The Matisse Stories

Description

Three delightful stories inspired by a painting of Henri Matisse—from the Booker Prize-winning author of Possession and “a writer of dazzling inventiveness” (Time).

“[An] exquisite triptych…. Richly drawn and touches upon things that matter to people.” —People

These stories celebrate the eye even as they reveal its unexpected proximity to the heart. For if each of A.S. Byatt’s narratives is in some way inspired by a painting of Henri Matisse, each is also about the intimate connection between seeing and feeling—about the ways in which a glance we meant to be casual may suddenly call forth the deepest reserves of our being. Beautifully written, intensely observed, The Matisse Stories is fiction of spellbinding authority.

“Full of delight and humor…. The Matisse Stories is studded with brilliantly apt images and a fine sense for subtleties of conversation and emotion.” —San Francisco Chronicle“An elegant collection [filled with] richly resonant prose, which evokes the look and feel of bodies and paintings…. Luminous.” —The New York Times Book Review

“A. S. Byatt’s three-tale sequence hits the imagination’s retina with all the vibrant splatter of an exploding paintbox…. Everywhere, scenes sizzle with chromatic intensity.” —Sunday Times

“Full of delight and humor … The Matisse Stories is studded with brilliantly apt images and a fine sense for subtleties of conversation and emotion.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“A writer of dazzling inventiveness.” —Time

“Brilliant… Byatt’s fiction, like Matisse’s art, pays close attention to colours and contours of surfaces, then probes beneath them to reveal further suprises.” —Newsday

“Exquisite triptych… The Matisse Stories is richly drawn and touches upon things that matter to people.” —PeopleA. S. Byatt was the author of numerous novels, including The Children’s Book, The Biographer’s Tale, and Possession, which was awarded the Booker Prize. She also wrote two novellas, published together as Angels & Insects, five collections of short stories, and several works of nonfiction. A distinguished critic and author, and the recipient of the 2016 Erasmus Prize for her “inspiring contribution to ‘life writing,’” she died in 2023.US

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