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A review by dinsdale
Leonardo Da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
5.0
I finished this book with hours to spare in 2017 and it may just be the best book I read this year. I bought the hard cover book and I'm glad I did. This is just a beautiful book, with 144 images of Leonardo's paintings and drawings all on high quality paper. The writing is just fantastic; it doesn't read like your typical history book. I was riveted to Leonardo's story from page one. He was an amazing person, and successfully combined art and science like no other person of his time.
I think most people are familiar with who Leonardo was, and have a basic understanding that he was one of the notable people of the Renaissance. This book takes a close look at Leonardo's life starting with his out-of-wedlock birth to his death in France after a long life, probably one of the most interesting lives I've ever read about. He was one of the smartest men of his time, not because he was born a genius, but because he had an insatiable appetite for knowledge. He wanted to understand the world - from anatomy, to astronomy, to engineering, to geology, and everything in between. Some of his scientific theories and inventions were centuries ahead of their time. Amazing, just amazing! We know all this because he left behind 7,200 pages of notes which survived over the last 500 years. Oh, and he was a notable painter, too. Have you ever heard of The Last Supper or the Mona Lisa?
My favorite parts of this book were his scientific discoveries and theories. There were a lot of "wow" moments for me. I had no idea that Leonardo dabbled in so many of the sciences. I also really liked the in-depth analysis of some of his paintings and sketches, and the accounts of his encounters with Michelangelo. The parts about Michelangelo paint him as a 15th century crab-ass who was no fan of our hero. They had little in common outside of being the best artists of their time.
I can't recommend this book highly enough, especially to history buffs. I'm glad I bought the hard cover over the audiobook as I was able to see the images of Leonardo's drawings and painting while the author described them. There is an extensive description of The Last Supper and a number of his other famous paintings, and a whole chapter describing the Mona Lisa. The book also includes a cast of characters, notes, and an index.
Ten stars.
On to 2018.......
I think most people are familiar with who Leonardo was, and have a basic understanding that he was one of the notable people of the Renaissance. This book takes a close look at Leonardo's life starting with his out-of-wedlock birth to his death in France after a long life, probably one of the most interesting lives I've ever read about. He was one of the smartest men of his time, not because he was born a genius, but because he had an insatiable appetite for knowledge. He wanted to understand the world - from anatomy, to astronomy, to engineering, to geology, and everything in between. Some of his scientific theories and inventions were centuries ahead of their time. Amazing, just amazing! We know all this because he left behind 7,200 pages of notes which survived over the last 500 years. Oh, and he was a notable painter, too. Have you ever heard of The Last Supper or the Mona Lisa?
My favorite parts of this book were his scientific discoveries and theories. There were a lot of "wow" moments for me. I had no idea that Leonardo dabbled in so many of the sciences. I also really liked the in-depth analysis of some of his paintings and sketches, and the accounts of his encounters with Michelangelo. The parts about Michelangelo paint him as a 15th century crab-ass who was no fan of our hero. They had little in common outside of being the best artists of their time.
I can't recommend this book highly enough, especially to history buffs. I'm glad I bought the hard cover over the audiobook as I was able to see the images of Leonardo's drawings and painting while the author described them. There is an extensive description of The Last Supper and a number of his other famous paintings, and a whole chapter describing the Mona Lisa. The book also includes a cast of characters, notes, and an index.
Ten stars.
On to 2018.......