I want her to lift her head and catch me looking at her and then to scold me with a hard stare as she clutches her letter fast to her bosom, all the words pressed to her heart and all the words secret again.
The Man in Amsterdam, whose name we never know, is transfixed by the Woman in Blue, finding something new each time he approaches the painting, trying to catch himself off guard as if to see it afresh. His visits are so regular he’s beginning to arouse suspicion amongst the attendants. Sometimes he talks to a fellow viewer, once holding hands with a woman for an hour while they silently gaze at the enigmatic woman in blue who reminds him a little of his first love. He and his wife have become a little distant although she knows not to ask him about his writing before it’s finished for fear his ideas will melt away.
So what does it matter if he has brushed my hair a little prettier that it was, perfected the grace in my fingers holding the letter, straightened my back a little? It is a perfect lie or an imperfect truth. But I will contest that it is still me and no one else.
The Woman in Blue is used to being admired, even loved. She had formed a plan to catch Vermeer’s eye, to become his model and perhaps something more. He borrows his pregnant wife’s bedjacket, arranges the Woman in Blue in the window, giving her a letter each day after she complains that she cannot read blank sheets of paper. Every day she poses for him, dabbing a little rosewater on her neck which he’s requested to be exposed, worrying her mother about her reputation. Eventually, the painting is completed, Vermeer’s child is born and the Woman in Blue is released, her plan achieved. Now she waits for the Man in Amsterdam knowing there will be a stream of others to love her when his visits cease.
And this, all of it, is just a story, which is not to say it isn’t also in some sense true.
Bruton alternates his narrative between the Man in Amsterdam and the Woman in Blue, sketching a story for them both in gorgeous prose which had me scribbling a multitude of quotes. The Man in Amsterdam is engaged in a rich contemplation of this apparently simple painting which holds many secrets, complemented by the imagined story of the Woman in Blue and her relationship with her painter. There’s an intimacy between them: she waits for his visit, catching his thoughts, while he falls a little in love with her, removing his wedding ring before approaching her. A risky device but it works beautifully. It’s a captivating piece of fiction, inspired by Bruton’s visit to the Vermeer exhibition in 2023. I’m hoping he’s already at work on his next book.
Fairlight Books: Oxford 9781914148682 144 pages Paperback (Read via NetGalley)
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I wasn’t as captivated by Hope Never Knew Horizon as you were. In truth, I can’t remember a thing about it. But this sounds worth a punt, as anything inspired by Vermeer is bound to have something going for it.
I hope this one works better for you if you go for it.
It’s in the TBR system. But eleven books landed on me this week. Reserving is always a difficult game.. Sometimes they take weeks to arrive and that’s fine. And at other times … WHAM. All at once!
That sounds very tricky to handle.
It is. Feeling a bit overwhelmed today …
PS. Reserved from the library already.
Delighted that they have it!
I am glad that I had the opportunity to read this, but while art doesn’t do much for me I enjoyed Hope Never Knew Horizon more because of the whale.
Ah, I enjoy an art theme in fiction so this one particularly appealed to me.
I really loved HNKH so this is unmissable for me! It sounds beautifully done.
It is! I’d be surprised if you didn’t love this one, too.
The novel looks interesting and makes me think of Laura Cumming’s memoir On Chapel Sands. Paintings and old photographs are a launch pad for memory in her stories/life and I found that quite captivating and imaginative, that process of imagining into a still life scene.
Bruton does that in such an imaginative way. I read a review of the Cumming quite recently and added it to my list.
This sounds great. I’ll definitely add it to my list!
Delighted to hear that! He’s such an original writer.
Ooh this sounds really good. Adding it to my TBR
That’s great! I hope you enjoy it when you get to it.
It’s wonderful, isn’t it? I love the way Bruton explores our relationship with art, and his prose is lovely.
Absolutely! He does it in such an original way.
I read this a few weeks ago and loved it – I really liked what he has to say about the connection between painting and viewer. I must read the other two books you mentioned!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Helen. I have a couple more of his on my tbr shelves which I’m looking forward to.
I very much like the sound of this book and the story. I find myself more and more drawn to narratives that include or are about art, so must put this on my list. It looks like it’s coming out here in the States in June.
I’m so pleased to hear it’s to be published in the States. Each of three books of his I’ve read have had an art theme. It’s one of my favourites, too.
Well obviously this wounds like a winner to me!
Absolutely up your alley and a novella, too!
I’m just about to start this! Loved your review, Susan, which leads me to think that Douglas has deployed his beloved themes in a beautiful new permutation. I’m really looking forward to it.
Thank you, Victoria. I hope you love this one too, and he’s already working on several others apparently.
This is such a YOU book; I felt sure you were about to say that you loved it, as soon as I saw the partial image in my feed reader!
Ha! You know my taste well. I’ve loved everything I’ve read by him.
I loved Blue Postcards and was very disappointed I missed on my chance to request a reading copy of this on Netgalley. I will have to hunt down a physical copy but not sure if it’s available in Australia yet….
I still have Blue Postcards to read. I hope you can get your hands on a copy of this one. I’ve become a huge fan of his writing since reading With or Without Angels.
Thanks so much for reviewing this one. I’ve just devoured it in a single sitting (that’s what the wee small hours are for, unfortunately). It’s such a sympathetic exploration of among other things, Vermeer’s work. I’m encouraged to revisit Hope Never Knew Horizon now.
Oh, good! I thought of this one when I watched BBC4’s documentary on assembling the exhibition recently. I hope you have better luck with Hope second time around.
Oh! I didn’t spot that documentary. i-player here I come.
It’s almost as interesting for the dynamics between those involved as for the work!