Description

Little Suzette and her nursemaid enjoy daily walks in the park near their home. Often, they an elegant lady strolling in the park with her tiny puppy. A comical incident transforms Suzette and the puppy into friends. The time and place of this gentle story is Paris in the 1870s, when many fine artists were creating the exciting approach to painting called Impressionism. As it happens, Suzette's Uncle Edgar is one of those artists, the famous Edgar Degas. One day, Uncle Edgar sends an artist to paint Suzette's picture. Imagine Suzette's surprise, when the artist turns out to be the lady from the park! Imagine Suzette's delight when the little puppy comes with her! The result of this enchanting meeting lives on to this day in an art masterpiece. The woman was the American artist, Mary Cassatt. Her painting of Suzette and the little dog, known as The Little Girl in the Blue Armchair, now hangs in the National Gallery of Art, in Washington, D.C. A reproduction of the story's painting is included. Ages 4 to 8.