An Education: The Screenplay

• ISBN13: 9781594484537
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

When jenny a bright young school girl who longs for adulthood meets david a dashing older man he introduces her to his world of glamorous friends chic jazz clubs and her own sexual awakening. Will she let this affair ruin her dreams of attending oxford as her headmistress fears? Studio: Sony Pictures Home Ent Release Date: 03/30/2010 Starring: Carey Mulligan Alfred Molina Run time: 100 minutes Rating: Pg13 Director: Lone ScherfigEDUCATION - Blu-Ray MovieA young girl seduced by an older man may be a common story, but An Education is no common movie. As Jenny, a precocious middle-class British schoolgirl charmed by a small-time criminal, newcomer Carey Mulligan is luminous; her face can be p! lain and beautiful at the same time, her eyes expressing a restless intelligence and a hungry soul. As David, the seducer, Peter Sarsgaard (Year of the Dog, Garden State) gives yet another rich, thoughtful performance. The script, adapted by Nick Hornby (whose novels High Fidelity and About a Boy have been made into movies), is full of unexpected details that bring every moment to life. Director Lone Scherfig (Italian for Beginners) has made sure that every character is vivid and real; even seemingly minor moments have texture and vitality. The supporting cast--including Alfred Molina, Emma Thompson, Cara Seymour (Adaptation), Dominic Cooper (The History Boys), and Olivia Williams (Rushmore)--is simply impeccable. In a small but memorable part, Rosamund Pike (Die Another Day) shows an unexpected (and marvelous) comic side. In short, An Education is a funny, smart, and compassionate movie that will launch ! a great career for Mulligan and be a jewel on the filmographie! s of eve ryone involved. See this movie. --Bret Fetzer


Stills from An Education (Click for larger image)

The inspiration for the award-winning motion picture: "Candid, unsentimental and extremely funny. I read it in one glorious go, laughing and crying throughout."â€"Zoë Heller

When Lynn Barber was sixteen, a stranger in a maroon sports car pulled up beside her as she was on her way home from scho! ol and offered her a ride. It was the beginning of a long jour! ney from innocence to precocious experienceâ€"an affair with an older man that would change her life. Barber’s seducer left her with a taste for luxury hotels and posh restaurants and trips abroad, expensive habits that she managed to support in later life as a successful London journalist whose barbed interviews at once terrorized and fascinated her smart-set subjects.

A poignant, shockingly candid account of the stages in a literary lifeâ€"from promiscuity at Oxford to a stint at Penthouse to a complex marriage that enduredâ€"An Education is a classic of English memoir.SINGLE MAN - DVD MovieColin Firth gives the performance of a lifetime in A Single Man, a drama directed and adapted for the screen by fashion designer Tom Ford, who clearly has a deft vision and ability in the world of film as well. A Single Man is based on a novel by Christopher Isherwood, and Ford's--and Firth's--gift is bringing the inner-turmoil world of the! novel to believable, and devastating, life on the screen. Firth may be best known as a dashing romantic-comedy hero (Pride and Prejudice, the Bridget Jones films), but in A Single Man he demonstrates nuance and depth that will stay with the viewer long after the film is over. Firth plays George, a gay British professor, living a life of true, if closeted, bliss with his partner, Jim (Matthew Goode), in the straitlaced early '60s. When Jim dies suddenly at the beginning of the film, George wrestles with how to go on without his true love--and with never being able ever to express his grief openly. The film flashes back to scenes of George and Jim and their dogs, scenes awash in warm tones, and then forward to the present, shot in subtle sepia tones that show joy has disappeared from George's life. Yet there are flashes of hope and feeling: one brief scene--showing George's seeing a dog similar to one the couple had owned, and drawing his face clos! e to the dog's for a familiar and comforting scent--lasts but ! a moment yet resonates that grief and loss are felt the same by everyone, no matter what they have lost. A Single Man's cast also includes Julianne Moore, playing a complex role as George's best friend and long-ago lover--one of the only people on the planet who can know all that George is going through, yet with vast vulnerabilities of her own. Nicholas Hoult plays a student who reaches out to George, saying, "I guess I just thought you looked like you could use a friend." But it's Firth who triumphs in the film, and who drives the complex emotions--all true, all rewarding--that hold A Single Man aloft and give it its impact. A Single Man can hold its own against Brokeback Mountain as a story of love and loss that transcends any single genre. --A.T. Hurley


Stills from A Single Man (Click for larger image)

Academy Award® Nominees Carey Mulligan and Keira Knightley, co-star with talented newcomer Andrew Garfield (The Social Network) in this poignant and powerful film. Kathy (Mulligan), Ruth (Knightley) and Tommy (Garfield) are best friends who grow up together at an English boarding school with a chilling secret. When they learn the shocking truth--that they are genetically engineered clones raised to be organ donors--they embrace their fleeting chance to live and love. Based on the acclaimed novel by Kazuo Ishiguro (The Remains of the Day), Never Let Me Go is an intriguing exploration of hope and humanity. In adapting Kazuo Ishiguro's celebrated novel, director Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo) and screenwriter Alex Garland (Sunshine) transform dystopian fiction into period drama by presenting an alternate past in which people routinely live beyond 100--at a cost to those who make it possible. In the 1970s, Kathy (Isobel Meikle-Small) and Ruth (Ella Purnell) attend Hailsham, a British boarding school where Miss Emily (Charlotte Rampling) holds sway--and no one ever mentions their parents. When new teacher Miss Lucy (Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky) arrives, she reaches out to the awkward Tommy (Charlie Rowe), with whom Kathy becomes close--until jealous Ruth steals him away. Then Lucy reveals what will happen when they leave. By the 1980s, Kathy (a poignant Carey Mulligan), Ruth (Keira Knightley), and Tommy (Andrew Garfield) live in the country until they're ready to fulfill their pu! rpose. With Ruth and Tommy an item, Kathy becomes a carer, a s! ort of s ocial worker. Over the years, the three go their separate ways until the 1990s, by which point their time will run out unless they can arrange for a deferral. Throughout, Romanek never presents alternate points of view; the audience experiences this brave new world only through the eyes of its sheltered protagonists. If the story raises issues that recall Orwell, the unhurried pace echoes The Remains of the Day, Merchant Ivory's Ishiguro adaptation. Similarly, Never Let Me Go is a work of great skill and compassion, but make no mistake: it's also very, very depressing. --Kathleen C. FennessyEDUCATION OF SONNY CARSON - DVD MovieFrom the New York Times bestselling author-the shooting script to his award-winning film, with an original Introduction and vivid stills from the movie.

Jenny is a 16-year-old girl stifled by the tedium of adolescence; she can't wait for her sophisticated adult life to begin. One rainy day her suburban exis! tence is upended by the arrival of David, a much older suitor who introduces her to a glittering new world of concerts, art, smoky bars, urban nightlife, and his glamorous friends, replacing her traditional education with his own version. It could be her awakening-or her undoing. This edition of Hornby's adapted screenplay, which includes stills from the film, is a perfect accompaniment to the highly anticipated movie, which stars Carey Mulligan as Jenny, Peter Sarsgaard, Emma Thompson, Dominic Cooper, and Alfred Molina. It is a must-have for fans of Hornby's novels, featuring his signature pitch-perfect dialogue, mordant wit, and the resonant humanity of his writing

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Darshan: The Embrace Poster Movie 11x17

• Approx. Size: 11 x 17 Inches - 28cm x 44cm
• Size is provided by the manufacturer and may not be exact
• The Amazon image in this listing is a digital scan of the poster that you will receive
• Darshan: The Embrace 11 x 17 Inches Style A Mini Poster
• Packaged with care and shipped in sturdy reinforced packing material

Throughout its history India has kept a profound sense of the sacred. As a travel diary deep inside the heart of India and Hinduism Darshan focuses on one of the most important Mahatmas still alive -- Amma the "hugging saint". This woman has won an important place in the Indian community today and for the very first time Amma agreed to open the doors of her own world. Director Jan Kounen had the opportunity to accompany her across India from Jaipur to Calcutta via Benares allowing the audience to discover and better understand what makes Indian spiritual! ity so unique. (English French and Malayalam with English subtitles)System Requirements:Run Time: 106 minsFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. Rating: NR UPC: 796019797184 Manufacturer No: 79718Darshan: The Embrace reproduction Approx. Size: 11 x 17 Inches - 28cm x 44cm Style A mini poster print

Pop Culture Graphics, Inc is Amazon's largest source for movie and TV show memorabilia, posters and more: Offering tens of thousands of items to choose from. We also offer a full selection of framed posters..

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Farce of the Penguins : Widescreen Edition

• Widescreen

It's mating season...

Meet Carl (Bob Saget) and Jimmy (Lewis Black), two cold penguins on a desperate mission to get themselves some hot booty. After years of empty one-night stands, Carl wants more than a piece of penguin tail. He wants the love of the beautiful Melissa (Christina Applegate). Now it's up to Jimmy to help his neurotic friend win her heart and find his dream girl. The only thing that stands in their way is...a seventy-mile trek across Antarctica. It's a road trip like no other, as these two best bros make their way to a penguin island paradise. From director and comedian Bob Saget, comes a raunchy, yet heart-warming comedy like no other.

Get ready for a stiff and dirty ride! May the FARCE be with you...Between Snakes On A Plane and Farce of the Penguins, one really wonders what Samuel Jackson has been smoking. This Jackson-narrated m! ockmentary of March of the Penguins, written and directed by Bob Saget (America's Funniest Home Videos), highlights the penguins' lascivious side, as the male's march inland to find mating partners. Overdubbed with human voices, Farce stars three penguins, Carl (Bob Saget), a neurotic, insecure bird whose search for true love has so far been in vain, Jimmy (Lewis Black), a mobster-like father figure who encourages Carl to keep up hope, and Marcus (Tracy Morgan), a smooth, African American penguin with a self-professed huge penis. Miles away, as the men journey inward, fighting off seals and engaging in therapy sessions with snowy owls along the way, Vicky (Mo'nique) tells Melissa (Christina Applegate) that someday her Prince Charming will come, which, predictably, he does. Watching penguins discussing the meaning of life, questioning their annual masochistic hike through tundra, or wondering if they have eating disorders is funny for about ten minutes. ! Samuel Jackson, the ultimate omniscient narrator, furthering t! he story between scenes is also odd and laughable. But Farce of The Penguins relies on its lewd humor for laughs, and though it is disarming to see waddling birds cuss, Farce's one-liner gets old. Yes, penguins have sex. Farce of the Penguins is a fun idea perhaps taken too far. Nonetheless, there is always something pleasing about anthropomorphizing animals, especially for lovers of crude sex jokes. --Trinie DaltonStudio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 02/05/2008 Run time: 80 minutes Rating: Rdvd

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Supereyes A005+ 500X USB Digital 5.0 MP Portable Pen Mini HD Auto Focus Microscope Endoscope Magnifer Camera Loupe Otoscope w/LED and Stand

• 5.0 Megapixel, Auto focus, Ø17 mm
• Magnification:10 ~ 500 times continuously adjustable
• Windows 7/Vista/XP/2000, Mac OS × 10.5 or above, Linux
• Video:High compression, 11 hours long
• Environmental Friendly Material

Dramatization of the turbulent life of Bob Crane, popular for his role in the television program Hogan's heroes.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: R
Release Date: 3-JUL-2007
Media Type: DVDAuto Focus captures the scandalous private life of Bob Crane, star of the German P.O.W. camp sitcom Hogan's Heroes. Greg Kinnear plays the affable comic actor, who nursed an obsession with sex--pornography, strippers, swinging, domination, and especially the videotaping of his own sexual exploits. His behavior led to the downfall of two marriages and enmeshed Crane in a strangely symbiotic relationship with ! a video equipment salesman named John Carpenter (Willem Dafoe); Carpenter provided the technology, and Crane (through the power of his fame) provided the girls. Their friendship ultimately wore thin and may have led to Crane's gruesome death. Auto Focus is a lot like an episode of Behind the Music, but with sex in the place of the usual downfall-causing drugs; though elegantly filmed, it doesn't delve too deeply into Crane's joy, and so never gets a genuine feel for his pain either. --Bret FetzerAuto Focus captures the scandalous private life of Bob Crane, star of the German P.O.W. camp sitcom Hogan's Heroes. Greg Kinnear plays the affable comic actor, who nursed an obsession with sex--pornography, strippers, swinging, domination, and especially the videotaping of his own sexual exploits. His behavior led to the downfall of two marriages and enmeshed Crane in a strangely symbiotic relationship with a video equipment salesman ! named John Carpenter (Willem Dafoe); Carpenter provided the t! echnolog y, and Crane (through the power of his fame) provided the girls. Their friendship ultimately wore thin and may have led to Crane's gruesome death. Auto Focus is a lot like an episode of Behind the Music, but with sex in the place of the usual downfall-causing drugs; though elegantly filmed, it doesn't delve too deeply into Crane's joy, and so never gets a genuine feel for his pain either. --Bret FetzerAuto Focus captures the scandalous private life of Bob Crane, star of the German P.O.W. camp sitcom Hogan's Heroes. Greg Kinnear plays the affable comic actor, who nursed an obsession with sex--pornography, strippers, swinging, domination, and especially the videotaping of his own sexual exploits. His behavior led to the downfall of two marriages and enmeshed Crane in a strangely symbiotic relationship with a video equipment salesman named John Carpenter (Willem Dafoe); Carpenter provided the technology, and Crane (through the pow! er of his fame) provided the girls. Their friendship ultimately wore thin and may have led to Crane's gruesome death. Auto Focus is a lot like an episode of Behind the Music, but with sex in the place of the usual downfall-causing drugs; though elegantly filmed, it doesn't delve too deeply into Crane's joy, and so never gets a genuine feel for his pain either. --Bret FetzerAuto Focus features a dazzling array of self-portraits by seventy-five of the world’s foremost contemporary photographers. Photography writer and curator Susan Bright provides a clear guide through this significant and dynamic genre, showing how issues of identityâ€"whether national, sexual, racial, personal, or artisticâ€"are key to understanding the work of many of today’s leading photographers.

This lavishly illustrated, accessible survey is organized into five thematic chapters: diaristic and autobiographical images; pictures of the body; the use of masks ! and masquerade; the return to studio portraiture and the photo! graphic album; and performance, both public and private. An informative illustrated introduction explains the history of the photographic self-portrait from the 1840s to the late twentieth century, providing an invaluable context for the recent surge in artists’ images of themselves.

From intimate images of introspection and those that consciously challenge notions of ethnicity and sexuality to dramatic, stylized photographs of dreamlike scenarios, Auto Focus shows how one of the longest-established artistic genres continues to fascinate artists today.Auto Focus captures the scandalous private life of Bob Crane, star of the German P.O.W. camp sitcom Hogan's Heroes. Greg Kinnear plays the affable comic actor, who nursed an obsession with sex--pornography, strippers, swinging, domination, and especially the videotaping of his own sexual exploits. His behavior led to the downfall of two marriages and enmeshed Crane in a strangely symbiotic relationship with ! a video equipment salesman named John Carpenter (Willem Dafoe); Carpenter provided the technology, and Crane (through the power of his fame) provided the girls. Their friendship ultimately wore thin and may have led to Crane's gruesome death. Auto Focus is a lot like an episode of Behind the Music, but with sex in the place of the usual downfall-causing drugs; though elegantly filmed, it doesn't delve too deeply into Crane's joy, and so never gets a genuine feel for his pain either. --Bret Fetzer* Interface USB 2.0
* Max Size: Ø17 mm × 126 mm
* Light Sources: LED illumination (adjustable by control wheel)
* OSD language: English, Chinese, German, Japanese
* Softeware Bundle:MicroCapture with measurement and calibration function
* For Mac, please use Photo Booth or Facetime to open it. No software for Mac at this time
* Photo Taken by the software and hardware
* Photo Capture Resolution: 2592 × 1944 1280 × 960, 960 × 720, 640 × 480, 320 × 240
* Photo Format:JPGE
* Video:High compression, 11 hours long
* Video Capture Resolution:320 × 240
* Video Format:WMV
* Display Speed:Maximum 30 f/s

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CardScan Personal v8 Card Scanner

• Use drag-and-drop feature to consolidate important business info from email, web sites, and other electronic media
• Creates digital address book from scanned business cards
• Categorize contacts, search, sort, print labels, map addresses
• Synchronizes with most business software including Outlook, Palm, Windows Mobile, iPods, and many smartphones
• Dimensions 7.1 x 7.4 x 2.5 inches; weight 1.3 pounds

What was she doing here? Hyattown had changed very little in the years Vanessa Sexton had been away. In some ways her high school sweetheart, Brady Tucker, hadn't changed much eitherâ€"he was still lean, athletic, rugged…But the once reckless boy had become a solid, dependable man. He'd stood her up on the most important night of her life; could she ever trust him again?

So Vanessa had finally come home, Brady thought. She could still turn him inside out with! one of her sultry looks. He couldn't believe she hadn't forgiven him for that night twelve years agoâ€"but he'd had his reasons for not showing up. He'd let her leave town thenâ€"but he wasn't going to let her get away this time…

What was she doing here? Hyattown had changed very little in the years Vanessa Sexton had been away. In some ways her high school sweetheart, Brady Tucker, hadn't changed much eitherâ€"he was still lean, athletic, rugged…But the once reckless boy had become a solid, dependable man. He'd stood her up on the most important night of her life; could she ever trust him again?

So Vanessa had finally come home, Brady thought. She could still turn him inside out with one of her sultry looks. He couldn't believe she hadn't forgiven him for that night twelve years agoâ€"but he'd had his reasons for not showing up. He'd let her leave town thenâ€"but he wasn't going to let her get away this time…

Mark Cuban shares his wealth of experienc! e and business savvy in his first published book, How to Win a! t the Sp ort of Business, available now only as an e-book. Using the greatest material from his popular Blog Maverick, he has collected and updated his postings on business and life to provide a catalog of insider knowledge on what it takes to become a thriving entrepreneur. Cuban tells his own rags-to-riches story of how he went from selling powdered milk and sleeping on friends' couches to owning his own company and becoming a multi-billion dollar success story. His unconventional yet highly effective ideas on how to build a successful business offer entrepreneurs at any stage of their careers a huge edge over their competitors.Mark Cuban shares his wealth of experience and business savvy in his first published book, How to Win at the Sport of Business, available now only as an e-book. Using the greatest material from his popular Blog Maverick, he has collected and updated his postings on business and life to provide a catalog of insider knowledge on what it takes to become a thriv! ing entrepreneur. Cuban tells his own rags-to-riches story of how he went from selling powdered milk and sleeping on friends' couches to owning his own company and becoming a multi-billion dollar success story. His unconventional yet highly effective ideas on how to build a successful business offer entrepreneurs at any stage of their careers a huge edge over their competitors.CardScan Personal is the smallest most affordable system from CardScan -- ideal for the user on the go. Synchronizes easily with Outlook, PDAs and smart phones. Monochrome scanning in about 5 seconds per card.
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Here on Earth: A Natural History of the Planet

• ISBN13: 9780802119766
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

Chris Klein ("American Pie") and Leelee Sobieski ("Never Been Kissed") star in a "heartfelt story of romance, friendship and true love." (JUMP Magazine). Rich kid Kelley Morse (Klein) thought he had it all - money, good looks and a new Mercedes. But after a reckless car race destroys a roadside diner, Kelley finds himself sentenced to a summer of manual labor in a small town. That's where he meets and falls in love with Samantha, a girl from the other side of the tracks. But everything changes when Samantha's long-time boyfriend Jasper (Josh Hartnett, "The Faculty") uncovers their secret romance. This "sweet and romantic" (YM Magazine) tale of first love will capture your heart.Slumming among the loca! ls of a small New York town, Kelley Morse (Chris Klein), graduating senior at a posh prep school and all-around insufferable rich kid, engages the testosterone of one of the hicks (Josh Hartnett) when he flirts with the guy's girlfriend, Samantha (LeeLee Sobieski). A car chase ensues, resulting in Samantha's family's diner getting blown up, which in turn lands the boys in hot water with the law. The upshot is the snotty rich kid is sentenced to help the locals rebuild the diner. A romance develops between Kelley and Samantha, apparently because they like a particular Robert Frost poem. So now they're deep, see. But then their love is tested when Samantha contracts Ali MacGraw disease. You know, that's the sudden disease Ali McGraw gets in Love Story--really an excuse to emphasize the strength of the characters' love. You don't know what you got till it's gone, right? This film would be pretty bad if the performances weren't so engaging, especially LeeLee Sobieski's, ! who seems to be channeling Helen Hunt in this movie. Though Ch! ris Klei n never makes us believe for an instant that his arrogant character could make the changes he does, or that his and Sobieski's characters could ever really get together. The script is too thin to support any motivations, and the film falls into formula weepy territory to appeal to teen tear ducts. Lovers of weepies might overlook the film's plot weaknesses in favor of the strong performances and the prospect of a good cry. --Jim Gay

Beginning at the moment of creation with the Big Bang, Here on Earth explores the evolution of Earth from a galactic cloud of dust and gas to a planet with a metallic core and early signs of life within a billion years of being created. In a compelling narrative, Flannery describes the formation of the Earth’s crust and atmosphere, as well as the transformation of the planet’s oceans from toxic brews of metals (such as iron, copper, and lead) to life-sustaining bodies covering 70 percent of the planet’s surface. Life, Flan! nery shows, first appeared in these oceans in the form of microscopic plants and bacteria, and these metals served as catalysts for the earliest biological processes known to exist. From this starting point, Flannery tells the fascinating story of the evolution of our own species, exploring several early human species—from the diminutive creatures (the famed hobbits) who lived in Africa around two million years ago to Homo erectus—before turning his attention to Homo sapiens. Drawing on Charles Darwin’s and Alfred Russell Wallace’s theories of evolution and Lovelock’s Gaia hypothesis, Here on Earth is a dazzling account of life on our planet.

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Falcon Down

• ISBN13: 9781585002672
• Condition: Used - Very Good
• Notes: 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

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Girl with a Pearl Earring, Deluxe Edition

• ISBN13: 9780452287020
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

A Deluxe Edition of the National Bestseller with Over 2 Million Copies Sold:
• Eight Pages of Full-Color Plates Include Every Vermeer Painting Discussed in the Book
• French Flaps
• Rough Front
• Larger Trim Size
• Premium Stock
• With a New Foreword

Celebrate Tracy Chevalier’s modern classic Girl With A Pearl Earring, featuring a gorgeous new edition illustrated with eight pages of Vermeer’s masterworks. History and fiction merge seamlessly in this luminous novel about artistic vision and sensual awakening. The story of Griet, whose life is transformed by her brief encounter with a genius as she herself is immortalized in canvas and oil, is new a! gain.With precisely 35 canvases to his credit, the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer represents one of the great enigmas of 17th-century art. The meager facts of his biography have been gleaned from a handful of legal documents. Yet Vermeer's extraordinary paintings of domestic life, with their subtle play of light and texture, have come to define the Dutch golden age. His portrait of the anonymous Girl with a Pearl Earring has exerted a particular fascination for centuries--and it is this magnetic painting that lies at the heart of Tracy Chevalier's second novel of the same title.

Girl with a Pearl Earring centers on Vermeer's prosperous Delft household during the 1660s. When Griet, the novel's quietly perceptive heroine, is hired as a servant, turmoil follows. First, the 16-year-old narrator becomes increasingly intimate with her master. Then Vermeer employs her as his assistant--and ultimately has Griet sit for him as a model. Chevalier vivi! dly evokes the complex domestic tensions of the household, ru! led over by the painter's jealous, eternally pregnant wife and his taciturn mother-in-law. At times the relationship between servant and master seems a little anachronistic. Still, Girl with a Pearl Earring does contain a final delicious twist.

Throughout, Chevalier cultivates a limpid, painstakingly observed style, whose exactitude is an effective homage to the painter himself. Even Griet's most humdrum duties take on a high if unobtrusive gloss:

I came to love grinding the things he brought from the apothecary--bones, white lead, madder, massicot--to see how bright and pure I could get the colors. I learned that the finer the materials were ground, the deeper the color. From rough, dull grains madder became a fine bright red powder and, mixed with linseed oil, a sparkling paint. Making it and the other colors was magical.

In assembling such quotidian particulars, the author acknowledges her debt to Simon Schama's classic study! The Embarrassment of Riches. Her novel also joins a crop of recent, painterly fictions, including Deborah Moggach's Tulip Fever and Susan Vreeland's Girl in Hyacinth Blue. Can novelists extract much more from the Dutch golden age? The question is an open one--but in the meantime, Girl with a Pearl Earring remains a fascinating piece of speculative historical fiction, and an appealingly new take on an old master. --Jerry Brotton

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