Madonnas of Leningrad
by Debra Dean
A book about Art, Alzheimer's, or illegitimate son from angel sex on museum roof? Discuss.....
by Debra Dean
A book about Art, Alzheimer's, or illegitimate son from angel sex on museum roof? Discuss.....
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10 comments:
Melissa! I love it!
I really liked this book - the perspective of the story was incredible. I felt by the main character loosing her mind, she gained her memories. It was a very touching account of dimentia. I can't decide if the "god sex" is from her mind going, her inability to believe she could have gotten pregnant from one encounter or...true.....
I also really enjoyed the book. I was impressed that the Debra Dean was a first-time author, as she seemed to move effortlessly between characters, between past and present, and into the world of WWII Leningrad.
The scenes in the Hermitage were breathtaking to me. Dean captured the setting of the museum, of the living conditions in the cellar, of the nights spent on patrol on the rooftop among the buzz of enemy bombers....with such exquisite detail. I felt like I could "see" each of these places, and even began to feel like I could "see" the paintings and sculptures of Marina's memory palace.
I thought she captured Marina's dementia well, too, giving the reader a taste of what it was like for Marina to slip into the memories of her past, and for her family to grapple with watching her slip away from the present.
Another thing that was poignant for me was that during the winter and early spring, with so much despair and death, Dean also painted little vignettes of hope. Such as the first spring leaves in the courtyard garden. Or the flutter of the baby moving inside Marina. Or the possibility of a chocolate bar tucked between linens.
As for the pregnancy.....there wasn't a clear enough timeline to count backwards to when she had last been with her soldier boyfriend. What is clear to me, though, is that by praying to the Madonnas and god/goddesses in the musuem, Marina felt a glimmer of hope, of protection, and perhaps, even a night of passion.
The State Hermitage Museum has a website, including a virtual tour...and views from the roof where Marina would have had her night-time encounter with Zeus.
http://www.hermitagemuseum.org/html_En/index.html
I am fascinated with the structure of the book as well. The constant past to present alternations created a bit of disorientation for me (on purpose, perhaps, to create that unsettling feeling of dementia?).
And I was also interested in the perspective the story was told. For some reason I assumed that Marina would tell her story (in the first person) -- in both the past and the present. But I see how difficult that would be to write. How do you write from the perspective of someone with dementia.
I think Dean did an excellent job of revealing the fading present and very active past that Marina was experiencing.
Okay, more later...
I think the
The museum images captured me, too, Kristen. Especially the images of the frames hung on the walls without their art. And the imagination it took to make the art pieces materialize in their minds. So captivating.
I also really liked the book. I was captivated by the art (I wanted to look up all the paintings on the internet to see if I could picture them) and the characters...whether they were past (like the uncle) or present (like the daughter/son). And I loved the idea of a memory place....although I'm not sure what my memory place would be....
I loved the art as well. I never took art history in college and it wasn't until I started dating Kevin and he would explain art to me that I realized how multi-layered art really is - representing, religion, culture, history etc. I would love to see some of these pieces and really look at them.
I also, was amazed about this "softer side" of Russia. I don't know about you all but my games when I was a kid the villians were Nazi Germans and Russians. The cold war outlook reallly warped my sense of what Russia was - I always envisioned cold, dark, grey, no life, no humor. This story about the livelihood of the museum and the beautiful ornate buliding and pieces of art by the masters really made think. In a much more passive way, it reminded me of a book, Wild Swans, that dealt with three generations of Chinese women in a family and how the ever changing goverment totally changed their life/livlihood and political views. Fascinating stuff.
Beth, do you recommend Wild Swans as a good book to read?
Yes - Wild Swans is an excellent book - it took awhile to get through - definitely picked it up and put it down a few times. However, I kept chewing on it and chewing on it and it gave such an incredible insight into life in China pre-communism and under Mao. I have it if you want to borrow it.
Yes, I also found there to be such richness in the scenes in Russia, even with the dire conditions. There was light and warmth and perserverence, even when people's lives were at stake.
I feel like those invisible paintings kept hope alive and warmth in the soul.
I saw color, not gray, as I usually do when I think of Russia during that time period. Interesting what assumptions/visions I discover when I see/feel something different....
Court
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