Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
If you need a book summary refresh on the content in Thomas Schlesser's book "Mona's Eyes", you've got it here.
Check out other great book summaries on readingrefresh.com
You can buy the full book here: amzn.to/4uQtnaS
In Mona’s Eyes by Thomas Schlesser, a ten-year-old girl named Mona experiences a terrifying, unexplained 63-minute episode of total blindness.
Fearing that his beloved granddaughter might permanently lose her sight, her erudite grandfather, Henry, devises a secret and beautiful plan. Under the guise of taking her to weekly child psychiatrist appointments, Henry instead takes Mona on a year-long journey through three of Paris's greatest museums: the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, and Beaubourg (the Centre Pompidou).
Each Wednesday, they stand in front of a single masterpiece and study it intimately. From Botticelli's Venus and the Three Graces to Basquiat's street-art-inspired drawings, Henry's goal is to ensure that if Mona's world ever descends into permanent darkness, her mind will be filled with a reservoir of the world's greatest visual splendors rather than the trivial clutter of her childhood bedroom.
This touching novel explores the profound and tender bond between a grandfather and his granddaughter. Through their weekly museum visits, Henry imparts 52 life lessons through the lens of art history, teaching Mona everything from cultivating detachment with Raphael to cherishing melancholy with Burne-Jones.
Ultimately, it is a story about preparing for the worst by embracing beauty, and learning how to "keep the light forever inside you".
If you need a book summary refresh on the content in Thomas Schlesser's book "Mona's Eyes", you've got it here.
Check out other great book summaries on readingrefresh.com
You can buy the full book here: amzn.to/4uQtnaS
In Mona’s Eyes by Thomas Schlesser, a ten-year-old girl named Mona experiences a terrifying, unexplained 63-minute episode of total blindness.
Fearing that his beloved granddaughter might permanently lose her sight, her erudite grandfather, Henry, devises a secret and beautiful plan. Under the guise of taking her to weekly child psychiatrist appointments, Henry instead takes Mona on a year-long journey through three of Paris's greatest museums: the Louvre, the Musée d'Orsay, and Beaubourg (the Centre Pompidou).
Each Wednesday, they stand in front of a single masterpiece and study it intimately. From Botticelli's Venus and the Three Graces to Basquiat's street-art-inspired drawings, Henry's goal is to ensure that if Mona's world ever descends into permanent darkness, her mind will be filled with a reservoir of the world's greatest visual splendors rather than the trivial clutter of her childhood bedroom.
This touching novel explores the profound and tender bond between a grandfather and his granddaughter. Through their weekly museum visits, Henry imparts 52 life lessons through the lens of art history, teaching Mona everything from cultivating detachment with Raphael to cherishing melancholy with Burne-Jones.
Ultimately, it is a story about preparing for the worst by embracing beauty, and learning how to "keep the light forever inside you".
