BOOKS
BOOKS
Michelangelo at Midlife
and Rick Steves books & TV
Travel, history, music, poetry, the arts, personal life events, humor, and the shared universe of Big Ideas… all find expression in Gene Openshaw’s work.
His most recent book, which combines them all, is…
MICHELANGELO AT MIDLIFE: CHASING THE TOMB OF JULIUS II
A traveler’s quest for Michelangelo’s most troubled masterpiece.
FROM FLORENCE TO PARIS TO ROME, a man crisscrosses Europe in search of Michelangelo’s most notorious work: the Tomb of Pope Julius II. Along the way, he teams up with an intriguing Italian woman who opens his eyes to the artist’s troubled inner life and the personal struggle they all share—an acute midlife crisis…
Michelangelo at Midlife is typical of Gene’s work: ambitious, operatic, and hard to classify. It’s a hybrid, weaving two stories together, one fictional, one nonfiction. “Michelangelo’s story wrapped in a 21st century novel,” as one reviewer put it. At your local bookstore, you may find it variously shelved under “Biography,” “Art,” “Travel Literature,” or just plain “Fiction.”
The core of the book is Michelangelo’s story—his 40-year struggle to complete what he hoped would be his magnum opus. Incredibly, this is the only non-scholarly book (that is, “readable”) about the much-talked-about but little-known Tomb of Julius II.
But that’s just the start. Gene himself described how the book evolved as he wrote it: “It began as a purely nonfiction account. But I wanted it to have a sense of ‘place,’ so I added a modern traveler following in Michelangelo’s actual footsteps. Next, that traveler became fictional, to add a dramatic layer. Then I realized the traveler—though highly fictionalized—was kind of like me, and, suddenly, whoa! this is my story!”
The book kept growing. An array of colorful graphics (by Dave Hoerlein) and elegant design (by Sandra Hundacker) transformed the book from a story of words to one also told visually. Taken together, all those elements aim for an emotional impact that’s greater than the sum of the parts. With its evocative travelogue, colorful images, and history detective story, Michelangelo at Midlife is a fast read for lovers of the arts with a romantic streak.
“This is an entertaining treat, especially for art lovers and wanderlust-afflicted travelers looking for a breezy read.” -- Kirkus Reviews
“Like a trip to Italy: edifying, informative, and unpredictable.” -- BookLife Reviews
Michelangelo at Midlife is available wherever you get your books—in print, e-book, or audiobook. Consider supporting your local brick-and-mortar bookstore (rather than Amazon) by ordering it directly from them.
RICK STEVES BOOKS
Gene and travel guru Rick Steves met in 7th grade and have been collaborating off and on ever since.
Together they’ve written numerous books and TV shows, with Gene specializing in making Europe’s history, art, and culture accessible to the traveler. Their guidebooks (to Paris, Rome, London, etc.) are some of the best-selling in the English language. The full-color art book “Europe’s Top 100 Masterpieces” is a breezy overview of Western art with full-color, full-page illustrations. “Europe 101: History and Art for the Traveler” is still going strong after four decades.
For PBS TV, Rick and Gene have co-authored a number of specials, such as “Fascism in Europe,” and the ambitious six-hour documentary covering the entire history of “Art in Europe.” Gene has also produced dozens of audio tours, where Rick guides travelers through historic sites.
The adventures of Rick and Gene traveling across Asia are documented in Rick’s published journal, “On the Hippie Trail.”
M@M NEWS
Gene and Rick Steves were recently featured for Rick’s “On the Hippie Trail.”
Picture these two callow youths trucking through exotic Kathmandu.
They come across a temple. Gazing up at the holy shrine, they see a sculpture. Is it Buddha? Krishna? Shiva and Parvati? No, looking closer, they can clearly see that the subject of this so-called “sacred” carving is unmistakably… a man pleasuring a woman from behind.
What the—?!
“It hit us,” said Gene, “that the art of Asia was as inscrutable to us as Europe’s Renaissance nudes and medieval crucifixes must be to others.”
So when Gene and Rick returned home, they began writing guidebooks that would make Europe’s art, history, and culture accessible to ordinary folks.
“The key was to see Europe through the traveler’s eyes.”
That’s how Sam came to be.
When Gene started writing Michelangelo at Midlife, the character of Sam was essential. He’s the traveler, and at first he’s disoriented. He has to feel his way—just as the reader does—through the mystery of Michelangelo’s enigmatic Tomb of Julius II.
As the reader’s-eye-view, Sam brings the distant world of Michelangelo into the 21st century.
(And as for those erotic temple carvings in Kathmandu? Well, those remain a mystery, even to scholars, to this day.)