A frumpy middle-aged woman appears at a small town hotel with a suitcase full of cash and no memories. The next two hundred pages are her and you together trying to figure out who she was and who she wants to be. The book is so gentle and subtle reminding one of Anita Brookner. The voice is mesmerizing. The story complusory reading.

"Light" is a look at a day in the life of the celebrated French artist Monet, but..

How many ways can you describe the light on the bed, on the sofa on the chair and table? How many words do the Eskimo's have for snow? Here Eva Figgs has far fewer words to describe what she's after, and it shows.

Beyond the vocabulary, which I'll admit seems to be employed with a noble effort, the story goes nowhere. However, this is not a flaw of its design, for the story isn't supposed to go anywhere. What really is weak about this book is its misinterpretation of impressionism, an art form that has as much to do with being adventurous as it does to having soft edges. Eva Figgs leaves out the adventure, exploratory aspect of impressionism and leaves us with only a soft and slow dribble. At least George W. Bush's muzzy statements are experimental and make us turn our heads. With "Light" we fall asleep.

Besides the redundant vocabulary and the poor attempt at impressionist literature, the third and most striking naivety of this book is its portrayal of Monet himself. What right does Eva have to portray him like she did? This is an outrage! Its as if she knew him and spent intimate moments with him! What this boils down to is a capitalization off of a deceased artist, and a woman who has an axe to grind against men. It a crime because uses her Women's Rights savvy to give Monet and his friends an air of male chauvinism. If we are to give Eva the benefit of the doubt and believe Monet exuded such fearsome power over his family, then we have to feel sorry for the women who sat there silently and put up with him (or maybe they were on the gravy train...). This was, after all, nineteenth century France, not twentieth century Taliban Afghanistan! Did Anaias Nin take this kind of behaviour from men? Hell no! And four hundred years earlier, did Joan of Arc? She told them to shut their mouths! Look Eva Figgs, whatever you want people to feel about men according to your worldview, please do the world a favor and don't taint any more historical figures like you have here attempted with Monet. Fortunately, this book is in fact light.

Eva Figes plays with the theme of light in this novel describing a day of Monet's life at Giverny in the way that Monet played with light on canvas... with a deft and endearing touch.

This is an interesting book to say the least. Some parts are tedious such as the section of kingship, but other parts are insiteful and really make you think about what she is talking about. I sincerely enjoyed the section of the dead and ritual rites. Plato quotes are superb. I recomend this book for any students of socialogical studies.