Every short chapter, mixing a little bit of biography with an examination of an artwork, offers a tidy lesson in not just getting more from art, but more from life itself ... This is a book aimed unapologetically at the casual gallerygoer, and Gompertz wastes little time on elaborating context or investigating nuance ... This breezy approach is reflected in Gompertz’s writing. He is determined to be matey rather than professorial in his approach. As a result, he rarely sidesteps a cliché and frequently comes up with formulations that judder rather than simply jar ... Disarmingly, however, Gompertz will then write a lucid and revealing passage ... It is in such segments that the book’s theme truly emerges and the idea of artists’ exceptionalism moves beyond lip service and is given heft.
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