Mona's Eyes by Thomas Schlesser with Patrick Bringely

Join us for a conversation with author and art historian Thomas Schlesser to celebrate his American debut, a spell-binding novel about the beauty of life, art, perspective, and a special connection between granddaughter and grandfather. He will be in conversation with New York Times best-selling author Patrick Bringely, followed by a signing.

PLEASE NOTE: RSVPs are encouraged but not required. Seating is limited and will be first come, first served. Doors open at 5:30 pm.

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“It’s an earthquake. A seismic shift in the world of publishing. A Sophie’s World set in the art world. Thomas Schlesser: Remember the name!”— Le Figaro

THE SENSATIONAL #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

Winner of the RTL-Lire Literary Magazine Grand Prix 2024

"Vibrant debut...Schlesser seamlessly interweaves the art lessons with Mona’s story...Readers of Jostein Gaarder’s Sophie’s World will love this.”—Publishers Weekly

“This incredibly buzzy debut is something like if an acclaimed art historian had written All the Light We Cannot See…Passionate and engaging.”—Miriam Gordis, Albertine Bookstore

Mona and her grandfather have only fifty-two weeks to encounter all that is beautiful in the world before Mona loses her sight forever. Here is a deeply touching, welcoming, and inspiring journey across five centuries of art in the company two unforgettable characters. A novel of Paris and its magnificent museums, a book that embraces the fullness of life in all its variety, Mona’s Eyes is also a moving story of the special relationship between a young girl and her grandfather.

“An ode to beauty and wisdom.”—Le Parisien

“A tender and absolutely captivating book.” La grande librairie

Written the brio of a novelist, the erudition of an art historian, and the exuberance of one who is alive to life’s wonders, Mona’s Eyes does for art what Jostein Gaarder’s novel Sophie’s World did for philosophy. It has the emotional impact of The Elegance of the Hedgehog and the readability of Yann Martel’s Life of Pi. Schlesser’s sensational debut novel is a highly accessible, heartfelt novel that will delight and inspire readers of all ages.

Thomas Schlesser is the director of the Hartung-Bergman Foundation in the Antibes, France. He teaches Art History at the École Polytechnique in Paris and is the author of several books about art and its relationship to politics in the 20th century. He is the grandson of André Schlesser, known as Dadé, a well-known singer who founded the Cabaret L’Écluse. Mona’s Eyes is Schlesser’s American debut. It has been translated into thirty-seven languages, including Braille.

For Europa Editions, Hildegarde Serle has translated the best-selling Mirror Visitor series by Christelle Dabos and the novels of Valérie Perrin, including the international best-seller, Fresh Water for Flowers. She lives in London.

Patrick Bringley is the New York Times bestselling author of All the Beauty in the World, a memoir about his decade working as a guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Named one of the best books of the year by the New York Public Library, the Financial Times, Audible, the Sunday Times (London), and others, the book has resonated globally, with translated editions from Brazil to Ukraine to South Korea, where it became a number one national bestseller. Patrick also starred in an Off-Broadway production of All the Beauty in the World at the DR2 theater on Union Square, a solo play he adapted from his book, directed by Dominic Dromgoole, formerly the artistic director of the Globe Theatre in London. Patrick has been interviewed by the New Yorker, the New York Times, NPR, the BBC, CBS, ABC, Fox, and many other outlets, and has lectured at major cultural institutions worldwide. He lives with his wife and children in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

Host or Publisher Rizzoli Bookstore