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litjrzygrl's review against another edition
4.0
As I read in another review, this book was like a wave, slow to start but once it built up it kept going. As I started this book I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to finish it, it was slow going. I was interested in the story but it seemed like a struggle to keep reading, I kept picking up other books over this, but finally I hit the point where I wanted to keep reading and I'm glad I finished the book.
lupitabaeyongo's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Mental illness, and Murder
okiecozyreader's review against another edition
3.0
Sometimes I think we assume amazing artists were amazing people, but Monet is one of those who appears to have not been amazing. Most of the book is his lack of success both as an artist and a husband (leaving his wife multiple times trying to gain success).
mallorychristine's review against another edition
5.0
This was the most heart-achingly beautiful novel I have ever read. It is as full of life and beauty and desperation and hope as Monet's life and works. Reading Cowell's words evoked the same overwhelming feelings for me as I have when looking at one of his paintings. The emotion and struggle of Monet, his lover, and his fellow artists broke my heart in the same breath that it inspired me to love their work more for the knowledge of what they gave up to create it and how much it meant to them.
imbookingit's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed Claude and Camille, and yet found myself wishing for something a little more, or maybe a little different.
I never really connected with the character of Monet. Through the book, I got to know him as a person, but I'm not sure he was a person I would have particularly liked. He was driven by his art, and this left him feeling entitled to support from his family well into his 20s, and led him to live beyond his means at several different points in his life. I got something of a feeling for him as a painter, but not as a genius. I never saw through his eyes as an artist who changed the artistic world.
But Claude and Camille wasn't the story of a painter, it was the story of a relationship. With that perspective, I was much more interested in the character of Camille. I didn't understand or agree with her decisions either, but somehow I found her more accessible, and I think I would have loved the book if it was told from her viewpoint.
Camille was a young woman so swept away by her love for her young man that she ran off with him, living with him and bearing his child in a day when women of her class just didn't do such things. She also suffered from very dark periods, where even getting out of bed was difficult, and living the life of an artist's wife was nearly impossible.
I loved the look into a setting that I wasn't particularly familiar with. I also was unfamiliar with Claude Monet's background, so I can't speak at all to how closely the book sticks to the commonly known story.
I never really connected with the character of Monet. Through the book, I got to know him as a person, but I'm not sure he was a person I would have particularly liked. He was driven by his art, and this left him feeling entitled to support from his family well into his 20s, and led him to live beyond his means at several different points in his life. I got something of a feeling for him as a painter, but not as a genius. I never saw through his eyes as an artist who changed the artistic world.
But Claude and Camille wasn't the story of a painter, it was the story of a relationship. With that perspective, I was much more interested in the character of Camille. I didn't understand or agree with her decisions either, but somehow I found her more accessible, and I think I would have loved the book if it was told from her viewpoint.
Camille was a young woman so swept away by her love for her young man that she ran off with him, living with him and bearing his child in a day when women of her class just didn't do such things. She also suffered from very dark periods, where even getting out of bed was difficult, and living the life of an artist's wife was nearly impossible.
I loved the look into a setting that I wasn't particularly familiar with. I also was unfamiliar with Claude Monet's background, so I can't speak at all to how closely the book sticks to the commonly known story.
elenamaria's review against another edition
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
tiffster's review against another edition
3.0
I had such high hopes for this book. As an art teacher, I was curious how Monet would be presented. I know this is fictional, but I was left curious if any of the events really happened. There was a good use of some of the painters' work embedded in the book. However, these were the only good things in the book, to me.
Camille is a big whiny brat and the book revolves around her fits and Monet trying to please her. Monet was often selfish and did not think about his family... only his painting and his want to be famous. He also says merde so often that I don't ever need to hear it again in my life.
Camille is a big whiny brat and the book revolves around her fits and Monet trying to please her. Monet was often selfish and did not think about his family... only his painting and his want to be famous. He also says merde so often that I don't ever need to hear it again in my life.
kcrovensky's review against another edition
3.0
Claude & Camille is the story of young Claude Monet, the famous impressionist painter. First, I'd like to say that while I would not consider myself that knowledgeable about art, Monet is my favorite artist and Impressionism my favorite style. I love the Impressionist gallery in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Monet, along with his friends Bazille, Renoir, Degas, Manet, Pissarro, and Cezanne, are poor starving artists. They believe in their artistic vision even though no one else is the least bit interested in their work. They are considered too modern and are often turned down at the yearly Salon art exhibit in Paris. Many of them have left their families and potentially stable futures in pursuit of the ever unstable world of art.
Along the way, Claude Monet meets Camille Doncieux, a privileged girl already expecting a proposal from a well-to do gentleman. Claude and Camille throw caution to the wind and fall in love with each other and move in together. This book shows their relationship and how two people who truly care for each other can still go through both good times and bad times. Their bad times are often compounded by their continual lack of money, Claude's artistic depressive episodes, and Camille's manic-depressive disorder (although never diagnosed, this book makes it clear that she has MDD).
I think Cowell's best aspect in this book was accurately portraying life. As I've grown up, I've realized that life is not easy and there will always be hard times and hard decisions but there will also be good times that make life worth living. Cowell portrays that through Claude and Camille. They have their own very hard times and they make mistakes but they also have their great times in life. They also have their days where they are just living and going through life.
I enjoyed all the aspects of Money's life and I particularly enjoyed learning more about my favorite artist. I hadn't realized how close he had been to his fellow contemporary artists. It was fun to see all of them interact and grow up.
Monet, along with his friends Bazille, Renoir, Degas, Manet, Pissarro, and Cezanne, are poor starving artists. They believe in their artistic vision even though no one else is the least bit interested in their work. They are considered too modern and are often turned down at the yearly Salon art exhibit in Paris. Many of them have left their families and potentially stable futures in pursuit of the ever unstable world of art.
Along the way, Claude Monet meets Camille Doncieux, a privileged girl already expecting a proposal from a well-to do gentleman. Claude and Camille throw caution to the wind and fall in love with each other and move in together. This book shows their relationship and how two people who truly care for each other can still go through both good times and bad times. Their bad times are often compounded by their continual lack of money, Claude's artistic depressive episodes, and Camille's manic-depressive disorder (although never diagnosed, this book makes it clear that she has MDD).
I think Cowell's best aspect in this book was accurately portraying life. As I've grown up, I've realized that life is not easy and there will always be hard times and hard decisions but there will also be good times that make life worth living. Cowell portrays that through Claude and Camille. They have their own very hard times and they make mistakes but they also have their great times in life. They also have their days where they are just living and going through life.
I enjoyed all the aspects of Money's life and I particularly enjoyed learning more about my favorite artist. I hadn't realized how close he had been to his fellow contemporary artists. It was fun to see all of them interact and grow up.