The French Photographer by Natasha Lester - Book Review
The French Photographer is the latest novel by Natasha Lester, the bestselling author of The Paris Seamstress and A Kiss From Mr Fitzgerald.
The French Photographer is based upon the life of Lee Miller, a Vogue model, who defied all the rules and became one of the first female photojournalists of World War II. Lee Miller's true story is an amazing one and we thank Lorna Laycock, our guest contributor for her review of the recently released book The French Photographer.
Background
Author Natasha Lester invites the reader to journey beside Jessica May, whose character is based on Lee Miller, to view events and characters as though through the photographer’s lens.
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World War II
Jessica May’s previous world as a Vogue model in Manhattan did not prepare her for the brutal initiation into the world of war but even in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Jessica manages to capture images that picture the real tableau of war. Her published images are acclaimed worldwide as providing a human face among the propaganda.
I really felt like I was travelling with Jessica from New York to London, Italy, France and Germany, where we meet Martha, the estranged wife of Hemingway and a woman with a kindred spirit. Together these two women are committed to deliver the unadulterated truth, whether the US army wants the truth or not, and against a backdrop of the typical accepted male chauvinism of the time.
The Author
Natasha Lester’s writing is compelling and I found the book well written and very well researched. Characters are brought to life without fear or favour and this results in the characters becoming startlingly, and in some cases, frighteningly, real. In short they are believable. The author uses her pen as astutely as the photographer uses her lens.
This allows me and you as the readers to see the chateau, smell the garden and picture the trees. The Easter Scene is described so well that I really felt a part of this moving event, once again based on fact. Using this same skill Lester exposes the reader to the darkest side of human nature. There is no gratuitous violence - the evil is simply 'exposed'. It is in this nature of simple exposure that weight is given to the story which produced a profound effect on me, and I believe will on you too.
The juxtaposition between what is perceived as good and evil, victor and vanquished becomes blurred and divisions unclear.
Women in the 1940's
Without any sort of moralistic commentary Lester directly reports on the difficulties experienced by Jessica May and her fellow women during the 1940 period; being a woman in an occupied country, being a woman in a defeated country and subsequently being a woman when life has supposedly returned to normal post war. Through very clever plot developments Lester carries the theme through to Australia in 2005 in her character D’Arcy Hallworth, remaining true to style throughout the book right to the very last words.
This book kept me up avidly reading, having to find out what happens next and once finished, I remained awake pondering over the issues raised and contemplating how much, or if indeed at all, humanity has changed over time.
Natasha Lester is also the author of The Paris Seamstress.
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