Girl in Hyacinth Blue Audiobook By Susan Vreeland cover art

Girl in Hyacinth Blue

Preview
Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Girl in Hyacinth Blue

By: Susan Vreeland
Narrated by: Loren Lester, Sheryl Bernstein
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $16.23

Buy for $16.23

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

A professor shows a colleague a painting that he has kept secret for decades. The professor swears it is a Vermeer - but why has he hidden this important work for so long? The reasons unfold in a series of stories that trace ownership of the painting back to World War II and Amsterdam, and still further back to the moment of the work's inspiration. As the painting moves through each owner's hands, what was long hidden quietly surfaces, illuminating poignant moments in human lives.

Vreeland's characters remind us, through their love of the mysterious painting, how beauty transforms and why we reach for it, what lasts, and what in our lives is singular and unforgettable.

©1999 Susan Vreeland (P)2001 Highbridge Company
Cozy Genre Fiction Historical Literary Fiction Mystery Young Adult Fiction
adbl_web_global_use_to_activate_T1_webcro805_stickypopup

Critic reviews

"Intelligent, searching, and unusual...filled with luminous moments...it has a way of lingering in the reader's mind." (The New York Times Book Review)
"One of the best books of the year." (Publishers Weekly)

All stars
Most relevant  
Thought that this was very well done and the readers were excellent. Great story very engaging

wonderful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Any additional comments?

This is a terrific book. I usually transfer 3-4 audiobooks to CD yearly for a listen down the road and this made the grade. It is quite simply, enthralling in its ability to communicate feeling, content and style as only a studied pro in the arms of a loving muse could do. I took time off from grad school to learn Dutch and travel through the Lowlands viewing Flemish art. This book is the closest thing I know to any device that can effectively give one the feeling I got during that wonderful period. It captures mood exquisitely. It transports one back in time as great lit should. The pacing, the words chosen, the phrasing -- all of it, subtle, yet powerfully effective. It doesn???t scream ???look how wonderfully I???ve done this,??? but it does. If this is new terrain for you, it may take awhile to ???get there.??? Given that ???there??? doesn???t exist anymore, it is worth the effort at 10x the price.

You are there

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I first read this novel in 2002 when I picked it off the paperback case at a local Borders book store. Remember
those days? I was not familiar with Vermeer, but I was aware of the many crimes of the Nazis. At first, it was
the painting itself, which I didn't realize was fictional. So that lead to an interest in the artist's life and works. The
novel remained a favorite for 20 yrs, and I enjoyed the journey a second time around. I have lost my vision, so the
audio versions can often give an old read a new feel.

Introduction to Vermeer

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I enjoyed the detail of the narrative which mirrored the detail of Vermeer' s work with sensitivity. The story unfolded with mystery . I enjoyed the historical descriptions of the Dutch ethos which explains so much of the art as well as the set up of the world we have now. I enjoyed how the subtle strands relating to many facets of love were woven through the story with a light but deep touch. Since I know that very little is actually known about Vermeer' s life, the artistic liberty of historical fiction did not ruin my enjoyment. The insights into the quietude of Vermeer's work were more important and plausible.

A tale well told

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I used this audio book as I followed along in the purchased Apple book app! My favorite voice and story was the “Hyacinth Blues”! I fell in love with this story because I was drawn in by the narrator! Such character and sass! Great expression!

Love love love

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I like this author and how he writes stories that all contain some true historical facts

Interesting story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

a nice little historical fiction about the Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer and the times in which he lived. the story also followed a single painting through history.

nice historical fiction

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

This book was such a surprise. I used it for book club and it was a big hit. To use a painting as it witnesses history was amazing.

Pure delight

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

enjoyed it in one sitting. refreshed my appreciation from my younger years discovering this quintessential unique artist..Vermeer
good storytelling by Susan V...juicy but never over the line..facts ..facts about painting and peculiar lifestyle of Zieder Zee. A GOOD Thing





delightful and meaningful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

It was interesting and I did enjoy it. I had hoped that the stories would have been a bit longer.

That work is satisfactory though short.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews