PLUME Dear Theo: The Autobiography of Vincent Van Gogh

This is a book for people who absolutely love Van Gogh and will persevere. I had just read Lust for Life by the same author and it read very much like a novel. But with this book I was surprised that much of the background content from the non-fictional Lust for Life was largely missing from the letters. When he discusses situations in his life there is very little context to put things in perspective. It is mostly internal dialogue written to his brother Theo about painting, which is great in itself, but also about how he feels about himself as a person. If I had not read Lust for Life first I would be totally lost at to what was happening in his life.

The letters are remarkable, his love of his brother shines through, He had such difficulty with relationships,only Theo appeared to understand him although even he had moments of doubt. The poverty the struggle for perfection, his desperate longing for love,its all there an extraordinary book.

Letra muy pequeña e impresión chueca, a mi en lo personal me cuesta mucho leer con ese tamaño de letra, no me gustó tanto.

Although the content of the book is great as expected, the print quality is horrible. I suggest you buy this book from elsewhere

It is not as easy a read as Stone's van Gog biography Lust For Life, but for fans, it's a deep book.Vincent tells of how he went into the fields to paint, and then a rain storm came. He sought meager shelter behind a big tree while it lasted, and then resumed. And because he had started with a low vantage point, he now had to stand on his knees in the mud! He seems to merely mention this to point out why he considers common workman's clothes to be the artist's best friend...He also tells how he went out to paint the sea, in a storm so strong he could barely stay on his feet. One painting got so full of sand from the beach that he went to a nearby inn and retouched it... and then went back out into the storm to finish it with fresh impressions!Today, most of us: "Go out with the camera today? Nah, it's a bit nippy, and I just got the Sopranos on DVD..."Irving Stone edited Dear Theo, and while he may have done a good job generally, I think it was a disservice to the material to not indicate where he cut it. It is just one long text, no dates and no indication where each quote starts or ends.