Frida - by Claire Berest (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

'The portrait of a fascinating, eccentric, and indomitable woman . . . an incandescent novel' Elle

'No author has yet captured Frida's tragic life in words as sensually and passionately as this' Grazia

'Claire Berest writes as captivatingly and vividly as Frida Kahlo painted' Paris Match

WINNER OF ELLE FRANCE'S GRAND PRIX DES LECTRICES

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This is the story of Diego and Frida who couldn't live without each other.

They meet at a party. She knows everything about him, about his mythology, and he knows nothing of her, she is nobody.

He is Mexico's greatest artist. She drinks like a sailor, wears flowers in her hair, talks openly about sex, loves attending protests and parties to wake the dead. She is from Coyoacán, twenty years his junior and with a broken spine to boot.

Even when her body is wracked with pain, she paints.

There were two great accidents in her life. The first was when that streetcar hit her . . . but by far the worst was meeting him.

Translated into English for the first time, Claire Berest's award-winning novel is a striking and lyrical fictional imagining of the vibrant life and tumultuous marriage of one of the world's most enigmatic and beloved artists: Frida Kahlo. Perfect for fans of The Artist, The Safekeep, Tracy Chevalier and Ali Smith.

Review Quotes

Like wandering through a painting - riotous with colour, overflowing with imagery. I had moments where I almost had to stop reading to take a breath, but it captures something of Frida herself that feels totally right. If you want to be absolutely steeped in her world, you'll love it--Emily Howes, author of The Painter's Daughters

[Berest] recounts the passion, art and torment of this long-suffering painter, a magician of colours and priestess of liberated femininity-- "Les Inrocks"

Claire Berest writes as captivatingly and vividly as Frida Kahlo painted-- "Paris Match"

No author has yet captured Frida's tragic life in words as sensually and passionately as this-- "Grazia"

The portrait of a fascinating, eccentric, and indomitable woman . . . an incandescent novel-- "Elle"

About the Author

Claire Berest is the author of novels, Bellevue (2015), Gabriële (2017), which appeared in the 2025 New York Times list of best historical fiction, Rien n'est noir (2019), winner of the ELLE Readers Grand Prize, Artifices (2021), L'épaisseur d'un cheveu (2023), and works of non-fiction. Her most recent is La chair des autres (2024), about the trial of 'Mazan's rapes' and the story of Gisèle Pélicot.