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Leonardo Da Vinci: The Flights of the Mind
 
 
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Leonardo Da Vinci: The Flights of the Mind (Paperback)

by Charles Nicholl (Author)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
RRP: £10.99
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Leonardo Da Vinci: The Flights of the Mind + Da Vinci Notebooks + Leonardo da Vinci: the Complete Works
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Product details

  • Paperback: 656 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin (7 April 2005)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0140296816
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140296815
  • Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.8 x 3.6 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 52,723 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #71 in  Books > Biography > Artists, Architects & Photographers > Artists

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Product Description

Daily Telegraph

‘Gripping, beguiling … brings a genius down from his lonely pedestal and into the world’

Peter Conrad, Observer

‘Charles Nicholl, in this bright, cunning, intrepidly intelligent biographical study, has startlingly demystified his enigmatic subject’
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Leonardo Da Vinci: The Flights of the Mind
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Leonardo Da Vinci: The Flights of the Mind 4.1 out of 5 stars (9)
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Leonardo da Vinci: the Complete Works 4.7 out of 5 stars (3)
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Leonardo da Vinci : The First Scientist
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Leonardo da Vinci : The First Scientist 3.2 out of 5 stars (6)
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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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59 of 73 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Of da Vinci the painter, not of the multitalented man, 28 Jun 2005
Nicoll manages to give a good view of the personality of Leonardo da Vinci, by describing what is known about da Vinci's childhood and then proceeding to describe his career as a *painter* in chronological order. Although in describing character Nicoll occasionally falls in depth into Freudian mumbojumbo, he has to be complemented that he does recognize that it is only fantastical speculation. The style of Nicoll is enjoyable and easy to read.
If you want to a good description of da Vinci the painter and his career, then this is the book for you. Nicoll goes in detail to the creation of many paintings of da Vinci, both those well known to general public and those less well known.
However, if you want a biography of da Vinci the multitalented man, then this book is definitely not for you. More space is given for description of a single art project that never came to be than is given to all the inventions and scientific contributions of da Vinci. As an example, Nicoll mentions that in the field of anatomy da Vinci's original contribution was greatest, and then proceeds to give six pages and two illustrations on the topic. And, unfortunately, most of these six pages is on the usefulness of the study of anatomy to a painter. More room is given to speculations about the possible identity of a female model in a painting lost hundreds of years ago than is given to the actual contribution of da Vinci to the field of anatomy. There is no description of the state of anatomical knowledge at the time and no description of how Leonardo added to this knowledge.
If you did not know anything about da Vinci before reading this book, you would finish with the impression that he was a mere painter and sculptor who never really did anything else - except dreamt of flying because of some Freudian type of childhood problem. Admittedly, paintings are perhaps the most lasting contribution of da Vinci, but they are not the reason why his figure appears in comics and novels, e.g. in Pratchett's Discworld books in disguise of Leonard da Quirm.
If the painting part was cut by 50 % and replaced by more detailed description of his other activities, this could be a very good book.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The man and his time, 18 Sep 2006
By Nikolaos "Nikolaos, London" (London, London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
Superbly researched, beautifully written, this book vividly evokes the life and times of one of the truly great geniuses of all time. All the fascinating aspects of this complex man's personal life and manifold professional achievements (and failures) are described.

Strongly recommended for anyone with an interest in Da Vinci, Italian history and art or just a great biography.
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9 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A struggle in places but worth the perserverence, 4 Jun 2006
By Spider Monkey (UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)   
This book is an enlightening read about a truly remarkable man. Da Vinci lived like no other man of his time and like few since. This book explores his life in great detail and although it gets a little dry at times, generally it is a fascinating and inspiring read. Worth sticking with to get a great deal out of it.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars I loved it, but...
I loved the book and I eventually looked forward to my evening reading of it. The book in itself is well written and highly readable. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Alessandra Forti

5.0 out of 5 stars Da Vinci travels with Amazon
Book ordered and sent as a present to a relative.
The book is well researched and written and gives an insight in to the maestro?
Published 7 months ago by Mr. Robert K. Littler

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book but please......
....please, please can publishers make books a bit more eye-friendly? I bought this book for an art history course, consulted it as a reference book first, using the truly... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Elaine

3.0 out of 5 stars When is a life not a life?
This book, like Leonardo himself, is somewhat of a puzzle. It is a five hundred page biography about a man whom it appears we actually know very little about in terms of his... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Mrs. K. A. Wheatley

5.0 out of 5 stars Da Vinci myths debunked but the man appears greater for it.
A well researched epic work that kept my interest all the way. I could believe in the author´s take on Da Vinci, his early life, his insecurity of tenure of a career so... Read more
Published on 12 Feb 2006 by Michael J. Law

4.0 out of 5 stars a bit dull
The book is an excellant description of leonardo but it gets into such detail that it just gets to the point that it bores the hell out of you.
Published on 13 Aug 2005 by joe

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