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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Orsola Rosso was born into glass. Living in Murano, an island off Venice, her father and brothers are work everyday blowing and shaping glass, and she is the girl looking in, trying to find a place for herself within the art. Her chances comes in the form of beads, her heart in the shape of a Venetian man, and as centuries pass, the Rossos and their glass change along with it.
This was a beautifully told story that will make you want to stand in the bustling streets of Venice, smell the canal water, hear the shouts and singing of the gondoliers and maybe even take the water taxi over to Murano and study the beautiful glassware shining in the windows.
Orsola is a character built of fortitude - made to feel lesser then by her bully of a brother, and forced to do household labour by her mother and sister-in-law, she stills finds ways to make her own art and also have her own moments of joy. She constantly fights for her family, even when they have given up on themselves and the only gripe I would have is she is never truly given the credit she deserves for saving them many times over. As the world changes, Orsola experiences many things but is never in the center of them - I liked this as a way of examining the changes in the world, the affect this had on a trade city like Venice and in turn Murano, while not pushing the character too much into something that would have felt too much for her.
The choice of the author to add the slight magical realism element of having the Rossos and their friends and acquaintances age normally but let the world fast forward around them sometimes skipping almost 100 years was interesting and hard to really understand at first. But I liked seeing how the Rossos dealt with plague, war, Napoleon and then the modern age - we even see the Covid pandemic referenced. I think the story would have worked just as well being stuck in a certain era as I was entranced by Orsola and her personality, her love and her art on its own.
This was a beautifully told story that will make you want to stand in the bustling streets of Venice, smell the canal water, hear the shouts and singing of the gondoliers and maybe even take the water taxi over to Murano and study the beautiful glassware shining in the windows.
Orsola is a character built of fortitude - made to feel lesser then by her bully of a brother, and forced to do household labour by her mother and sister-in-law, she stills finds ways to make her own art and also have her own moments of joy. She constantly fights for her family, even when they have given up on themselves and the only gripe I would have is she is never truly given the credit she deserves for saving them many times over. As the world changes, Orsola experiences many things but is never in the center of them - I liked this as a way of examining the changes in the world, the affect this had on a trade city like Venice and in turn Murano, while not pushing the character too much into something that would have felt too much for her.
The choice of the author to add the slight magical realism element of having the Rossos and their friends and acquaintances age normally but let the world fast forward around them sometimes skipping almost 100 years was interesting and hard to really understand at first. But I liked seeing how the Rossos dealt with plague, war, Napoleon and then the modern age - we even see the Covid pandemic referenced. I think the story would have worked just as well being stuck in a certain era as I was entranced by Orsola and her personality, her love and her art on its own.
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Glassmaker follows Orsola Rosso, the daughter of a Murano (an island off Venice) glass blowing family from 1486 up until the present. No, that's not a typo for Chevalier plays with time. Orsola and other family members age but not at the speed conventional time would dictate. I was unsure how this would work, but honestly I barely noticed the asynchronous chronology and it did solve the problem of having to get to know the large cast of characters a novel spanning more than 500 years would normally feature. I loved Orsola as a character, a strong but flawed woman who often held her family and their business together despite the obstacles she faced as a woman. The immersion into the art and business of glass blowing was another plus. Venice was very much a character in this novel, and I loved watching her fortunes ebb and flow. At times, I could clearly picture it unspooling in cinematic detail. I also liked seeing the impact of historical events on the city and its economy, as well as comparing and contrasting the impact of the plague and the Covid pandemic, which bookended the story. All in all, well-researched, readable story that I enjoyed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Pandemic/Epidemic
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
slow-paced
What I really liked about this book is the movement of time. This book is about a glass making family starting in the 1400’s living in Murano, a small town near Venice. I had thought it would be about a family in generations but no. This is about the family and those connected to the family loving 500 years. Not in a weird way but as though the historical events of those 500 years were happening in their lifetime. Very cool and different, as long as I don’t think too much about it. This story is very slow and lots of description. I can’t really say why I liked it but I feel like it was just a good book!
Loved the historical aspects, characters and learning about glassmaking in Venice/Murano. The time jumps were an interesting way of making the story flow but I still have many questions about how this worked in the minds of the characters.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful book and it was a perfect January read - interesting, clever, good character development and lovely topic. Chevalier's device of 'skipping' forward in time was well done and not too contrived. Felt entirely realistic and as ever well researched by the author. It was fascinating to contemplate the changes that Venice and the glass making industry would have undergone during centuries. Family relationships seemed entirely realistic, complete with endless struggle of coping with the younger, emergent generations and their desires to succeed. Admired Orsola and how she managed family dynamics and her aspirations. Some terribly devastating moments in the book but they were handled so adeptly by Chevalier. Would highly recommend!
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
challenging
emotional
informative
lighthearted
slow-paced