Girl In Hyacinth Blue

CHAPTERS 1-4

Reading Check

1. “‘[L]ove enough’” (Chapter 1)

2. That Cornelius’s love for inanimate objects is greater than his love for people (Chapter 1)

3. Pigeons (Chapter 2)

4. A future husband (Chapter 2)

5. Johanna is not prepared for the strength and power of love. (Chapter 3)

6. Embroidery (Chapter 3)

7. Her infertility (Chapter 4)

8. A string of pearls (Chapter 4)

Short Answer

1. Cornelius and Richard are colleagues at a school. One day, Cornelius invites Richard over to show him a painting he believes to be an authentic Vermeer. With his art background, Richard is initially hesitant and skeptical. Upon his second visit, when he learns that Cornelius almost destroyed the painting, Richard is more intrigued; however, after learning the origins of the painting, he becomes disgusted and disengages. (Chapter 1)

2. Cornelius reflects upon his father, Otto, and Otto’s work in the Nazi party during World War II. It was during this time that Otto stole the painting from a Jewish household after expelling them to a concentration camp. Otto lived most of his life in fear regarding the painting; when Otto dies, he passes along the stress of its ownership to his son Cornelius. (Chapter 1)

3. Hannah recalls the day she received the painting: She attended an auction with her father, where she immediately connected with the girl in the painting. As a result, he bids on the work, paying a large sum of money to bring it home. (Chapter 2)

4. In an act of difficulty for both her and her family, Hannah quickly wrings the necks of the pigeons. This is done for the family’s own safety in the face of changing laws of Nazi German occupation in the Netherlands. It also reflects the danger that Jewish communities generally face under Nazi occupation. (Chapter 2)

5. Digna suggests that they give the painting Girl With a Sewing Basket to her daughter and fiancé, reminding her husband that it is only a replica; however, Laurens is opposed to the idea, revealing that the painting reminded him of a girl he once loved when he was younger. (Chapter 3)

6. Upon mentioning the painting, Laurens briefly tells Digna about his first love, Tanneke, causing a moment of tension between his wife and him. Laurens then reflects on his own whether it is truly Tanneke he loved or the memories of a first romance. When he returns home, Digna uses a quote from Erasmus in order to emphasize that she has moved on from his story about Tanneke and that they should not think of the past. (Chapter 3)

7. Claudine is an unhappily married Frenchwoman living in the Netherlands with her husband. Her husband gives her the painting, a gift she treasures deeply as she connects with the girl. After beginning a romance with a musician, she discovers that her husband is adulterous as well, and she decides to sell the painting in order to get money to return to France immediately. She cannot bring the paperwork that verifies the authenticity of the painting because her husband has it locked away, but she sells the painting anyway—thereby rendering it illegitimate for future generations. (Chapter 4)

CHAPTERS 5-8

Reading Check

1. Saskia calls the baby Jantje (little Jan). It is the name on the authenticity papers. (Chapter 5)

2. His seed potatoes (Chapter 5)

3. Aunt Rika’s husband is an enslaver. (Chapter 6)

4. Jan discovers that the paint’s thickness impacts the accuracy of the images. (Chapter 7)

5. A pitcher and cloth (Chapter 7)

6. That inanimate objects can outlast people (Chapter 7)

7. The glass of milk adds significance and meaning, as it represents humanity in a simple image of everyday life. (Chapter 7)

8. Pearl earrings (Chapter 8)

Short Answer

1. Saskia’s family is forced to deal with severe flooding in her region. Arriving in a skiff one day is a small baby in a basket and a painting with papers. A note encourages the finder to sell the painting in order to help the child live. Although Saskia wants to keep the baby, she also becomes attached to the painting, since it carries such beauty. (Chapter 5)

2. As their food supply dwindles, Saskia’s husband reminds her she needs to sell the painting in order to make money for the farm. She hesitates even after learning that the painting is worth almost 80 guilders; however, after dipping into their supply of seed potatoes for cooking, she makes the journey to Amsterdam, where she sells the painting for 75 guilders. (Chapter 5)

3. Adriaan, a university student, is interested in engineering, sciences, logic, and philosophical approaches to reasoning. Aletta represents a mystical and spiritual approach to the world, as she is interested in supernatural facets of life and curses; however, despite their differences, they are attracted to one another and develop a physical relationship that results in the birth of twins. (Chapter 6)

4. Believing the birth of twins to be abnormal, Aletta kills the girl, and the body is discovered soon after. Although the couple tried to keep the pregnancy and birth a secret, soon the town learns that the infant’s death was Aletta’s doing, and she is hanged for her actions. Adriaan is left with his son; he places the painting with its documents along with his son in a skiff. He includes a note directing the finder to sell the painting to feed the baby. Adriaan does this in order to return to his life in university in Groningen. (Chapter 6)

5. As an artist, Jan spends most of his time working. He is usually highly distracted with the intimacy of his art, spending time on the subject, while his large family is chaotic around him. He does feel guilty that he does not spend more time with his children, but he also knows that the money is needed in order to sustain the life of his family. (Chapter 7)

6. Jan has a difficult relationship with his mother-in-law, who is wealthy and seems to constantly disapprove of him. She also disapproves of his brother-in-law, who has mental health conditions and experiences jealousy. After his mother-in-law is reluctant to lend Jan money, Jan returns home to find his brother-in-law beating Jan’s wife. Although Jan’s wife has a miscarriage, Jan uses the opportunity to find a hospital for treatment for his brother-in-law and, in exchange for silence, borrows the money he needs from his mother-in-law. (Chapter 7)

7. After hearing her shout about her dislike of mending, Jan selects Magdalena to pose for him for the painting. He recognizes that Magdalena takes the process seriously, as she is delighted to be chosen, a sentiment that her chapter reveals as well. Many years later, after her painting is sold in order to reverse family debts upon her family’s death, Magdalena sees the painting again at an auction. She hopes to be able to purchase the painting, but instead watches as another couple is able to secure the deal with more money. She considers telling them that she is the subject of their new painting but decides against it as she believes that her appearance over time has diminished. (Chapters 7-8)

8. Magdalena’s wish is to become an artist. She wanted to ask her father when she was little how to paint, but never felt it was right. She ideally would have wanted to paint scenes of the exterior, as opposed to women in interiors, but she recognizes that this would have been challenging to do. (Chapter 8)