The Lady and the Unicorn

The Lady and the Unicorn 

  - Tracy Chevalier

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I liked ‘Girl with the Pearl Earring’ quite well, and was interested in reading more books on a similar theme, since I have an interest in different forms of arts, and always love to know more. When I saw that the subject of this one was a set of medieval tapestries, I read up about these tapestries, and was intrigued – they are exquisite in detail, were neglected for quite a number of years (possibly centuries), and then found and restored. I’m sorry that it is only now that I learnt that these currently hang in Cluny Museum in Paris; I would have loved to see them in person when I spent a few weeks in Paris last year.

The book provides a wonderful glimpse into the process of creation of these fascinating works of art, the working conditions of the craftsmen, and the life in this part of Europe during these times. The labor and effort that goes into making of a single tapestry is quite an eye-opener, and it is heartbreaking to see the poverty of artisans despite their skill and hard work. It is painful that the work that can take the artist or the craftsman months to make, and fill them with such joy despite their hardship, can be casually ignored by the rich patron who commissioned them. The class divide, that was accepted as a matter of fact in that era, appears so unfair today. This was the part of the book I liked, where the author recreates the environment in detail.

The story is told from multiple perspectives, that of the several important individuals in the book. This does not work well – it does not allow for the space to go into depth of the character of any of them, and worse, they all sound the same. In contrast, ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ was told in the first person voice of Griet, who was the model for the painting, and it worked well in its favor. I feel that for this book, with the same content, third person narrative may have been better, because it seemed as if different chapters were written about different individuals, and then simply changed to first person narrative of the respective character.

I also found the obscenity in the book unnecessary, and repugnant, particularly the explicit and crude way it was expressed (no spoilers here – it is revealed in the first few pages). I don’t understand why the author felt it necessary to embed it with bawdiness throughout, unless the authors in general have come to think that it is absolutely required to engage adult readers?

* SPOILERS ahead *

With the exception of the lady Genevieve, I couldn’t sympathize with any of the characters – I either hated them, or just didn’t care. Jean Le Viste, the rich patron, is a stereotyped caricature of a pompous and callous man, who bought his way into nobility. I could sympathize with his wife, the lady Genevieve, for her misery and helplessness, and a struggle to keep a balanced appearance. The artist, Nicolas, is a despicable man, an unprincipled womanizer lusting after any woman he sees, including maids, noble ladies and young girls. He is arrogant and insensitive, and believes that the world owes him. I had hoped that being involved in the arduous task of weaving a tapestry would bring out some redeemable qualities in him, but it didn’t. Claude, the young daughter of Le Viste, is a spoilt, selfish girl, lusting after an untrustworthy man (at the young age of 14 too!), and a complete idiot – even with the evidence of his erratic ways right in front of her, she roots for him rather than her maid who had been shabbily treated by him. I fail to see how the mutual feelings of these two extremely self-centered people can be the true, undying love, that the author has portrayed it to be. The blind girl, Alienor, acted quite foolishly, but at least in her case, I can understand the desperation. I also didn’t get why the maid, Beatrice, who was quite sane in the rest of the book, would want to marry Nicolas, knowing all that she did. And most of all, I could not fathom why the fable Nicolas concocted about the unicorn, would entice all the maidens he told it to.

* SPOILERS end *

I wouldn’t recommend this book, unless you can take some cringe-worthy explicit language and scenes in your stride, or you are so extremely interested in medieval arts that you can overlook it.