Customer Reviews

The Painter's Wife

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If you are wanting to read a small novel this summer but tired of the mainstream you might want to check out some of the new publications from Talonbooks. Particularly fine is the first novel by Monique Durand, The Painter's Wife. Durand, a long time journalist and producer for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, has created a lexical painting of Evelyn Rowat and Rene Marcil`s marriage.

Beginning in the 1930's with a glimpse of Evelyn's childhood, The Painter's Wife, is first set in the town of Mount Royal near Montreal. Evelyn's father is a kind but browbeat man whose job as a biochemist has moved his family several times. Evelyn's mother is a deeply prejudice conservative who is both physically and mentally abusive. At a young age Evelyn is drawn to the arts and begins her career in advertising by drawing hats for Eaton's. She soon meets and marries a young musician before moving to New York in 1941. It is in New York that Evelyn eventually meets Rene Marcil. Their devotion to art binds them together through a lifetime of depression, exertion, and passion. Evelyn's devotion to Rene is what makes this story extraordinary.

Monique Durand's use of language is an art unto itself. Words like phantasmagoria and transhumance color her pages, while letters to Evie from Rene read like poetry. Descriptions of St. Henri on the St. Lawrence River, Paris, Les Saintes-Maries in France, Islington near London England, New York, and Toronto are opulent and fluid. Reading The Painter's Wife is like drinking a fine glass of wine, it intoxicates the senses. The themes of melancholy and nostalgia are at the essence of this epoch affair with art and leave the reader feeling almost inebriated.

Sheila Fischman's translation of The Painter's Wife is superb and greatly compliments Durand`s writing. Quite possibly, everything being translated to English for us monolingual Americans should be done by Sheila Fischman. The only bad thing about The Painter's Wife is that it is too short and leaves you craving dialog. It definitely sparks an interest in Rene Marcil's paintings. There is a wonderful website devoted to Marcil which gives a brief biography with timeline and many examples of his paintings. It can be found at www.renemarcil.com. More information about The Painter's Wife can be found at www.talonbooks.com. Lovers of words will find Durand's book a must read. Bon lire!