Summary:
To Christina Olson, the entire world was her family’s remote farm in the small coastal town of Cushing, Maine. Born in the home her family had lived in for generations, and increasingly incapacitated by illness, Christina seemed destined for a small life. Instead, for more than twenty years, she was host and inspiration for the artist Andrew Wyeth, and became the subject of one of the best known American paintings of the twentieth century.
As she did in her beloved smash bestseller Orphan Train, Christina Baker Kline interweaves fact and fiction in a powerful novel that illuminates a little-known part of America’s history. Bringing into focus the flesh-and-blood woman behind the portrait, she vividly imagines the life of a woman with a complicated relationship to her family and her past, and a special bond with one of our greatest modern artists.
Told in evocative and lucid prose, A Piece of the World is a story about the burdens and blessings of family history, and how artist and muse can come together to forge a new and timeless legacy.
My take: 4 looks
Originally reviewed March 10, 2019
I have long loved the painting “Christina’s World” by Andrew Wyeth, now hanging in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. When I saw this book, I knew I had to add it to my TBR.
Kline’s writing is so easy to read. Like “Orphan Train”, this story flowers like a bulb in spring, and the characters are fleshed out and become real to the reader. The players in this novel, based on actual people, were no different. As Christina ages between the pages, I fully felt her change from a hopeful adolescent, to a young lady wooed by a suitor, to a woman resigned to live the life that had been handed to her. All of those emotions were fully expressed in Kline’s words.
Another intriguing part of the novel was the relationships of Christina Olson, from her mother and father, stalwart brother Al, sweet friendship with Betsy, and finally, the painter who would make her famous. All were unique and interesting, played out in very real ways, with very real emotions and feelings evoked by the writer.
This book did not disappoint, and leaves me wanting to read more by this author.
Highly recommended.
