I imagine this has to be the definitive biography of Vincent Van Gogh. The research is extensive and covers in detail every phase of Van Gogh’s life. IIRC over 600 of Van Gogh’s letters were saved and if feels as if the author used every single one writing this book. If only 300 letters were saved, the book would probably be only 22 hours long instead of 45 hours. Everything you’d want to know about VVG is in here.
I came to this book interested a little in his life but mostly to hear about his painting career and perhaps an analysis of his paintings. However, since his career started so late in his life, there is a lot of material to get through before that. This is where the book was a bit exhausting for me. I only kept going because I knew eventually the author would get to the paintings. if it wasn’t for that, I would have quit several times along the way. I just didn’t need to know so much detail about the many career failures in VVG’s life before he decided to take up pencil and brush full time.
When the book did get to the final years of VVG’s, the author covers his paintings quite well. I came to a better understanding of VVG’s art and the cultural context in which he was painting. Despite the slog, that part of the book was worth listening to. The book also clarifies and busts a few of the myths around VVG such as why he cut off part of his ear and the manner of his death.
Before listening to this biography, I didn’t know much about VVG’s life outside of his paintings. After listening, my impression is that he was a malignant narcissist with delusional and paranoid tendencies and zero empathy for others. In other words, he was an a**hole who put his family through hell. I found out later in the book that some of his mental issues were hereditary. That explains some of his behavior, but he still would not be a person you’d want to befriend or hang around with. That is something I was not expecting when starting the book.