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Girl with a Pearl Earring
Girl with a Pearl Earring
Author: Tracy Chevalier
With precisely 35 canvases to his credit, the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer represents one of the great enigmas of 17th-century art. The meager facts of his biography have been gleaned from a handful of legal documents. Yet Vermeer's extraordinary paintings of domestic life, with their subtle play of light and texture, have come to define the D...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780006513209
ISBN-10: 0006513204
Publication Date: 7/17/2000
Pages: 248
Rating:
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 62

4 stars, based on 62 ratings
Publisher: Harpercollins Pub Ltd
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 6 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 18
Beautiful story about a beautiful work of art, March 18, 2007
Reviewer: Jeanne Tassotto (Trapped in the Midwest)

This is for anyone who has ever wandered through a museum and wondered about the people whose images are displayed there. Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring gazes at the viewer over her shoulder as if she had been interrupted on her way to someplace else. She is a young woman, her head wrapped in an improbable manner with richly colored cloth, not at all the typical style of the day. She has no other ornaments or signs of wealth other than a large pearl earring. The background of the painting is blocked out, as if she were standing just outside of a gaping void leaving the viewer to focus on her large dark eyes and single jewel. There are few historical records of Vermeer's life and no information on the identity of his young model.

Chevalier has taken the inspiration of this painting to tell a story of young Griet whose family had been comfortably well off until her father was blinded at work. Now it was up to Griet to provide for her family, at least until her brother completed his apprenticeship. Griet was sent to work as a made for the ever expanding household of the painter Jan Vermeer.

The reader is shown Dutch society and the city of Delft through the eyes of 16 year old Griet. She misses the happier days of her childhood with her brother and sister and fears her future. As a young woman of the lower middle class she knows that her best hope for the future, her only hope for a respectable future, is to marry well. She is also quite aware that working as a maid has drastically lowered her status in the community and made her prospects for a good marriage unlikely. Added to these worries are the ones unique problems of the Vermeer household, the power struggles among Vermeer, his wife and mother-in-law, the need to please a difficult patron and the ever increasing size of the household. Chevalier has done a masterful job bringing the various characters to life. This would be an excellent book to assign to high school or lower level college students, either in literature classes or as a supplement to history courses. Chavlier, through Griet, give the reader an idea of the challenges facing a young woman growing up in a society that offered few opportunities to women.
mommytsunami avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on
Helpful Score: 17
I let this book sit on my bookshelf for months, not sure why I bought it in the first place. One desperate evening, when I had nothing else to read, I broke down and cracked it open. And I am SO glad I did! This author has an amazing talent for bringing very old history to life. Girl With a Pearl Earring tells the story of Griet, a 16-year-old Dutch girl who becomes a maid in the house of the painter Johannes Vermeer. Her calm and perceptive manner not only helps her in her household duties, but also attracts the painter's attention. Though different in upbringing, education and social standing, they have a similar way of looking at things. Vermeer slowly draws her into the world of his paintings - the still, luminous images of solitary women in domestic settings. I'm now hooked on this author!
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on
Helpful Score: 12
I read this book on a camping trip with my family and it was perfect. The characters were very real and I was able to relate to each of them, their positions and points of view. The manner in which the characters were woven together was intriguing and interesting. A delightful book.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 83 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 9
Girl With a Pearl Earring tells the story of Griet, a 16-year-old Dutch girl who becomes a maid in the house of the painter Johannes Vermeer. Her calm and perceptive manner not only helps her in her household duties, but also attracts the painter's attention. Though different in upbringing, education and social standing, they have a similar way of looking at things. Vermeer slowly draws her into the world of his paintings - the still, luminous images of solitary women in domestic settings.

In contrast to her work in her master's studio, Griet must carve a place for herself in a chaotic Catholic household run by Vermeer's volatile wife Catharina, his shrewd mother-in-law Maria Thins, and their fiercely loyal maid Tanneke. Six children (and counting) fill out the household, dominated by six-year-old Cornelia, a mischievous girl who sees more than she should.

On the verge of womanhood, Griet also contends with the growing attentions both from a local butcher and from Vermeer's patron, the wealthy van Ruijven. And she has to find her way through this new and strange life outside the loving Protestant family she grew up in, now fragmented by accident and death.

As Griet becomes part of her master's work, their growing intimacy spreads disruption and jealousy within the ordered household and even - as the scandal seeps out - ripples in the world beyond.
racprint avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 24 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 7
I've decided that one of my life's goals is to see every Vermeer painting in person. So far I've only seen The Concert, at the Isabel Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, many years ago, before it was stolen in the largest, and still unsolved, art heist in history.
Girl with a Pearl Earring is a fictionalized account of the how this painting, called the Mona Liza of the North, came to be made. This is an erotic novel with NO overt eroticism. You can feel the unrequited passion between Vermeer and his beautiful servant girl, who reluctantly becomes the subject of the painting. The movie is good, the book is WAY better.
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reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 6 more book reviews
I absolutely loved this book. I got the audio cassette for a friend who is blind. It is so full of imagery of Dutch life in the 1600's.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 4 more book reviews
Audio book 8 hours unabridged version. This book is very good I had never been interested in the movie until I listened to the book.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 28 more book reviews
Fascinating depiction of period life. Rich in detail. The movie was good, too, but glad I read the book first.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 2 more book reviews
I loved this book.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on
Loved it! Read "Year of Wonder" by Geraldine Brooks right after finishing "Girl" and both took me back to 1666.
nannybebette avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 23 more book reviews
Tracy Chevaliers novel, The Girl With a Pearl Earring, was a captivating story, a blend of history and fiction, inspired by a famous painting. Set in the 1600s 16 year old Griet is sent to work for a successful painter of the time, Vermeer. During the course of her apprenticeship, her master takes a romantic interest in her as she does him. Chevalier creates an amazing plot for the picture and creates a story that captures the reader although she never fully develops her characters feelings which detracts from the romanticism of the story.
The story that the author creates using this beautiful picture is one that shows an incredible amount of creativity. Chevalier imagines a story behind the painting that is sometimes referred to as the Dutch Mona Lisa. Even though no one knows who the girl in the painting is Chevalier is able to envision a romance about her. She invents a love story that crosses class lines as well as religious lines in a rigid society. The author portrays beautiful imagery for the reader. She describes the paintings making the reader feel as if they are right before them. Griet describes a woman in one of the paintings: She wore a mantle of rich yellow satin trimmed with white ermine, and a fashionable five point ribbon in her hair. The reader can imagine this womans elegant clothing with ease and can easily become mesmerized by by the descriptiveness of the novel.
Although the characters in the novel are interesting and cleverly drawn they lack depth of feeling and their motivations remain hidden from the reader. While it is easy to understand a few of the characters the two main ones, Griet and Vermeer, are never fully exposed. The reader is never told in any depth what Griet feels and thinks and Vermeer remains a mystery. At the end of the novel immediately after Vermeer finishes the painting of Griet Chevalier decides to end the story. Griet runs out of the house when Vermeers wife Catharina, sees the painting. There is no explanation of how Griet changes from this experience or what she truly feels. That left this reader with many unanswered questions.
The Girl with a Pearl Earring was an interesting blend of history and fiction. Chevalier is successful with her imagery and with the plot of the story. However she could have improved the novel by adding the exquisite detail that she used in the plot and imagery, applying it to the characters. The novel, even with those negative points was quite successful for this reader. I simply wanted more.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on
Enjoyed the book as much as I enjoyed the movie.
Loved it!
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 12 more book reviews
This is a great book and I read it in two days. The book does lead you to believe that their is much passion written in the book but I didn't find this to be true. The book is not very erotic as well but the writer definitely makes you feel for Griet. I just kept reading because I sympathized for her plight and wanted to see how everything would play out. It was interesting to me that the book revolved around Griet's beauty and sexual awakening and yet the author never mentioned any description of her beauty. All in all, it is a classic and a great read.
MichiganderHolly avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 6 more book reviews
Interesting read which tells the story of Griet, a Dutch girl who is sent to live as a servant for the painter Vermeer to earn money for her family after her father is blinded and can no longer work. The Vermeer household features several children, Catharina-the cold mistress of the household, and another servant. Tensions arise when one of the girls takes a dislike to Griet and constantly tries to get her in trouble. She also creates tension when Vermeer recognizes her abilities and tasks her to assist him which creates jealousy among the household and also when she catches the eye of a wealthy customer and must resist his advances. Eventually the only way to appease him is for Griet to sit for a portrait (The Girl with the Pearl Earring).

I like that the focus of the book stayed on Griet and that kept the story simple and enjoyable. There are so many different points of focus the book could have had but I think Chevalier was smart to keep the focus on the protagonist, Griet. In doing this I got a good impression of what it was like to live in Delft and the differences between the classes and how people were expected to act. Its not easy to picture in your mind how characters should be in a time you know nothing about but I felt liked the way the writing and descriptions allowed you to see it without it being too much. I also didnt mind the background story of the butchers son vying for Griets attention throughout the book. Good description, likeable main character and it made me interested enough to look up some of Vermeers work on Wikipedia so I could see for myself the paintings that were discussed in the book.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on
Interesting read. Well written.
caroltheartist avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 16 more book reviews
Very sweet story that took me by surprise in a few places. The author did a great job of creating a credible voice for the girl, and keeping it consistent throughout the story. The reflection of Vermeer's life was very much on-track with what is known about the artist, and while this, of course, was fiction it would be easy to believe that this was in fact a true story. As a reader, i really liked this girl. A really lovely read.
jimmiesmama avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 10 more book reviews
I read this book on an airplane coming home from California with my husband. Since it was a book that I bought at the airport I did not expect much from it but I was happily surprised. I loved the drama and the mystery of this book. It was a really good story, much better than other books I have purchased in a rush at the airport.
BoopBetty avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 19 more book reviews
Girl with a Peal Earring is a wonderful fiction about one of Vermeer's Paintings. It really makes you think about the era in which the painting was created. Vermeer was somewhat of a escentric as are most artist. The book also became a movie in which was very close to the book. The ending in the movie was just a little different. I would recommend for anyone who loves historical fiction.
katethegreat avatar reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 69 more book reviews
Very enjoyable and a surprisingly quick read. Chevalier does an excellent job of expressing the feelings of the main character, so that you are right there with her.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 3 more book reviews
Delicate and perceptive, a master of telling details.The reader is drawn into a world of paintings.
reviewed Girl with a Pearl Earring on + 14 more book reviews
Loved the book! It was a quick read and I found myself reminiscing about my travels to Delft and Rotterdam.

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