The copyediting in my hardcover edition is total crap, and the narrative dragged a wee bit in the middle - although I doubt nearly as much as the same point in the actual war felt like it did for those that had to go through it - but otherwise, and excellent book about exactly what it says on the wrapper. Concise, focused, and written to be easily read (if not for the bad copyediting), Chanel does a masterful job at juggling an enormous number of French and German players, and the unbelievable efforts curators, guards and volunteers went through to protect the art of Louvre. The fact that she does this without deviating into politics or resistance efforts that don't directly pertain to the protection and conservation of the art made me appreciate the read even more.

Though I've been to France, I've not been to Paris; I knew, of course, that the Louvre isn't a po-dunk museum, but until I read this book and saw the photos included (alas, all black and white but better than none), I really hadn't comprehended the sheer vastness of their collections. And of course, having been to other world museums, I know that 'art' comprises many different mediums, but when I first imagined the evacuation of the 'art' prior to the outbreak of war in France, my mind's eye thought, of course, 'paintings'. Nevermind the Winged Victory of Samotrace, a sculpture coming in at just around 3.5 tons. And I never considered the paintings that were huge that had to be rolled up on giant oak poles, or Raft of the Medusa, that couldn't be rolled because the artist used bitumen for the black, which never dries but remains sticky. Evacuating that piece alone was a tale. And the Bayeux Tapestry? That tale is one that can only be marvelled at in retrospect; in the moment it must have been ... I don't know, but I image the three meant who lived it got very, very drunk afterwards.

An engaging read. ( )

I actually cried. And cheered. Its pretty rare.

The world is bleak. Read this book. ( )

I know very little about art but found the account of how the Louvre saved its treasures during WWII very interesting. I like the references to what was going on in the war during this time period. The details about the locations of the pieces did get tiring. Includes some period photos. ( )

Throughout the occupation of France, Louvre staff fought to keep priceless treasures out of the hands of Hitler and his henchmen and safeguard the Louvre palace in this suspenseful narrative of the largest evacuation of art and antiques in history.

Having previously read Carolina Hicks' wonderful biography of the Bayeux Tapestry, I had a casual familiarity with the story of the relocation of the French art treasures prior to (and during) World War II. Geri Chanel's "Saving Mona Lisa" is about how Western art's most famous painting -- and its fellow residents of the Louvre (as well as other museums in Paris and throughout France) were moved. And not just for safety reasons; for along with death and destruction, war brings looting, by both individuals and governments. The ancient Egyptian figure, "The Scribe," for example, was "removed" (the polite term) from its home in Cairo to the Louvre by Napoleon. Also, while Germany and France expropriated the lands of the Alsace-Lorraine back and forth between 1871 and 1940, the governments also helped themselves to each other's cultural heritage. C'est la vie.
Ms. Chanel tells this story with amazing detail; imagine being entrusted with the care of Mona Lisa on what turned out to be multiple road trips throughout France -- to the point of having the painting, in its own wood, velvet-lined case, at the side of your bed as you slept (in a 16th-c. chateaux!). From leaky roofs and basements to keeping well-connected "art lovers" (Hermann Goering) and scheming bureaucrats (Himmler, even some Vichy government officials) at bay, Ms. Chanel has rescued a not unimportant slice of history with a skill that her subjects, the administrators, curators and employees of the French museums exhibited during a time of crisis and chaos. Bon travail!! ( )