Early Reviewer Audio Book:

A fun and fantastical story. Metaphorically explaining the links between art and 'magic' through a gifted young lady (Claudia), her interesting surroundings and family. Filled with wisdom and humor.

Read excellently by Erin Moon. She gives the story beautiful depth, reading it perfectly and narrating between characters with charm and wit.

Totally enjoyable listen. ( )

Who wouldn't enjoy being able to go into a painting of your choosing? Behind the Canvas is a great book for all ages of people who love art or want to love it. Claudia Miravista is a young artist that discovers something strange on a school trip to an art museum. I won't say more about the story because I don't want to spoil it! I really enjoyed the audio book, the narrator did a great job. However I feel like I might have missed some things by listening instead of reading a hardback or paperback copy. At the beginning of the chapters there would be excerpts from what felt like an art textbook, which was fun and educating but I was worried that I was missing seeing paintings and artists that they were talking about. I will have to purchase a physical copy of the book to see if this is true, I hope so! If not then I recommend reading the book with a notebook and pen to write down paintings and artists to look up, which sounds fun anyway!

Behind the Canvas was one of my LibraryThing Early Reviewers program wins. At first I wasn't enjoying listening to it because I remember when I was a shy kid and how much it hurt when other kids laughed at me. I cringed as Claudia was telling the truth and no one believed her.

The listening got easier after Claudia first talked with Pim, the boy with the amazing crystal blue eyes. It was interesting learning about the world behind the canvas but even more interesting once Claudia got there. I loved the snooty tone Ms. Moon assumed whenever she was 'quoting' from the art appreciation book. (I wish more of the characters had been mentioned on the back of the cover since I don't know how to spell their names.)

Claudia learns things that she really didn't want to know. She meets characters from paintings, most notably a dragon, three Dutch men, Mona Lisa, and Cash the bulldog.

Her life is in great peril much of the time. I wasn't familiar with either the Fireside Angel or the Elephant of Celeb, but the descriptions got across their menace. It's a good thing I've never been a nail biter because listening to the action forces me to stay at the narrator's pace. I can't speed up my reading or (tsk!) peek ahead. The suspense was getting to me.

While Aunt Maggie's gift was not put to the use I expected, it really came in handy. Two of the big revelations came as no surprise to me (I am 61, after all), but there were more than enough things in the story that kept me guessing.

My thanks to the list at Mr. Vance's website. Being able to see the paintings/objects I hadn't seen before was a big help.

http://media.wix.com/ugd/09ab22_1d7af3017ff240a0aa2c72c67399a251.pdf

All in all, it's a painless way to learn more about art while enjoying a good fantasy.

Dog lovers should take delight in Cash.
Cat lovers, I'm afraid the cat isn't such a delight. There's an implication in its appearance that I found most disquieting. ( )

A fantasy/mystery with a 12-year-old narrator/heroine, Behind the Canvas has an interesting premise - another world behind the scenes of famous paintings.  While I'm not much for either fantasy or mystery, I did enjoy some of the funny characters (especially Cash, the bulldog from the Dogs Playing Poker painting series), as well as the entertaining (and educational) quotes from the fictional art encyclopedia that separated many chapters.  Erin Moon was a perfect narrator, as I really felt she could be heroine Claudia Miravista.

Author Alexander Vance has a helpful chart on his website listing the artists, artworks, and art topics that appear in the book, down to the page number.  A real art encyclopedia would best accompany this audiobook so the listener could take a look at the images and concepts described in the story.

© Amanda Pape - 2016

[I received this audiobook through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.  It will be added to my university library's collection.] ( )