The motif of the reading woman has fascinated generations of artists. La liseuse, the reading woman, became a popular subject in painting from the eighteenth to the early twentieth century. But why are women such passionate readers? Is it the pleasure of retreating into their own world? The search for solitude and peace? The joy in provocative ideas and original thoughts? The desire to let their imagination run free, to daydream, or to be thoroughly entertained? Captivated by the written word, women allow themselves to be enchanted, seduced, amused, and moved – and often enough, they understand what holds the world together at its core. Images of reading women inevitably evoke reminiscences of personal reading experiences and encounters. Women and their books – this is a timeless theme that seems to lead us into the heart of female existence. This book.