The Agony and the Ecstasy, Irving Stone
The Agony and the Ecstasy, Irving Stone
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The Agony and the Ecstasy
A Biographical Novel of Michelangelo

Author: Irving Stone

Narrator: Arthur Morey

Unabridged: 33 hr 54 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 03/06/2012

Synopsis

This is Irving Stone's powerful and passionate biographical novel of Michelangelo. His time: the turbulent Renaissance, the years of poisoning princes, warring popes, the all-powerful Medici family, the fanatic monk Savonarola. His loves: the frail and lovely daughter of Lorenzo de Medici; the ardent mistress of Marco Aldovrandi; and his last love--his greatest love--the beautiful, unhappy Vittoria Colonna. His genius: a God-driven fury from which he wrested the greatest art the world has ever known. Michelangelo Buonarotti, creator of "David", painter of the Sistine ceiling, architect of the dome of St Peter's, lives once more in Irving Stone's marvellous book.

About The Author

Irving Stone was born in San Francisco on July 14, 1903. He wrote several books in a genre that he coined the "biographical novel," which recounted the lives of well-known historical figures. In these novels, Stone interspersed biography with fictional narrative on the psychology and private lives of his subjects. He also wrote biographies of Clarence Darrow and Earl Warren, and short biographies of men who lost presidential elections. He died on August 26, 1989.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Jeffrey on December 23, 2019

***4.5 stars out of 5*** ”To some people stone was dead; ‘hard as stone,’ ‘stone cold,’ they said. To him, as he once again ran his fingers along its contours, it was the most alive substance in the world, rhythmic, responsive, tractable: warm, resilient, colorful, vibrant. He was in love with stone.......more

Goodreads review by Ericka on June 27, 2011

Oh good lord. No wonder I'm reading this book so slowly. I have to keep putting it down and fanning myself. Here's the young Michelangelo carving marble for the first time: "He had removed the outer shell. Now he dug into the mass, entered in the biblical sense." Really? He's fucking the marble? App......more

Goodreads review by Emily on March 13, 2009

Even with Art History 101 under my belt, I was shocked to learn of his monumental contributions to sculpture, paint, architecture and even politics. But I was even more inspired by the incredible challenges he overcame throughout all of his 90 years of life. Nothing came easy. What an inspiration! H......more

Goodreads review by Paul on August 21, 2024

The "agony" and the "ecstasy" of "THE AGONY AND THE ECSTASY"! I wonder if Stone would feel honoured or slighted at my brash theft of HIS title THE AGONY AND THE ECSTASY, as the basis for my review of his wonderful work! Irving Stone's THE AGONY AND THE ECSTASY is an enormous, comprehensive re-creation......more

Goodreads review by Το on November 03, 2019

At the age of thirteen, Michelangelo enters the workshop of painter Ghirlandaio and studies the fresco painting technique. Son of a surly bourgeois father of noble descent, lost his mother at an early age, Michelangelo eventually becomes fascinated by the texture of marble and wishes to release, the......more

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