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Title: The Center of the World

Author: Thomas Van Essen

Narrator: Simon Vance, Paul Michael, Cassandra Campbell, Vanessa Benjamin, Gildart Jackson, Various Readers

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-04-13

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 3 votes

Genres: Fiction, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

Alternating between nineteenth-century Europe and present-day New England, this tale follows the great British painter J. M. W. Turner - and his scene of artists, intellectuals, and lovers - and Henry, a middle-aged family man whose otherwise mundane existence is disrupted by the discovery of The Center of the World, Turners controversial painting of Helen of Troy that had been thought lost forever.

This transcendently beautiful painting was so erotic that it was hidden away and supposedly destroyed - until Henry happens to stumble upon it while vacationing at his summer home in the Adirondacks. Now in possession of an object of unimaginable value, Henry finds himself torn between wanting to sell the work and keeping something of beauty in his life. Returning to the nineteenth century, the listener follows the creation of the painting and learns more about Turners beliefs, technique, manner, and indecorous affairs. Filled with beauty and love (of all kinds), this novel explores the ever-evolving role of art in our lives.

Members Reviews:

an entertaining read before your trip to the Tate Britain or Petworth House (Sussex)

Van Essen's book fictionalizes a part of the art history of English's greatest painter, Joseph Mallord William Turner and his benefactor, Lord Egremont. He creates a fictional portrait of Helen of Troy by Turner and uses the painting as the dramatic fulcrum around a quartet of characters at the time the painting is executed in 1830 at Petworth House, Egremont's exquisite mansion (now run by the National Trust). In an entertaining literary chase of "find and recover" the mysterious painting for the benefit of posterity (and possession; "art for art" sake), Van Essen sets the scenes in mid 19th century England, early 20th century and 21st century America. There are few heroes outside of the Petworth four; the author's descriptions of the painting's amorous effects on men and women is overwrought and at times repetitive, the dialogue - even the present day dialogue - can be stilted, but the art history surrounding Turner and Egremont seems credible and well researched.

The book's entertainment value is high and one's visit to the Tate Britain in London for viewing the vast collection of Turners or a visit to Petworth House, to view those Turners too, will always be pleasantly tinged by the memories of this book.

This is an exceptional book! Totally engaging!

This is an exceptional book! Wonderful! Totally engaging!

Tom Van Essen pulls the reader into an emotionally treacherous world of people obsessed with the creation and ownership of a transcendent painting by J. M. W. Turner. Labor and love, obsession and desire, as well as class and envy drive the lives of those who are bound up in the painting's creation and those who, in future times, voraciously crave to possess it at all costs. Multiple storylines, past and present, are seamlessly interwoven. The characters, drawn with vivid detail, moving in contrasting time periods and locations, are all motivated by a work of art that becomes the focus of their desire for passion and truth found in what is beautiful beyond words!.

I didn't want this book to end!

The Power of Art

This book describes the affect that Art can have on the lives of people.