LUST FOR LIFE is a fictionalized biography of the Dutch painter, Vincent Van Gogh and is based primarily on Van Gogh's three volumes of letters to ...
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Aug 22, 2007
Tory
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I bought this book because it interested me on two levels. First, and ridiculously foremost, the authors name. Irving. The last name of my beloved John. And secondly, it’s a novel about Van Gogh. Van Gogh is nothing if not interesting.
Yet, I was surprised at just how into this book I was. I loved it. I loved Van Gogh’s story as an artist. I loved all that other artists in the story.
Can you imagine sitting at a cafe in Paris with the likes of Van Gogh, Toulouse- More...
Yet, I was surprised at just how into this book I was. I loved it. I loved Van Gogh’s story as an artist. I loved all that other artists in the story.
Can you imagine sitting at a cafe in Paris with the likes of Van Gogh, Toulouse- More...
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Jan 15, 2012
Venus
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مزرعه ای که گندم را می رویاند،آبی که در نهر می خروشد،شیره انگور،زندگی بشر، همه اینها یک چیز و از همند.در دنیا تنها وحدت وجود دارد.وحدت وزن،وحدتی که همه ما با آهنگ ان رقصانیم:مردم،سیبها،رودخانه،مزارع کشت شده،ارابه های گندم کش،خانه ها،اسبها،خورشید...ماده ای که تو را تشکیل داده،فردا در خوشه انگور راه خواهد یافت،چرا که تو و خوشه انگور از یک جنسید.وقتی من دهقانی را که زمین خود را می کارد،نقاشی میکنم،میخواهم اینطور احساس شود که این دهقان به زمین پیوسته است،مانند خوشه ای که از آن می روید،و آن زمین به د
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Sep 22, 2011
Carol
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Sep 05, 2010
El
rated it:
Kirk Douglas as Vincent van Gogh? Whoda thunk it. It's like choosing Charlton Heston to play Michelangelo. Oh, wait. That was done too.
I didn't expect to like this that much as I went into it. I read The Agony and the Ecstasy: A Biographical Novel of Michelangelo and seem to remember thinking it was pretty okay, though strangely I can't recall where or when I read it. But I have this issue with books like this, historical fiction if you will. It's hard for me to More...
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Jul 08, 2009
Stephen
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After finishing Irving Stone’s “The Agony and the Ecstasy,” I turned to his other historical novel about an artist.
Aptly titled “Lust for Life,” the book covers the short painting career of Dutch post-impressionist Vincent van Gogh, who became an artist after failed stints as a teacher and minister. He was 27-years-old. Stone’s principal references were the hundreds of letters exchanged between Vincent and his chief patron, his brother Theo. Luckily, these correspondences survive.
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Aptly titled “Lust for Life,” the book covers the short painting career of Dutch post-impressionist Vincent van Gogh, who became an artist after failed stints as a teacher and minister. He was 27-years-old. Stone’s principal references were the hundreds of letters exchanged between Vincent and his chief patron, his brother Theo. Luckily, these correspondences survive.
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Aug 24, 2011
John
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This is a 5-star story, but a 4-star book (or maybe 3-and-a-half). Vincent is portrayed as a Christ-like figure in many ways, somebody who stays true to his principles, who does the right thing, somebody almost not of this earth. In fact, he had a lot of trouble living on this earth, as he completely did not fit into the society he was born into. The book by Stone does an admirable job of telling Vincent's story.
But there is something about the book that didn't work for me. The writing More...
But there is something about the book that didn't work for me. The writing More...
Oct 09, 2011
Sli
rated it:
Uh! Kakva knjiga! Još bolje, kakav život!
Uopće se ne kužim u slikarstvo, niti mi se Van Goghove slike sviđaju - ali život koji je taj čovjek vodio je jednostavno nevjerojatan! Preporučam svakome željnome životne strasti!
Za života neprihvaćen, a nakon smrti definitivna povijesna i neosporna umjetnička ličnost!
Na koricama knjige nalazio se podatak da je za života Van Gogh uspio prodati samo jednu sliku. Nakon 100 godina, više njegovih djela nalazi se među najskupljim platnima na More...
Uopće se ne kužim u slikarstvo, niti mi se Van Goghove slike sviđaju - ali život koji je taj čovjek vodio je jednostavno nevjerojatan! Preporučam svakome željnome životne strasti!
Za života neprihvaćen, a nakon smrti definitivna povijesna i neosporna umjetnička ličnost!
Na koricama knjige nalazio se podatak da je za života Van Gogh uspio prodati samo jednu sliku. Nakon 100 godina, više njegovih djela nalazi se među najskupljim platnima na More...
Jan 09, 2010
Nancy
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Stone's genius for biographical novels was aided in this passionate and violent tale of Vincent Van Gogh by the three volumes of letters the artist wrote to his brother and mentor, Theo, without whom the world would never have had the magnificent paintings of his powerful last years as an artist.
I especially appreciated the observations by the doctors who tried to help the artist as his brain slid into insanity, burned out by years of passionate focus on his art to the neglect of his p More...
I especially appreciated the observations by the doctors who tried to help the artist as his brain slid into insanity, burned out by years of passionate focus on his art to the neglect of his p More...
Oct 15, 2010
Sharon
rated it:
Written with a passion reminiscent of Vincent Van Gogh's paintings, Irving Stone's "Lust for Life" is a fictionalized biography of the famed post-Impressionist painter.
Stone starts his story during Van Gogh's teenaged years, living with his strict Calvinist parents (his father was a predikant, a Dutch Calvinist minister), somewhat struggling against the strictures of his life. He himself becomes a Calvinist evangelist and receives a less-than-desirable assignment to a Belg More...
Stone starts his story during Van Gogh's teenaged years, living with his strict Calvinist parents (his father was a predikant, a Dutch Calvinist minister), somewhat struggling against the strictures of his life. He himself becomes a Calvinist evangelist and receives a less-than-desirable assignment to a Belg More...
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Mar 20, 2010
Adam
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Summary:
Irving Stone’s Lust for Life is a biographical novelization of the life of Vincent van Gogh. The novel is based on the many letters (approximately 700) written between Vincent van Gogh and his younger brother, Theo. Stone takes author’s creative license and invents dialogue, situations, etc. but many of the characters, places, and events are based on events which really happened and which were described in the brothers’ letters. The novel spans approximately ten year More...
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Sep 19, 2009
Maia
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Although this is a fictionalized account of Van Gogh's life, it also counts as the artist's bio, of sorts.
I first read this book years ago in art school, trying to get my hands on every material i could on my favorite painters, Van Gogh prominent on that list. Then I re read it a few years ago when i found an old copy at a bookstore sale, and was amazed at how quickly and easily the writing pulled me in. As in 'The Agony and The Ecstasy' (on Michaaelangelo), here Irving Stone truly p More...
I first read this book years ago in art school, trying to get my hands on every material i could on my favorite painters, Van Gogh prominent on that list. Then I re read it a few years ago when i found an old copy at a bookstore sale, and was amazed at how quickly and easily the writing pulled me in. As in 'The Agony and The Ecstasy' (on Michaaelangelo), here Irving Stone truly p More...
Jan 24, 2008
Michael
rated it: 
Bibliographic/Historical Novel of Vincent Van Gogh. Stone uses the correspondence letters of Vincent and his brother Theo as his core source material. It gives a better understanding of the artists process, along with describing the origins of some of Van Gogh's most famous works-- The Potato Eaters, Sunflowers.
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Nov 13, 2010
Stephanie
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jun 21, 2011
Andy
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It was 35 years ago - Bicentennial summer July 4, 1976 - and I decided to celebrate it in Europe. One of the highlights of my vacation was going to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. All of the great master's paintings were smiling right back at us dopey tourists, pounds of brightly colored oils caked on the canvas, piled on so deep and textured it dared me, "You want to touch me, come on, admit it, you want to touch me". More provocative than a stripper at Jumbo's Clown Room, I took up
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Feb 04, 2009
May
rated it:
So far, so incredibly good.
At one point, Vincent is about to die of starvation and sickness in his hut, and then, ta-da, his brother Theo walks in, and I had those sobs coming up from deep within, like a bubble of pain exploding.
2/4/09: finished. Just awesome. Irving Stone did his research in so many fields! He gives an invaluable perspective on Van Gogh's life and work, connecting them in a way I'll never forget. I never realized how late Vincent started to paint, and how muc More...
At one point, Vincent is about to die of starvation and sickness in his hut, and then, ta-da, his brother Theo walks in, and I had those sobs coming up from deep within, like a bubble of pain exploding.
2/4/09: finished. Just awesome. Irving Stone did his research in so many fields! He gives an invaluable perspective on Van Gogh's life and work, connecting them in a way I'll never forget. I never realized how late Vincent started to paint, and how muc More...
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Jul 30, 2011
Katie
rated it:
Irving Stone's phenomenal biographical novel recounts the fascinating life of Vincent Van Gogh. Stone perfectly characterizes Van Gogh as a tortured soul - one whose overwhelming desire to create helped him overcome years of rejection and failure. The tragedy and euphoria of the famous artist's life come alive in Stone's prose. The last few chapters, in which Vincent decides he cannot live with the fear of going truly mad, are heartbreaking. Upon examining some of Van Gogh's work after reading t
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Apr 09, 2010
JabBeRwoCkY
rated it: 
Although this is a biography, it's usually found under "fiction" in bookstores and libraries. This is because Stone had to take some poetic licence in order to make a coherent and interesting novel. After the book ends, Stone has a section called "Notes", where he admits to the reader that a couple of the scenes (such as Van Gogh's meeting with Paul Cezanne) were clearly a product of his imagination.
Read "Lust for Life" with a large grain of salt and a More...
Read "Lust for Life" with a large grain of salt and a More...
Apr 12, 2010
Sue
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I dont know why it took me so long to find this book! (thanks Becky!) I read Stones book about Michelangelo years ago and loved it. (The Agony & the Ecstacy) I have read books about Vincent before, but mostly his art. This is such a deeply personal look into his life, his loves, his many disappointments and ultimately his painting. I am so touched by his art and have always been interested in his life, especially the relationship between him and his brother Theo. I have visited Auvers, where he
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Feb 06, 2010
Deana
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This book was truly amazing. I love Vincent Van Gogh, and Stone does him justice in letting us see Vincent through his letters to his brother Theo. Such a sad and lonely life. Unrequitted love, and when he WAS loved -- he did not return it to a woman who would have lived at his knee with loving tenderness. His relationships with other painters and reading their names and the relationships they had or DIDN't with Vincent is truly interesting. How he painted and struggled with his view of what he
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Jan 04, 2012
Kristen
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I was hesitant to pick up this book. For months it sat on my shelf. I was worried a biographical novel would be dry, boring.
I was wrong. This book is moving and poetic. Whereas before Van Gogh was just a great painter, now I feel I know so much more about what a tragic figure he was.
Very well written. I was emotionally invested in Vincent from the start. When he fasted, I begged him to eat. When he was manic, I gritted my teeth til it passed. Despite knowing his ulti More...
I was wrong. This book is moving and poetic. Whereas before Van Gogh was just a great painter, now I feel I know so much more about what a tragic figure he was.
Very well written. I was emotionally invested in Vincent from the start. When he fasted, I begged him to eat. When he was manic, I gritted my teeth til it passed. Despite knowing his ulti More...
Feb 07, 2012
Amir ali
rated it:
این رمان زندگینامه ونسان ونگوگ نقاش شوریده هلندی است.داستان شوریدگی و جنون ونگوگ.داستانی امیخته از واقعیت و اسطوره.نقاشی که اول سودی کشیش شدن داشت اما تا ناکجاها رفت تا اونجایی که یکی از گوشهای خودشو برید و خودش رو به جنون طبیعت و خورشید و زندگی سپرد و نقاشی کشید و کشید و کشید...ترجمه آقای ندوشن رو خیلی دوست داشتم در این کتاب.شاید عاملی که باعث شد حتی کتاب رو بخرم،به هرحال از اینکه این کتاب رو دارم و خوندم بسیار خوشحالم...
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Aug 09, 2011
Prashanth Vaidyaraj
rated it:
Van Gogh is known world over as a painter and artist par excellence. But what we never knew was his personal life and the tragic circumstances under which he took his own life. Irving stone not only treats the reader to a amazing biographical account of Van Gogh, he also narrates a subtle story of every artists dilemma, travails and compromises which the society fails to understand. It is no different from the scenario today that prevails. The story of Van Gogh is also a reflection of the Europe
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Jul 17, 2011
Adri
rated it:
At the time when I read this (in the early 1990s) I usually avoided reading historical books. I was young and impatient and wanted things to 'move along'. I often looked at it in bookstores, read the blurb, and then put it down again.
Eventually I succumbed, I loved his paintings and I wanted to know more about the man. Well, I could not put it down. It had me in tears most of the time.
It is so well written and draws the reader into the story. Last night we watched the mo More...
Eventually I succumbed, I loved his paintings and I wanted to know more about the man. Well, I could not put it down. It had me in tears most of the time.
It is so well written and draws the reader into the story. Last night we watched the mo More...
Feb 25, 2009
Hector
rated it:
I love Vincent Van Gogh, he is by far my favourite artist. I loved this book because I had only bits and pieces of Vincent's life, got to even prove myths and legends wrong.
I don't know if learned something, only to love yourself and find value in everything you do regardless of what people around you may say or think. Keep close to the ones who love you.
Money and fame are worthless..... are they ? Should Vincent became rich and famous when living, would his crazine More...
I don't know if learned something, only to love yourself and find value in everything you do regardless of what people around you may say or think. Keep close to the ones who love you.
Money and fame are worthless..... are they ? Should Vincent became rich and famous when living, would his crazine More...
Oct 16, 2011
Ashley
rated it:
It seems I have the hardest time writing reviews of the books I loved the best. "Lust for Life" is a biography of Vincent Van Gogh written as a novel. I love Irving Stone's style of writing. He captures exactly what I imagine Van Gogh was thinking while he develops into a painter. While I'm sure he took quite a few liberties through the story, Van Gogh's own letters to Theo are the main source, so I'm sure the basics are as real as they can be. I was surprised at how... selfish Van Gog
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May 03, 2011
Dvora
rated it:
I hoped to like this book, having done a fair amount of reading about Vincent. I am very interested in his life, and this is the most famous book about him (although not the best), albeit it is fiction.
I found the book to be poorly written (I thought the same about The Agony and the Ecstasy). Historical fiction has no obligation to be true to the known facts, and Irving didn't stray too far afield. But his writing is not elegant, not clean, not well crafted. I found the writing a More...
I found the book to be poorly written (I thought the same about The Agony and the Ecstasy). Historical fiction has no obligation to be true to the known facts, and Irving didn't stray too far afield. But his writing is not elegant, not clean, not well crafted. I found the writing a More...
Sep 12, 2009
Maggie
rated it:
I really enjoy biographies, particularly of the deceased, and although I'm not a huge art buff I really liked this book. It was interesting to read about Van Gogh, his family, his ups and downs and eventual craziness. It quashed some of the historical misconceptions about Van Gogh but added some more complexities to him. I watched the movie with Kirk Douglas from the '50s after the book, and it sure made Van Gogh look cuckoo. I liked the movie too, but am waiting for Hollywood to remake it. You
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Nov 08, 2008
George
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This is a wonderful book. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is the mostly true and moving story of Vincent van Gogh's life(March 30, 1853 – July 29, 1890) – his struggles to become a good painter and to live in a world that, for the most part, ostracized him, the warm relationship that he enjoyed with the one person who truly loved and supported him unconditionally (his brother Theo), and the inspiration that he received from nature, which he ultimately transferred to canvas in a magnificent, inimit
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Jul 01, 2008
Kressel
rated it:
You don't need a strong art history background to appreciate this, the novelized biography of Vincent Van Gogh. Even if you can only remember the names of a few French impressionists and can picture only a painting or two, that's plenty. The more knowledge, the better, but that's all I had, and I found this book both educational and enjoyable. Frum readers should be warned that Van Gogh's relationships with women, including prostitutes, figure into this book. Those scenes are not as explicit as
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May 26, 2011
Vishalakshi
rated it:
This is by far one of my favorites, a biography of the great painter Vincent Van Gogh. The book describes his unique struggle of sorrow and how he found his true self expression through painting. Painting was just not an art for him but the very foundation of his will to live. I would also recommend the movie.
I like one of the sentences in it:"through sorrow had gained a soul"
Also potrays, when love is denied, the pain it leads to but that pain can also cause something so bea More...
I like one of the sentences in it:"through sorrow had gained a soul"
Also potrays, when love is denied, the pain it leads to but that pain can also cause something so bea More...
