Book Summary and Reviews of Still Life by Sarah Winman

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Cathryn_Conroy

One of the Best Books I Have Ever Read! A Brilliant Novel That Is a Literary Gift
This is one of the best books I have ever read. Yes, it's that good.

Written by Sarah Winman, this is a story about life and love, about the families in which we are born and the families we create. This is a story that captured my heart and soul and would not let go.

It is also a poetic and charming love letter to Florence, Italy. Just beware: This book will make you want to immediately book a trip to Florence—and maybe even move there.

The novel opens on August 2, 1944 somewhere in the Tuscan Hills. World War II is raging. Bombs are dropping. Life as people know it is being destroyed. We soon meet the two pivotal characters of the book: The 64-year-old spinster Evelyn Skinner, a Renaissance art expert, and Ulysses Temper (Temps for short), a young British soldier stationed nearby. Their serendipitous encounter sets the stage for a delightful novel of lives lived well and the interconnectedness of it all.

The two return to their separate lives in London. Ulysses goes back to work in a pub called the Stoat and Parot and returns to his wife, the beautiful Peg, whom he deeply loves. She doesn't feel the same way, and so begins a decades-long quest for her to find love. Because of a good deed Ulysses did while he was a soldier in Florence saving a man from suicide, he surprisingly inherits several large apartments in Florence into which he moves, along with eight-year-old Alys (a child Peg had with an American soldier who has long disappeared), his good friend Cressy, and Cressy's talking parrot, Claude. The bulk of the novel is the wonderful life they create together in Florence, initially surrounded by wary neighbors who soon enough lovingly adopt this eccentric group of Brits as their own.

Each character is richly and deeply depicted—so real, so alive, so fully animate that I wanted to live with them—be their friend, be their family, be with them.

This is a delightful and imaginative book that celebrates life, love, family, and art, especially Renaissance art. It is extraordinarily well written with humor, joy, and breathtaking descriptions of nature and food (oh the food!). The writing ranges from casual and witty to lyrical and poetic. It is perfect!

Bonus for English majors: There are fun and creative parallels to the pensione in E.M. Forster's "A Room With a View" with Mr. Forster himself making a major appearance at the end of the book.

This brilliant and magical novel is a treasure and a literary gift. I am in awe of this book!

Paul Micallef

Still Life
Amazing writing which brought me to tears and laughter. Already read twice and will do again. Thanks you Sarah Winman

Darlene_Goetzman

Love of life through characters
To me, these characters were as evocative as any Steinbeck could craft. While the setting was primarily Florence, Italy and the themes art history, art, love and more - the quirky, lovable characters became like friends as I read. Sarah Winman adeptly weaves in whispers of synchronicity & perhaps magic that you yearn for on behalf of the characters. An exceptionally well written book.

Gerrie_B

Beautifully Written, A Paean to Art and All Types of Love
While I very much enjoyed this book, anyone uncomfortable with lesbian/gay love affairs and sexual situations might not. The dialogue reminded me of Hemingway and the settings were described so beautifully as to make me fall in love with Italy. The rich descriptions of the artwork had me looking up pieces online to view them so critical were they to the story. I did find the book a bit challenging to read at times. It started off strong, then felt a bit muddled until the story hit its stride about page 100 and then the characters really grabbed my heart. The last 50 pages were struggle for me. I approached them eagerly, thinking they would be as well woven and interesting as the previous pages. Unfortunately, I did not find that to be the case. The last chapter seemed forced, out of place, awkward. It felt as if the author had more to say and never wove these details into the body of the story and just tacked them on at the end. This section pulled the emphasis away from what she built over 300(?) or so pages and left me unsatisfied. However, the bulk of the book was a beautiful story. I would have rated it much higher without the last clumsy chapter and much lower if not for the main section of the book and the beautiful writing.

Marilyn

Still Life
After reading this novel, I felt (including my book club) that it was poorly summarized. Although it did address friendship and how our lives intertwine in meaningful ways, it did not share the overwhelming amount of lesbianism in the novel. No doubt the author is a lesbian. Too much emphasizing of this storyline continued throughout the book.