A young florentine girl, alessandra cecchi, is drawn to a young painter commissioned to paint the familys chapel walls. During the renaissance period, sandro botticelli painted his own version of venus, and it is obvious that from viewing bouguereaus painting, that he drew both inspiration and passion from the great master, in order to. The birth of venus is a wellknown painting by sandro botticelli, which is presently displayed in uffizi gallery in florence but it has no connection with this book, beyond a passing reference. Sarah dunant plunders the past with exquisite detail, sorting through the fifteenth century for the finest jewels of nuance and intricacy. Saarh dunany has dived into a rich seam of tuscan history with her latest novel. The birth of venus by sarah dunant i first knew sarah dunant as a broadcaster on latenight arts shows in the late 1990s. The birth of venus is a novel by author sarah dunant. Alessandra cecchi is not quite fifteen when her father, a prosperous cloth merchant, brings a young painter back from northern europe. A novel by dunant, sarah published by random house trade paperbacks 2004 aa on. Anyway, the birth of venus had an incredible hook in its prologue. The birth of venus by sandro botticelli 14821485 the.
The birth of venus isbn 9780812968972 pdf epub sarah. Find art you love and shop highquality art prints, photographs, framed artworks and posters at. The first edition of the novel was published in 2003, and was written by sarah dunant. No matter what youre looking for or where you are in the world, our global marketplace of sellers can help you find unique and affordable options. All three are works of historical fiction that have the ability to convince, albeit fleetingly, that they must be true. The names of the era evoke a heady brew made up of savonarolas hellfire, lorenzo il magnificos splendour. Author sarah dunants historical novel the birth of venus is set in 15thcentury florence. Content includes books from bestselling, midlist and debut authors. At its heart, the birth of venus is a story of longing and love, but the multilayered poltical, religious and familial storylines bring a richness to the reader that no ordinary romantic story could possibly deliver. Buy a cheap copy of birth marks book by sarah dunant. The birth of venus was a theme launched by lorenzo and it was he who had it set to verse by one of his favorite humanist poets, angelo poliziano.
However, the birth of venus isnt based on the botticelli masterpiece that. It was first published in london by little, brown in 2003 with the title the birth of venus. I picked the birth of venus up from the library on my way home from school one day and read it from cover to cover in four hours completely ignoring my homework. Nov 30, 2004 sarah dunant has given us a story of sacrifice and betrayal, set during florences captivity under the fanatic savonarola. Sarah dunant has given us a story of sacrifice and betrayal, set during florences captivity under the fanatic savonarola. The breast cancer that was thought to have killed her was neither cancerous nor mammary, and her aged monastic corpse was lavishly decorated with a. Sarah a smith enjoys the painterly textures of sarah dunants quattrocento florentine tale, the birth of venus. The story is set in the late 15th century in florence, italy. The birth of venus by bouguereau is one painting from many that were born of the same subject, that of the goddess venus. The birth of venus by sarah dunant books the guardian. The explanation for it at the end of the book was a little. She does not have the training or the social opportunity.
Sarah dunant has 26 books on goodreads with 262346 ratings. Perhaps the fact that this is a work of fiction gives the author the leeway to make the book seem real. She writes like a painter, and thinks like a philosopher juxtapositioning the humane against the animal, hope against fanaticism, creativity against destruction. Buy the birth of venus digital original by dunant, sarah isbn. She is forced into an unhappy marriage with a man twice her age. Its funny how you remember some people she always had very distinctive glasses.
It depicts the goddess venus arriving at the shore after her birth, when she had emerged from the sea fullygrown called venus anadyomene and often depicted in art. Read free book excerpt from the birth of venus by sarah dunant, page 1 of 4. She inhabits the blooming young alessandra cecchi with the enthusiasm found in the yet untested, when innocence is flawless and the serpent sill sleeping in the garden. Mar 21, 2003 the birth of venus by sarah dunant 412pp, little, brown. Jane kivik free download or read online the birth of venus pdf epub book. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The painting is in the uffizi gallery in florence, italy. As soon as i finished this book i wanted to go straight back and read it all over again. Sarah dunant, the british bestselling novelist, has penned a delectable and extremely tempting historical fiction, the birth of venus that is set against the backdrop of the renaissance florence and that which revolves around a young 14 year old girl who is not beautiful or skilled like her elder sister, yet her talent and eye for art and mind for translating languages is extraordinary but with the changing times, she is art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. It was first published by little, brown in 2003 with the title the birth of venus. This novel is set in thirteenthcentury florence where twelveyearold alessandra desperately wants to become an artist. The birth of venus by sarah dunant book club discussion. Detective stories, thrillers and historical novels have been. Faima internationala iau aduso romanele istorice nasterea lui venus the birth.
Jan 21, 2011 the birth of venus breathes life into the history of florence its art, philosophy, religion and politics but it is clearly alessandras story. The birth of venus by sarah dunant, paperback barnes. The birth of venus, by sarah dunant the independent. The postmortem ablutions of sister lucrezia reveal surprises. The birth of venus was so shocking to its 15th century audience due to botticellis nude depiction of a pagan idol the goddess venus. Etsy is the home to thousands of handmade, vintage, and oneofakind products and gifts related to your search. Angelo polizianos stanzas were based on an ode by hesiod. Alessandra cecchi is not quite fifteen when her father, a prosperous cloth merchant, brings a young painter back from northern europe to decorate. Sarah dunants most popular book is the birth of venus. The birth of venus isbn 9780812968972 pdf epub sarah dunant. Story imageryeleganceintelligence, in such a readable way, i flew through it or it. Played out against this turbulent backdrop, alessandras married life is a misery, except for the surprising freedom it allows her to pursue her powerful attraction to the young painter and his art.
See more ideas about the birth of venus, art and venus. She has evidently written several other books which i plan to look for. Sarah dunants gorgeous and mesmerizing novel, birth of venus, draws readers into a turbulent 15thcentury florence, a time when the lavish city, steeped in years of medici family luxury, is suddenly besieged by plague, threat of invasion, and the righteous wrath of a fundamentalist monk. Instead, alessandra is expected to marry and give birth to many children. The birth of venus breathes life into the history of florence its art, philosophy, religion and politics but it is clearly alessandras story. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the birth of venus. Click and collect from your local waterstones or get free uk delivery on orders over.
A site dedicated to book lovers providing a forum to discover and share commentary about the books and authors they enjoy. A child of the renaissance, with a precocious mind and. The birth of venus by sarah dunant, 9781844080359, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. Sarah dunant has created, quite simply, a beautiful and engaging novel about art and florence. Sarah dunants gem of a book, the birth of venus, is a brilliant period piece written painted on the page with all the fire of oils then finished off with a glow emanating from the veneer that comes after being highly glazed. Genre writing has provided fertile ground for feminist fiction. She writes like a painter, and thinks like a philosopher. The character of alessandra was born when sarah dunant, who owns a home in florence, discovered a lack of records about women artists during the fifteenth century.
The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 427 pages and is available in paperback format. I can only think of one or two other times that a book has captivated me that easily. This the birth of venus book is telling about alessandra cecchi is not quite fifteen when her father, a prosperous cloth merchant, brings a young painter back from northern europe to decorate the chapel walls in the familys florentine palazzo. All that alessandra wants to do is be herself and paint, but she lives in a world of men and powerful religious leaders. Sarah dunant, the author of eight widely praised thrillers, has switched allegiance with the birth of venus, a seductive and ambitious novel set in late 15thcentury florence. Mar 14, 2004 author sarah dunants historical novel the birth of venus is set in 15thcentury florence. To paint such a form had not been done for over a thousand years, with very few artists daring to defy the more demure artistic conventions of. Alessandra cecchi is not quite fifteen when her father, a prosperous cloth merchant, brings a young painter back from northern europe to decorate the chapel walls in the familys florentine palazzo. Mar 06, 2003 sarah dunants gem of a book, the birth of venus, is a brilliant period piece written painted on the page with all the fire of oils then finished off with a glow emanating from the veneer that comes after being highly glazed. However, it is inappropriate for a young girl to be educated, let alone pursue a passion like art.
Sarah dunants the birth of venus feels so much similar to tracy chevaliers girl with a pearl earring and vanora bennetts portrait of an unknown woman, books ive read in the past years. The birth of venus pdf about the birth of venus book pdf. The premise of the book is quite similar to birth of venus. How far does the birth of venus explain why, in the great roll call of artistic geniuses of the renaissance, there are no names of women 2. It was first published by little, brown in 2003 1 with the title the birth of venus. The book portrays a young womans growing appreciation for art and for one artist in particular. Mar 15, 2003 the birth of venus by sarah dunant little, brown. It brings alive the history of florence at its most dramatic period, telling a compulsively absorbing story of love, art, religion, and power through the passionate voice of alessandra, a heroine with the same vibrancy of spirit as her beloved city. It brings alive the history of florence at its most dramatic period, telling a compulsively absorbing story of love, art, religion, and power through the passionate voice of alessandra, a heroine with the same. Buy the birth of venus by sarah dunant from waterstones today. This filtered through to botticelli and he scrupulously followed the text in order to design the artwork. A novel is a 2003 novel by sarah dunant, a bestselling british author. The image of the serpent with a human head is a motif that runs through the novel in many different forms. In birth marks, private investigator hannah wolfe gets a case worthy of the great detective novels she so admires.
176 600 1163 1172 1638 1561 1015 866 1264 622 327 697 130 1520 149 1427 1087 849 891 803 786 783 1576 533 1253 1293 792 352 1083 1188 126 350 1099 976 290 392