Reviews with content warning for Classism - Girl with the Pearl Earring

Reviews tagging 'Classism'

Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

8 reviews

paigerini's review against another edition

reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I read this for class earlier this year.

I have to say, the premise of this novel really drew me in. This historical "what if" is quite unique, and I think it is a novel that everyone should read at some point or another.

To be honest, my only gripe with this book is that certain parts of the book progressed really slowly, almost to the point where I tuned out of the story while reading. Sometimes you had to get through a passage just to get to a part where something happens. Other than that, this had an interesting plot and characters.

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pandorasirens's review against another edition

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emotional informative fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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thalia16's review against another edition

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emotional informative medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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phantomgecko's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

A nice historical fiction. Interesting characters.

I guess I'm a little confused as to why Griet being in the painting was such a big deal. Like... Vermeer mainly paints women, so that's fine. Tanneke, also a maid, sat for a previous painting, so that's apparently fine. Another man is literally paying Vermeer to make the painting specifically of Griet, so it's not like it's just Vermeer having a weird obsession.

I totally appreciate the double standards and victim blaming nature of the whole thing. Vermeer is too cowardly to be honest with anyone, and Griet is punished for doing things her employer asked her to directly do. But I still don't get why everything has to be so secretive.

Why is it scandalous for Griet to help mix paint? Why can't she just straight up say from the very beginning that Vermeer asked her to assist him. I legit for real don't get it.

Again, I understand that Catharina has never liked Griet, and she's jealous that her husband pays her special attention. But why is that Griet's problem? Why did she agree to hire her in the first place if she was going to be aggressively rude? It's just not that good of a reason to justify the behavior of everyone in the house.

There's never an acceptable explanation, and my bafflement prevented me from enjoying the book as I could have.

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jhbandcats's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A lovely book that imagines the life of Vermeer’s model in his most memorable painting, and what her relationship might have been like with the painter.

I really liked that the book was told in the first person and the reader sees Griet, Vermeer’s wife’s maid and his model, grow into herself as a young woman. Within the confines of her circumstances, Griet does what she can to have a measure of independence, even if sometimes that independence is only in her unconventional thoughts. She’s a lonely young girl who is on her own when she first arrives at the Vermeer’s and she learns to use that isolation as a shield.

I loved the attention to small quotidian details - taking a pail to the market for the meat or the fish and starching her cap by soaking it with potato peels. I liked the comparison the life of a lower class tile painter vs that of a well-to-do portrait painter. I loved watching Griet as she learned to really see, and her failed attempts to explain the the different colors of white to her father.

This is a wonderful story, well-told, and a fascinating look at mid-17th C Holland.

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