So Many Precious Books, So Little Time

As the book opens, we find Artemisia, Italian Painter, at age 18 in court. At first it appears that she is the accused, however she is the witness being put through a painful form of torture to make sure she is telling the truth. The truth is that she was raped by the painting instructor hired by her father. Her father is more interested in getting his painting back than objecting to the torture his daughter goes through. He gets the painting back before the trail is over and drops the rape charges.

We follow Artemisia through all of her ups and downs, her marriage, child, and her extraordinary painting. She was a woman before her time and holds her head high. She ends up supporting herself and her daughter though her painting.

This touching story is written in beautiful prose, like the paintings of Artemisia herself. I felt as if I was there in the 17^th century, experiencing Artemisia up’s and down’s with her.

The only complaint I have is that Vreeland chose to close the book at the end of Artemisia’s father’s death, rather than give closure to how Artemisia lived out the rest of her life. She however does give show important closure between Artemisia and her father.