Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Under the Egg, Laura Marx Fitzgerald. Times are tough for Theodora (Theo) Tenpenny and her mother, more obsessed with solving mathematical theorems, than being a mother. Theo's beloved grandfather, Jack, worked as a security guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and she was a frequent visitor, becoming knowledgeable of famous pieces of art and their artists. Upon Jack's deathbed, he uttered these words to her, "It's under the egg. Look under the egg. There's . . . a letter. And a treasure." These few "misinterpreted" words, along with finding a painting in the house believed to be of significant value, leads Theo and her new friend, Bodhi, a famous, pampered movie star, on a hunt. With help from the local librarians, the Internet and primary resources, they learn that Jack was a POW during WWII and creatively hid a famous, unknown painting by Raphael. This leads to more questions about who her grandfather really was and how he came to have such a painting in his possession.

The author provides some background information on Raphael and his work, along with other famous painters. This is a great story; however, more for your sophisticated readers that are ready for an art history lesson, as well as Nazi Germany and the Monument Men.