Art on Fire

Brilliant, humorous, creative- everything I want in a novel. I couldn’t put this book down. It engaged my mind so compellingly that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.

Art on Fire is the fictional biography of Francesca deSilva, a pseudo-realism painter who fled from home at age 18 after being caught in a lesbian affair; she moved to Cape Cod where she became a famous painter- that’s the simple short of it. However, there is nothing simple or short about this story. Art on Fire forces the reader to see the injustice in despairing situations which often seem impossible to alter, the complexities of feeling happiness or satisfaction when approval proved to be a guest who never showed, and the cruel reality of being so intellectually gifted only for it to cripple the mind into lunacy. The story opens with an account of a fire which destroyed the house which our protagonist lived as well as her entire family, killing everyone inside. Nineteen of Francesca’s paintings were also destroyed in the fire, leaving only thirteen. Throughout the fictional accounts of Francesca’s life are critiques of each of the remaining paintings. These are satirical reviews, footnotes included, which add an extra layer to the story- showing us what society thought of our protagonist and her work so pretentiously it made me laugh. They described the paintings in great detail and included analysis which were often humorous, momentarily lightening the heavy tone of the book. I’ve always enjoyed footnotes and these did not disappoint. They were scattered throughout the novel, not just occupying the critiques, as the book is a biography, albeit fictional, as I had to remind myself. The entire thing was filled with so much detail and conviction that I felt compelled in believing that Francesca’s life was real. I enjoyed how much detail was in this book- to the contents of the bulletin board on the wall of the Chinese laundromat to the rusty bottle caps lining the floor of Francesca’s hut, I could imagine it all so clearly.   

The novel followed Francesca from childhood to her demise which occurred tragically early in her adulthood- this was never a surprise in the story (as we knew from the opening of the fire) so the focus was centered on the details of her life. Francesca was the younger sister of a child prodigy, Isabella, who had a slight obsession with Anne Frank, struggled socially to connect with others or really even to grasp the benefits in companionship, and was favored by her parents over Francesca. Growing up the “lesser” twin in the shadow of my sister who everyone mistakenly claimed was a genius, I could really relate to Francesca here- constantly being overshadowed and underappreciated. Not only that, but my best company was also a river. Vivian, the mother was an interesting character, and I enjoyed the insights into her thinking. She was so unintentionally cruel. Her obsession with Isabella was strange yet also motherly- in the way that parents take pride and ownership over the success of their children merely for sharing the same genes.  Alfonso, Francesca and Isabella’s father was a simple man who definitely tried his best but was limited by his own lack of guile and could never really connect with his daughters in a way that mattered. Francesca’s maternal grandmother, Evelyn, was the rock in her family- the only adult who seemed to adore her or, at least, more than tolerated her deemed “strangeness.” Unfortunately, Evelyn couldn’t accept Francesca after finding her in bed with Lisa Sinsong, a chess genius and Francesca’s only love, and ended up rejecting her. Lisa’s character was interesting not only for her ability to see Francesca’s potential behind the bright lights flashing Isabella’s name, but, in the small moments she’s able to steal with Francesca, we see a girl who’s been through monstrosities and yet still jests- still loves. I liked Lisa.

Death and suicide are notable themes in this book. Not to sound morbid, but I really enjoyed the juxtaposition of one character who committed suicide young compared to Evelyn growing old only to end up losing her mind and becoming the town’s crazy woman. This was striking and haunting- as if silently asking, “which is worse?” Though Art on Fire is thick with an ever-present fog of depression along the story’s solemn backdrop, it’s also rife with humor- dark, witty comedy. Amazing how the two can complement each other so well – when joined by a talented hand, of course. Sloin was an incredibly talented writer and Art on Fire is a book that I’ll think about years down the road.

You can get Art on Fire at the Bywater web store and receive 25% off when you use code Art-On-Fire at checkout- good until August 31 https://www.bywaterbooks.com/product/art-on-fire/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Art-Fire