Still Life: A GMA Book Club Pick: A Novel
A Good Morning America Book Club Pick
A Veranda Magazine Book Club Pick
A captivating, bighearted, richly tapestried story of people brought together by love, war, art, flood, and the ghost of E. M. Forster, by the celebrated author of Tin Man.
Tuscany, 1944: As Allied troops advance and bombs fall around deserted villages, a young English soldier, Ulysses Temper, finds himself in the wine cellar of a deserted villa. There, he has a chance encounter with Evelyn Skinner, a middle-aged art historian who has come to Italy to salvage paintings from the ruins and recall long-forgotten memories of her own youth. In each other, Ulysses and Evelyn find a kindred spirit amidst the rubble of war-torn Italy, and set off on a course of events that will shape Ulysses’s life for the next four decades.
As Ulysses returns home to London, reimmersing himself in his crew at The Stoat and Parot—a motley mix of pub crawlers and eccentrics—he carries his time in Italy with him. And when an unexpected inheritance brings him back to where it all began, Ulysses knows better than to tempt fate, and returns to the Tuscan hills.
With beautiful prose, extraordinary tenderness, and bursts of humor and light, Still Life is a sweeping portrait of unforgettable individuals who come together to make a family, and a deeply drawn celebration of beauty and love in all its forms.
From the Publisher
ASIN : B08W2XQ8FZ
Publisher : G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Accessibility : Learn more
Publication date : November 2, 2021
Language : English
File size : 3.5 MB
Screen Reader : Supported
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
X-Ray : Enabled
Word Wise : Enabled
Print length : 464 pages
ISBN-13 : 978-0593330777
Page Flip : Enabled
Best Sellers Rank: #8,755 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store) #26 in Historical World War II & Holocaust Fiction #34 in World War II Historical Fiction #76 in Historical World War II Fiction
Customer Reviews: 4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars (42,841) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
$24.99
A Good Morning America Book Club Pick
A Veranda Magazine Book Club Pick
A captivating, bighearted, richly tapestried story of people brought together by love, war, art, flood, and the ghost of E. M. Forster, by the celebrated author of Tin Man.
Tuscany, 1944: As Allied troops advance and bombs fall around deserted villages, a young English soldier, Ulysses Temper, finds himself in the wine cellar of a deserted villa. There, he has a chance encounter with Evelyn Skinner, a middle-aged art historian who has come to Italy to salvage paintings from the ruins and recall long-forgotten memories of her own youth. In each other, Ulysses and Evelyn find a kindred spirit amidst the rubble of war-torn Italy, and set off on a course of events that will shape Ulysses’s life for the next four decades.
As Ulysses returns home to London, reimmersing himself in his crew at The Stoat and Parot—a motley mix of pub crawlers and eccentrics—he carries his time in Italy with him. And when an unexpected inheritance brings him back to where it all began, Ulysses knows better than to tempt fate, and returns to the Tuscan hills.
With beautiful prose, extraordinary tenderness, and bursts of humor and light, Still Life is a sweeping portrait of unforgettable individuals who come together to make a family, and a deeply drawn celebration of beauty and love in all its forms.
From the Publisher
ASIN : B08W2XQ8FZ
Publisher : G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Accessibility : Learn more
Publication date : November 2, 2021
Language : English
File size : 3.5 MB
Screen Reader : Supported
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
X-Ray : Enabled
Word Wise : Enabled
Print length : 464 pages
ISBN-13 : 978-0593330777
Page Flip : Enabled
Best Sellers Rank: #8,755 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store) #26 in Historical World War II & Holocaust Fiction #34 in World War II Historical Fiction #76 in Historical World War II Fiction
Customer Reviews: 4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars (42,841) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Pidge –
A cast of characters both unusual and unforgettable.
In this beautifully written book the author brings every character to life that brings you into their world and allows you to understand them in a very intimate way. These intertwined lives are each important to the story and to you as the reader. I read the book when it first came out and now have finished it for a second time as it was chosen by my book club. I thoroughly enjoyed it the second time around.
Canal gal –
beautiful story of friendship
This book was recommended to me by one of the most avid readers I know. He said it was a beautiful love story – the best he read all year. After that – I was expecting another “The Nightingale.” It’s not. It’s a beautiful story of deep friendship… It is a story of love but not the WWII love story I was expecting.I’ve grown to appreciate it more after I read it and have shared it with others.
CS –
A Love Story to a Place and Time, and to Love, in all its Many Forms
’Once is enough. We just need to know what the heart’s capable of, Evelyn.And do you know what it’s capable of?I do. Grace and fury.’An ode to art, to a time and place, and a shared ’belief that a combination of intellect and beauty can make the world a better place.’’It’s what we’ve always done. Left a mark on a cave or on a page. Showing who we are, sharing our view of the world, the life we’re made to bear. Our turmoil is revealed in those painted faces–sometimes tenderly, sometimes grotesquely, but art becomes a mirror. All the symbolism and the paradox, ours to interpret. That’s how it becomes part of us. And as counterpoint to our suffering, we have beauty. We like beauty, don’t we? Something good on the eye cheers us. Does something to us on a cellular level, makes us feel alive and enriched. Beautiful art opens our eyes to the beauty of the world, Ulysses. It repositions our sight and judgment. Captures forever that which is fleeting. A meager stain in the corridors of history, that’s all we are. A little mark of scuff. One hundred and fifty years ago Napoleon breathed the same air as we do now. The battalion of time marches on. Art versus humanity is not the question, Ulysses. One doesn’t exist without the other. Art is the antidote.’Set mostly in Florence, this is a story of family. Not your typical Father/Mother with 2.5 kids kind of family, this is a family made up of friends acquired along the way who have come to live in Florence in the mid 20th century, when the bombs were still falling, which adds to the desire to live life fully while they still can, and appreciate what beauty there is left in life with an intensity as the world seems to be crumbling around them.A love story, if a somewhat atypical one. A story of friendship, of family, both the ones we are born into and the ones that we create from the people we meet as we travel through life. It is the story of war, the destruction to the land, and the destruction to the people whose lives are affected, and the friendships that were born of the time. A love story to a place and time, and to love, in all its many forms.At 464 pages, this is not a quick or light read, but it is one that will now live inside me, as all the best stories do.
Mary Lins –
Beautiful
“Still Life” by Sarah Winman (2021) is a delight! It’s no wonder it was an international best seller!It’s the story of a group of unforgettable characters, and a talking parrot named Claude, as they navigate their lives after WWII. This motley group is led by former English soldier, Ulysses Temper, who became interested in art while stationed in Italy.“Still Life” is an unforgettable novel. It is by turns funny, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and sometimes shocking. Prepare to be completely enthralled.Italy, and Florence in particular, is the setting and this is a part of the world that I absolutely adore so it was a beautiful literary journey back for me.Now must add Ulysses Temper to the list of “Fictional Characters I’ve Fallen in Love With”, along with Atticus Finch and Count Alexander Rostov.
Bronzie43 –
High points and low points
I loved the author’s lilting style of writing, the camaraderie and story of the diverse group of friends and, of course, the beautiful descriptions of Florence.However, I disliked the absence of quotation marks as well as the overwhelming aspect of lesbianism. In my opinion the story would have worked so much better with quotation marks and without the gay aspect.
Claudia Massie –
Beautiful book
Sarah Winman writes beautifully. Sometimes, I had to pause just to savor her words. I loved all of the characters and will miss them. My only criticism would be that it was longer than it needed to be.
Ed E –
Unforgettable and wonderful
Sarah Winman has this incredible gift for making you fall in love with the characters in this book.The story starts in the chaos of WWII Italy, but it’s the decades that follow—moving between the grit of a London pub and the magic of the Tuscan hills. It’s a book about art, chance encounters, and the families we choose for ourselves. If you need a book that will keep your interest , this is the one. No spoilers, but the way the themes of beauty and friendship come together is just breathtaking.
TW –
Really wonderful
Excellent! Will reread someday just to savor it all over again
Nan Nan –
This book is recommended by my hubby. He read it before and said it is his favorite. Delivery is very fast and book quality is amazing. I will enjoy reading it so much❤️❤️❤️
Nick Ransdale –
A historical novel set between 1944, when the two key characters met in wartime Italy, and the late seventies. It follows the lives of a small, disparate group of East Londoners and various unconnected people with a connection to Florence, Tuscany. The way the lives of the beautifully drawn characters entwine is masterful. Thomas Hardy could have written this had he lived in the 20th century, it’s that good. It’s about love, life, people, sexuality, art, and chance … set mostly in Florence. This beautiful book is a must read.
Chiara Elissa Torres Bayley –
This is a story of !ife, and love, mixed in with poetry, literature and art and a cast of characters that you fall in love with because they become a part of you. Sarah Winman’s words craft a beautiful story of friendship and love, while you step into a different world, bubbling with life and colour . It is a majestic book that will make you cry more than once and is worth numerous reads to take in the magnificence of her writing.
Kate –
It’s a wonderful book which will make you feel an array of emotions, not least gratitude, for the use of English and the great knowledge of art easily given and shared between the characters and the reader. The only point which I, personally, would say is a shame about an otherwise superb novel, is the non usage of speech marks. For me, it makes it unnecessarily difficult to read and I found it extremely irritating at times.
hero_of_canton –
In 1944 in Italy, a chance encounter is set to change lives forever. Ulysses Temper is a young British Soldier who comes across Evelyn Skinner, a 64 year old Art Historian who is in the Country to help salvage artwork from the wreckage left behind by the War whilst reliving memories from a youth spent with an Italian maid. As they go their separate ways will their lives ever be the same again and will their paths cross in the future?“Still Life” came highly recommended by one of my work friends and was picked as our next read for our work book club. I’m not normally a fan of historical fiction but I do love character driven books and I am always open to trying new things.I absolutely loved this. The characterisation is excellent and the way the characters’ lives weave together is so beautifully written.I loved Ulysses so much and the relationship between him and Alys is so well written. Although I think my favourite character might be Cressy. I wish I had his luck!I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone so I won’t say too much but Winman has done such an incredible job at creating this cast of characters and some of the little sliding doors style moments are just perfect and made me wonder how many moments there have been like that in my own life.It’s such a wonderful story. We see the lives of these characters and how things change for them over the span of several decades following the end of the War and it is simply stunning. There is such a mix of emotions throughout the book and I particularly found it interesting to see the different reactions to some of the homosexual relationships.There is a bit right at the end that really made my brain work overtime and I’m still thinking about it now. For a second I thought the story was going to go one way but now I think it might have gone another.I could sing the praises of this all day, I have absolutely no complaints.