![]() In the penultimate ""Still Life,"" set in 17th-century Delft, a poverty-hounded Vermeer begins the portrait of his daughter Magalena. Each fills in details the other does not have, and each provides indelible images of brutally hard life in a waterlogged land. Two narratives that treat the same event-the birth of a baby and a turning point in a marriage-take place in neighboring hamlets near Groningen during the St. ![]() Set in Amsterdam during the Nazi occupation, the moving ""A Night Different from All Other Nights"" portrays the Jewish family from whom the painting will be stolen after they have been sent to a concentration camp, and re-poses the question (also asked in the opening story) of how killers can revere beauty. The chronology is reversed: the first story occurs in the present day, and succeeding narratives go back in time to the 17th century. Vreeland's skill goes deeper still these poised and atmospheric tales present a rich variety of characters whose voices convey distinctive personalities, and each offers glimpses of Holland during different historical eras. The eight interlinked stories in this impressive debut collection revolve around a single painting by Vermeer as one might expect, they contain insightful observations about the worth and the truth of art. ![]()
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