2008 # 155

Jack Dann - The Memory Cathedral: A Secret History of Leonardo Da Vinci - Finished - 12/21/2008

This tale begins when Leonardo is an old man and in his last days. He is burning some of is folios of drawings and remembering his past. We then jump to Leonardo as a young man working in the bottega of Verrocchio as an assistant. The tale recounts his life in a construction based on known facts married to fictional accounts. There is political intrigue between the Medici family and the Pope of the era and between the Medici and other prominent families around Florence. We also visit Leonardo's several romances none of which end well. When he is forced to leave Florence, we follow him to Egypt and west with the Caliph's army against the Turks, where Leonardo's military inventions are put to use. We end back in Leonardo's study as more papers are confined to the fires. It was an interesting although read with stark pictures of the time and place. Extravagant dress and practices of the noble elite versus the poverty and squalor of the under class existence.

ISBN - 0-553-37857-0, Historical Fiction, Pages - 482, Print Size - R, Rating - 4