Carolyn Meyer did a wonderful job of describing the life of photographer Margaret Bourke-White in Girl with a Camera. Now she has done it again with the life of artist Georgia O'Keeffe. Taking inspiration from biographies, books of O'Keeffe's artwork, and visiting key locations, she brings Georgia onto the page in an engaging story of a woman determined to be an artist. Although this is a fictionalized account of her life, the details of social expectations and opportunities available to women of her generation are correct.
Descriptions range from the various techniques she experimented with as she developed her own style, to details about the different schools she attended and jobs she took. Clothing, foods, and pastimes of the era make the setting a large part of the reading experience, just as it would have been a large influence on O'Keeffe herself.
One of the thoughts the author imagines her protagonist having captures the essence of an individual trying to find her own way, a way that did not always match the expectations of others. "I was not rebellious, exactly, but the rules felt like a dog-collar attached to a leash, and I looked for ways to wiggle out of it." It is the touches like that which make the story so captivating and believable.
I received a copy from the publisher for review purposes.
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