I still enjoy Picasso's genius as an artist, but after reading this book, I do not respect him as a person. Francoise Gilot lived with Picasso for more than 10 years. Together, they had 2 children, Claude and Paloma. Her recollections show him to be egotistical, self-centered, bad tempered and an all around pain in the ass! I don't know if one has to be this way to be a great artist, but Picasso certainly was not a fine person. The descriptions of the artistic process are interesting, and there are numerous discussions of other artists and their relationships with Picasso. The book does give some insight into what made Picasso tick and how he thought about his art.
This is an amazing acount of Picasso and his life through the eyes of a woman he loved very much. It is very interesting and very genuine.
