Booking my ticket to Paris now!

I want to take The Art Spy walking-tour - admire the works of art in the Jeu de Paume, see all the paintings in the Louvre that were saved by the main character in this book, and marvel at how much happened in this city that seems to be mostly forgotten to the many tourists who visit.

There is no such walking tour?! I'm hoping Michelle Young will host a pop-up when her book is published - I'll be first in line!

Art Spy is a fact-filled account of a little-known (at least to the general public) member of the French resistance, Rose Valland. The book meticulously details efforts during WWII to save priceless works of art, it is a wonder to think about how much research the author put in to get this level of detail.

The only place it fell flat for me was that I was hoping for more of a character-driven story, a more narrative non-fiction, because the glimpses that we got of Rose Valland were really fascinating, but they were only sprinkled in amongst the incredibly detailed comings and goings of pieces of art.

The Art Spy might be best described as a non-fiction thriller, which is still well worth your time if you like a historical account of the art world.

Great book! I was expecting this to be focused on just Rose's journey through WWII as a curator and spy in Paris. Instead I was surprised as I started reading that other characters were included including the Rosenbergs and some of the higher Nazi official involved in the art heist. Despite having read others books on this topic, I still learned new things about Rose as a person and about the lengths the resistance went to document and prevent the looting of some of the largest culture pieces of western civilization

The tale of a young woman who knew what she wanted to do with her life. Throughout her career she was dismissed because she was female. She also used that to her advantage knowing that many people just could not imagine a middle-aged woman as the driving force behind the safekeeping of art entrusted to the French museums. From day one she kept a meticulous inventory of all the art in the Jeu de Paume museum both internally and where it was hidden during the German occupation. The inventory was instrumental in the art being returned to France after WWII.

It was a far more fascinating read than expected.

The Art Spy is a factual retelling of the Extraordinary Untold Tale of WWII Resistance Hero Rose Valland by Michelle Young. While not a novel, it almost read like one due to the amazing events of her life. The story also weaves in the efforts of other art dealers and historians, particularly Paul Rosenberg and his son Alexandre, who were friends with many of the great early 20th century painters. I highly recommend this book for any WWII or art enthusiast. It will make my next trip to Paris more interesting as well, as I look for the sights of where many of these extraordinary happenings took place.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for an ARC. #sponsored

Michelle Young's fascinating World War II account of Rose Valland, one-time caretaker and curator of Paris's Jeu de Paume Museum, is a must-read. When Nazis overtook the Jea de Paume in the wake of the occupation of Paris, Valland courageously remained a stalwart guardian of the museum, and, acting as a spy, kept meticulous records of the artwork the Nazis were confiscating from personal collections all over France. Later in the post-war years, she became one of the Monuments Men and Women who worked tirelessly to track down and rescue looted art in order to return it to its owners. Michelle Young paints a thoroughly engrossing and detailed portrait of Rose, taking readers on a thrilling ride through Rose's clever spy maneuvers within the museum as she outwitted the Nazis time and time again. The glimpses of Rose's personal life are poignant and, at times, tragic, as she and her decade-long partner Joyce face wartime dangers and the trials of living in occupied Paris. Young's writing is filled with page-turning suspense, action, and surprises, and Rose's real-life story is even more compelling than fiction. Michelle Young gives a masterful recounting of Rose's wartime years and the pivotal role she played in rescuing countless priceless works of art. Histories about the Monuments Women are sorely lacking, and this book will find a grateful audience among readers looking for more information about the remarkable women, like Rose, who worked in the realm of art restitution. Perfect for art lovers and World War II history buffs alike, this is a compelling, fast-paced read that's not to be missed.