9 Best historical books like Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death by Laura Cumming

Cover of Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death by Laura Cumming

Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

By: Laura Cumming

4.19

Format: 272 pages, Hardcover

New York Times bestselling author Laura Cumming “combines first-rate art history with deeply felt m…

"It is such a long journey out, this one, from where we came; this life, our life, the journey between the first and last shores."

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

"It is such a long journey out, this one, from where we came; this life, our life, the journey between the first and last shores."

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

"We see pictures in time and place. We cannot see them otherwise. They are fragments of our lives, moments of existence that may be as unremarkable as rain or as startling as a clap of thunder. Whatever we are that day, whatever is going on behind our eyes, or in the forests of our lives, is present in what we see. We see with everything that we are."

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

"We see pictures in time and place. We cannot see them otherwise. They are fragments of our lives, moments of existence that may be as unremarkable as rain or as startling as a clap of thunder. Whatever we are that day, whatever is going on behind our eyes, or in the forests of our lives, is present in what we see. We see with everything that we are."

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

If you liked the historical plot in Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death by Laura Cumming , here is a list of 9 books like this:

Cover of Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death by Laura Cumming

1. Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

By: Laura Cumming

4.19

Format: 272 pages, Hardcover

New York Times bestselling author Laura Cumming “combines first-rate art history with deeply felt m… read more

Similar categories in Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • art
  • art history
  • biography
  • memoir
  • history
  • 17th century
  • historical
  • biography memoir
  • nonfiction
  • audiobook
"It is such a long journey out, this one, from where we came; this life, our life, the journey between the first and last shores."

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

"We see pictures in time and place. We cannot see them otherwise. They are fragments of our lives, moments of existence that may be as unremarkable as rain or as startling as a clap of thunder. Whatev…"

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

"I cannot get enough of Dutch art. You can turn to this other world -- and it is a picture world as no other, a whole society visualised through time and place, seasons and generations, moment by mome…"

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

"Fabritius is thirty-two, and I was the same age when I first wrote about his self-portrait. He and I remain the same age whenever we meet. He is dead, I am still alive, so the existential maths [sic]…"

-Laura Cumming, Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

Cover of The Wren, the Wren by Anne Enright

2. The Wren, the Wren

By: Anne Enright

3.55

Format: 278 pages, Hardcover

An incandescent novel about the inheritance of trauma, wonder, and love across three generations of… read more

Similar categories in Anne Enright's The Wren, the Wren book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook
"It's not that I think about him constantly, he is my way of thinking. His mind is my compass, his eyes my only mirror."

-Anne Enright, The Wren, the Wren

"We don’t walk down the same street as the person walking beside us. All we can do is tell the other person what we see. We can point at things and try to name them. If we do this well, our friend can…"

-Anne Enright, The Wren, the Wren

"We don't walk down the same street as the person walking beside us. All we can do is tell the other person what we see. We can point at things and try to name them. If we do this well, our friend can…"

-Anne Enright, The Wren, the Wren

Cover of Wifedom: Mrs. Orwell's Invisible Life by Anna Funder

3. Wifedom: Mrs. Orwell's Invisible Life

By: Anna Funder

4.13

Format: 464 pages, Hardcover

This is the story of the marriage behind some of the most famous literary works of the 20th century… read more

Similar categories in Anna Funder's Wifedom: Mrs. Orwell's Invisible Life book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • history
  • biography
  • memoir
  • historical
  • biography memoir
  • nonfiction
  • audiobook
Cover of Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad

4. Enter Ghost

By: Isabella Hammad

4.09

Format: 336 pages, Hardcover

A bold, evocative new novel from the Sue Kaufman, Betty Trask and Plimpton Prize Award winner Isabe… read more

Similar categories in Isabella Hammad's Enter Ghost book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook
Cover of Soldier Sailor by Claire Kilroy

5. Soldier Sailor

By: Claire Kilroy

4.10

Format: 256 pages, ebook

Well, Sailor. Here we are once more, you and me in one another's arms. The Earth rotates beneath us… read more

Similar categories in Claire Kilroy's Soldier Sailor book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook
"I laughed and then we were doing that thing again, our thing: laughing into one another's eyes. All that time I had thought I was jollying you along when all that time you were jollying along me."

-Claire Kilroy, Soldier Sailor

"I tell my husband about my childhood and he tells me about his but it isn't the same. We can never know each other as we were then. But I know you. I will see the child you were in the man you will b…"

-Claire Kilroy, Soldier Sailor

"Hated cling film. Hated it more than I hated kinetic sand. Defeated by something that lacked a third dimension. While I'd been off tinkering on the cerebral plane, the smart money has been mastering …"

-Claire Kilroy, Soldier Sailor

"I knelt down to pick up the hatchling to . . . . what? Give it back to its mother? Here is your dying chick? Just before I made contact with it, she dive-bombed me. The mother actually dive-bombed me…"

-Claire Kilroy, Soldier Sailor

Cover of Ordinary Human Failings by Megan Nolan

6. Ordinary Human Failings

By: Megan Nolan

3.78

Format: 224 pages, Hardcover

When a 10-year-old child is suspected of a violent crime, her family must face the truth about thei… read more

Similar categories in Megan Nolan's Ordinary Human Failings book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook
"She loved the feeling of doing something on her own, and doing it in a routine. It felt thrillingly adult and affirmed her most cherished hope, the hope that she might have an actual inner life of su…"

-Megan Nolan, Ordinary Human Failings

"He had the sort of bland, agreeable, rosy face which could disappear into whatever context he wished it to. He was blond but not provocatively so. The naturally dull Kent accent could be clipped and …"

-Megan Nolan, Ordinary Human Failings

Cover of All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, a Black Family Keepsake by Tiya Miles

7. All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, a Black Family Keepsake

By: Tiya Miles

3.95

Format: 385 pages, Hardcover

In a display case in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture sits… read more

Similar categories in Tiya Miles's All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, a Black Family Keepsake book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • history
  • biography
  • memoir
  • historical
  • biography memoir
  • nonfiction
  • audiobook
"Though necessary to the work of uncovering the past, archives are nevertheless limited and misleading storehouses of information. While at times imposing and formal enough as to seem all-encompassing…"

-Tiya Miles, All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, a Black Family Keepsake

Cover of Brotherless Night by V.V. Ganeshananthan

8. Brotherless Night

By: V.V. Ganeshananthan

4.46

Format: 348 pages, Hardcover

In this searing novel, a courageous young woman tries to protect her dream of becoming a doctor as … read more

Similar categories in V.V. Ganeshananthan's Brotherless Night book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • historical
  • audiobook
Cover of In Defence of the Act by Effie Black

9. In Defence of the Act

By: Effie Black

4.12

Format: 182 pages, Paperback

Are we more like a coffee bean, a carrot or an egg? What happens to us when we are boiled in the tr… read more

Similar categories in Effie Black's In Defence of the Act book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

"Anorexia is a secretive disease, it fed on Beth's stories of conquering her past demons."

-Effie Black, In Defence of the Act

"Sharing is the currency of friendship, perhaps everywhere, but especially at university."

-Effie Black, In Defence of the Act

"We speak until our mouths ache. I won't remember what we speak about, but I'll be certain it was deep. We are both terribly deep."

-Effie Black, In Defence of the Act

Cover of Western Lane by Chetna Maroo

10. Western Lane

By: Chetna Maroo

3.51

Format: 160 pages, Hardcover

Shortlisted for the 2023 Booker Prize A taut, enthralling first novel about grief, sisterhood, a… read more

Similar categories in Chetna Maroo's Western Lane book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook
Cover of River East, River West by Aube Rey Lescure

11. River East, River West

By: Aube Rey Lescure

4.04

Format: 352 pages, Hardcover

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION Set against the backdrop of developing modern Chin… read more

Similar categories in Aube Rey Lescure's River East, River West book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • historical
  • audiobook
"They each had puzzle pieces that might never lock into a flat smooth hole."

-Aube Rey Lescure, River East, River West

"She was alone and grown. And had somehow done the worst thing a Chinese woman could do, whore herself out to a white man"

-Aube Rey Lescure, River East, River West

"She told her mother the most important, most devastating thing that had happened to her and somehow it had turned into a fight."

-Aube Rey Lescure, River East, River West

"She still said nothing. You are fifteen and this is living life, she thought. She'd be like Serena or Blair or those girls on TV. Powerful."

-Aube Rey Lescure, River East, River West

Cover of A Flat Place: Moving Through Empty Landscapes, Naming Complex Trauma by Noreen Masud

12. A Flat Place: Moving Through Empty Landscapes, Naming Complex Trauma

By: Noreen Masud

4.20

Format: 256 pages, Paperback

A surprising and lyrical journey—part memoir, part nature book—meditating on the meaning of "flatne… read more

Similar categories in Noreen Masud's A Flat Place: Moving Through Empty Landscapes, Naming Complex Trauma book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • biography
  • memoir
  • biography memoir
  • nonfiction
  • audiobook
"We tell stories to make them visible. Or we tell stories so that we don’t have to look at them any longer."

-Noreen Masud, A Flat Place: Moving Through Empty Landscapes, Naming Complex Trauma

"Supposedly trauma transcends language and time, and is therefore untellable. Perhaps sometimes it does and is. But I think traumatized people do know how to tell their stories. What’s difficult is th…"

-Noreen Masud, A Flat Place: Moving Through Empty Landscapes, Naming Complex Trauma

"Supposedly, trauma transcends language and time, and is therefore untellable. Perhaps sometimes it does, and is. But I think traumatized people do know how to tell their stories. What’s difficult is …"

-Noreen Masud, A Flat Place: Moving Through Empty Landscapes, Naming Complex Trauma

"I was held captive by this unyielding, silent space, and I began to understand two things. The flatness wasn’t an absence - not in the way we might assume it is - but something strong and original an…"

-Noreen Masud, A Flat Place: Moving Through Empty Landscapes, Naming Complex Trauma

Cover of Restless Dolly Maunder by Kate Grenville

13. Restless Dolly Maunder

By: Kate Grenville

3.88

Format: 256 pages, Kindle Edition

Dolly Maunder was born at the end of the nineteenth century, when society’s long-locked doors were … read more

Similar categories in Kate Grenville's Restless Dolly Maunder book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • historical
  • audiobook
Cover of The Britannias: An Archipelago's Tale by Alice Albinia

14. The Britannias: An Archipelago's Tale

By: Alice Albinia

3.53

Format: 512 pages, Hardcover

A revelatory portrait of Britain through its islands, The Britannias weaves history, myth, and trav… read more

Similar categories in Alice Albinia's The Britannias: An Archipelago's Tale book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • historical
  • nonfiction
  • history
  • audiobook
Cover of The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary by Sarah Ogilvie

15. The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary

By: Sarah Ogilvie

3.88

Format: 368 pages, Hardcover

A history and celebration of the many far-flung volunteers who helped define the English language, … read more

Similar categories in Sarah Ogilvie's The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • history
  • biography
  • historical
  • nonfiction
  • audiobook
"Murray took Dictionary work with him to the hospital when Ada was giving birth. If you look at page 2, column 1 of the first volume of the printed Dictionary, twenty-third line from the bottom, you w…"

-Sarah Ogilvie, The Dictionary People: The Unsung Heroes Who Created the Oxford English Dictionary

Cover of Nightbloom by Peace Adzo Medie

16. Nightbloom

By: Peace Adzo Medie

3.96

Format: 352 pages, Hardcover

Peace Adzo Medie, author of Reese’s Book Club pick His Only Wife , returns with a moving novel abou… read more

Similar categories in Peace Adzo Medie's Nightbloom book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook
Cover of Young Queens: Three Renaissance Women and the Price of Power by Leah Redmond Chang

17. Young Queens: Three Renaissance Women and the Price of Power

By: Leah Redmond Chang

4.18

Format: 416 pages, Hardcover

The boldly original, dramatic intertwined story of Catherine de’ Medici, Elisabeth de Valois, and M… read more

Similar categories in Leah Redmond Chang's Young Queens: Three Renaissance Women and the Price of Power book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • history
  • biography
  • historical
  • biography memoir
  • nonfiction
  • audiobook
Cover of The Blue, Beautiful World by Karen Lord

18. The Blue, Beautiful World

By: Karen Lord

3.00

Format: 256 pages, Hardcover

As first contact transforms the Earth, a group of gifted visionaries race to create a new future in… read more

Similar categories in Karen Lord's The Blue, Beautiful World book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook
Cover of The Upside-Down World: Meetings with the Dutch Masters by Benjamin Moser

19. The Upside-Down World: Meetings with the Dutch Masters

By: Benjamin Moser

4.20

Format: 395 pages, Hardcover

A Washington Post Notable Book of 2023Plunged into a strange land at twenty-five, Benjamin Moser be… read more

Similar categories in Benjamin Moser's The Upside-Down World: Meetings with the Dutch Masters book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • art
  • art history
  • biography
  • memoir
  • history
  • nonfiction
Cover of Code Dependent: Living in the Shadow of AI by Madhumita Murgia

20. Code Dependent: Living in the Shadow of AI

By: Madhumita Murgia

4.10

Format: 320 pages, Hardcover

A riveting story of what it means to be human in a world changed by artificial intelligence, reveal… read more

Similar categories in Madhumita Murgia's Code Dependent: Living in the Shadow of AI book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • nonfiction
  • audiobook
Cover of A Trace of Sun by Pam Williams

21. A Trace of Sun

By: Pam Williams

3.73

Format: 389 pages, Kindle Edition

‘Don’t go Mammy please.’ Stuttered words filled her ears, sent frissons of guilt through her as she… read more

Similar categories in Pam Williams's A Trace of Sun book and Laura Cumming's Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

  • audiobook

19 Top audiobook books like Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death by Laura Cumming

Transform Your Habits

Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death

Laura Cumming

4.19

Transform Your Habits

The Wren, the Wren

Anne Enright

3.55

Transform Your Habits

Wifedom: Mrs. Orwell's Invisible Life

Anna Funder

4.13

Transform Your Habits

Enter Ghost

Isabella Hammad

4.09

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21 must-read fiction books like Nightbloom by Peace Adzo Medie

Transform Your Habits

The Wren, the Wren

Anne Enright

3.55

Transform Your Habits

A Spell of Good Things

Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

3.79

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The Maiden

Kate Foster

4.05

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Isabella Hammad

4.09

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