Hart is by far the youngest in our family; I read long books out loud to the other two children before bed. Reading aloud is tiring in comparison with the joy I found in sharing the listening experience with Hart. Also, with the older children, we were confined to that one time of the day, unlike Hart and I who turned on the story even if we were just going to the market ten minutes away.

This year, however, Hart moved up to junior high and takes the bus to school. Alone in the car, what do I read?

Here’s something I just finished, and it’s terrific.

The Art Thief
Noah Charney
Read by Simon Vance
Blackstone Audio
Approximately 10 hours on 8 CDs
$55.00 (still shows a higher price -- $11 – for Canada)
978-1-4332-0371-8

The book begins with the professional heist of a Carravagio in Rome. Then, off to Paris where an all-white painting, a “White on White” by Suprematist Kasimir Malevich, disappears from a gallery storeroom. Up in London, the National Gallery of Modern Art buys one of these “White on White” paintings at auction, and nearly the same moment that it’s delivered, the work is stolen. (There is, by the way, a Malevich at MoMA called "White Square on a White Background.")

Anyway, while it appears that there may be a connection between the thefts since they all happened at nearly the same time, it’s a rather peculiar, even indigestible combination of styles. Who would want both a Carravagio and a Malevich?

Who indeed? And that’s where this book is so fascinating, for it answers all sorts of questions about who buys art, who sells it, who steals it, and why. There are also art history lessons thrown in, and amazing details concerning the techniques of forgery, smuggling, conservation, authentication, etc.

And the characters: two fat Frenchman who roly-poly from appetizer to clue to dessert; dry and baffled Inspector Harry Wickenden, who has no interest in art, only in art thieves; Gabriel Coffin who travels around giving conferences on heisting, and has just managed to have his girlfriend – a thief, of course – sprung from prison; two smart and elegant, no nonsense female curators. But perhaps the greatest character is the reader himself.

Simon Vance’s audio interpretation of The Art Thief is light, rich, frothy, bubbling, humorous, nimble, and totally entertaining.

Yesterday, when I was thinking about writing this blog, I looked up the author online. To my astonishment, Publishers Weekly hated the book, saying it was “a story so bogged down with minutiae that even the most dedicated reader will get stuck.” I beg to disagree. I enjoyed every minute of the caper. The characters are unforgettable – I’d love to have dinner with any one of them. The dialogue is full of humor, the plot spins around deliciously, and the details of the business of art fascinate. Add to that the masterful performance of Simon Vance, and this book is pure delight.