Mornings with Monet

By Barb Rosenstock

Illustrated by Mary GrandPré

New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2021. Picture book biography.

One early morning in the French village of Giverny, the world-famous painter Claude Monet wakes up before the sun to paint. He takes a rowboat out to a flat-bottomed boat in the middle of the river, he unwraps his canvases, prepares his paints, and waits for light. As the sun rises over the river, Monet works quickly to catch the colors of the sky, clouds, river, and air. The light changes and he frantically switches canvases, skillfully capturing the impression of the moment.

Rosenstock and GrandPré are no strangers to art history biographies, having previously tackled Wassily Kandinsky, Vincent Van Gogh, and Marc Chagall, and their latest offering is especially effective. Mary GrandPré's acrylic illustrations are wonderfully evocative, managing to capture the style and feeling of a Monet masterpiece. Rosenstock's text matches the tone of the illustrations with sweeping language and touches of tongue-in-cheek humor. Mornings with Monet is a great introduction to one of art history's greatest masters and a lovely tribute. Monet fans new and old will inhale this book like a breath of fresh air.

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