Still Life: A GMA Book Club Pick

A Novel

De: Sarah Winman

Narrado por: Sarah Winman

A Good Morning America Book Club Pick

A Veranda Magazine Book Club Pick

A captivating, bighearted, richly tapestried story of people brought together by love, war, art, flood, and the ghost of E. M. Forster, by the celebrated author of Tin Man.

Tuscany, 1944: As Allied troops advance and bombs fall around deserted villages, a young English soldier, Ulysses Temper, finds himself in the wine cellar of a deserted villa. There, he has a chance encounter with Evelyn Skinner, a middle-aged art historian who has come to Italy to salvage paintings from the ruins and recall long-forgotten memories of her own youth. In each other, Ulysses and Evelyn find a kindred spirit amidst the rubble of war-torn Italy, and set off on a course of events that will shape Ulysses's life for the next four decades.

As Ulysses returns home to London, reimmersing himself in his crew at The Stoat and Parot—a motley mix of pub crawlers and eccentrics—he carries his time in Italy with him. And when an unexpected inheritance brings him back to where it all began, Ulysses knows better than to tempt fate, and returns to the Tuscan hills.

With beautiful prose, extraordinary tenderness, and bursts of humor and light, Still Life is a sweeping portrait of unforgettable individuals who come together to make a family, and a deeply drawn celebration of beauty and love in all its forms.

So beautiful I listened twice

It was a slow start and I wasn't sure if I was going to like it but once O saw where it was going and some of the character development happened, I settled in and just enjoyed. Such beautiful writing. It's a true love story - about all the kinds of love - romantic, erotic, fraternal, maternal, paternal, early life, late life, etc. the characters are so lovable. When it was over I didn't want it to end and realized I didn't catch the beginning because it had been so slow so I immediately started it over and enjoyed it even more the second time. I can t believe it was read by the author as the narration was fantastic and diverse, as if by a professional actor. She does both writing and performing very well. Overall, worth the investment to get into it. Ut pays off.

Loving Florence

This book was full of beautiful descriptions of the city I love best .
It had a great story that was very poignant and really interesting. The narration took you back in time to the end of World War 2and gave the reader so many great characters to watch through their lives. We were in Florence this summer(2022) and it was wonderful be there again - everyone had made it through covid and Florence had too
To quote Evelyn” Firenze,Amore Mío”

Magnificent

A beautifully written and performed story about how fulfilling and joyous life can be with the friends you choose to be your family. 10 stars

Beautiful and Charming

I chose this book on a whim and I was not disappointed.

I was absolutely captivated. The writing style, the story, the character development and the setting of scenes were fabulous. So much life is poured in to this story. I found it quite moving.

It made me crave travel, friendship, good conversation and connection.

I will now be looking for more titles by Sarah Winman,

Narration by Sarah Winman was excellent too.

The most flawless and engaging narrator of a brilliantly written book

Sarah Winman has managed to not only write a wonderful book but has the incredible ability to bring it to life in narration. No less than 8 or so characters of various ages and accents and languages. I literally laughed and I cried out loud and loved the entire book. Her prose is lovely and the story was so touching and full

A masterpiece

The narration was exceptional and the writing superb! So few books have an older woman as a protagonist and fewer still have an older lesbian. Brava!

A treat to hear such a good author-narrator - Spoiler Alert

Initially I loved this book. However the promise I sensed in the first third of it was never quite realized. I was sorry to find that Ulysses did not develop as a character and remained rather one-dimensional. Although there was so much potential in the friendship between Ulysses and Evelyn, I don’t think they had a meaningful conversation again after they reconnected after many years. And, although I may be in the minority, I thought the last chapter - really a short story - was unnecessary and dragged out the natural ending.

On the positive side, the book poignantly illustrates the power of family, even when there is no blood relationship between its members, and it is a love song to the city of Florence and its art. For those reasons—and for the superb narration—I am glad I listened to it.

Beautiful, just beautiful

This book is deep and emotional from start to finish. The narration is perfect. You will fall in love with every character in this book. I’m going to read it again and again!!

Fabulous story, brilliantly written, superbly performed

This is one of the best books I’ve read all year! I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys historical fiction, good development of characters and a little whimsy.

wondrous

best book and narration I've heard in a long time. thank you, thank you, thank you!