Tracy’s answer to “The Glassmaker (I read the ARC) is now my favorite book of yours . . . which is hard to admit becau…” > Likes and Comments
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I loved how you kept her going through all the larger-than-life catastrophes she lived through. I'm a sideline buyer at literati bookstore in ann arbor, so I read incessantly and write reviews. here's my review of the glassmaker: This brilliant new book by historical fiction writer-extraordinaire, Tracy Chevalier ,immerses the reader in the flourishing Venice and Murano glassmaking industry, starting in the 13th century and through its demise over the centuries. The eldest daughter of a Murano glassblowing family, Orsola Rossa, teaches herself the art, against the wishes of her family and community, because women of that time kept the house operating, not the business. Chevalier takes liberty with time, "skipping like a stone through the centuries," as we follow the Rossa family from 1486 through the plague that ravished Italy, to the destruction of the industry when Napoleon and then the Austrians overtook Venice and Murano, and beyond. Those skipping stones show Orsola aging at a snail's pace as she lives to tell her story through those early days to modern, post-Covid life. I relished being taken into this world, past and present, rooting for Orsola along the way.
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vicki
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Feb 21, 2024 09:29AM
I loved how you kept her going through all the larger-than-life catastrophes she lived through. I'm a sideline buyer at literati bookstore in ann arbor, so I read incessantly and write reviews. here's my review of the glassmaker: This brilliant new book by historical fiction writer-extraordinaire, Tracy Chevalier ,immerses the reader in the flourishing Venice and Murano glassmaking industry, starting in the 13th century and through its demise over the centuries. The eldest daughter of a Murano glassblowing family, Orsola Rossa, teaches herself the art, against the wishes of her family and community, because women of that time kept the house operating, not the business. Chevalier takes liberty with time, "skipping like a stone through the centuries," as we follow the Rossa family from 1486 through the plague that ravished Italy, to the destruction of the industry when Napoleon and then the Austrians overtook Venice and Murano, and beyond. Those skipping stones show Orsola aging at a snail's pace as she lives to tell her story through those early days to modern, post-Covid life. I relished being taken into this world, past and present, rooting for Orsola along the way.
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