Contre-Jour: A Triptych After Pierre Bonnard

This mannered book tells more about the frustrated and pitiful existences of Bonnard's wife and daughter than about the impressionist painter himself, who, from the women's view, considered them both still lifes to be positioned and repositioned in the best light. In this sad household, it seems that only the petsincluding a series of dachshunds named Freddyenjoy themselves as they follow their mistresses from chair to chair. Written crisply and with visual clarity, this disturbing narrative has a texture reminiscent of impressionist style and evokes scenes and moods from Bonnard's best-known works. (May)