{"product_id":"mona-lisa-a-life-discovered-9781451658972","title":"Mona Lisa: A Life Discovered","description":"\u003cb\u003eEverybody knows her smile, but no one knows her story: Meet the flesh-and-blood woman who became one of the most famous artistic subjects of all time--Mona Lisa.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA genius immortalized her. A French king paid a fortune for her. An emperor coveted her. Every year more than nine million visitors trek to view her portrait in the Louvre. Yet while everyone recognizes her smile, hardly anyone knows her story.\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\"Combining history, whimsical biography, personal travelogue, and love letter to Italy...\u003ci\u003eMona Lisa\u003c\/i\u003e is an entertaining\" (\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e) book of discovery about the world's most recognized face. Who was she? Why did the most renowned painter of her time choose her as his model? What became of her? And why does her smile enchant us still? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eDianne Hales, author of \u003ci\u003eLa Bella Lingua\u003c\/i\u003e, became obsessed with finding the real Mona Lisa on repeated trips to Florence. In \u003ci\u003eMona Lisa: A Life Discovered\u003c\/i\u003e, she takes readers with her to meet Lisa's descendants; uncover her family's long and colorful history; and explore the neighborhoods where she lived as a girl, a wife, and a mother. In the process, we can participate in Lisa's daily rituals; understand her personal relationships; and see, hear, smell, and taste \"her\" Florence. Hales brings to life a time poised between the medieval and the modern, a vibrant city bursting into fullest bloom, and a culture that redefined the possibilities of man--and of woman. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eMona Lisa\u003c\/i\u003e is \"a readable and affectionate my-search-for-story for art lovers and anyone interested in glorious and gory Florence in the fifteenth to sixteenth centuries, and in the divine Leonardo in particular...Hales's assiduous research has made it possible for us to know Mona Lisa just a bit, enough to wonder if this otherwise ordinary Florentine housewife could ever have imagined her portrait enchanting millions for centuries\" (USATODAY.com).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eHales, Dianne:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - Dianne Hales is a prize-winning, widely published journalist and author. The President of Italy awarded her an honorary knighthood in recognition of her bestselling book, \u003ci\u003eLa Bella Lingua. \u003c\/i\u003eHer other works include\u003ci\u003e Just Like a Woman\u003c\/i\u003e;\u003ci\u003e Caring for the Mind\u003c\/i\u003e; and the leading college health textbook, \u003ci\u003eAn Invitation to Health\u003c\/i\u003e. She has served as a contributing editor for \u003ci\u003eParade, Ladies Home Journal, Working Mother, \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eAmerican Health\u003c\/i\u003e and has written for many national publications, including \u003ci\u003eFamily Circle, \u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eGood Housekeeping, The New York Times, \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eWoman's Day\u003c\/i\u003e. She lives with her family in the San Francisco Bay area.","brand":"Simon \u0026 Schuster","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50445322748178,"sku":"9781451658972","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_450f19cf-aa69-4531-b38f-1599cdf0a065.jpg?v=1729700669","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/mona-lisa-a-life-discovered-9781451658972","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}