rounded up 3.5 stars
Can you like a book and give it 3.5 stars even though you know that you didn't 'get' it all? Yes, I can. This is a story told in the most interesting way, the historical and the personal, separately and together. The stuff found in textbooks and the feelings found in the heart.
Henry is lovely man, who sees and feels with colour. And if you stick with the unusual way of telling his story, you too will see and feel his thoughts. I am someone who likes paint and colour, who likes the precision of the well-chosen word. And how marvelous to see CS Richardson choose carefully between cadmium yellow and marigold, cerulean and sapphire. Because it is not just yellow and blue.
Through peace and war, Henry shares his life with the reader, through the loss of a loved one, and by walking the streets of historical Toronto and in the trenches. It sent me to a search engine many times to clarify pieces of history, and to see some of the art that was referred to. It was a book to ‘do’ and that made it worthwhile.
This books warrants a second read, it is short and it is fast and I suspect that I might find some of the missing pieces from my first attempt.
Thank you #NetGalley and #PenguinRandomHouseCanada for this early copy in exchange for my review. Proud to be a #Canadian. I have added Richardson’s previous The End of the Alphabet to my reading list.
For more thoughts on this book, see my blog https://morethanlettersonalinetoday.blogspot.com/2023/01/all-colour-in-world-book-review.html.

Although this book was vividly and descriptively written, I struggled to get into the story. The synopsis intrigued me, but sadly I wasn’t able to be fully invested in the storyline and lost interest after several attempts to pick it up. I wonder if I had listened to this novel as an audiobook, I would’ve been able to finish it.
Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the opportunity to read/review this ARC!

I wanted to like this book but I found it diffilcult to get through. The history was interesting however, the writing style was not my type of book.

It has been over a week since I finished reading All the Colour in the World by C.S Richardson and I have struggled with what to write for a review. This novel is certainly different than all other novels that I have read, written in a stream-of-consciousness style which I have to admit, I am not crazy about. Somehow, through it all, I was able to find the beautiful story of Henry’s life woven throughout this factual yet poetic piece of writing.

All the Colour in the World is the story of Henry’s life and all the trials and tribulations he lived through growing up in Toronto during the ‘20s and ‘30s. His story begins on a negative note and I have to say, it doesn’t improve a whole lot as he grows up. Luckily, he was raised by a loving grandmother who gifted him a box of pencil crayons on his eighth birthday sparking his love for art and colour that helped carry him through life.

Throughout the novel, we see Henry grow up, become an art historian, find love, suffer great tragedy, and go to war only to suffer more tragedy. Henry is a very sensitive man and he finds a way to cope that is so very beautiful to me but of course, I can’t say much more for fear of spoiling it for the rest of you. Let me put it this way, Henry is a haunted man and some things have happened to him that follow him and sometimes seem to chase him for the rest of his days.

There are historical facts along with art history facts thrown into the book here and there which acted like speed bumps, making it hard for me to follow the story. This made for a very hard read. When I realized that these facts were all Henry’s stream of thoughts, I started to appreciate the novel a bit more.

This novel will not be for everyone and even though I appreciate it, it wasn’t my cup of tea. Perhaps if I were interested in art, I would have found everything more interesting but what I wanted more of was the love story and the war story. Do I recommend this novel? No, I do not recommend but I still appreciate this novel and am interested in reading something else by this author since parts of the story were very beautifully written.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC to read and review.

This non-traditional novel frustrated me at first, but I ended up loving it.

The novel, set in Toronto, begins with the birth of its protagonist Henry in 1916. Henry is raised by his grandmother who for his eighth birthday gifts him a box of colouring pencils, thus beginning his passion for colour and art which eventually translates into a career as an art historian. His love of art and the stories of the great artists also help him navigate through his life which includes struggle and tragedy.

The structure is not what one finds in most novels. Henry’s story is interspersed with factual information, most often about colour, artists, and artistic movements. It is best not to actually think of this book as a novel; it begins with a brief discussion of Sei Shōnagon’s Pillow Book, “a collection of anecdotes, musings about life . . . favourite quotations, poetry, lists, daily affirmations – to be for her eyes only” and a zibaldone, “an informal miscellany containing everything from landscape sketches to currency exchange rates, medicinal recipes to family trees.” This opening explains what this book is, a personal journal of sorts which Henry keeps within an art history textbook.

The book ends with a mention of the journals of Marcus Aurelius and their “notes and philosophical mementos intended solely for personal guidance and self-improvement . . . at times written in the second person, and vary in length from one sentence to several paragraphs.” Leonardo da Vinci’s description of his notebooks is quoted: “’without order, drawn from many papers, which I have copied here hoping to arrange them later, each in its place, according to the subjects of which they treat.’” These references again remind the reader of the author’s intention. Interestingly, the second person point of view is used in that Henry is addressed as “you.”

The non-fiction elements, which read like anecdotes that Henry in his role as professor or art history might mention in a class, are not entirely random: logical connections can be found. For instance, his despair after the death of a loved one is interspersed with references to Manet’s painting entitled Le Suicidé; suffering the psychological effects of warfare, Henry thinks about van Gogh’s mental health issues; and a woman introducing herself as Pazienza has Henry thinking of Behan’s engraving entitled Patientia. The Yann Martel quotation at the beginning (“Art is seed, art is memory, art is vaccine”) is an excellent summary of the theme of this book.

Readers will find themselves empathizing with Henry. He is a sensitive soul who struggles to find his way in life and who experiences more than one trauma. His comment about 1941 is truthful foreshadowing: “It is the last time you remember not having a worry in the world.” I kept hoping that he would find peace and happiness.

This book will not be for everyone. At first, I was frustrated with the constant digressions but I was won over. My interest in art and art history obviously influenced my reaction. I was familiar with some of the paintings referenced but not with others, and I can see myself re-reading the book and looking at photos of the paintings. I was reminded of my enjoyment of A History of the World in 10 ½ Chapters by Julian Barnes which includes a detailed analysis of Géricault's painting, The Raft of the Medusa.

This is not a lengthy read and a reader willing to be open-minded may be surprised by how the book will resonate.

The connection with art and colour was very evident in the book. It was an easy read. Didn't capture me as much as I thought it would.

Almost did not finish. I didn't like the stream-of-consciousness style. I did enjoy glimpses of historical Toronto. Lots of art history(too much for me).

This one is tough to review. I think the writing is beautiful (or sounds beautiful at least as I was unable to download the ARC and instead listened to an ALC), but the narrative structure (or lack thereof) was different. I really loved the historical side of things and the interesting connections made between art history and life at a future time (1800s art history lesson inspired by something that happens in 1920s etc.), but I don't know who I would hand this book to. 2.5 stars

Half of this was the story of Henry growing up in Toronto in the early twentieth century and his experience in WWII, and the other half was like excerpts from textbooks.

The half that was Henry's story was good, I enjoyed following his life, his experiences and loss. But the half that was more like a textbook took away from that for me. Every few paragraphs would switch between being about Henry, to being a blurb about something historical, usually something art related. It was just really abrupt and took me right out of the story.

I think if I was into art history I would have really enjoyed this, but I'm not, so it didn't add anything for me and I wasn't able to appreciate that side of the book.

I love it when authors find new ways to shake up the traditional novel form. CS Richardson takes great liberties in “All the Colour in the World,” defining his character through a series of historical references, memories, and photograph-like descriptions. Each page contains choice fragments that lead the reader to piece together the history of Henry, the haphazard protagonist who finds himself bereft through personal loss and carried upon the tides of world events as he tries to find his own way and to make sense of a series of life-altering events through the comfort of colour, painting, art, and a certain passion for historical facts. Reading a longer novel in Richardson’s style might be more work than pleasure, but the author strikes the right balance in a shorter, fast-paced read. For anyone who seizes on historically interesting events, people, and coincidences, this is a delectable read that provides facts from a wide array of topics from art history, to science, nature, and medicine. An historical novel set in Toronto, from 1916 until the post-war period, this is a great novel to discover early to mid-twentieth century Toronto.

I really wanted to love this book. I tried, but I guess it was just not my cup of tea. I didn't give up on it though. I loved some of the descriptions the author used. I could see the colours the way he described what he saw or the object in which he was writing about. Maybe that is what I was supposed to get from this book. Not everyone sees colours in words, but I did. Maybe that's what
C.S. Richardson intended all along. Henry's life was always about art and colours. That was how he saw the world, when he was young, when he married, when he went to war.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher, for allowing me to read this book. I have rated it 3 out of 5.

Thank you for the ARC NetGalley and Knopf Canada. I found All the Colour in the World read more like a collection of journal entries rather than a story. Not really what i was expecting but i did find some of the discussion around art pieces interesting.

I found Richardson’s novel beautiful and utterly engaging. I read the entire book in a single evening and started re-reading it the next day. However, this short novel (208 pages in hardcover) will definitely not be for everyone. It has a unique “pillow book” style: Memories and observations (sometimes imaginings) interspersed with details about art and colour and history that the narrator finds significant, interesting, or enlightening.

The novel is written in the second person (“you said this, you did that” etc.) and the narrator notes near the end that Marcus Aurelius’ journals were partly written in the second person. In this novel, the narrator addresses himself (the protagonist, Henry) in the second person. So, when we read this novel, we’re reading Henry’s own pillow book style journal, which he keeps inside an art history textbook. (Gardner's Art Through the Ages, Vol 1, Chapters 1-18.)

Henry is a believable, lovable character, whose pain we empathize with — all the more because it feels like we're reading his personal journal that was intended for his eyes only. The novel is emotionally powerful and moving, even though the prose is generally simple and non-emotional. And don't worry about cleverness or originality in presentation being elevated at the expense of story. There is a strong story. (I'm not into literary fiction that dispenses with story.)

The art history and references to colour really bring home the power of art and beauty. I was familiar with some of the paintings Henry describes, but many I didn’t know. Now I’m reading the book again, I'll be looking up all of them as I go along. This slim book has a richness that will reward multiple readings and I will definitely be buying myself a paper copy. Assuming I don’t win the Goodreads giveaway, that is!

(In fact, there’s scope for a beautiful, illustrated edition and I would love that to happen and then to get it as a perfect birthday present. Hint hint.)

If you enjoy literary fiction, approach this beautiful piece of art with an open mind and an open heart. I trust you’ll be deeply rewarded with a wonderful experience.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Knopf Canada, and Penguin Random House Canada for the electronic advance reader copy.

This book is poetry.

It’s beautiful how so much can be conveyed in so few words. It was touching, brilliant, and heartbreaking.

I loved it, and I’m so grateful that it’s been written.

An ARC was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, this just wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. I had to give up and put it down approximately halfway through. While I can see where people will love this, it just wasn’t for me!

Thank you Knopf Canada publishing for an advanced digital copy via NetGalley in exchange for review.

Thank you Net Galley for giving me this opportunity to read this book.
I have no idea what the story was about except art and artusts through the centuries. It did not flow as on one page you're in the 16th century the next page the 20th century.
Giving it one star is being generous.

I enjoyed this inventive second-person narrative that was structured like a guided tour of Wikipedia but with a throughline of story. Thank you for the chance to read.

CS Richardson's intriguing work, All The Colour in the World will captivate you. The format becomes captivating and I found myself constantly capturing artistic references, quickly sliding out to the internet to view the painting or idea, making connections to the story, and then reading on. It became seamless and necessary. You'll hold your breath, smile, pause, and wonder how people deal with challenges in life. A beautifully crafted book.

I have just finished reading All The Colour In The World, by Author CS Richardson.

I did enjoy the art aspect of this book, as well as the history, and the descriptions of Toronto in the 20’s and 30’s, however to me it had the feel of a textbook.

I also had difficulty with the writing style and the flow of it.

Thank You To NetGalley, The Author and Knopf Canada for my advanced copy to read and review.

#netgalley

📖Review: All the Colour in the World by CS Richardson

Part story and part historical art critique, Richardson’s All the Colour in the World excels in describing the wondrous visualizations of the 20th century from muddy battle fronts to colour-saturated technology. All is intertwined to critique the way colour and depiction has changed through history as well as how colour can inform the journey of a life.

The story is fascinatingly built into one page chapters marked by a number. The structure of the story is reminiscent of the plaques below museum or gallery displays giving only pertinent details, and often requiring the reader to fill in context and connections. At times the structure seems almost poetic and chaotic, which successfully mimics the art collection described in the initial chapter.

The protagonist's second person perspective is intermingled with historical elements written in third person. The effect is a bit erratic and caused me to question which elements were fact and fiction. This thoughtful intersection between story and research by the protagonist successfully represents the cyclical nature of time and the protagonists experience as an art historian and how it informed his own lived experience.

Overall, I enjoyed reading All the Colour in the World. It is a strong work of literary fiction that gave me a lot to think about in its brief 200 pages. Its Canadian protagonist and the critique of human art and history are a fascinating artwork in its own right.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for this digital ARC in return for an honest review.