Starred review from February 15, 2016
It's no great surprise why this translation of Cuban-born, Paris-based Valdes's 2013 best seller won the Azorin Prize for Fiction; it is as stunning in its execution as it is in its subject matter. Photographer Dora Maar, Picasso's lover and muse of ten years, sealed herself off in her Paris apartment until her death--but not before she suffered a mental breakdown as a result of Picasso's mistreatment and infidelities. Fifteen years after the end of their affair and Maar's subsequent commitment to a psychiatric hospital by Picasso's friends, Maar takes a shadowy five-day trip to Venice with two young, gay men and subsequently isolates herself from the world. In a narrative that moves back and forth between past and present, Valdes's fictional stand-in explores the mystery behind this trip to better understand what happened to this once-great artist. It's nearly impossible to tell where fact ends and artistic license begins, as Valdes immerses readers so fully in each character that they become part of Maar's pain and the author's obsession. VERDICT Essential for anyone with even the slightest interest in Picasso, this work completes the story of a tempestuous relationship and resurrects the reputation of a woman who suffered greatly at the hands of one who was supposed to love her.--Kristen Droesch, formerly with Library Journal
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