The Chalk Artist | Allegra Goodman

Author: Allegra Goodman
Publisher: Atlantic Books (2017)
ISBN-10: 1786491931
ISBN-13: 9781786491930
Condition: Very Good
Binding: Softcover
Pages: 335
Dimensions: 23.4 x 15.7 x 2.5 cm
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by Allegra Goodman
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A tender affair and the redemptive power of art are at the core of this compelling novel from National Book Award finalist Allegra Goodman, "a romantic realist who dazzles with wit [and] compassion" (The Wall Street Journal).

Collin James is young, creative, and unhappy. A college dropout, he waits tables and spends his free time beautifying the streets of Cambridge, Massachusetts, with his medium of choice: chalk. Collin's art captivates passersby with its vibrant colors and intricate linesuntil the moment he wipes it all away. Nothing in Collin's life is meant to last. Then he meets Nina. . . .

The daughter of a tech mogul who is revolutionizing virtual reality, Nina Lazare is trying to give back as a high school teacherbut her students won't listen to her. When Collin enters her world, he inspires her to think bigger. Nina wants to return the favoreven if it means losing him.

Against this poignant backdrop, Allegra Goodman paints a tableau of students, neighbors, and colleagues: Diana, a teenage girl trying to make herself invisible; her twin brother, Aidan, who's addicted to the games produced by Nina's father; and Daphne, a viral-marketing trickster who unites them all, for better or worse.

Wise, warm, and enchanting, The Chalk Artist is both a finely rendered portrait of modern love and a celebration of all the realms we inhabit: real and imagined, visual and virtual, seemingly independent yet hopelessly tangled.