A Marriage of Opposites

A Marriage of Opposites is the newest book by the author of many incredible novels, Alice Hoffman.
Two of my favorite books, The Museum of Extraordinary Things and The Dovekeepers are her other most recent novels.  All of these stories are based on real life historical situations that she has elaborated on to bring their stories to life.  Hoffman has the wonderful ability to weave together threads of history into a vibrant, colorful fabric that catches the reader's eye.

This is the story of life on the island of St Thomas for the small Jewish community that had escaped the European Inquisition.  It is the story of the Pizzaro family and the changing world of the early 19th century. Alice Hoffman has taken a story forgotten to history and brought it to life.  Now we will now never forget the lives and love affair of Rachel and Frederic and the artwork of their son Camille Pissarro.  She has introduced many of us to the painter Camille Pissarro and chronicled his family's history, imagining the intimate details of their everyday lives.

The story starts in 1807 on the island of St Thomas in the Jewish enclave of the port city, Charlotte Amalie.  There the families of the congregation live, work and pray together.  Secrets are kept and families help each other.  In the greater community families help or shun each other.   Rachel Pomie grows up with her best friend, Jestine, the daughter of the family cook, Adelle.  Her father teaches her to read and write in not only English but also Hebrew, Danish and Dutch and to speak French.  She is also educated in the finances of their family business.  When she turns seventeen she is married to a widow to strengthen the two family businesses. Rachel is a strong willed woman who speaks her mind and takes control of her life.  She finds true love and has 10 children, her youngest son becoming the famous artist, Camille Pissarro, who will later be known as one of the fathers of Impressionism.

Camille grows up to become a strong personality who speaks his mind and defies respectability.  He is so much like his mother that most times they are at odds.  They quarrel over his passion for art,  "I see you did a great deal of work,' Rachel said, as she examined the contents of the trunk. 'If art can be said to be that.'  She threw a look at her son and he shrugged, annoyed.  'It's a calling,' he said. 'Whether or not you wish to think of it as work is entirely up to you."  Rachel asks him what he thinks about his art and he replies, "I think of it as salvation."

He thinks far ahead of his time to when people will be equal and difference of race, religion or social standing will not matter.  He is an outcast among his peers.  Rachel had aways wanted to go to Paris. Camille also looks for escape from the island of St. Thomas in Paris.  The story will take the reader on a journey from St. Thomas to France through the generations of this fascinating family.
 
There are many relationships in this story and each one is a union of opposites.  Each marriage is a connection of opposite personalities.  So many of the relationships in this book are not recognized by the society they live in.  So each of the main characters in this book develops the ability to stand up for what they believe in and defy the standards and conventions of the times.

This is a story of the hardships of the time and a love story between those of different classes, ages and religions and how society accepted or rejected the connections.  A story of relationships and their conflicts that repeat themselves from generation to generation.  Another wonderful novel by a masterful storyteller.