Madame Sorel's Lodger
by Tracy Wise
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Pub Date 4 Feb 2025 | Archive Date 1 Feb 2025
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Description
The buzzing grew louder, and he was lost in it. He was part of the rush, the wind, the motion he tried to capture in his two-dimensional canvases. He was joining it, he was a part of it, there was no separation between him and anything else.
A tormented artist arrives in a village in southern France to begin painting again. He stands before a house with blue shutters, hoping the change of scenery and brilliant colors of the countryside will calm the buzzing in his mind.
Madame Sorel, a formidable widow, runs a respectable and orderly boarding house. She finds this artist puzzling. Weighed down with canvas, easel, and a sailcloth bag filled with brushes and paints, he hurries out in his shabby clothing each morning, leaving a trace of footprints on the dusty street. His presence stirs something in her, something held back for many years.
Others in the village befriend the artist, including Gretchen, the young housekeeper guided by her tender feelings for the painter, and Luc, the salt-of-the-earth farmer who hides his demons behind amiability and hard work. No one understands the artist—what he sees, how he paints, or why he stays—and their confusion increases as he becomes increasingly erratic, plagued by forces growing out of his control. As his time in the village hurtles toward a stunning, fateful end, all those touched by his visions are altered forever.
A bold exploration of the encompassing drive of creativity, the power of art, and the bonds of community and friendship, MADAME SOREL’S LODGER explores what it means to follow or hide your heart and how these choices, in the end, are what make us human.
Advance Praise
"A bold exploration of the encompassing drive of creativity, the power of art, and the bonds of community and friendship, MADAME SOREL’S LODGER explores what it means to follow or hide your heart and how these choices, in the end, are what make us human."
Available Editions
| ISBN | 9798990803046 |
| PRICE | US$2.99 (USD) |
| PAGES | 173 |
Links
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Tracy S, Librarian
This book is a marvel to read.
Set in France a struggling artist tries to recover his passion and start painting again.
It is a story of deep friendship and how people come together to love and help.
It is beautifully written and I would love to see this as a big screen film. I loved my reading time and thought the author an amazing storyteller.
Franny B, Educator
Although the main character, "the artist", is never named in this book, it is evident that the author is writing about Vincent van Gogh. I enjoyed this lovely little book. It evoked the ambiance of a small English village of the late 19th century. In fact, the first few pages reminded me of Hardy's novels. This is a sad story that describes the last year or so of van Gogh's life away from Paris, the friendships he forged and his death. The author offers an alternate version of his death that releases van Gogh of any responsibility for his own demise. I don't know enough to know how historically accurate it is, given that all that I've read regarding his death states that the gun shot was self-inflicted. Whatever the cause, the world lost an artistic genius. I highly recommend this book if you like quiet, slow-moving stories that are character-driven.
Emily D, Reviewer
A quietly emotional book. Although the Artist is never mentioned by name, it becomes very clear as the book progresses that we are following the life of Vincent Van Gogh. I have been a fan of his art for as long as I can remember and seeing his artwork always invokes an emotional response. I adored how Wise gave voice to some of his most famous pieces, I’ll never look at Café Terrace at Night in the same light again.
I knew the whole time where this book would end, Van Gogh’s life is one of infamy and sadness. However, this book does not focus on that. Instead of his troubles, he is painted as a man of talent, with a love for the outdoors and a want to fit in and find his place. Along the same vein as Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell, Wise has created something beautiful here. Instead of being a book about Vincent Van Gogh, this is a book about art and life and friendship. I’m very grateful to have stumbled across this.
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