{"product_id":"becoming-leonardo-mike-lankford-9781612197159","title":"Becoming Leonardo: An Exploded View of the Life of Leonardo Da Vinci","description":"\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e Book of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e Book of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cb\u003e\"A truly intimate portrait of one of the greatest creators in human history,\" this biography of Leonardo Da Vinci \"has the pace, elegance, and authorial omnipresence of a novel,\" bringing both artist and Renaissance Italy to life (Noah Charney, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Art of Forgery\u003c\/i\u003e) \u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Why did Leonardo Da Vinci leave so many of his major works uncompleted? Why did this resolute pacifist build war machines for the notorious Borgias? Why did he carry the Mona Lisa with him everywhere he went for decades, yet never quite finish it? Why did he write backwards, and was he really at war with Michelangelo? And was he gay? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In a book unlike anything ever written about the Renaissance genius, Mike Lankford explodes every cliché about Da Vinci and then reconstructs him based on a rich trove of available evidence--bringing to life for the modern reader the man who has been studied by scholars for centuries--yet has remained as mysterious as ever. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Seeking to envision Da Vinci without the obscuring residue of historical varnish, the sights, sounds, smells, and feel of Renaissance Italy--usually missing in other biographies--are all here, transporting readers back to a world of war and plague and court intrigue, of viciously competitive famous artists, of murderous tyrants with exquisite tastes in art . . . \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Lankford brilliantly captures Da Vinci's life as the compelling and dangerous adventure it seems to have actually been--fleeing from one sanctuary to the next, somehow surviving in war zones beside his friend Machiavelli, struggling to make art his way or no way at all . . . and often paying dearly for those decisions. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e It is a thrilling and absorbing journey into the life of a ferociously dedicated loner, whose artwork in one way or another represents his noble rebellion, providing inspiration that is timeless.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Mike Lankford\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1612197159\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781612197159\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Melville House Publishing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/03\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 304\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.75lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.30h x 5.70w x 0.90d","brand":"Mike Lankford","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":43939156689151,"sku":"9781612197159","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/products\/img_15c5e57e-bfb1-4332-a810-d49aa745b419.jpg?v=1681439829","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/becoming-leonardo-mike-lankford-9781612197159","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}