Girl in Hyacinth Blue

Girl in Hyacinth Blue is a novel in short stories. I usually find this kind of thing to be a bit of a bait and switch. When I read a novel, I want it to be a novel. In my middle age, I've developed an appreciation for short stories that has been hard won over a few decades of not caring for them. Nonetheless, I generally don't like to be surprised by short stories hiding inside a novel. Here, though, I'll make an exception because how beautifully they're handled and because of the common thread of the painting around which all of them revolve.

Girl in Hyacinth Blue follows a lost, forgotten Vermeer masterpiece from its painting to the study of the son of a Nazi, only it's done in reverse. As we follow the painting back in time, we meet a show more son tortured by his father's war crimes so dissonant with the man he knows, a Jewish girl making a sacrifice for safety that is hardly guaranteed, a couple troubled by a husband's former love, a philandering wife matched by a philandering husband, a couple who rescues a baby during a flood, and on back to Vermeer himself struggling to make ends meet and wondering if he shouldn't take a proper job to provide for his impoverished family but unable to turn away from the transcendent beauty that draws his eye and his talent always back to painting.

Though a slim book, Girl in Hyacinth Blue in its journey through history is filled with the richness of human experience and captures all manner of people who themselves are captured by the beauty of a painting of a girl they will never know and yet feel a kind of kinship with. The idea of following a painting through history is fascinating on its own. Vreeland's execution of it is what is truly sublime. show less

I spent much of my childhood in museums. My mother was one of those rather obsessive tourist who thinks she will meet some monstrous fate if she does not see every museum and place where Paul preached. And God bless her for it, well, at least for the museum part. After several of the Pauline sites I finally rebelled and refused to go to Phillipi, instead staying at the hotel and reading Nancy
Drew. What a little Philistine I was. But the museums! I have been in love with paintings from such a young age that this was a book meant for me.

Several people have noted that
the book makes us think about art and its realtionship
to our lives. Yes it does, and beautifully. But this is not something that I need a book to remind me of. It is that show more which make this book a comfortable fit. What took my breath away was the reminder to really see
the people in our lives, appreciate them fully, accept the gifts of who they are whether workaholic, silent girls, tiny foundlings. Cherish them, hold tight in your memory their essence, their look, their .... You get the idea.
One of my favorite characters, a father and husband
says it best when watching his daughter in the first throes of
love, noticing the lovely color of her windburned cheeks
"Notice. Pay attention. Notice this and never forget it."
This morning took the time to savor my little girl's hug and the smell of her hair, a sunny warm scent mixed with the scent of the blueberry muffins we had baked for breakfast.

Vreeland tells the painting's story with simple elegance. Certain parts I wanted never to end, especially the
story of Saskia and her family. Vreeland paints pictures with her words that are poignant and vivid. She is never heavy-handed, always the perfect delicate touch.
With seeming artlessness she achieves artistry. Beautiful.

Incidentally, many people have said this book reminded them
of The Red Violin* of which I know nothing. However, it
did remind me of Iain Pears "The Instance of the Fingerpost,"
a much longer and more unsettling book that I also love. The multiple view points is probably the reason

*I have since seen The Red Violin, and here is remarkable similarity in theme and plotting. A riveting, lovely movie. show less

I spent much of my childhood in museums. My mother was one of those rather obsessive tourist who thinks she will meet some monstrous fate if she does not see every museum and place where Paul preached. And God bless her for it, well, at least for the museum part. After several of the Pauline sites I finally rebelled and refused to go to Phillipi, instead staying at the hotel and reading Nancy
Drew. What a little Philistine I was. But the museums! I have been in love with paintings from such a young age that this was a book meant for me.

Several people have noted that
the book makes us think about art and its realtionship
to our lives. Yes it does, and beautifully. But this is not something that I need a book to remind me of. It is that show more which make this book a comfortable fit. What took my breath away was the reminder to really see
the people in our lives, appreciate them fully, accept the gifts of who they are whether workaholic, silent girls, tiny foundlings. Cherish them, hold tight in your memory their essence, their look, their .... You get the idea.
One of my favorite characters, a father and husband
says it best when watching his daughter in the first throes of
love, noticing the lovely color of her windburned cheeks
"Notice. Pay attention. Notice this and never forget it."
This morning took the time to savor my little girl's hug and the smell of her hair, a sunny warm scent mixed with the scent of the blueberry muffins we had baked for breakfast.

Vreeland tells the painting's story with simple elegance. Certain parts I wanted never to end, especially the
story of Saskia and her family. Vreeland paints pictures with her words that are poignant and vivid. She is never heavy-handed, always the perfect delicate touch.
With seeming artlessness she achieves artistry. Beautiful.

Incidentally, many people have said this book reminded them
of The Red Violin* of which I know nothing. However, it
did remind me of Iain Pears "The Instance of the Fingerpost,"
a much longer and more unsettling book that I also love. The multiple view points is probably the reason

*I have since seen The Red Violin, and here is remarkable similarity in theme and plotting. A riveting, lovely movie. show less

This is a story about the importance of art. For some, it has a life-changing impact that touches something in the viewer. For others, the life-changing impact comes from art as an investment. And for others, it is the history behind the art itself that is life-changing. A painting of a girl in hyacinth blue is the centerpiece of these inter-connected stories that trace its provenance back through time to its creation. Well written; a great story.

I spent much of my childhood in museums. My mother was one of those rather obsessive tourist who thinks she will meet some monstrous fate if she does not see every museum and place where Paul preached. And God bless her for it, well, at least for the museum part. After several of the Pauline sites I finally rebelled and refused to go to Phillipi, instead staying at the hotel and reading Nancy
Drew. What a little Philistine I was. But the museums! I have been in love with paintings from such a young age that this was a book meant for me.

Several people have noted that
the book makes us think about art and its realtionship
to our lives. Yes it does, and beautifully. But this is not something that I need a book to remind me of. It is that show more which make this book a comfortable fit. What took my breath away was the reminder to really see
the people in our lives, appreciate them fully, accept the gifts of who they are whether workaholic, silent girls, tiny foundlings. Cherish them, hold tight in your memory their essence, their look, their .... You get the idea.
One of my favorite characters, a father and husband
says it best when watching his daughter in the first throes of
love, noticing the lovely color of her windburned cheeks
"Notice. Pay attention. Notice this and never forget it."
This morning took the time to savor my little girl's hug and the smell of her hair, a sunny warm scent mixed with the scent of the blueberry muffins we had baked for breakfast.

Vreeland tells the painting's story with simple elegance. Certain parts I wanted never to end, especially the
story of Saskia and her family. Vreeland paints pictures with her words that are poignant and vivid. She is never heavy-handed, always the perfect delicate touch.
With seeming artlessness she achieves artistry. Beautiful.

Incidentally, many people have said this book reminded them
of The Red Violin* of which I know nothing. However, it
did remind me of Iain Pears "The Instance of the Fingerpost,"
a much longer and more unsettling book that I also love. The multiple view points is probably the reason

*I have since seen The Red Violin, and here is remarkable similarity in theme and plotting. A riveting, lovely movie. show less

I have never read a novel where the story began at the end and the end was the beginning of the story. Girl in Hyacinth Blue is a painting and the author "leads us gently backwards in time with a reverse chronology that reveals the painting's complex history." As I continued to read each part of the painting's history I instinctively agreed with the author's presentation knowing the story wouldn't have been as meaningful or as insightful to me as a reader.

As every reader finishes the novel I hope they will take the time to read the first two (2) sections of "A Penguin Readers Guide to Girl in Hyacinth Blue" by the author a) Reading Group Guide Discussion [I wish this section had a different name as since I'm not a book club participant show more I almost skipped it.]; and b) Interview with Susan Vreeland [Nine (9) interesting Q&As]. Without a doubt these two (2) sections of the guide enhanced my appreciation of the author's writing and how the entirety of the book came to be written. Book club readers will be appreciative of c) Questions for Discussion.

An interesting follow-up article to this novel is entitled, "Vermeer: the artist who taught the world to see ordinary beauty" by Jonathan Jones, and is available at this link: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2017/feb/08/vermeer-a... show less

In Girl In Hyacinth Blue Susan Vreeland presents the reader with fragments that capture poignant moments in the lives of the various owners of an imagined Vermeer painting. The story is told in reverse chronological order tracing the painting from contemporary times back to its creation. Each chapter reveals a new character whose only connection to the proceeding character is the intense love of the painting. The characters are from very different social strata and their reasons for possession of the painting vary greatly, as do their particular personal affiliation with it. In this way, Vreeland gently invites her readers to consider the potentially universal capacity for art appreciation within the human spirit.

This book explores the show more nature of individual responses to art by describing how each character finds personal meaning in the painting. For one man it reminds him of his first love, for a young girl it provides solace from her difficult circumstances as a persecuted Jew, for a poor woman it is the one thing of beauty in her home. Not only does Vreeland capture important moments in the characters lives, she also reveals the details of the painting to the reader gradually through the eyes of each viewer. The book culminates in a scene where Vermeer is inspired to create the painting and sets up the composition by positioning all the objects and the model.

I really enjoyed this book and the way it sparked many thoughts about the role of art in individual lives. It was beautifully written and it was easy for me to engage with each of the characters even though they made short appearances in the narrative. Vreeland made the art work come to life by showing the impact that the painting had on so many different people. In fact the painting seemed more 'real' than the characters. The paintings longevity also got me thinking about the value of inanimate art objects in society. It is obvious that not only has Vreeland done a lot of research, but she has also thought deeply about the nature of art and its potential to influence human life. This little book has such a lot to say about so many topics that it makes an excellent starting point for discussion in book clubs or classrooms. show less