The Painted Girls is a novel written in first person through the eyes of two sisters, Marie and Antoinette. This is a character study based upon paintings by Degas who studied and copied the appearances of ballerinas in his art studio in Paris. The author has a vivid imagination, did research the times and the lives of persons who lived in the time of Degas, and created her own fantasy tale in this bleak look at the lives of the ballerinas who studied to become stars at the Opera.
An aside here...years ago when I was teaching English in California, I had the good fortune to have a short story called Bimbo in our literature book. Bimbo was based upon a dog found in Pompeii with a cookie in his mouth. An imaginative author wrote a short story based simply upon this discovery of this dog with the cookie. This is what The Painted Girls makes me remember...Bimbo. This creative author has done the same with the use of her characters Marie and Antoinette, with whom she tells their story of their lives in Paris.
Antoinette is the older of three sisters who live with a widowed mother who is a washerwoman. The mother has lost her husband, and her income to support the girls. So Antoinette and Marie who are the older girls must find ways to bring in moneys to pay the rent, since Mother is also addicted to absinth and is usually so tipsy as not to be able to stay awake when at home. She does continue to hold her job as a washerwoman. But through Marie and Antoinette, we learn how each one of them adapts to these harsh circumstances as they try to earn enough money to keep food in the tummy and a roof over their heads. Charlotte is the youngest sister who is also studying for the ballet.
It seems to me that Cathy Buchanan has studied the girls who Degas actually painted, and tried to bring them to life in this novel. She succeeds very well in developing her story through the eyes of both sisters. She paints a picture of lives so dreary that the only hope that they have is through dance, the ballet, and through working at neighborhood shops, baking bread, or if need by, finding a sponsor if talented enough who will pay their way through ballet lessons.
This book is a fascinating study in contrasts. She introduces us to two men who are exciting to Antoinette who has given up on her chance to be in the opera but who has found a man who seems to give her attention, affection, and comfort. Antoinette is forever annoying to me in that this man who she likes so much is the only man she has ever known to show any attention to her so that she commits to him so totally that it is emotionally shattering. In the meantime, Marie cannot stand Emilie Abadie who is always using Antoinette for his own ends. But he rewards her with money enough to pay for the food and the rent of the hovel where they live, so she hangs on to him for dear life. Unfortunately, he is a bad one who is going to turn her life upside down.
The harshness of the impoverished girls is contrasted to that of the patrons of the ballerinas who are very rich and prominent. Eventually, Marie becomes a model for Degas who rewards her financially as well. Her mother's attitude about her modeling is most fascinating. Incredulous to me.
Buchanan makes us feel the impoverished state so well that it is heartbreaking to live through these girls needs. Too well we understand why it is that Antoinette needs and defends Emilie Abadie so much, and why it is that Marie turns to Degas to model for him.
The plot thickens as Emilie and his friend are accused of murder, and Antoinette is taken to a house of prostitution where she learns how the really rich live in Paris. The study of the house of prostitution is a fascinating and intriguing one. It is a wonder that anyone saved their virtue in Paris when a house is run and operated so well as this one.
In this novel, we even are taken into the worst of prisons. Antoinette has to go visit Emilie when he is accused of murdering a former female friend. The description of the guards, the interior of the prison, and the hours of waiting to see her man are exceptionally well written. Her sincere belief in Emilie's innocence gives us a glimpse of hope in this harsh environment, but the jurors who listen to the defense and the prosecution are not quite so enamored with either young men. Evidence appears to convict them despite Antoinette's certainty that Emilie is an innocent.
I am so impressed with Buchanan's research into the lot of Parisian women, and especially the lot of the impoverished. Naturally, as in most European nations in that age, a strong belief in a faith is ever present but also ever challenged. This novel is one of the most challenging looks at life in a city soiled by excesses. For all its so called glamor, Paris is a tawdry place in which to dwell at this time in its history.
While not a pageturner, the novel is satisfying in many ways. One learns about the art of ballet, the role of modeling for an artist, and the changing history of Paris. I recommend it highly.
Highly recommend.
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