The Night Portrait: A Novel of World War II and da Vinci’s Italy by Laura Morelli

Art has never really been something that I’ve been super into. I mean I like to look at it, especially street art, but majority of the time I have no idea what I am even looking at or could tell you anything about the piece. In art class growing up I was definitely there just for the participation effort. You will not be seeing my art in any museum or even on the main floor of my house that is for sure. I do make a pretty good 5 petal flower but do not ask me to add more petals as I can’t do that. It wasn’t until I started learning about the history of certain pieces that it actually kind of peaked my interest. When I had to pick the book for one of my book clubs I am in, I decided to try out The Night Portrait and see what I could learn about the connection between WWII and da Vinci’s Lady with an Ermine.

A historical fiction novel that starts with the creation of one of Leonardo Da Vinci’s most famous paintings, Lady with an Ermine, and a woman in Munich, Germany who did all she could to keep the portrait from being bought by a high ranking Nazi and destroyed. Not only are you getting the perspective of the two women but you also get Leonardo himself along with an American soldier who would later be apart of an organization known as the Monument Men.Separated by 500 years, this dual timeline story shows how two women are connected by a painting and their journeys to find their own destiny.

Learning never exhausts the mind.

Leonardo da Vinci

There was so much history to learn and absorb from this book. For someone who does not know much about art, I spent a good hour or so just researching all I could about da Vinci and this particular piece. Like did you know that there are only 4 surviving portraits of women by da Vinci’s in the world, including Lady with an Ermine and Mona Lisa. Or that Leonardo’s actual name is Leonardo di ser Piero. Da Vinci translates to “of Vinci” in Italian which was the region he was from in Italy. This book definitely had me wanting to read more about the impact WWII had on art and the Monument Men. There is still so much to learn about this topic and this book was just the door that opened it for me.

Until Next Time, The Library Abroad