The Picture Book - Hardcover

Keating, Susannah

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 068817888X ISBN 13: 9780688178888

Publisher: William Morrow, 2000

Synopsis

The Picture Book is a gracefully written story of a daughter's search for love and identity, and the stubborn nature of forgiveness. In this poignant debut novel, Susannah Keating uncovers a complex web of family secrets to reach the comforting conclusion that mothers, fathers, and daughters are profoundly and permanently connected no matter what befalls them.

Fresh from school, Patrizia Orman, twenty-two, works as a gallery assistant in SoHo and is dreaming of success in the art world, when her mother, Lizzie, is killed in an automobile accident. Patrizia returns home for the funeral and her emotional shock is compounded when her godmother, Sarah, presents her with a cache of letters from her father -- a man she has never known, and of whom her mother has rarely spoken. Her godmother reveals that Masimilliano Caracci had been her mother's great love, a charismatic art dealer she met when she studied in Rome. Sadly, their passionate love affair had disintegrated when Lizzie discovered she was with child, and Masi demanded that she choose between their relationship or the unborn child, whom he vowed to neither acknowledge nor support.

Hurt and confused by the revelations but longing to know the truth, Patrizia travels to Rome to find her father and weaves her way into his life while pretending she is merely Anna, another American art student. In Italy, Patrizia feels revitalized and indulges her artistic passion as well as her deepening interest in a young Italian named Andrea. As she experiences the treasures, tastes, and sounds of the ancient city, she dreams of living there indefinitely -- much like her mother did at the same age. But her unresolved relationship with her father threatens her happiness when Patrizia begins to fear that like her father before him, Andrea might also abandon her.

Tender and heartfelt, Susannah Keating's vivid sensory descriptions and psychological honesty mark her as a touching storyteller and an astute observer of human nature. The Picture Book will have readers carefully examining their own lives and the choices they have made.

About this title

About the Author:

Susannah Keating lives in western Massachusetts with her family.

From Publishers Weekly:

A young woman travels to Rome to meet the father she never knew in this enjoyable if unremarkable romantic drama. When Patrizia Orman, a 22-year-old gallery assistant in New York City's SoHo, receives a bundle of old letters just after her mother's sudden death, her life changes dramatically. It seems that 22 years ago, Patrizia's Italian father, Masimilliano, gave pregnant Lizzie, her American mother, an ultimatum: "I am telling you that if you have this child, I will never see you or the child again." Defiant, Lizzie abandoned Italy and her dreams of becoming an art conservationist, and moved back home to Argyle, Wis., to bring up Patrizia. Masi was seldom mentioned while Patrizia was growing up. His letters reveal, however, that he repented his rash statement, and tried repeatedly to make contact with his daughter over the years, sending numerous checks, none of which Lizzie cashed. Feeling sorrow, confusion and anger, Patrizia travels to Italy and locates her father, now a successful art dealer in Rome. Conflicted about their relationship, Patrizia introduces herself as "Anna," concealing her true identity. Meanwhile, as Patrizia, she falls in love with Andrea, a striking young Italian. Unbelievable coincidences weaken the tale: within days of meeting Masi, Patrizia is living in the artist's studio on Masi's estate and has been commissioned by him to do a painting for an exhibition. Soon the two are chatting like old friends over red wine. Of course, it is only a matter of time before Masi discovers that "Anna" is really his daughter. Though the denouement seems forced, and the plot familiar, Keating's debut incorporates interesting detail about Italy, art conservancy and painting. (Aug.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: William Morrow
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 068817888X
• ISBN 13: 9780688178888
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256