Mona Lisa and the Others

A witty introduction to the Louvre’s many masterpieces, told from the perspective of the subjects themselves – including resident superstar Mona Lisa.

Millions of people visit the Louvre Museum every year to gaze and gawp at its all-star art collection. But there’s one star who gets a lot more attention than anyone else – and her very own special queuing system, if you can believe it! Well, the Louvre’s many other masterpieces aren’t too happy about being overshadowed – and they’re here to tell everyone what makes them just as worthy of the Mona Lisa’s teeming crowds.

With a focus on portraits and other person-centred artworks, Mona Lisa and the Others reveals the stories behind some of the Louvre Museum’s most famous artworks. Napoleon Bonaparte takes readers behind the scenes at his own coronation; the Venus de Milo explains what happened to her missing arms; the Seated Scribe lets slip some gossip about the ancient Egyptian royal family; and Madame le Brun has a polite moan about juggling the demands of being Marie Antoinette’s portrait painter and a working mother. But perhaps most intriguing of all, Mona Lisa reveals that there’s more to her portrait than her mysterious smile…

Written in a light-hearted and contemporary style by Alice Harman, and illustrated with the energetic artwork of Sir Quentin Blake, Mona Lisa and the Others is an entertaining introduction to the Louvre Museum’s collection that will appeal to children, parents, guardians and teachers from all walks of life.