Name: A Piece of the world
ISBN: 9780062356260

Christina Baker Kline

Imagines the life story of Christina Olson, the subject of Andrew Wyeth's painting "Christina's World," describing the simple life she led on a remote Maine farm, her complicated relationship with her family, and the illness that incapacitated her.

a novel

A Piece of the world

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "A must-read for anyone who loves history and art.” --Kristin Hannah From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the smash bestseller Orphan Train, a stunning and atmospheric novel of friendship, passion, and art, inspired by Andrew Wyeth’s mysterious and iconic painting Christina’s World. "Later he told me that he’d been afraid to show me the painting. He thought I wouldn’t like the way he portrayed me: dragging myself across the field, fingers clutching dirt, my legs twisted behind. The arid moonscape of wheatgrass and timothy. That dilapidated house in the distance, looming up like a secret that won’t stay hidden." To Christina Olson, the entire world was her family’s remote farm in the small coastal town of Cushing, Maine. Born in the home her family had lived in for generations, and increasingly incapacitated by illness, Christina seemed destined for a small life. Instead, for more than twenty years, she was host and inspiration for the artist Andrew Wyeth, and became the subject of one of the best known American paintings of the twentieth century. As she did in her beloved smash bestseller Orphan Train, Christina Baker Kline interweaves fact and fiction in a powerful novel that illuminates a little-known part of America’s history. Bringing into focus the flesh-and-blood woman behind the portrait, she vividly imagines the life of a woman with a complicated relationship to her family and her past, and a special bond with one of our greatest modern artists. Told in evocative and lucid prose, A Piece of the World is a story about the burdens and blessings of family history, and how artist and muse can come together to forge a new and timeless legacy.

A Novel

A Piece of the World

Patricia Nelson

I received this book for free as a member of the Book Club Girl Book Club from Harper Collins, and it was a great read. The writing was wonderful, and the story so complete that I felt like I understood the characters, the time, and the setting. I really enjoyed this read, and it made for great discussion during our book club meeting.

Emma Jacqueline

A quiet but beautiful novel. At times, I wish it had a little more plot driving it, but it was a great portrait of a time and place and kind of people you don't often see in contemporary literature.

Absolutely loved this beautifully written book. The story and writing were addicting.
I cared about the characters and their lives. Also, it made me want to look up the artist and his paintings.
Christina Baker Kline is turning out to be one of my favorite authors.

Only at the end did I get a little confused with the time line.

Otherwise, I was able to follow the story well.

Renee Blankenship

I can't say enough how much I loved this story. I've seen Andrew Wyeth's painting Christina's World in person at the MOMA and was captivated by it then. Having this (albeit fictional) story to add to my own imaginings of Christina's life in and outside of the farmhouse in the painting was truly a gift of magic. 

I'm surprised by some of the reviews I've read, here and on Instagram, about the lack of depth in the story or of Christina's character. I think from the beginning we can tell she is straightforward and hard, made that way by her own character and her physical/emotional struggles. I think there were plenty of moments throughout the book that showed a peek into Christina's heart and soul, despite the loneliness and despair she often felt. Being a part of the everyday hard work that she was committed to from such an early age is something that as a reader I think is hard to relate to, for most. That's certainly not the world most of us live in today and I found it hard to relate to her selflessness in that manner. Such hard work! Such a hard life. 

Thank you Christina Baker Kline for another powerful story. I placed tabs all throughout this one of passages and quotes that struck me as worth rereading. I truly loved this story from beginning to end and I know Christina's character will stay with me for a long time, as all great characters do.

Laura

Living close to New York City, I've been to the Museum of Modern Art more times than I can count, often with my sister. While she's always been more interested in the contemporary exhibits, I prefer the older art on the top floors. And I always make a stop by Christina's World, even though it's admittedly to visit Hopper's House by the Railroad which is right next to it since he's my favorite painter (if you can't tell by my profile pic). Still, Christina's World holds a special place in my heart because there's just something about it I love. The girl in the middle of the field, staring up at the house and barn, that being her whole world, it kind of makes me ache a little. Wyeth's not one of my favorite painters, but I like the bleak New England scenes he paints. They're very American Gothic, which I love.

A Piece of the World attempts to lend a voice to Christina Olsen, the woman in the painting, which admittedly was not something that appealed to me very much. I've never been that in to books that endeavor to "find the woman behind the famous painting"; it's the same reason why I've never read The Girl With the Pearl Earring. I don't really want to read a fictionalized biography about Madame X or Mona Lisa, because I'm content with coming up with my own ideas as to who they were and, if I'm still curious, I'll read an actual factual source. And yet, I picked up A Piece of the World because it seemed interesting and I wanted some historical fiction, dammit. 

No, I have not read The Orphan Train and I probably never will because I'm sick of WWII historical fiction, dammit, and I know that it will be another The Nightingale knockoff and I don't have the energy for that right now. But I tried not to let that stop me form reading this book.

It's definitely a women's lit historical fiction popularized by the likes of Kristin Hannah, who isn't very interesting to me. Still, Kline has real talent, and I liked a lot of her prose, especially the ending and beginning. The book promises so much, intrigue, the ocean, witches, a book so quintessentially New England it practically smells the the seaside. Which I love, because, hey, New Englander here, and proud of it (except in sports, then I'm New York all the way). Does the book deliver?

Continue reading this review on my blog here: https://bookwormbasics.blogspot.com/2...

Saffia

Melissa Railey

Fran Lewis

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "Exquisite. A must-read.” --Kristin Hannah This paperback edition includes a color reproduction of Andrew Wyeth’s painting Christina’s World, along with a Q&A with the author, and a bonus short story, “Stranded in Ice.” From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the smash bestseller Orphan Train, a stunning and atmospheric novel of friendship, passion, and art, inspired by Andrew Wyeth’s mysterious and iconic painting Christina’s World. "Later he told me that he’d been afraid to show me the painting. He thought I wouldn’t like the way he portrayed me: dragging myself across the field, fingers clutching dirt, my legs twisted behind. The arid moonscape of wheatgrass and timothy. That dilapidated house in the distance, looming up like a secret that won’t stay hidden." To Christina Olson, the entire world is her family farm in the small coastal town of Cushing, Maine. The only daughter in a family of sons, Christina is tied to her home by health and circumstance, and seems destined for a small life. Instead, she becomes Andrew Wyeth’s first great inspiration, and the subject of one of the best-known paintings of the twentieth century, Christina’s World. As she did in her beloved bestseller Orphan Train, Christina Baker Kline interweaves fact and fiction to vividly reimagine a real moment in history. A Piece of the World is a powerful story of the flesh-and-blood woman behind the portrait, her complicated relationship to her family and inheritance, and how artist and muse can come together to forge a new and timeless legacy.

A Piece of the world a novel

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