Millais went on to become one of Britain's most popular painters, but the stigma of his wife's past would never be forgotten.įrom the heart of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood comes a story as fascinating today as it was shocking in the 1850s. Ruskin was repelled by Effie's body Millais used her as a model in some of his greatest paintings. Merryn Williamss most popular book is The Selected Poems. Effie was regarded as mentally ill, immoral, and certainly tainted - Queen Victoria initially refused to receive her - while Ruskin was seen either as noble and virtuous or deranged and impotent. Merryn Williams has 29 books on Goodreads with 1038 ratings. Ruskin, Millais, and Effie were exposed to the kind of gossip today's wannabe celebrities can only dream of. That she could then dare to hope for respectability and even happiness as the wife of artist John Everett Millais fuelled a scandal that was to reverberate around Victorian society for years to come. When Effie Ruskin sought escape from her desperately unhappy life with art critic John Ruskin, she shattered the Victorian illusion of the perfect marriage.

Gellir defnyddio'r adolygiad hwn at bwrpas hybu, ond gofynnir i chi gynnwys y gydnabyddiaeth ganlynol: Adolygiad oddi ar trwy ganiatâd Cyngor Llyfrau Cymru.Victorian scandals don't come much more intimate and revealing than a wife seeking an annulment from her famous husband because their marriage has not been consummated. It is possible to use this review for promotional purposes, but the following acknowledgment should be included: A review from with the permission of the Welsh Books Council. In learning about her family's past, Clare comes to understand herself and gains new confidence for the future.

Who is more loved - brother or sister? Can a female be a proper artist? Whose fault is it that mum and dad are living apart? Her knowledge and admiration grow in an atmosphere of tension which somehow echoes the earlier generation's troubles. When her Welsh grandmother dies, leaving them the family home in Swansea, the summer holiday provides a welcome refuge and opportunity to discover more about the work of her woman artist relative, Euphemia Price - Effie of the title.

In a book for nine to twelve year olds, influenced by the historical characters Gwen and Augustus John, Clare finds that it is no fun being the younger sister of a clever older brother, her artistic talent dismissed, falling behind at school, and upset by her parents' marital problems.

Clare and Effie by Merryn Williams