Chevalier, Tracy. Girl with a Pearl Earring. Penguin Putnam Inc. (New York: 1999).
A fictional tale set in 1660’s Holland behind the famous painting by Vermeer. The girl respects her position and obligations as the family maid, and yet has inner fire – an interpretation the painting supports. Attracted to the great painter, she assists him and is ultimately painted by him, but that goes too far for the wife and others in their constricted world. A certain fatalism, even cynicism at times, but this girl is a survivor. For writers: Chevalier has created a credible tale out of the already known by investing this world with enough coarseness and detail to stand for possible truth.