All the beauty in the world
£10.99
Millions of people climb the grand marble staircase into New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art every year. But only a select few have unrestricted access to every nook and cranny. They’re the guards in dark blue suits, keeping careful watch over this vast treasure house. Caught up in the early days of a glamorous journalism career, Patrick Bringley never thought he’d be one of them. Then his brother was diagnosed with fatal cancer and he needed to escape the mundane clamour of daily life. So he quit, and sought solace in the most beautiful place he knew. To his surprise, this temporary refuge becomes his home away from home for a decade. We follow him as he guards delicate treasures from Egypt to Rome, strolls the labyrinths beneath the galleries, and discovers how restorative art can be.
** THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AND SUNDAY TIMES ART BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023 **
A revelatory portrait of a great museum and the moving story of one guard's quest to find solace and meaning in art
'Who would have thought that the outstanding art book of you would have been written not by a curator or an art historian or even an artist – but by a museum guard?' Sunday Times
When Patrick’s older brother dies at twenty-six, all he wants is to retreat. So, he does. He quits his job and seeks refuge in the most beautiful place he can think of: New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
All the Beauty in the World recounts Patrick’s time as a museum guard, keeping quiet vigil over some of our greatest treasures and uncovering the Met’s innermost secrets. As his connection to the art and the life that swirls around it grows, so does Patrick – and gradually he emerges transformed by heartbreak, community and the power of art to illuminate life in all its pain, pleasure and hope.
'As luminous as the old masters paintings' Daily Mail
'Consoling and beautiful' Guardian
'Marvellous' Daily Telegraph
'A beautiful tale about beauty. It is also a tale about grief, balancing solitude and comradeship, and finding joy in both the exalted and the mundane' Washington Post
*New York Times bestseller, Nov 24
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