Sofia Lundberg is a journalist and former magazine editor who made her debut with the word-of-mouth sensation The Red Address Book. Lauded by critics for her ability to sweep readers off their feet and take them on journeys through time and space, love and loss, Lundberg is the shining new star of heartwarming 鈥� and heart-wrenching 鈥� Scandinavian fiction.
Det 盲r i slutet p氓 1800-talet. Fem kreativa och spirituella kvinnor tr盲ffas i n氓got som kom att kallas f枚r fredagsklubben. Genom kontakt med en andlig dimension f氓r de kraft och inspiration till att skapa, f枚r tiden nydanande konst. Men kvinnliga konstn盲rer 盲r ovanligt och konsten s氓 annorlunda att de beslutar att g枚mma undan verken till dess att v盲rlden 盲r redo f枚r den.
Nyfikenheten f枚r de fem kvinnorna fick f枚rfattarna vid ett gemensamt bes枚k p氓 Guggenheimmuseet i New York. Id茅n om att skriva en bok om livet bakom de stora verk som v盲rlden kan besk氓da kan vi nu njuta. Historien ber盲ttas i b氓de nu- och d氓tid och ger en insikt i konstv盲rlden. Boken 盲r en roman, men genom den har jag har l盲rt mig om stora svenska kvinnor jag inte visste existerat.
Tack f枚r en mycket intressant historieskildring i underh氓llande romanform! Brilliant 馃専
The Friday Night Club is a historical fiction book that explores the world of art.
In the past, the story follows a group of female painters and writers who were know as the Five. During their weekly meetings, they engaged with seances to communicate with spirits that guided and inspired their work and pushed them past societal norms. In the present, a curator at the Guggenheim Museum is working on an art exhibit for Hilma af Klint, one of the women of the Five. While researching, he comes across questions about the art world in Sweden during the 1900s and yearns to uncover the possible secrets these women have kept.
As I am not one who is easily fascinated by art, I was amazed by how much this story pulled me in and how eager I was to learn about the paintings of Hilma af Klint, who I learned during the authors鈥� note, was a real artist. I love the vivid descriptions of the work painted and how seamlessly the writing flowed, especially because the book was written by three authors, only one who I was familiar with prior. The seance/ communication with the spirits was a big part of the past timeline and did not peak my interest as much as I wished. Still, this is definitely a book to read for anyone who loves art and art history!
The Friday Night Club sets the stage much like other dual timeline novels that have come before. While the authors' passion and knowledge shine through, their collective voices overshadowed the story and made it difficult for me to become fully immersed in its narrative.
In the historical timeline, The Friday Night Club portrays the story of Swedish artist Hilma af Klint and her group of female painters and writers in early 1900s Stockholm. In a world dominated by men, Hilma gathered The Five (retained in the novel as De Fem)鈥� Anna, Cornelia, Sigrid, and Mathilda 鈥� who together formed a supportive network both emotionally and artistically. Inspired by mystic visions, Hilma and Anna explored the occult through s茅ances, hoping to tap into unseen spirits to unlock their artistic potential and guide them in their endeavors. Despite their talent and intriguing lives, The Five and their work have been largely forgotten until now.
For the present day narrative, Eben Elliot, an associate curator at the Guggenheim Museum, who, after a chance encounter with an old girlfriend whose thesis work involved af Klint, hopes to open an art show at the museum in New York to showcase the artist's work. As Eben delves into the history of The Five, he uncovers intriguing questions about the group and the financial aspects of the modern art world, leading to emotional and professional challenges.
A common problem with dual timeline stories is that one story suffers and another shines. In the case of The Friday Night Club, unfortunately, neither timeline was able to fully carry the weight of the novel. The majority of the book felt like a lengthy introduction, the stage set with potentially intriguing characters, yet it failed to provide a satisfying encounter with any of them. Additionally, the character Eben lacked a sense of authenticity, and felt both like a vehicle for the authors to even have a present day story (which I'm not convinced was a necessary plot device here) and like a woman trying to write a man. Something about him felt off or unfinished, and I found that I was having to continually remind myself who this smudgy character was supposed to be. As for Hilma herself, while I think she was certainly the most developed character of the quintet, I'm left with an uncertainty of her actual artistic genius because of the constant implications I gathered that she was passing another's work off as her own 鈥斕齟ven during her own lifetime.
One aspect that detracted from my overall experience was the authors' tendency to rely heavily on telling rather than showing throughout both timelines. Rather than immersing the characters in vivid scenes and allowing the actions and dialogue to convey emotions and experiences, the narrative often resorted to exposition and direct statements. Even the dialogue itself remained clipped and closed off. This approach creates an unfortunate distance between the reader and the characters, a common drawback in historical fiction with a dual timeline. It would have been more engaging to fully connect with the story and develop a deeper bond with the characters.
Regrettably, the book feels like an undercooked group project, leaving me overwhelmed with historical information and ultimately resulting in a bland and boring experience. However, I will say, one intriguing aspect is the contrast between the present-day Eben, who actively avoids delving into the s茅ances and mysticism of af Klint and the other women, while the past timeline spend a lot of time devoted to and focused on those very meetings.
I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This affected neither my opinion of the book nor the content of my review.
I don't tend to read that many books that have a focus on art, but when I saw that was one of the authors for I knew I was going to have to read it. I had never heard of the artist Hilma, and it was really interesting learning her story and about the very fascinating group she formed that would hold seances. There are 2 timelines which is basically what I expected going into it, and we have Eben in present-day New York City, as well as Anna's & Cornelia's POVs, set in late 1800 to early 1900s Sweden. The past timeline is where we learn the most about Hilma through the eyes of Anna and Cornelia (2 very different relationships with Hilma), and I honestly wouldn't have minded the entire book to have been that. I don't know that we necessarily needed the present timeline (or Eben for that matter), but I was still intrigued by those parts of the book and how the two periods of time tied together.
I also really enjoyed the audiobook which has Tavia Gilbert voicing Anna (and Cornelia), Pete Cross voicing Eben & Alyson Richman (one of the authors!) reading the authors' note at the end. I am a big fan of Gilbert already and I loved her narration as well as her pacing. Cross's pace was a little bit slower than hers was, but it was perfectly fine, and he was totally believable as Eben. I never got confused despite Gilbert narrating more than one character, so I would definitely recommend the audio if you enjoy them. For being written by 3 different authors during the Covid lockdown no less, the writing felt as though it could have been 1 author, and it felt very seamless to me. I loved all of the mentions of the Guggenheim which I have yet to go to, and I even heard The Cloisters brought up which has a fictional novel of the same name out right now. If you are a fan of historical fiction, especially that which focuses on art and artists, I think you will appreciate The Friday Night Club the most, but it was a solid read that I thoroughly enjoyed all the same.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Authors Sofia Lundberg, Alyson Richman, and M.J.Rose of 鈥淭he Friday Night Club鈥� have written an intriguing and captivating Historical Fiction novel. The wonderful collaboration of these amazing authors has brought to life the abstract paintings of Hilma af Klint of Sweden. The genres for this novel are Historical Fiction, Fiction, and Women鈥檚 Fiction. Two distinct timelines for this story are in the early 1900s in Sweden and in the present time at the Guggenheim Museum.
In the early 1900s, men were given credit for many artistic creations and other things, but this novel is a testament that talented and creative women were capable and determined to make their mark on their world. Hilma and four other women, Anna, Cornelia, Sigrid, and Mathilda, met on Friday nights to have a seance to help bring spirits and their creativity in art and writing. These women believed in spiritual connections. This group of women was mysterious. Hilma is often dressed in trousers and a hat. These women were referred to as the 鈥渇ive.鈥� Hilma is painting vividly and in abstract swirls. She feels her work won鈥檛 be accepted and wants it stored until years after her death. Both Hilma and Anna burn early papers, art, and diaries from earlier times.
In the present, Eben Elliott brings the works of Hilma to the Guggenheim Museum. He wants to find answers to questions and mysteries about the relationships and work of these women. Did Hilma work alone? When looking for funding, Eben becomes aware of the political problems that cross an ethical line for him.
I learned many things from this novel, and I appreciate that the authors describe a sisterhood of brave and determined women that made a difference in the art world. I highly recommend this novel.
P氓 pappret: intressant skildring av kvinnligt konstn盲rsskap, systerskapet som funnits i alla 氓r och hur v盲rlden flera 氓r senare f氓r m枚ta af Klints konst f枚r f枚rsta g氓ngen. P氓 riktigt: smetigt, l氓ngtr氓kigt och - f枚r mig - uppdiktat utifr氓n research men huuuur s盲kert vet man allt detta EGENTLIGEN?
Jag har precis l盲st en fiktiv bok om Hilma af Klint och hennes v盲nners hemliga seanser under slutet av 1800-talet och b枚rjan av 1900-talet. Parallellt arbetar Eben p氓 Guggenheim i New York med en utst盲llning av just Hilma av Klint och m氓lningarna hon skapade under tidigare n盲mnda seanser.
Det 盲r ALLTID kinkigt med fiktion utifr氓n verkliga personer. Jag f枚rst氓r vitsen, att man vill belysa n氓gonting som h盲nt eller n氓gon som levt och ge en alternativ bild av hur historien skrevs. Men aaaah jag har s氓 sv氓rt att helt g氓 in i en historia d盲r jag vet att f枚rfattare (tre dessutom!) sp氓nat och hittat p氓 hur dessa personer har pratat och t盲nkt. Per automatik g氓r jag inte in helhj盲rtat i boken d氓. Och tyv盲rr uppskattar jag inte spr氓ket tillr盲ckligt f枚r att bli h盲nf枚rd och bara v盲nda blad efter blad (ja jag t盲nker p氓 Blonde av Joyce Carol Oates).
F枚rfattarna ska ha kredd f枚r (vad jag l盲ser mig till) verkar vara gedigen bakgrundsunders枚kning och ett sammanh盲ngande spr氓k trots tre upphovsmakare. Det 盲r intressant att i tanken b枚rja fantisera kring Hilma af Klint och hur det gick till n盲r hon m氓lade med hj盲lp av mystiken och andarna. Men det blir ett tack - men nej tack - f枚r mig.
update: na het lezen van de biografie van Af Klint, blijkt hoe uitgekiend/ selectief de romanauteurs zijn omgegaan met bepaalde aspecten van het levensverhaal en dat de informatieve waarde wel in dat licht moet worden gezien.
鈥�
leunt nogal zwaar op (kunst)historisch onderzoek, en wat licht op het roman-aspect van het verhaal. desalniettemin interessant om te lezen. eerder informatief dan meeslepend.
I do. My favorite duo that comes to mind is Christine Lauren.
Told from two timelines, this book lays out the history of artist Hilma af Klint and in present time, associate curator Eben. In the early 1900鈥檚 when Hilma is in her prime we learn she has brought together a mysterious group of female painters and writers. This Friday night club dabbles in the occult, believing that through seances they can channel unforeseen spirits.
In the present, Eben has the idea to bring the work of Hilma to light. He uncovers the Friday night club and has questions. As he grapples with the way modern art is funded, he鈥檚 unsure if her work will be showcased after all.
I don鈥檛 think I鈥檇 ever read a book written by three authors! Going into this one I was worried that you would be able to tell when the authors switched, or the writing would be choppy 鈥� but that was not the case at all! Art has always fascinated me, I don鈥檛 see what some people do when they look at art, but it still fascinates me, especially art history. While reading this book I looked up the art done by Hilma af Klint, and it is stunning! Learning about some of the history associated with this artist was fun and interesting. The writing flowed easily and was very descriptive. The seances were a nice added fun flair that really enhanced the story. I was glad to find that was rooted in facts as well!
This book is marvelous, and I hope you check it out May 16th!
Thank you to the publisher Berkley, @BerkleyPub, @netgalley, and the authors, for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is an interesting concept for a novel, and it鈥檚 nice to see Hilma af Klint鈥檚 life and work garner this kind of specific interest.
I鈥檓 not a particular fan of her work, but I have tremendous respect for her contributions to art and find her to be an intriguing figure, particularly where she has connections to theosophy.
Her timeline is the more successfully executed of the two in the book, though also the easier one to craft. Novels with multiple authors often prove to be inconsistent in tone and quality, and thought there is no issue with tone here, the quality does feel uneven.
I liked Eben a lot, but his story had a lot of issues. And well meaning as he may be, it tough to sympathize with his feelings for Blythe, who is a truly terrible person. His work, too, though indeed well-intended, has some problems that are difficult to ignore from a plot perspective.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
This book felt like a warm hug. It was thoughtful, but not dull. It simmered slowly, but skillfully in a way that kept pulling me through the book.
The role of personal relationships and professional relationships and how those serve two very different purposes in this book was鈥�.. just beautiful. The way individuals understand themselves and each other in different ways was painted (please pardon the pun) exquisitely in this book. And the observation that often people need both the love and space to become who they need to be- just heart warming. You don鈥檛 need to understand art all that much, despite the book being heavily rooted in it- because a. books (including this one) are themselves a form of art, and b. you are a person, and art is (in my opinion) about people.
Will definitely be re-reading when the time is right again, just to feel the warm, glowing feelings again.
Another very engaging historical fiction, this time focused on the artist Hilma af Klint and the group of women who called themselves The Five (Da Fem), inspiring each other to make great art that was ahead of its time.
Intressant som alltid med historia d盲r kvinnor gl枚mts bort men f氓r komma fram i ljuset. Hade g盲rna sett utst盲llningen nu n盲r man vet mera om hennes liv.
hilma af klint is my new favorite artist!! but this book could have been better. the prose was not great and the second storyline that took place in the present was so boring i could not have cared less about the male main character
If you want to learn more about the amazing art and life of Hilma af Klint, read her biography by the brilliant Julia Voss. Voss has a command of af Klint's work and impact that far exceeds anything attempted in this historical retelling. This book does af Klint no favors.
The two interwoven narratives don't work. The descriptions of an artist's life and the world of a curator are cliche and thin. Arbitrary choices are made when including actual artists names and then others have been changed to fictional names (I can understand why Nan Goldin didn't want her name used but we loose some of the importance of why it's included in the first place.) There is a lot of telling going on and not a lot of showing.
I would say it's a beach read, but why do so when there are so many other books more worthy of your time?
Tre kvinnliga b盲sts盲ljarf枚rfattare g氓r p氓 Hilma af Klint utst盲llningen p氓 Guggenheimmuseet 2019 och blir inspirerade av ett litet fotografi av de fem. Under covid, inte l氓ngt efter me too, skriver de var f枚r sig, men 盲nd氓 tillsammans genom dagliga samtal som 鈥漢氓ller dem levande鈥� under pandemin, en fiktiv ber盲ttelse som vill ge liv 氓t de fem och Hilma af Klints liv och verk.
Om du gillar l盲ttl盲st, b盲sts盲ljande chicklitt med driv och en sp盲nnande story inneh氓llande brevv盲xling, en nutida parallellhandling i exklusiva milj枚er som blandas med den historiska ber盲ttelsen och inte s枚ker litter盲ra kvalit茅er och god 枚vers盲ttning s氓 盲r det h盲r boken att ligga i soffan med och k盲ka sm氓godis till en fredagskv盲ll.
I have been eyeing this book for awhile I am so glad I finally picked it up. I liked both the historic and present day storylines and it was so interesting to read about women artists in the late 1800/early 1900's, you really don't hear much about women artists from this timeframe. Overall the story was interesting and engaging. I am a fan of both Alyson Richman and MJ Rose but Sofia Lundberg is a new author to me, I will look out for more of her books.
The Friday Night Club is a novel of art, history, and characters preserving the legacy of artists they love. It reminded me of The London Restoration or The Jane Austen Society. I enjoyed this one, though I admit it was more technical and historical than I initially expected. Overall, if you enjoy books about women and art history, you'll enjoy this one.
gick snabbt att l盲sa men tycker som alltid att det 盲r sv氓rt att blanda historia med fiktion - vad ska man d氓 som l盲sare ta med sig? trodde f枚r枚vrigt att Eben var en kvinna fram till de sista 50 sidorna och blev mycket chokerad 枚ver att han och Blythe inte var ett lesbiskt par
En fantastisk ber盲ttelse om en lika fantastisk kvinna och hennes grupp. Jag tror att jag gillar boken s氓 mycket eftersom jag nyligen sett filmen Hilma af Klint, boken och filmen kompletterar varandra j盲ttebra.
I struggled with the writing in this book. There were so many intriguing characters, but the storytelling was very flat, almost dull. As a work of historical fiction, however, the subject manner was fascinating and definitely made this book worth reading.
Interesting take on this group of early female artists and how they came about their ideas for their paintings. Through seances, they created their new genre. Uncredited and mostly unseen, five women pave the way for a whole new generation of artist. At the helm was Hilma af Klint, an artist who is still under seen and under appreciated.
At the core of this group was their friendship and their tenacity to create.