A WONDERFUL STORY

One wonderful read that is about Christina who lives in Cushing, Maine carries a disease that affects her legs, making walking difficult and stiffens her arms and hands.  It's a story about Christina's life where Andrew Wyeth becomes her friend and asks her to sit for a portrait.  

The author, Christina Baker Kline, interweaves fact and fiction that depicts a real moment in history.   "With beautiful and stunning prose, the novel explores the sensitive and complex bond between artist and muse against the beauty of the rural American landscape." (from the Daily Beast)

The story behind the portrait of Christina that Andrew painted is a very powerful story about "her complicated relationship to her family and inheritance, and how artist and muse come together to forge a new and timeless legacy".

In 1948 Andrew shares his painting - "Christina's World" - in which a young version of this girl is seen from behind, reaching for a farmhouse from a field.   With weak and unreliable legs she is dragging her body on the ground.  

This was a fabulous read and you learn about Andrew Wyeth in his early years as a painter.   I love the parts that are non-fiction and what the dealings he goes through when making a painting.   Plus the fiction part is very good about Christina's life.    I ordered a paperback copy to share with visitors and thank Mark (a high school friend) for introducing me to the story.