Reviews
Despite previously limited exposure to the visual arts, I was immediately caught up in the image of artists traveling from all over the world to paint in Monet's Gardens brought to me in this beautiful book. A photo memoir/relationship tale narrated by a multilingual opera singer, “Light, Art & Love” mostly takes place in Giverny, France, where artist Gale Bennett (later the author’s husband), held painting workshops. Besides showing me magnificent images of Monet’s Gardens and the picturesque French countryside, the book helped me visualize scenes of artists’ dinners in a charming Normandy lodge, with lively discussions about art as guests savored exquisite food and fine wine. Another fascinating part of the story was the business end of the art program, including the author’s challenges arranging every detail of food and lodging for her guests. Cello Bennett's practical yet delicate way of describing Giverny makes me feel as if I had actually been to the village, and inspires me to go there one day.
—Carlene A. Thissen
Author, “Immokalee’s Fields of Hope” and “Called from Silence. The Father Sanders Novel”
Photo: Giverny, Hotel Baudy garden, painters' studio by Cello Bennett
Light, Art & Love is the memoir of a former opera singer taking a chance on love with a gregarious artist who runs an art school at Monet's Garden in the idyllic village of Giverny, France. It is an intriguing love story, a bit of a travelogue, and a record of lives filled with beautiful art, music, the pleasure of food, and interesting people. It is a story of life lived to its fullest. I particularly enjoyed reading about the joys and challenges of managing the art school.
I recommend this book to anyone who dreams of going or has been to Monet's Garden for ideas of places not to be missed or a walk down memory lane. This book will also appeal to admirers of contemporary art, who will especially appreciate the many included pictures of Gale Bennett's and other artists' work.
—Janet Raffauf
Francophile & Avid Reader
Photo: Giverny, Church of St. Radegonde Photo by G.R. Nuckolls