The Mona Lisa Vanishes is a nonfiction book about the theft of the most famous painting in the world. This book follows two different perspectives, one of the investigators searching for the Mona Lisa, and the other of Leonardo da Vinci before he even painted the Mona Lisa. There were several key points throughout this last part of the novel, and they all basically said the same thing: That true details were skipped over in pursuit of the shocking headline. Due to the press's interest in only the chaotic conspiracies, no one was able to look at the crime plain and simple, which is why it was so difficult to solve. The book also touches on the chances of the Mona Lisa even being painted, which are claimed to be astronomically set against its existence. In short, the book explores the life of Leonardo da Vinci, the painting of the Mona Lisa and the theft of the painting all on different and overlapping timelines.
I really enjoyed this book, which I found surprising since I’m not one for nonfiction. The way that it was written, however, was pleasant and done in a way that made the book feel lighter than a normal nonfiction book. With its descriptions of the past and its interesting take on the stories of history, this book was enticing and really absorbed my attention quickly. I would say this is for middle grade readers, as I found it easy to read and I knocked it out in only a few days. My only negative comment is that sometimes the author would repeat the same things over and over, to make a point I suppose, but after a while it was tiring to read. That being said, I still really liked this book, and I would rate it three and a half out of five stars. Good read for art and history enthusiasts.