CHECK IT OUT:Author Susan Vreeland to talk at library

Mark your calendars for 7 p.m., Thursday, June 7, to see best-selling author Susan Vreeland at the Newport Beach Public Library.

Sponsored by the Newport Beach Public Library Foundation and the California Center for the Book, this Manuscripts Literary Lecture is free, open to the public and will be held in the Friends Meeting Room at the library.

Vreeland is a two-time winner of the Theodor Geisel Award and is best known for her historical fiction focused on art-related themes.

Her newest novel, “Luncheon of the Boating Party,” will be available for purchase and signing by the writer.

Light refreshments will be served, and reservations are not required. The library’s collection of Susan Vreeland books are available in print, sound recordings and large type. Please ask the librarians for availability of the formats.

This is a fabulous opportunity to see and hear an intriguing author lecture about the world-famous paintings and artistic influences that inspire her works.

Here is a sampling of the her books you can find at the library:

“Luncheon of the Boating Party.” Based on the Impressionistic painting of the same name, this story is about Pierre-Auguste Renoir and the lives of 13 friends who went on a picnic during a glorious Parisian summer in 1880. During Renoir’s lifetime, he was entranced by people. He often painted his friends and showed their interrelationships. Criticism from Emile Zola inspired his depiction of this pleasurable and introspective al fresco outing.

“Life Studies: Stories.” This collection of short stories explores art as a theme when viewed by the people who surround an artist. Vreeland concentrates on the great French Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masters using a variety of famous paintings; for example, “Mimi with a Watering Can,” or “Tableaux Vivants.” See how simple, everyday life and ordinary people can inspire profound acts of creation.

“The Forest Lover.” Vreeland moves from France and the Impressionists to the new world. In this fictionalized version of the life of painter Emily Carr, Vreeland describes the travels Emily took through the Nootka Indian’s territory in British Columbia in order to capture on canvas the totem poles and indigenous artifacts before the native traditions died out.

“Girl in Hyacinth Blue.” The narrative for this title is posed as a “what if.” What if Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer had created an undiscovered painting? The intertwined lives of eight people are examined as they respond to and are changed by the presence of an extraordinary masterpiece originally looted from a deported Dutch Jewish family during the Holocaust.

“The Passion of Artemisia.” Against the background of the exciting world of Renaissance art, the fictionalized life of Italian painter Artemisia Gentileschi, the first woman to be elected to the prestigious Accademia dell’Arte in Florence, is presented in all its agonies and triumphs. This fascinating tale brings 16th century Italy to life.

“What Love Sees: A Biographical Novel.” Issued in large type, this biographical novel deals with the obstacles and challenges facing a girl when she loses her sight at age 12 through her marriage, motherhood of four children and life on a California ranch with a visually-impaired husband. Set in the America of the 1930’s, this is a book about the joys and disappointments that beset people.