This is the second of Mike Resnick's entrants into Watson-Guptill's Art Encounters series, but unlike the volume he wrote concerning Leonardo Da Vinci this is not a science fiction novel, but a mainstream young adult novel.

This should not prevent you picking the book though, for Resnick is a very readable writer. His prose is straightforward and clean, he tells the story straight with no complications or floweriness of language. This style suits me perfectly.

He also demonstrates an excellent grasp of characters in this book. In a number of Resnick sf stories characaterisations are very much second fiddle to the plot. This does not play badly in his science fiction as his plots and settings are epic and too much foreground detail might detract. But in this book the story is on a much smaller more intimate stage, and as such relies heavily on the characters working. And I can most happily report that they are engaging, endearing and feel exceptionally real.

The first of his Art Encounters books seemed like one of those books ideally suited to my tastes. I have been a science fiction fan since I was a kid, and have a deep interest in art so a book combining both written by one of my favourite authors was a book I was almost destined to like. Remove one of the elements (the sf) from this one and you still have a book I found thoroughly entertaining. If anything (and I realise the sacriligeous nature of this comment) this works all the better for being non-sf.

Montmartre in the last years of the nineteenth century was a fascinating place, with the Moulin Rouge at its centre. And in amongst it all was Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, the famous painter whose brilliant promotional poster immortalised the club. But exactly how was this painting conceived?

Now, okay the story told in this book is not how it happened – this is fiction. But fiction can evoke reality, and this brings the era to life and the people who lived it – the real ones (like the artist, the dancers and other acts at the Moulin Rouge) and the cast of supporting characters (like the girl who encounters Henri).

This book was addictive, I would promise myself I would read just one chapter before getting some sleep, but somehow (as is common with Resnick's work) somehow one chapter just would not do.

Make the effort, track down a copy of this book and read it. The problem is then you just might have to track down the Leonardo title (as well as the next one - Salvador Dali next time I hear).

Synopsis
At the cabarets and brothels of Montmartre, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec is a well-known visitor. Brilliant, rich, and deformed, Toulouse-Lautrec carries on flirtations and relationships with many women—prostitutes as well as famous singers and dancers. In A Club in Montmartre, renowned writer Mike Resnick imagines the lonely artist meeting a starving waif, Dany, at the famous Moulin Rouge. Dany, like so many before her, falls under the spell of the dissolute can-can dancer known as La Goulue.

Toulouse-Lautrec wages a Faustian battle with La Goulue for the young girl's soul even as he is losing the battle for his own, slipping deeper and deeper into alcoholism and bitterness. This deeply felt story, Resnick's first in a genre other than science fiction, captures the intensity of a genius caught between his limitations and his aspirations.