Description

THE 1 MILLION COPY BESTSELLER

“Shockingly good.”-The Daily Mail

Ten-year-old Mona is about to lose her sight forever. Her beloved grandfather has only fifty-two Wednesdays to visit fifty-two works of art and commit to memory “all that is beautiful in the world” before this happens.

While the doctors can find no explanation for Mona’s brief episode of blindness, they agree that the threat of permanent vision loss cannot be ruled out. The girl’s grandfather, Henry, may not be able to stop his granddaughter from losing her sight, but he can fill the encroaching darkness with beauty. For every Wednesday during a year, the pair will visit a single masterpiece in one of Paris’s renowned museums. From Botticelli to Basquiat, Mona learns how each artist’s work shaped the world around them. In turn, the young girl’s world is changed forever by the power of their art.

Under the kind and careful tutelage of her grandfather, Mona learns the true meaning of generosity, melancholy, love, loss, and revolution. Her perspective will never be the same-nor will the reader’s.

READER REVIEWS

“This is a novel that will touch many.”

“Hypnotic.”

“This beautiful, well-researched book is captivating.”

“A pleasure read!”

“I loved every page.”

“Heartwarming and refreshing.”

Publisher Review

"A heartfelt novel." * The New York Times * "Shockingly good." * The Daily Mail * "Schlesser's novel is a masterclass in describing the experience of art." * Literary Review * "A rare book - poignant, wise and full of wonder." * Louisa Treger, author of The Paris Muse * "Art historian Schlesser's vibrant English-language debut frames a survey of classical Western art with the story of a Parisian man supporting his 10-year-old granddaughter after her sudden bout of temporary blindness... Schlesser seamlessly interweaves the art lessons with Mona's story, which concludes with an explanation for the cause of her blindness. Readers of Jostein Gaarder's Sophie's World will love this." * Publishers Weekly * "Mona's Eyes is gentle, bold, poetic, poignant and overall, utterly magnificent. I'm struggling to fully sum up how much I have loved reading this, but I think this has quickly become one of my favourite books that I've read this year." * Charlotte Gowans, Waterstones * "Schlesser expertly blurs the line between art history and fiction to create a heartfelt story about peoples' relationship to the world and to others. Told in simple terms, yet educational and expressive, the book evokes the same experience as other classics like 'Sophie's World' by Jostein Gaarder." * Odie Lafferty, Hodges Figgis * "This incredibly buzzy debut is something like if an acclaimed art historian had written All the Light We Cannot See... It feels passionate and engaging and really captures the freshness and wonder of understanding art, the world, growing up, through the eyes of a child." * Miriam Gordis, Albertine Bookstore, New York * "An ode to beauty and wisdom." * Le Parisien * "It's an earthquake. A seismic shift in the world of publishing." * Le Figaro * "...makes you want to run to the museum. Better than Emily in Paris." * Telerama * "Fabulous!" * France Inter * "Mona's Eyes is not only a novel about art; it is also a universal tale." * La Croix * "A brilliant book." * Telematin * "A tender, absolutely captivating book." * La grande librairie * "Wonderful and poignant." * Courrier Picard * Barnes & Noble Book of the Year 2025 "This is a novel for everyone, a gentle, moving tale about family, beauty, and the fleeting moments that make lasting memories."-James Daunt