Customer Reviews

THE LADY AND THE UNICORN

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(46)
3 star:		(26)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

"The Lady in the Unicorn" is Tracy Chevalier's fourth novel. She is the author of the best selling (and recently a major motion picture) "Girl with a Pearl Earring". Tracy Chevalier seems to write the same sort of novel each time, but because the subjects are different, the ways the novels play out are different. The technique that Chevalier uses is that she takes a painting that I presume she likes (or is just interested in). She learns as much of the backstory of the painting as possible and then writes a fictional novel about how this painting came about and who the artist and subjects are. In the two Chevalier novels I have read now, this has turned out to be much more interesting than it may at first sound.

The story in "The Lady and the Unicorn" is set in 15th Century Paris and Brussels. Nicolas des Innocents has been commissioned to create a set of tapestries for a minor member of the French nobility Jean Le Viste. This seems simple enough: Commission, Paint, Weave, Complete. What sets this novel apart is in the telling. Nicolas is a talented artist, but rather arrogant about his art. He mainly paints miniatures in great detail and has never had to design a tapestry (it takes a different sort of skill to design a tapestry). But Nicolas is also a lusty man. Months prior he had impregnated a maid at Le Viste's estate and this time he has his eye on a young woman named Claude. It also seems that Claude has her eye on Nicolas. There wouldn't be any trouble (or much) if it didn't turn out that Claude is Jean Le Viste's eldest daughter and heir to the estate. Now any tryst must be secret, but Claude's mother knows something is afoot so she works to keep them apart so Claude may keep her virginity and be an eligible bride with the estate as a dowry.

The scene later shifts to the weavers who will actually make the tapestries. Nicolas defies all custom and is personally involved in nearly all aspects of the making of the tapestries. He is no less lusty now that he is away from Claude, but we get to see more of his character as this section of the novel progresses. Throughout the novel we see how Nicolas's inspiration for the tapestry evolves and why he is creating the tapestries quite the way that he is. We get glimpses into the lives of the weavers, Nicolas, as well as Claude. This novel is told with multiple narrators in such a way that the shift in narration feels appropriate and smooth and these shifts serve to better advance the story and keep it moving along.

The opening of "The Lady and the Unicorn" felt a little crude with Nicolas's crass sexual interest in Claude, but as the novel wore on there became fewer crass lines and everything felt natural. For a novel about tapestries (but really about relationships), this one was fairly fast paced. Considering the quality of both "Girl with a Pearl Earring" and "The Lady and the Unicorn", I think I'm going to have to give Chevalier's other two novels a try. This one was well worth the read.

The plot of this book is well-described above so I won't repeat it here. The high points of this novel are the rich period detail -- the differences between how members of various social classes lived, the role of women in France and Belgium during the Renaissance, the interaction between art and politics, and, most of all, the creation of art, especially tapestries and how they differ from painting. The characters are particularly well-developed and it is very easy to care for them. I especially liked the blind daughter of the weaver and how Chevalier got into how she perceived the world and how the world of her day perceived her and her "flaw." It is extremely easy to empathize with the Lady Genvieve, stuck in a loveless marriage with nothing but her religion to cling to, her daughter Claude and her importance to her father solely as a means to his social-climbing, and the family of weavers whose work on the series of tapestries of the book's title will either make them or break them, and somehow ends up doing both.

I bought this book on audio, and there are two shortcomings that keep me from giving it a higher rating, one inherent in the book itself, the other having to do with the audio reading. The first problem I have with the book is that it often reads like a bad romance novel, especially when dealing with the sexual awakening of Claude. Yes, she is a 14 year-old girl and we are hearing or reading, as the case may be, her point of view, but everytime I heard these passages I kept imagining a paperback with Fabio on the cover. I almost got into an accident driving and listening to this book as I was giggling pretty hard in places. The book is also quite repetitive and felt rather short, more like a padded novella.

The issue I had with the audio version had to do with Robert Blumenfeld's reading of some of the male roles. The protagonist of the book, Nicolas des Innocents is supposed to be arrogant and conceited, especially in his attitude toward women and non-Parisians. But Blumenfeld reads Nicolas' passages in such an oozingly snobby and condescending voice, that is hard to imagine him seducing any woman, let alone the many of this book. The general snobby quality of his voice also comes through with some of the other characters and doesn't always suit them so well, although he does better with the secondary characters. It is especially noticable because Terry Donnelly, who reads the female voices, does such a marvelous job. She sounds like a girl on the brink of womanhood when reading Claude's thoughts, she sounds like a weary middle-aged noblewoman when reading the passages narrated by Claude's mother, Genivieve, and she sounds like a wise working-class woman when reading as the weaver's wife. It's such a wonderful performance that Blumenfeld's just doesn't hold up to it, especially since the sound quality on his parts isn't as good.

In short, this a great book for someone interested in Renaissance art and life and is basically good. If you are interested in women in the middle ages and the Renaissance in Europe and want to listen on audio, I'd recommend instead Barnes and Noble's series of audio tapes of books by Alison Weir, including her book on Eleanor of Acquitaine and the Six Wives of Henry the Eighth. They are extremely well-written and wonderfully narrated. Had I not heard these series, I might have enjoyed "The Lady and the Unicorn" audio book more, but having heard great books about the era, I can only rate this one as merely good.

Ms. Chevalier's "The Lady and the Unicorn" was a deftly woven tapestry of words that tied together several different individuals via one character named Nicolas des Innocents a very talented but vain artist.

This story is told from the view point of several of the characters (each chapter is a character in the story) on the design and creation of a very important tapestry which depicted the seduction of the Unicorn by a lady. From the birth of the design by Nicolas for a very important partron in Paris to the weaving of the design by a family of weavers in Brussels this story covers the life of Nicolas and how his randy self effects everyone that he comes into contact with.

This was a well told tale that kept me glued to the pages. Ms. Chevalier is a very talented author who chooses her inspiration for her stories from vivid works of art. This story will grab you from the very beginning and you will be drawn to the very interesting and at times funny characters that inhabit this little make belive world. I highly recommend this book as an entertaining way to pass an afternoon.

I didn't like Tracy Chevalier's book, "Girl With a Pearl Earring," and I didn't read the other two, so I was a little reluctant to buy this book. I love the Lady and Unicorn tapestries in the Cluny Museum in Paris so much, though, that I couldn't resist. I'm glad I didn't.

Chevalier's writing is still spare and straightforward and I was happy to see that, but her sense of character and the richness she adds to her plot strands has increased many times over.

This is a lovely book, filled with fully-realized characters and a beautifully-woven plot...almost as beautiful as the tapestries in the Cluny. Chevalier has certainly used her imagination well in giving us a story about how these beautiful tapestries might have come about. I felt like I was really transported back to France (and Brussels) during the fifteenth century. Chevalier hasn't skimped on the details and it's the details that make this book so lovely.

I enjoyed this book and, although not an artist, I am a lover of art. I think anyone who loves art, France, tapestries or beautifully-told romantic tales will love "The Lady and the Unicorn." I recommend it highly.

I read this novel on my vacation in Paris and on the day I finished it I went to the Cluny Museum to see the Tapestries for myself. I'd seen them ten years ago, but seeing them again, after reading Tracy Chevalier's book brought them to life in a way that was utterly magical.

As she did with The Girl With the Pearl Earring, (but even better this time since she has matured as a writer) the author takes a classic work of art and artfully spins a tale inspired by the original which becomes an original itself.

That the actual art work exists adds to the magic. The magic adds to the actual art work.

Chevalier's imagination, her grasp of history, her attention to the senses, to details, to the soul of both artists, artisans and lovers are all as lovely as the tapestries.

Not a stich is missing, not a word is extraneous or misplaced. Bravo.

For me, Lady and the Unicorn was every bit as good as Girl with a Pearl Earring. I felt utterly transported to the middle ages and immersed in a rollicking good tale, immaculately told.

Tracy Chevalier once again demonstrates her ability to write about a famous work of art while making its history come alive. In "The Lady and the Unicorn" she provides a fictionalized account of the creation of a series of famous medieval tapestries which currently are on display in a museum in Paris. Although the origin of the tapestries is unknown, including who commissioned them, when they were created, or who crafted them, the author does an excellent job of weaving together whatever facts are known, along with some supposition and a generous thread of imagination, to create an entertaining tale.

Artist Nicolas des Innocents, a womanizer who usually paints miniatures and coats of arms, is commissioned by the nobleman Jean Le Viste to design some tapestries to glorify the family's status at Court. He is originally asked to create a battle scene, but the design evolves into the story of a lady seducing a unicorn. Although Nicolas is the protagonist around whom the action pivots, the first-person narrative continually shifts between Nicolas, the Le Viste family, and the family of the weaver that produces the tapestries. Because of the profusion of characters and subplots, this novel is not as focused as "Girl with a Pearl Earring" but it is still fascinating.

The story contains many facts about how tapestries were made. Beneath the book's paper jacket, one of the actual tapestries is displayed across the front and back cover. I found myself continually peering under the jacket to study its details as I read about the use of color, weaving techniques, plants and animals, and symbolism. The story also provides an interesting description of life in late 15th century Paris and Brussels, including class distinctions and role of women in medieval society. I recommend it for both art lovers and fans of historical fiction.

Eileen Rieback

This is one of the most delightful books I've read in the past few years. Yes, yes, we know it's about a set of medieval tapestries being woven and about the people who get caught up in each others' lives as a result. Put like that, it sounds dusty and worthy perhaps. Nothing could be further from the truth. For me, Lady and the Unicorn bubbled along, filled with both fun and pathos. I found myself caring deeply not only about the characters but also the tapestries themselves. I also found myself referring frequently to the designs underneath the dust-jacket and even poking around among the rugs in the basement to see whether there was a unicorn rug down there.

Tracy Chevalier charmed and intrigued audiences with "Girl With A Pearl Earring" and "Falling Angels." She continues her winning ways with "The Lady and the Unicorn," a fascinating part fact, part imaginative account of one of the world's masterpieces.

She attributes her interest in this particular work of art to an early interest in unicorns. She called it a "teenage craze" saying, "I had books, posters, stickers, jewelry.......In one of the books were illustrations of the six Lady and the Unicorn tapestries that hang in the Museum of the Middle Ages (aka Cluny Museum) in Paris. I thought they were very beautiful, and made sure to see them when I visited Paris at the age of 20. After that I forgot about them."

Fortunately for the world she was reminded of them when she read an article in 1999. Her curiosity about their origins was piqued, and she set to work. Inspiration, as most creative artists know, can be a blessing or a devilment. Ms. Chevalier is blessed, and we are the beneficiaries.

We are also the beneficiaries of superb performances by two gifted vocal artist on both Unabridged versions of this story. Seen on television in The Equalizer, As The World Turns, and Sesame Street, accomplished stage actor Robert Blumenfeld brings characters, especially the willful Nicholas, to vibrant life. An apt partner for him is Terry Donnelly who has performed at Dublin's Abbey Theatre and on the New York stage.

For those unfamiliar with the tapestries they present what appears to be a woman seducing a unicorn. While these works have long been admired, virtually nothing is known of their provenance. Enter the fecund imagination of Ms. Chevalier who recreates Paris in 1490 where lives a rather haughty French nobleman with his family. To underscore his importance at court the nobleman retains the talented, lascivious artist Nicholas de Innocents to design six extravagant tapestries.

The nobleman's household is never the same once Nicholas arrives. He uses the noble's wife, Genevieve, and lovely daughter, Claude, as models. Almost upon seeing Claude he falls madly in love but his suit is hopeless.

Once his paintings are completed he takes them to Brussels and master-weaver George de la Chapelle demanding perfection in every stitch.

Tracy Chevalier is a magician who seamlessly blends fact and fiction into colorful, romantic, compelling stories. "The Lady and the Unicorn" is one more.

- Gail Cooke

A series of six tapestries depicting a lady seducing a unicorn now hang in the Musee National du Moyen Age in Paris. Although these tapestries --- created in the late fifteenth century --- are some of the most famous in the world, very little is known about their creation or their history. Tracy Chevalier, the novelist best known for writing the perennial book club favorite (and new feature film) GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING, has used her rich imagination to weave together romance, humor and art history in THE LADY AND THE UNICORN.

Chevalier starts with one of the few facts that is actually known about the tapestries: they were created for the nobleman Jean Le Viste, whose family coat of arms features prominently in their design. In Chevalier's portrayal, Le Viste is a power-hungry nobleman with close ties to the king. He wants tapestries depicting the glories of war, but the artist, Nicolas des Innocents --- who specializes in portraits of noblewomen --- convinces Le Viste that a series of tapestries about courtly love will still bring glory to the Le Viste name.

Nicolas himself is a womanizer --- the novel opens from his point of view, and we quickly learn that his amorous sights are set on Le Viste's teenage daughter, Claude. Much to the reader's surprise (and delight), when Claude narrates the next section of the novel we learn that she is just as lustful as Nicolas, and her prose just as bawdy. Needless to say, when Claude's family discovers their flirtation, her mother (who wants to be a nun) must concoct a plan to keep the would-be lovers apart. Claude is banished to a convent and Nicolas is sent to Brussels to supervise the weaving of the tapestries there.

This development helps highlight one of the key themes of the novel, which is the juxtaposition of the sacred and the profane. Chevalier's novel is at turns raunchy and rapturous, and this contrast applies not only to the tapestries themselves and to the characters involved in their creation, but also to the whole culture of late-medieval France.

In Brussels, Nicolas once again becomes woven up in a family drama, this time in the industrious Chapelle family of weavers. Their daughter Alienor is beautiful but blind, and they fear she must marry the rude and odiferous wool dyer, whom she can't stand. Nicolas and Alienor concoct a plan to save her from her fate while allowing Nicolas to do what he does best.

In addition to being a hugely entertaining romp through art history and medieval sexual politics, THE LADY AND THE UNICORN also includes a number of interesting details about the art of weaving. By the end of this book, you'll have not only a clear picture of medieval weaving equipment and techniques, but also a greater understanding of and appreciation for the tapestries themselves, and for the weavers whose stories were lost to history --- until Chevalier creatively brought them back to life.

--- Reviewed by Norah Piehl