Da Vinci's Tiger

Starred review from August 24, 2015
“I beg your pardon, I am a mountain tiger.” This is the only surviving sentence from the poetry of Ginevra de’ Benci, who posed for a portrait by Leonardo da Vinci in the late 1470s. The creation of this portrait is the subject of Elliott’s (Flying South) delicately beautiful novel. Ginevra, a well-educated and intelligent young woman, seeks intellectual and romantic fulfillment in the aristocratic circles of Florence. Her arranged marriage, while friendly, is dull, and the ambassador from Venice, Bernardo Bembo, wants her to be his Platonic muse—a Renaissance form of romance in which a man idealizes a woman, declaring that he will meditate on her beauty, grace, and virtue to guide his soul to God. Bembo’s love can give Ginevra access to the sparkling life of the court, but she finds the painter he hires for her portrait very distracting indeed. Elliott’s novel is thoroughly researched, portraying three-dimensional characters in a lively atmosphere of love and art. Renaissance Florence breathes through this book, bringing readers to a fuller understanding of the portrait, the era, and an indomitable young woman. Ages 13–up.

September 1, 2015
In politically turbulent Renaissance Florence, the admirer of a beautiful, married noblewoman changes her life when he commissions a young Leonardo da Vinci to paint her portrait. Ginevra de' Benci, 17, spends her dull marriage to an older wool merchant reading, writing poetry, and socializing. She benefits from her family's long-standing ties to the Medicis, especially Lorenzo, who introduces her to Bernardo Bembo, the handsome ambassador from Venice. Smitten, he commissions her portrait from rising artist Leonardo. Vows of platonic love notwithstanding, Ginevra finds Bernardo's lusty pursuit anything but abstract. It's Leonardo, who engages her as an equal, who attracts her, however. Readers will learn much about 15th-century Florence, but meticulous research does not make a novel. For that, characters are needed whose desires, fears, gifts, and foibles drive the story, whom readers can believe in and care about. In the confusing prologue, Ginevra addresses modern readers, explaining her portrait's significance in an art-historical precis. Thereafter, brief spurts of dialogue are separated by long paragraphs of unleavened exposition as Ginevra steps out of character to offer historical analyses and tangential facts, such as how left-handedness has been treated over centuries. The book's second half may well engage readers willing to hang on that long. Not credible as fiction, but the bonanza of fascinating details about life in Renaissance Italy has appeal. (Historical fiction. 13-18)

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October 1, 2015

Gr 8 Up-Set during the Renaissance, when Florence celebrated art, philosophy, and poetry with fervor, this historical fiction title is about Ginevra de' Benci, a 17-year-old married woman who is stifled by societal norms. Then she meets Bernardo Bembo, the ambassador from Venice, who is so taken by Ginevra's intellect and poetic talent that he asks her to be his Platonic Love. In an era where marriages were business arrangements, it wasn't uncommon for wealthy men to bestow admiration upon married women through a chaste romance. To proclaim his platonic love for Ginevra, Bembo commissions her portrait by the up-and-coming artist Leonardo da Vinci. As Ginevra and Leonardo form a profound friendship, Ginevra comes of age in a city full of art, beauty, and violent family feuds. This is an intriguing, albeit leisurely paced, story about a real historical figure, the subject of Leonardo da Vinci's early portrait of a Florentine socialite. As is evident from the book's afterword, Elliott meticulously researched the 15th century to bring alive the affluence, art, and clothing Florence was known for-fully immersing readers in the time period. In many ways, this novel is a feminist piece. Ginevra lives during a time in which the only way for women to study philosophy and art was in a convent, and once married, women had little to no formal education, as they became the property of their husbands. Breaking this mold, Ginevra learns that her empowerment comes from within, despite the limitations put on her sex. VERDICT Add this gem to round out collections skewed toward 20th-century history.-Kimberly Garnick Giarratano, Rockaway Township Public Library, NJ

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2015
Grades 9-12 The Italian Renaissance is at its peak, and Florence flourishes under the leadership of the Medici family. Lovely, educated, poetic Ginevra de' Benci longs to take part in this artistic revolution, but as a woman of status, the only avenue she's allowed is an arranged marriage with a distant husband. But when the charming Bernardo Bembo comes to Florence and names Ginevra his Platonic Muse, she finds herself sitting for a portrait with a young painter named Leonardo da Vinci. Through their sessions, Ginevra finds in Leonardo a kindred spirit, expressing her thoughts and passions for perhaps the first time. But elsewhere in the city, the Pazzi family seethes under Medici rule, and Ginevra must walk a thin line of political intrigue while maintaining her reputation in the eyes of her society. This is history-heavy and meticulously researched, though the details of fifteenth-century Florence often overshadow the plot. Still, the independent female narrator and the richly drawn portrait of Italian culture will attract history buffs and artists alike to this story behind da Vinci's first-known painting.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)