"A book that often reads like an update of one of those late novels of Henry James -- as adapted, say, by Vladimir Nabokov -- in which the narrator finds all appearances to be deceptive and every revelation is calculated to raise more questions than it answers." -- Hilton Kramer, Wall Street Journal "Weber explores Balthus's many influences, from the work of Piero della Francesca to psychoanalytic theory and his brother's fascination with the Marquis de Sade... a splendid account of a complex life and as fine an artist's biography as this season is likely to produce." -- Publishers Weekly "Probing the inner man and his work, the author partially explains the mystique that has surrounded this critically acclaimed and self-invented painter whose surreal, sexually charged images are both disturbing and haunting." -- Library Journal