The Painter

'Is there a moment, Bernard wondered, when your life changes forever? The room fairly sang to him . . . It sang colours such as he'd never seen before. It sang freedom, madness, joy! And the future was clear and certain.'

Bernard is an aspiring but alienated young artist living it the French city of Arles. He finds himself in conflict with his teacher who disapproves of his painting style, his contemporaries who are suspicious of him, and most of his family who simply do not understand. Only Bijou, his beloved grandmother, appreciates his originality and sensitivity. However, Bernard's life changes irrevocably when he meets the great Vincent Van Gogh, and his real struggles - and perhaps his real life - begin.

Libby Hathorn vividly narrates this compelling story of a young person's struggle to find his true calling and sets it alongside a moving and heart-breaking account of Vincent Van Gogh's last years of life.