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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really enjoyed reading this, having been inspired after reading about Andrew Wyeth’s picture - Christina’s World. This is a fictional story though, but based on the real people associated with Wyeth’s famous painting. Coincidentally, the author shares the same christian name - Christina. If you’re about to read this for the first time, then I’d start with the acknowledgments at the end of the book first, to put it perspective.
This was a fascinating book and I really enjoyed it. Even though it was a novel, it really read like a biographical novel. The author has a beautiful way with word and stories. It is very evident that she does much research as the story is fully fleshed out.
The premise of the book was interesting as I knew very little about Andrew Wyeth and his work. I liked that the book went back and forth in different time periods to really explain the story.
Definitely a recommend!! It is an easy read that I finished very quickly!
The premise of the book was interesting as I knew very little about Andrew Wyeth and his work. I liked that the book went back and forth in different time periods to really explain the story.
Definitely a recommend!! It is an easy read that I finished very quickly!
This was fascinating to read about, the writing was beautiful and yet I had a hard time towards the end of the book liking the main character Christina enough to want to finish the book.
Took me awhile to get into it, but then I really enjoyed it.
3.5 stars. I read her Orphan Train a few years ago and remember really enjoying her writing style and I learned a lot about a real historical event. I was excited to read this book and while it was interesting, I just didn't love it like I did Orphan Train. It was interesting to learn more about the way people lived in that time period and more about the artist but it was just okay to me.
I was very excited to see this book as I really enjoyed [b:Orphan Train|15818107|Orphan Train|Christina Baker Kline|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1362409483s/15818107.jpg|21545713]. When the description mentioned that this is fictional story weaved around a true figure in a well know painting I was even more excited because I was hoping it would be as interesting as [b:Girl with a Pearl Earring|2865|Girl with a Pearl Earring|Tracy Chevalier|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327197580s/2865.jpg|3358875].
But sadly, this was just not my cup of tea.
I get that Christina suffered. She was a perfectly healthy child deformed by a disease – which to my untrained ears that sounded like polio – and for the rest of her life she was trapped in a useless body.
But the plot was just too thin on the ground, the characters unrelatable and the pace painfully slow.
Christina went from a lonely and stubborn child to a lonely and bitter woman who even begrudged her own siblings a life of their own. There was no hint of hope in the story, just more loneliness and bleak disappointment to look forward to. I didn’t feel engaged with the story and doubt that I will remember any of it in a month’s time.
It would have perhaps helped if I was a big fan of the famous painting Christina’s World by Andrew Wythe but I had to Google it before I knew what it looked like.
There was nothing wrong with the writing or the audio narration but not all books are for all readers and this one was not a good fit for me.
But sadly, this was just not my cup of tea.
I get that Christina suffered. She was a perfectly healthy child deformed by a disease – which to my untrained ears that sounded like polio – and for the rest of her life she was trapped in a useless body.
But the plot was just too thin on the ground, the characters unrelatable and the pace painfully slow.
Christina went from a lonely and stubborn child to a lonely and bitter woman who even begrudged her own siblings a life of their own. There was no hint of hope in the story, just more loneliness and bleak disappointment to look forward to. I didn’t feel engaged with the story and doubt that I will remember any of it in a month’s time.
It would have perhaps helped if I was a big fan of the famous painting Christina’s World by Andrew Wythe but I had to Google it before I knew what it looked like.
There was nothing wrong with the writing or the audio narration but not all books are for all readers and this one was not a good fit for me.
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book since I was not a huge fan of Orphan Train. For me, my favorite part of the book was how Christina's physical disabilities shaped not only her life but her view of herself.
This was a nice surprise. As a book about a painter's muse, I expected it to be a bit more abstract and boring, to be honest, but this was more about Christina's life until Andrew Wyeth meets her, rather than their relationship (though that features too). Christina was a well-rounded character: she was hard-working and generous but she could be self-centered and obstinate. The way she dealt with her illness was very well-done by the author, in my opinion. It was also interesting to find out how this idea came about in the author's imagination.
I very much enjoyed this book. In March I heard Christina Baker Kline speak at the Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures which enhanced my enjoyment. Of course I had seen pictures of Andrew Wyeth's iconic painting, but I did not know anything about it or the story behind it. And now, which to me is one of the hallmarks of a good book, I want to know more.
A Piece of the World is a fictionalized account of the life of Christina Olson, the subject of the Wyeth's painting. Christina has a difficult life. She has a physical disability and disproportionate family responsibilities. She is also a difficult person, stubborn in her refusal, from a young age, to seek medical intervention for her condition and not very nice to some who befriend her. Yet, she, and her brother, have a unlikely relationship with both Wyeth and his wife.
"Something inexorable seeds itself in the place of your origin. You can never escape the bonds of family history, no matter how far you travel. And the skeletons of a house can carry in its bones the marrow of all that came before." (2)
"The older I get, the more I believe that the greatest kindness is acceptance." (276)
This was not a favorite of my book club. Most did not like it because the character of Christina was so unlikeable, so selfish. Some said that they just didn't care what happened.
A Piece of the World is a fictionalized account of the life of Christina Olson, the subject of the Wyeth's painting. Christina has a difficult life. She has a physical disability and disproportionate family responsibilities. She is also a difficult person, stubborn in her refusal, from a young age, to seek medical intervention for her condition and not very nice to some who befriend her. Yet, she, and her brother, have a unlikely relationship with both Wyeth and his wife.
"Something inexorable seeds itself in the place of your origin. You can never escape the bonds of family history, no matter how far you travel. And the skeletons of a house can carry in its bones the marrow of all that came before." (2)
"The older I get, the more I believe that the greatest kindness is acceptance." (276)
This was not a favorite of my book club. Most did not like it because the character of Christina was so unlikeable, so selfish. Some said that they just didn't care what happened.
3.5-4 stars. The story was about to slow to start for me, but since this was the author or Orphan Train, (which I loved) and her writing is so strong, once I got into it, I understood the story of Christina and enjoyed it a lot!