of human growth that makes this story very contemporary, though it's set a century ago.

It's a light, entertaining read, with enough of the unexpected to keep the pages turning well into the night.

I have both "Little Pear" and "Little Pear and His Friends." Little Pear is really naughty, but it's so funny to read what kind of mischief he will get into next. Good read for I'd say 5 years old and up.

I thought this was a cute book but not particularly noteworthy. I purchased it because it was on the Sonlight reading list and our library didn't carry it. If I had to do it again, I wouldn't go out of my way to purchase it. Little Pear is a cute character and the simple back and white drawings scattered throughout focused my 5 and 7 year old's attention. Each story was short too, which made it a nice book for both levels. I liked this book, I just didn't love it.

Little Pear was always in mischief. He was also a kind boy. The pictures are exciting and Little Pear only had a little pony tail. On Chinese New Year, Little Pear's father bought some kites and gave to him and his youngest sister. She had a butterfly kite and Little Pear had a goldfish kite. Her sister flew her kite so high that she lost it and Little Pear almost lost his as well.So he and his sister played with little pear's kite. When they went home it was supper time of fried cornmeal, bean sprouts and hot tea. After that they got ready to sleep.

A wonderfully universal story of a 5-year old chinese boy interested in 5-year-old adventures. Lattimore has a simple style that appeals to the young mind. It's not too scary and not too silly.

The Little Pear stories are fabulous. My four year old loves them and we read them over and over.

My husband and I have just recently returned from a two week trip to Mauritius. Although we booked our trip through a well known travel agent and stayed in a hotel, the Lonely Planet Guide was invaluable. If you are considering a trip to Mauritius and are toying with the idea of a self catering option (which I actually would recommend), you need this book. If you are going for the hotel option but are interested in seeing the island and sampling the local cuisine outside the hotel, you need this book. Don't go without it. Everything that there is to see and do on the island of Mauritius, is in the book.

Two summers ago we went into Seychelles, and Mauritius,Reunion& Seychelles LP travel guide was essential for us. Thanks to it, we could discover Seychelles was not just a diving and incredible beaches paradise, but its interiors landscapes were the best of our journey. We recomend it,because its fantastic information about Mahe,Praslin and La Digue islands, their national parks (such as Sainte Anne or Vallee de Mai). Prices were as high as the author wrote! and all information about public buses, rent-a-car and restaurants was right. Just one thing, we couldn't find where La Gogue Reservoir was! If anybody can strength the lake exists, please let us know!!

I spent 4 weeks living with a family on Mauritius this past summer, and this book was invaluable. I had many days to myself, and this book made it very easy to get around, with tips on restaurants that were up to date, good info about getting places on the bus and what things to see. The maps were probably the most helpful, especially in places like Port Louis and Grand Baie. I would recommend this book to anyone traveling to Mauritius, whether on a package tour, or on their own.

I used an earlier edition of this book on a trip in 1996, in which I visited the Seychelles, Mauritius, and Reunion. I was travelling independently (not as part of a package tour) and the book helped in many ways to make my trip a great one. It provides a wealth of information about hotels and restaurants, island culture, and places and things to see on the islands. If you can only visit one of these three islands, I would recommend the Seychelles, which offer some of the finest tropical scenery I have ever seen. One advantage of Mauritius for the budget-minded traveler is that it is considerably less expensive than the Seychelles.

This guide was my Bible while I traveled through Mahe and Praslin islands in 1999. The Seychelles are full of kind, open-hearted locals who are generous and more than willing to show Westerners around. My trusty LP guide helped me find several reasonable b&b's, Michael Adams' studio (wonderful local artist) and the most perfect beaches in the Indian Ocean. What I love about LP guides, and this one in particular, is the extensive history of the area the book is covering, as well as the locals' interests. Those intending to visit this incredible area should take this guide book - the photography alone will tempt anyone.

This Bio does not look upon Louise Brooks as sympathetically as other's Bio's do. Here we feel that we are being told the truth - as not everything in her life was perfect, or admirable, or even sympathetic. Louise Brooks was still a person who did things her way. And this books tells us what her was. A wonderful look at a wonderful Actress, Dancer and Writer.

An all-emcompassing book for fans of Louise Brooks. It has interesting stories and beautiful photos.

This is a great biography of an obscure, but fascinating silent film star. Barry Paris has done a great job researching the life and times of Louise Brooks. A must-read for any Brooks fan.

This book was wonderful, before I read it I had no idea in the world who Louise Brooks was or what an impression she had on the motion picture industry. While this book is full of information and well written there are some slow points. A wonderful book for anyone interested in films.

I am one of those who became entranced by Louise Brooks after seeing her in "Pandora's Box". She appeared to be highly sexual, intelligent, and to be marching to the sound of a drummer that she alone heard within herself. It turns out that she was all of this. This is an excellent biography and a lesson about what happens to those who despise the opportunities that life presents to us and to those whose lives are driven by sex rather than common sense. Louise Brooks was a very modern woman despite having been a star of the silent screen. She made only a few films but her performances in those films stand up with the great performances of today and their naturalism makes the acting of most silent screen starlets seem idiotic. While other actresses were concerned with nothing but their looks, Brooks was reading Shaw and Proust. While others did all they could to ingratiate themselves with the movie studios, Brooks had nothing but indifference for them. She turned her back on fame, fortune, and power. She could have had a brilliant career but always sabotaged her chances. She had beauty and incredible sex appeal. She had Chaplin as a lover. She wrote. She lives on today as an image of a woman ahead of her time and also as a tragic waste. Her own difficult personality drove everyone away. Her lack of discipline was childish. She fascinates. This is the best biography we will ever get of her. Recommended.

Excellent book to learn about the Lourdes and the message of the apparitions. The author is vivid and clear in her narration. Well written book!

I thoroughly enjoyed the author's approach to a beautiful story and her ability to demonstrate in a tangible way the message and meaning of Lourdes. This is a story told through the eyes of a person of great faith and insight.

Elizabeth Ficocelli has writen a wonderful blend of history and spiritual truth that has come out of the print and captured my heart. It is a incredibly balanced book on events that lead this believer to examine her own heart and how her own personnel healing came about.

This is a great resource on the historical and contemporary Lourdes. The first chapter of the book presents the story of the apparitions in a simple, straightforward manner. Some of the earliest accounts of Lourdes suffered from exaggeration and lack of full adherence to the facts. Elizabeth applies her journalistic skills to create an accurate and factual account of the historical Lourdes. She tells the inspiring story of Bernadette and the other visionaries and outlines how Lourdes grew from a sleepy little town to a place that attracts on a yearly basis an estimated 5 million people of all faiths. In addition, Elizabteh has created a great guide to the modern day Lourdes that will be an invaluable resource for anyone planning a pilgrimage to the site.

This being the 150th anniversary of the apparition in Lourdes of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Bernadette, Paulist Press commissioned Elizabeth Ficocelli to do a book covering Lourdes - Lourdes: Font of Faith, Hope, and Charity. The author found that while there was a wealth of books on the saint and Lourdes in other languages, that there were not that many in English.

This book is not just another biography on Saint Bernadette, but goes much farther. The first three chapters do an excellent job of going over Bernadette Soubirous early life and the history and circumstances of the time along with a nicely detailed description of the apparition and the reaction by Bernadette and the towns people. You get easily drawn into the times and the reactions both positive and negative that occurred. Also covered is her life in the convent and just how accurate was the Virgin Mary telling her "I cannot promise you happiness in this life, only in the next."

A subsequent chapter covers the growing coverage on Lourdes and some of the battled between various authors documenting the events and the errors that cropped up. I found this chapter highly ironic for those covering the life of the saint were quite willing to expose the errors of other authors while never correcting there own.

The next two major sections of the book cover the start of the pilgrimages to Lourdes, Bernadette's canonization, miracles both physical and spiritual, and the reality of Lourdes today. One thing I really liked about the book was that it was pitch perfect in its theological descriptions. It contained one of the best descriptions of canonization and sainthood that I have read and even got the detail right that papal canonization are in fact infallible. Throughout the book this same attention to detail is quite evident.

Another aspect of the book I enjoyed was the descriptions of Lourdes today and the large number of volunteers that help make possible the throngs of pilgrims who visit possible in the first place. Since a large number of people who visit Lourdes have physical disabilities a lot of care and attention is needed and these volunteers certainly see there work as a sacred responsibility and as a service to Christ himself. These chapters also cover some of the authenticated miracles in the history of Lourdes along with an explanation of the extremely thorough process for recognition and why only a relatively few number of miracles are recognized. Also covered are spiritual conversions at Lourdes and while these would not be considered officially by the Church as miracles, they are obvious examples of God's grace. While the large majority who go to Lourdes will not experience a physical healing, there are quite a number of spiritual healings that occur there and of course sometimes there are both physical and spiritual healings. One interview of a person who was healed and his healing recognized as one of the authenticated cures is quite interesting in that he had pretty much given up hope and that his brother was the one who brought him to Lourdes. He now brings pilgrims to Lourdes everywhere himself.

The is really quite an excellent book even for those who are quite familiar with St. Bernadette's biography and even includes an excellent introduction by Fr. Benedict Groeschel, CFR where he say he owes much to his recovery after the accident to Our Lady of Lourdes. Normally I am quite skeptical to books put out by Paulist Press, but I have zero qualms over this one and highly recommend it.

This newest anthology by the leading scholar Frances Smith Foster is a work of manifold merits. It does provide, as several other reviewers have remarked, a counterpoint to the traditional assumptions that the amorous and marital lives of early African Americans were largely short-lived and unfulfilling. More than just proving many marriages to be remarkably resilient, however, Foster's book depicts a full array of affectionate sentiments. Some are light selections, from marriage advice ("Never marry a mope or a drone") to waggish rhymes:

I loves my gal,
She hain't no goose--
Blacker `an blackberries
Sweeter `an juice

Others, though, are ruminations on the deep pathos of lovers in bondage, as in the 1861 passage by Harriet Jacobs, which asks "Why does the slave ever love? Why allow the tendrils of the heart to twine around objects which may at any moment be wrenched away by the hand of violence?" Such pieces round out a varied selection, encompassing wedding vows, bachelor ads, letters exchanged between spouses, first-person accounts of family life, and a great deal more.

While the anthology is, on the one hand, a terrifically valuable document of social history, it is also evidence of an African-American print culture and literate community significantly larger than most contemporary readers would ever suspect. The compilation brings together countless texts made available here for the first time, and is an excellent resource for anyone interested in the literary and romantic lives of African Americans across the century of writing that the book spans. Complete with a touchingly personal introduction and a useful list of further reading, this well-organized volume will fit as perfectly into a family library as it will a college syllabus. A truly wonderful collection.

I especially like the introduction and found the content interesting historically and relevant to life today. Although the author is a scholar, she writes in a way that is easy to understand and read. Some of it is very touching and moving. But there are also many humorous entries.

This book is long overdue. The material debunks the myths that African Americans did not believe in long stable relationships. It provides inspiration, humor, historical information and much, much more. It should be a must read for every student. It will uplift some, enlighten some, and encourage some.

This book is inspirational! It debunks the myth that modern African-American families are in eternal crisis because slavery tore apart men and women seeking long-term intimate relationships and this instability has impacted modern relationships. On the contrary, this book shows love among antebellum African-Americans had a persistence, longevity and depth little known to those in the modern world. The presentation is witty and organized in a way that allows the reader to laugh, morn and relate to the circumstances in which the couples find themselves in a single sitting. This book should discussed and shared with family and friends as a catalyst to heal the wounds created by the myth that life-long commitment between African-Americans is abnormal. It is a must have in every reader's personal collection!

Foster's research for this anthology 10 years in the making carried her widely. She found examples of African American love and marriage in songs, letters, stories, poems, memoirs, lectures, sermons, folk sayings, oral history, and autobiographies. This interrelated material from a wide diversity of sources is organized into the natural flow of feelings and types of relationships between men and women. The first chapter is In Love - With Love; the second, Whether to Marry - and Who?; followed by Proposals and Vows, then Married Life; with the final section of on generations of a family titled Family Trees Rooted - in Love. Within each chapter, the selections are grouped according to kind; all the poems and excerpts together, excerpts from longer writings such as stories together, etc. The selections in each grouping are arranged chronologically following any anonymous writings when applicable coming first. The bulk of the writings are from the 1830s or so to the mid 1930s; with the majority from after the Civil War to the Harlem Renaissance. A small number are from the Colonial era.

While giving attention to a little-covered theme running through African American life from its earliest days, as Foster notes in her introductory essay, the anthology coincidentally brings to notice little-known African American writers and discloses the presence of an established African American printing business. Thus, the anthology is also in some measure a collection of uncommon African American literature for studies in this area; and it casts light on aspects of African American economic activity not widely known about. The lengthy bibliography is notably useful for further pursuit of all the major and secondary subjects entailed in the anthology.

Some people embroider their family trees on samplers, others create momentos and books for the family. Fortunately Di Robilant went further than this, making his great-great-great-great grandmother a research subject and having Knopf publish it for the general market. This ancestor was witness to and active in a critical time in the life of Venice and through her story we get an idea as to how the nobility coped during the Napoleonic years.

We are introduced to Lucia when she is 15 and her father is involved in extended and stressful marriage negotiations. At this time the Venetian elite are leading la dolce vita. Soon, Venetians and their republic will be jolted into new and uncharted territory.

Through the Mommo and Mocenigo families we see how the nobility adapted. Many fled. Others chose to work with the French, the Austrians, the French again and again the Austrians. Marriage and family scenes are just as striking as those of the famous events.

Lucia is resiliant. From an entralled young bride, she becomes realistic about her marriage that will only end when death due them part. There is infidelity, child birth and death, long separations, primitive medicine, fine entertaining, perilous travel and fiscal constraint.

Lucia learns to set up and manage households and farmsteads and to "wait" on a Princess who is half her age. Despite the many problems of her son and his education, she is a successful parent. She gets herself recognized in the Austrian court, educates herself in Paris, becomes a friend of Napoleon's Josephine, manages the family assets and has famous tenents in Venice. This woman is amazing for any age, but for her time, totally impressive.

There are two problems with the book, neither serious enough to take away stars. There are two maps but others are needed, one showing the various estates and others showing the travel routes to Vienna and Paris. The other problem may not be addressable. Lucia, while running what seems to be a large farmstead, refurbishes the main house. Then she raises, for sale, a small number of animals (are there not a lot of other animals on this farm?). Similarly, as a lady in waiting she raised two head of cattle. The economics/practicality of this husbandry does't compute for me.

What is wonderful about this book is that it makes history alive. It shows how larger events effect people's lives. The writer draws portaits of people whom we tend to care about and of the turmoil of Europe at the time.

I just finished reading this sequel to A Venetian Affair. Lucia is quite different from Giustiniana (the main character in the previous book) but this true story leaves you with the same mixture of fascination and melancholy. Unlike Giustiniana, Lucia immediately marries her first love, Alvise, and despite also being the protagonist of a scandal, her life is not as thrilling as Giustiniana's. Like Giustiniana, Lucia lives first hand through the European aristocracy, from Venice to Vienna and to Paris. But while in A Venetian Affair the source of dismay is the missed happy ending for Giustiniana and Memmo (her lover), in Lucia it's another demise that characterizes the book: the fall of her beloved Venice.
Through her detailed correspondence to her sister we learn of Alvise and Lucia's efforts to keep their status once orphans of the Most Serene Republic. This is what I believe defines this book. It's the story of a power couple who in their prime loses their motherland, and that helplessly witness a millennium of history being crushed between the French and Austrian power struggle. Alvise and Lucia, they really try. When Napoleon has the upper hand they get back on their feet and are actively involved in being part of the new world order. But as soon as the Austrians take control they have to start from square one, and we find Lucia mingling with the Viennese aristocracy while living in the Hasburgic capital. But then Napoleon is back, and off to Paris they go. These are not merely social ladder moves. There are estates to save, and the underlying theme is the slow but inevitable decadence due to unfortunate geopolitical circumstances that this otherwise very capable and visionary couple is subject to. Of course the book is packed with affairs and loaded with illegitimate children, but the force of this book is its historical value. It's the first hand account of how a historical European nation was phagocytized and of why its resurgence has been suffocated in the following decades.

Let's start with the lovely cover image: thanks to the research behind Lucia, this previously unknown work by the widely acclaimed Swiss painter, Angelica Kauffmann, came to light. And thanks to the owner's permission, its appearance on the cover allows us all to enjoy it. This is our first meeting with the blossoming young Lucia. Her glowing complexion, full bosom and that chestnut tendril that curls downward along her neck bespeak an innocent yet eager anticipation of life's sweetnesses. But this is not a love story. Lucia's life is much larger than her courtship and marriage with Alvise Mocenigo, and emphatically disproves what we think of as the bounds for a woman then.
From the start, Lucia's story shows her caught in the middle of things, from local power struggles in Venice to empires rising and falling and the devastating wars they brought about. Political events determine one challenge after another for her, as daughter, fiancée, wife, mother, woman on her own.
Accounts of political moves, diplomatic dealings, warfare strategy might not seem the stuff of a woman's life story, and yet they make perfect sense here, are fundamental, illuminating and intriguing. As these combine with finely wrought details of the everyday, the past truly comes to life. Di Robilant's style, as in A Venetian Affair, draws the reader in. When you read Lucia, you feel welcome and respected. And at once you are involved.
Di Robilant works with some very special material, unearthed not only among family papers but also in archives around Europe. In the end, he did not write the story exactly as he had set out to, for his research uncovered unexpected turns in what he knew as his family's history. He never makes an issue of this, but leaves it tacitly to his readers to imagine what it must be like to see a family legacy twisted into a different shape and to discover fundamental family ties you never knew existed. Di Robilant set out to bond with his past, which in the end he did, but not with the past as he knew it when he set out.
I highly recommend this book to readers with a passion for Venice, the Napoleonic years and memoirs about women who rise to unexpected challenges; to readers curious to have an insider view of life at court (Paris, Vienna, Milan) in the nineteenth century or a landlady's perspective on the scandalously libertine Lord Byron; to readers simply fond of books where biography and history elegantly merge with great merit to both genres.

Lucia: A Venetian Life in the Age of Napoleon begins where Andrea Di Robilant's A Venetian Affair left off. Lucia Mocenigo was the eldest daughter of Andrea Memmo, and she married at seventeen into one of the best-known patrician families in Venice. When the Republic fell in 1797 to Napoleon, Lucia went to Vienna, where she became friends with Josephine Bonaparte. Later, Lucia moved back to Venice, where she became Byron's landlord. She died in the 1850s, when she was in her 80s.

Lucia is a compelling look into the life of an intriguing woman. She was at the heart of European political change, as her letters to her husband and sister show. What Di Robilant does successfully in this book, as he did in A Venetian Affair, is bring the event s and people to life. Everything Lucia, her husband Alvise, and her son Alvisetto, do is documented here with precision. Sometimes with too much precision: when her son was a teenager, Lucia obsessively worried over his progress in school. But in all, Lucia was an impressive woman who rose to the challenges she faced with courage.

In this book Venice at the end of the eighteenth century comes to life. Lucia was only a young girl when she returned to her native city from Rome, where her father was Venetian Ambassador, to be married to a much older man. She lived in many of the great courts of Europe, travelled extensively, witnessed the fall of the Venetian Republic to Napoleon, and as an impecunious widow was the landlady who rented out her fabulous family palazzo to no other than Lord Byron. It was in the attic of Palazzo Mocenigo on the Grand Canal that her correspondence, recounting every minute detail of her long and fascinating life, was preserved and handed down through the generations until it came into the hands of the author, who is her descendant. A wonderful book. Highly recommended.

What a beautifully illustrated book! This was a wonderful book based on a true story. I used it with pre-schoolers and they really enjoyed the story as well as the beautiful artwork. I highly recommend it!

I have long been a fan of Linnea in Monet's Garden - so I was very excited to find this new series of books by Laurence Anholt. Anholt's approach to introducing children to these artists - he has covered Monet, Picasso, Van Gogh, Degas, and DaVinci - is to use their art to create the backgrounds and settings for his characters. This book in particular is my favorite of the series because it is crowned with a fold out of Monet's vivid Waterlilies with a tiny boat floating across it carrying the story's members - Monet and a little girl who happens upon his garden. Before it is over, the little girl plucks one of the lilies from the famous painting as a memoir. My daughter loves this picture - and it is almost surreal to me to see Monet's art coming to life in such a manner. I can hardly wait until she visits the museum and sees the real painting. Watching her make this connection should be very exciting.

Aside from this stunning mixture of Monet's work and Anholt's own lush artwork - carefully drawn to compliment the featured art - the book gives some great educational information about Monet by weaving it into the story - all this without ever starting to sound like a textbook. The story retains its' focus and its' charm without becoming boring. That is an amazing accomplishment in my opinion.

I hope to purchase the entire set for a lovely and educational Christmas gift. These are sure to become beloved classics. Any children's book that learns to entertain both child and parent equally often does.

Anholt's lovely book about Monet is my favorite of the series about famous artists. He demystifies impressionism and actually inspires children to paint their own "magical gardens"!!

The Magical Garden of Claude Monet is a great way to expose young children to impressionist art. My son loved the story of Julie in Monet's garden. Julie is a young French girl who takes a train with her Mother to visit Monet's garden. As they arrive into the countryside, her dog runs away and is found in Monet's garden. Soon the painter and Julie become friends. The illustrations are bright and colorful. You almost feel as if you are inside one of Monet's paintings. Children will be captivated by the story as well as the beautiful pictures.

Fine art apprecation was a lost thing among adults let alone children, encouraging an understanding of art at a young age will encorage intrest in art in children and their caregivers alike. Help kids enjoy art and culture while reading a fun story. With this book, (and the others in the series) they introduce kids to the famous artworks of great painters throughout history while encoraging a childs imagination to be creative and tell a story with each picture.

This story is even better because it is based on factual people, even the little girl. She embarks on a journey with her mother to visit a friend..the little girl ends up chasing her runaway dog on the trip and finds herself in a most magnificent garden..only to find out that is the "friend" they were going to visit. This book is wonderful, historical, educational, and fun. It encourages children to think about paintings, and to form images and stories for each one, to think about "what would it be like to be inside that painting".