Library Journal – September 1, 2006
Hampl, Patricia - BLUE ARABESQUE: A Search for the Sublime
Harcourt (224 pp.) $22.00, Nov. 1, 2006 ISBN: 0-15-101506-6

In this personal essay, Hampl (A Romantic Education) explains that, as an English major, her career goal was to be left alone to read an endless novel while observing and musing about the world. After graduation, en route to meet a friend for lunch in an art museum cafeteria, Hampl saw the Henri Matisse painting Woman Before an Aquarium, which depicts an aloof woman gazing at a goldfish in a bowl. Hampl’s admiration of the piece sparked her quest to examine art, literature, and leisure. Within this framework, she entwines her thoughts on the stories of Katherine Mansfield, the artworks of Matisse, the poetry of Rumi, and more. She examines cloisters and harems, women and leisure, tourism and travel, and visual arts and the printed word. It is Hampl’s insight and humor that make this gem worth consideration. Recommended for academic libraries.

– Joyce Sparrow

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