I found this to be quite the marvel. There is so much care and attention to every word, and it was really inspiring to me to read this simply for the craft behind it. I think the book reflects what the narrator has to say about the titular painting, "It’s there in the light-rinsed atmosphere, the brush strokes he permits us to see, up close, for exactly what they are—hand worked flashes of pigment, the very passage of the bristles visible—and then, at a distance, the miracle, or the joke," the seeming pains taken with every word, like a visible bristle of Fabritius' brush, all to serve, in her case, a sprawling coming-of-age story with a bit of crime to color the character-driven narrative. I was certainly hooked by the plot throughout, but ultimately, it was those brushstrokes, her choice of words, and careful construction of prose that I will take with me.
Reviewed on Saturday, January 6th, 2024, 6:14am.
More books →