Carla Rachman's clear and engaging account offers an accessible
introduction to Claude Monet's life and art, analysing the works
themselves and also the social basis for the shifts in taste and the
changing political and economic forces within Monet's lifetime. The
artist's personal life and his relations with dealers, patrons, critics
and institutions are seen as formative influences on his work. The book
traces critical reaction to Monet's work from the early years, which
were marked by clashes with conventional artistic values, to the
present, in which Monet's vision of the world has gained popularity with
the public at large.