The God of My Art

Longlisted for the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award What if the muse, aka the goddess of art, was male? The God of My Art paints a portrait of the artist as a young woman. Years after running away from home, gifted Helene must wrestle with her childhood if she wants to discover her true calling. She finds a muse in philosophical Matthew, who makes her past feel so far away.... but is it? Matthew dreams of escaping the mundane by becoming a humanitarian worker in a war zone, but for now he is fond of quoting Nietzsche when he's not off climbing mountains. As Helene's growing infatuation with him unfolds, so does the true nature of her hero worship. Bold and poetic, The God of My Art explores unrequited love as the source of inspiration for art. Praise for The God of My Art: "Sarah Lane's debut novel is an ambitious exploration of how an artist is born and - perhaps more importantly - how she chooses to follow that path as an adult. Lane's prose style is superb; there is a great deal of keen observation, strong dialogue, and interesting ruminations from a heroine coming of age after a difficult childhood." -Sandra Hutchison, author of The Awful Mess: A Love Story "This is one of the best books I've read in a very long time. The plot and character development was brilliant and the writing was exquisite, hard when it needed to be and gentle when required, too. The author never took a wrong turn anywhere. I didn't know where the story was going and I didn't care. I was just so caught up in it." -Martin Crosbie, author of My Temporary Life "Really takes off during a high and naked moment in a self-made steam hut in the woods." -Publisher's Weekly "Many authors succeed in capitalizing on vibrant cities to set their novels, but Sarah Lane's beautiful and simple prose takes this a magical step further. The God of My Art is far more than a collage of Vancouver beaches, streets and towering mountains. The novel's strength lies in the dichotomy of the "chosen" and "outliers"--the pampered heirs to Shaughnessy fortunes and the soon-to-disappear women of Hastings Street back alleys. Like art, Lane's prose reveals its deepest secrets not in the rays of light, but in the shadows." -New Perspectives on Canadian Literature "Be warned: Lane's prose has a tendency to gently lure you into reading the book in one sitting." -The Ubyssey