4 out of 5 Stars
Synopsis
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the smash bestseller Orphan Train, a stunning and atmospheric novel of friendship, passion, and art, inspired by Andrew Wyeth’s mysterious and iconic painting Christina’s World.
“Later he told me that he’d been afraid to show me the painting. He thought I wouldn’t like the way he portrayed me: dragging myself across the field, fingers clutching dirt, my legs twisted behind. The arid moonscape of wheatgrass and timothy. That dilapidated house in the distance, looming up like a secret that won’t stay hidden.”
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 Thoughts
“I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Are you – Nobody – too?
Then there’s a pair of us!
Don’t tell! they’d advertise – you know!”
The words of Emily Dickinson that really spoke to Christina Olson. That was her life. Being nobody.
This book had me lured in from the very first paragraph.
“LATER HE TOLD ME HE’D BEEN AFRAID TO SHOW ME THE PAINTING. He thought I wouldn’t like the way he portrayed me: dragging myself across the field, fingers clutching dirt, my legs twisted behind. The arid moonscape of wheatgrass and timothy. That dilapidated house in the distance, looming up like a secret that won’t stay hidden. Faraway windows, opaque and unreadable. Ruts in the spiky grass made by an invisible vehicle, leading nowhere. Dishwater sky.”
This novel is loosely based off the story behind a painting by Andrew Wyeth called “Christina’s World”
It focuses on the sad and lonely life of Cristina Olson. She was born with twisted legs that were a challenge to get around on. In her later years, she couldn’t walk at all and had to pull herself along the ground. Doctors in later years realized that she may have had a rare neurological disorder called “Charcot-Marie-Tooth”, but in her life time nothing could be done about it.
She spent her life watching everyone leave her and move on while she had thoughts bigger than the farm she lived on.
“Two butterflies went out at Noon
And waltzed above a Stream,
Then stepped straight through the Firmament
And rested on a Beam . . .
And then together bore away
Upon a shining Sea . . .
I imagine these butterflies travelling the world, alighting in my garden for a short time before heading off again. Dream that someday I might grow wings and follow, fluttering behind them down the field and across the water.”
Due to family obligations, though, she was stuck with her chores on the farm, unable to talk with anyone, instead of enjoying life outside of her little world.
“Later, when I’m at home in bed, I conjure entire conversations I might’ve had with a boy named Robert Allan, whose brown eyes and wavy hair I found so appealing that I could hardly bear to look at him directly, even from across the room.
And then, in my imagining, the music starts. “May I have this dance, Christina?” Robert asks.
“Why, yes,” I say.
He extends his hand, and when I take it, he pulls me close, his chest warm against mine. Through my blouse I feel his other hand on the small of my back, guiding me gently, firmly, as he moves forward on his left foot and I step backward with my right: two slow steps, three quick ones, hold. Forward, forward, side to side . . .
I drift to sleep, hearing the music in my head, moving my toes to the rhythm. Two slow steps, three quick ones, hold. Two slow steps, three quick ones, hold.”
This is a slow paced novel, it is a quick and easy read but it’s not full of thrills… It’s full of longing. I didn’t know whether to love Christina, or to hate her. She starts off as someone you admire, and slowly seems to degrade into a bitter old woman to the point where it’s difficult to feel sorry for her. She tries to hold everyone back because she herself is limited in life.
When the synopsis says it’s “told in evocative and lucid prose” it’s not kidding. I loved the description in the writing style. I really understood the feelings of the characters and the nature of the house house they lived in.Even something as simple as fishing can be made into a vivid experience through the words on the page.
“Papa hands each of us a handline. It’s a simple rig, cotton line coated with linseed oil and wrapped around a piece of wood he whittled on each end to better hold the line. There’s a big hook at the end and a lead weight to make it sink. He teaches us to bait the hook with chum he keeps in an old bucket covered by a board. We let our lines down slowly, and then we wait. I don’t catch anything, but Al’s line is magic. Is it the way he fastens his bait? The way he jigs his line, making the fish believe it’s alive? Or is it something else, a serene confidence that fish will come? Half a dozen times there’s an almost imperceptible tug on the line between Al’s forefinger and thumb, and he in response pulls hard on the line to set his hook and then, hand over hand, hauls in a flapping haddock or cod from the depths of the sea, over the gunwales into our boat.
With the skill of a surgeon, he removes the hook from the fish and detangles the line. He insists on rowing all the way back by himself. When we land at the dock, he holds up his palms, red and raw, and grins. He’s proud of his blisters.”
I think Christina herself spells this book out the best in a line quoted from “O Pioneers”
“People have to snatch at happiness when they can, in this world. It is always easier to lose than to find…”
A Piece of the World is Best Served With
a Garden Kitchen Sink Gimlet
I got the idea for this drink at Saveur and OH MY GOSH is it good!!!! I mean, SO GOOD!!!! Like “Danger, Will Robinson, DANGER!” Kind of good!!! you will want to sit out in the fresh air with this book and this drink and drink then until you can’t read anymore!
Ingredients
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8 mint leaves
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1 tablespoon blackberries
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1/4 cucumber cut into thin rounds
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1 oz gin
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1 oz fresh lime juice
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1/2 oz creme de casis
Directions
- Muddle mint, blackberries, and cucumbers in a cocktail shaker
- Add gin, lime juice, cassis, and ice and shake vigorously
- Strain into a highball glass filled with ice and garnish with blackberries and mint.
- CHEERS!!!
That drink sounds yummy!
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I literally cannot express how good it was….. you need to try it for yourself. It is SO REFRESHING!!
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I do! Sounds great!
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Yummy cocktail! This painting (and I minored in Art History so this tells you something) was a complete stranger to me until about a year ago, when I got hooked on the podcast “Rabbits.” “Christina’s World” plays a pivotal role in that storyline and it made me very curious so I looked up the painting. Fascinating and beautiful, and to my eyes, somewhat eerie. Wyeth’s work always has that weird edge of being just slightly off-kilter, but perhaps that’s just my perception. Anyway, the book looks awesome. Excellent review as always, and of course, that drink looks like it could just knock you on your ass!
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I had never heard of him and didn’t even know this book was actually loosely based on someone until the end! If you like his work you should REALLY check out this book! It was really well written and very interesting!
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Sounds like a really great book. I love books that depict artists and their subjects. Did you ever read “Girl with a Pearl Earring” or “The Last Painting of Sara de Vos?” The first is based on Vermeer and the second is a fictional artist, but both are awesome reads! And it just so happens that I blogged about them both! 🙂 Here are the links if you want to check them out.
https://foodinbooks.com/2016/11/21/girl-with-a-pearl-earring-by-tracy-chevalier/
https://foodinbooks.com/2017/06/05/the-last-painting-of-sara-de-vos-by-dominic-smith/
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I’ve read “the girl with the pearl earring” but not the other, I’ll definitely check them out!
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Interesting tipple and an excellent review…I don’t know Wyeth’s work but love the painting 🙂
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I didn’t know his work either. This was a book club read and I didn’t even know it was loosely based off a real painter until the end! It was really interesting!
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e is so much I discover on a daily basis ..The internet is a wonderful thing if used correctly and yes it was an interesting article …Thank you for sharing :):)
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Wow. Lovely writing in those snippets, Nicole, and I’m a sucker for beautiful words. What an interesting book. The snippets you pulled out are captivating. And the gimlet sounds delish.
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The writing was beautifully descriptive! It was funny that I was so captivated by a book where nothing much happens!! It’s really well done.
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That is rare for me too, but it does happen. 🙂
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… And that drink…. *drool* seriously….. So. Good.
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Ha ha. My parents are coming for a visit in a week. They like gimlets, so I have to make a pitcher. 🙂
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Let me know how it goes!! I hope they love it as much as I did!
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Great review …the drink looks awesome but a bit too red, I think someone put tomatoes there 😉👋
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Ha ha ha! I think that was just weird lighting… I never claimed to be a photographer! ;p it’s more of a purpl…ish colour?? purplish is a word, right??
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Yes, purplish sounds yummy 😂🥄🙌
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It’s a colour AND a flavour! … Like Blue! (Blue Raspberry, Blue Gatorade… Ah, the mysterious “Blue”)
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💙💙👍😄
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That paragraph sure describes the painting well.. I guess I should follow your strategy and start reading the first paragraph of every book before I buy it haha.. Great review.
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Excellent review! And the drink sounds great too! -Ashley
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Thank you! It was absolutely DELICIOUS!!! And the book was so beautiful and a little sad… But, in a good way.
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It sounds like my kind of book. I like a slight melancholy feel in books.
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i liked the part about the two butterflies… it’s touching.
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The whole book is pretty touching. I really enjoyed it!
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you must have. i haven’t seen any rating above 3 on your blog – aside from the meaning of life. ha, i’m almost afraid of your reviews.
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I hit a rough patch there. Ha ha! If you look back at my other reviews they’re usually AT LEAST 4 stars! Sometimes we get in a slump and make some bad choices! 😉
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three isn’t bad. i’ve rated my share of 3 stars too. and i get what you mean… i actually get desperate when this happens to me and i can’t seem to find the right book, the one i really want but have no idea where to find it. i even get a little cranky!
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I’m glad you aree that 3 stars is good!! Someone got mad at me for rating a book they liked 3 stars and I was trying to explain (and it’s in my about me) that 3 stars is GOOD! It may not be GREAT or a book I’ll choose to have on a desert island, but it’s a good book!
And yes. Reading slumps are the WORST! It all seems to come at once! I’m hoping that I’m out of it now. I’m reading some good ones at the moment!! 😀
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no one has the right to feel mad when someone else expresses their opinion about a book, or about anything else. No one have the same taste (thank God for that), and that’s what makes every review unique. You don’t need to apologize to anyone, or explain yourself. People need to respect other people’s thoughts and choices.
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I agree. Discussion is wonderful. I love when someone disagrees with my opinion and we can have a valid, enlightening discussion about it… Anger is pointless.
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true.
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.. I promise I’m not that critical and scary!! 😄😇
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What a wonderful review Nicole! I loved Orphan Train, so this is definitely going on my tbr. And I’m definitely trying that drink!
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They were both wonderful!! (the drink and the book!) I hope you enjoy both! Lol! Let me know what you think when you get around to the book! 😄
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Fantastic Review as always, Nicole!😀🍻💖
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Thank you darling. 😁💖💖🍻
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You’re welcome, Lovely!❤🍻❤🍻
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That drink does look pretty yummy as well! I just love your blog!💖😀
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Thank you! I love yours as well!! Congrats on your nomination for the award, you deserve it! I totally voted for you! (sorry I didn’t say all that before on your blog, I was commenting at work. Lol!!!)
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Awww… thanks so much snookums!!!❤❤❤ That makes me so happy that a talented blogger like yourself voted for me.😍❤💯
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Okay first of all, that book looks awesome and I love the colors of the cover.
Second of all, that drink looks amazing oh my lord.
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They are DEFINITELY both amazing. The book was wonderful and the drink?? INDESCRIBABLE!! It was literally too good for words!! I wasn’t to drink them all day.
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.. Want. Not wasn’t…. Silly auto-correct…
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It sounds like a very interesting and intriguing story behind a very interesting and intriguing painting.
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It definitely is! There are so many levels to the painting! It looks so beautiful and wistful at first glace.. But, the more you look at it, the more ragged and lonely it seems to become!
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Awesome review ❤ 📖
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Thank you! 💖🍻
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On my list… after The Orphan Train, I have to try this one. A slow one, huh?
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It is… But, in a REALLY easy reading kind of way… It’s hard to describe what I mean. Not much really happens in this book… But, at the same time SO MUCH happens in this book… Hopefully you’ll understand this after you read it! Ha ha!
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This sounds like a very heart wrenching book, Nicole. I love the drink.
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It’s a very hard book to describe, THAT’S for sure! I would HIGHLY recommend it.. But, it’s hard for me to put into words WHY! Ha ha!
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I really appreciates there’s actually a painting in your review. Descriptions of those always make me very curious to see the thing itself. Great review as well and the cocktail sounds strange, but good!
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I didn’t see the painting until after I read the book and it was very different from what I expected… Until I kept looking at it more… It seems to change the more you look at it and think about the book. Really amazing!!
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I really like the painting as well. It looks like it’s telling a story
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Wow! This book looks amazing and it is probably something I need to read so I can improve my own writing description.
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If you want to get into some great descriptive writing this is DEFINITELY a good way to go!!
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I think why that is the weakest part of my writing is that in some books I would always skip long descriptions lol. I liked the picture I made in my head better most of the time.
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I totally understand that. I think that’s why I love the descriptions in this novel. It’s not a page. It’s a short paragraph or something, she says something in a very vivid way, and in a minimum amount of words… It’s not Stephen King descriptive.. 😉
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Oh my gosh, this sounds incredible!! The book, the drink pairing, both!! Just reading your review, I could feel my heart/stomach clenching for Christina – thank you for putting me on to this one, I can’t wait to read it!!
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You won’t be disappointed!! In the book, or the drink!! 🍻💖
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That cocktail sounds really interesting!
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It was SO GOOD! I actually just made it again yesterday because it was so refreshing! 💖💖
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I saved the recipe. One of these days, I’ll get fancy and make them. Maybe for a summer party? I’ll let you know!😊
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Definitely let me know how it goes!! 🍻🍻
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I will! 🍹🍹
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